Case studies: 3 Foreign companies that penetrate Thailand using LINE OA strategy

To achieve success in Thailand’s digital marketing landscape, look no further than LINE Official Account- the number 1 communication platform among Thais.

According to a LINE report from 2019, Thai users are generally happy to receive promotional messages on LINE, with roughly 70% of surveyed users indicating that their most preferred type of content is brand promotions. 

In this article, IH Digital will provide examples of foreign brands that are leveraging LINE to penetrate the Thai market, as well as marketing strategies that tap on the unique features of LINE.

The LINE OA strategy employed by foreign companies

Sanitarium LINE OA strategy

Let’s start with Sanitarium, the # 1 plant-based milk brand from Australia. Sanitarium has adopted LINE as a way to do social media marketing in addition to Facebook and Instagram. LINE’s primary functions are 1. customer relationship management and 2. send special promotional messages through the Broadcast function, direct into the inbox of 100% of their LINE OA followers.

In order to disseminate the promotional messages through Broadcast effectively, Sanitarium had to first acquire a significant number of followers, and it was achieved through a LINE contest, – also promoted on their other owned social channels including Facebook and Instagram. The result was satisfactory, helping Sanitarium boost up follower count by more than 500 people in a short span of time.

 

Learn more: LINE Contest: Sanitarium Thailand Is Giving Away 10 Prizes Worth 2K Baht Each This Summer 2020

DEKALB LINE OA strategy

The next brand is DEKALB, a top-quality crop science brand from Bayer, focusing on farmers as the target audience. To achieve the goal of high engagement rate and low block rate, DEKALB produces contents that are deemed highly relevant to farmers, such as introducing new farming products, as well as providing applicable agronomic tips and information about corn.

Moreover, DEKALB also uses LINE OA as the main customer relationship management platform, taking in enquiries from new and existing customers, and these questions often revolve around pricing and distribution channels. This helps DEKALB convert social media engagement into sales effectively.

In terms of growing a solid follower base, DEKALB employs the same strategy as Sanitarium- organizing LINE contests and promoting the contests on Facebook. Through a recent successful contest, DEKALB managed to double its follower count. 

Here’s the success formula – attractive prizes, simple contest mechanism, drive participation from other social channels, and keep engaging with your audience when they have questions about the contest.

 

Learn more: Dekalb doubles LINE OA friends with LINE contest.

Swarovski LINE OA strategy

Thirdly, Swarovski, a premium jewelry brand from Austria, uses the LINE Broadcast function to send information about new collections and special promotions directly to 100% of their LINE OA followers.

As a best practice to grow LINE friends organically, Swarovski attaches its LINE OA link in almost every Facebook post,  hence effectively directing traffic from its well-established Facebook page to the LINE OA. 

In recent months, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Thailand’s department stores had to halt operations, impacting Swarovski’s retail business. However, Swarovski turned this crisis into opportunity- the brand enhanced its LINE OA’s customer relationship management into a personal shopper service. 

Just by adding Swarovski’s LINE OA, customers are able to privately message the brand to order products, make payments, and arrange for delivery. 

This strategy, again, successfully converts social media engagements into sales.

Learn more: Swarovski Strategies To Grow LINE Friends Organically

Reach your target audiences in Thailand with LINE

If you have your eyes set on the Thai market for your business, do add LINE as part of your digital marketing strategy for growth in brand loyalty and sales.

LINE is the third most used social media platform in Thailand, trailing behind just two of the world’s biggest tech giants, Facebook (93%) and YouTube (91%).

The Japan-based mobile messenger app has grown tremendously in Thailand, with 22 million registered LINE app users in 2014, which doubled to 44 million in Q2 2019. It is also Thailand’s top mobile app by monthly active users and overall revenue according to a 2018 report by Hootsuite, and We Are Social.

Build Up Your Online Presence in Thailand with LINE Marketing!

IH Digital can help you expand reach in the Thai market with our LINE services. We will assist you with opening a LINE Official Account, run LINE ads, create LINE contests, plan LINE OA strategy, and set up LINE MyShop.

Are you ready to get started? Contact us today to learn more about our LINE capabilities.