Korey Lee covered the 115-year SCMP’s new startup culture and evolution into a new era of Big Data and effective audience engagement
 
Korey Lee, SCMP’s director of Data Analytics and Insights, spoke at the integrated branding and marketing conference, MarketingPulse, on the topic “Data Transformation in the context of Digital Transformation at SCMP”, in association with IAB Hong Kong powered by HKDMA. Lee drew from his experience in machine learning and data analytics, including that which he gained in his roles prior to joining SCMP, to present his insights into a new era of effective audience engagement, including addressing the growing challenge of attracting attention among today’s increasing distractions.
 
Lee expounded on the phenomena of both information and audience fragmentation giving rise to not only the challenge of effective tracking, but also difficulties in properly realising Big Data’s potential in the face of these diverse data sources.
 
He covered how SCMP uses automation and new data tools to dive deep and extract value so as to deliver the right content, product, or want to the right customer at the right time, and how the results of these efforts led the SCMP to create specialised, targeted niche products such as the digital lifestyle-focussed Abacus, and the China-oriented Inkstone for globally curious younger millennials, among SCMP’s other formats, platforms, and apps.
 
Lee also spoke of SCMP undergoing a cultural and operational transformation into a global brand, with the 115-year-old newspaper adopting a startup mentality, and taking advantage of Hong Kong’s unique position, with enough press freedom and China proximity to lead the global conversation on China through a non-Western perspective.