Two-thirds of Southeast Asian consumers are fatigued and tuning out repetitive ads on a single channel. That’s the top-line finding from The Untapped Opportunity of Omnichannel, The Trade Desk's latest study with PA Consulting, which explored how 8,000 consumers behave with media and advertising across Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
The root cause of fatigue is simple: fragmentation
The average consumer here fluidly spends more than eight hours a day across five or more media environments, yet many marketing campaigns are still bought in silos, with channel-specific budgets, disconnected strategies, and little coordination. The result is wasted spend for brands and overexposure for audiences: even if in the simplest terms, a single channel caps impressions, the same creative can appear repeatedly across multiple, disconnected channels in a single day. This repetition erodes both attention and sentiment, especially across digital natives like Gen Z, who are 57% more likely to be annoyed than other generations when they see the same brand on repeat.
The takeaway: Fix the fragmentation or lose the audience.
From fragmentation to connection
Our analysis points to a clear alternative: connect three or more channels into a single, audience-first strategy on a unified platform. Our research shows that when campaigns are integrated this way, ad fatigue drops by 2.2x, persuasion increases by 1.7x. In tangible terms, that means a viewer is far less likely to get annoyed and far more likely to be influenced by your message when you orchestrate ads across channels in concert. Even better, the efficiency gains can be impactful - marketers have seen campaign ROI improve by at least 30% when connecting just three channels, rising to 70% or more with five channels integrated.
In short, omnichannel turns disconnect into connection, and the payoff is a happier audience and a healthier brand campaign performance.
Dissecting omnichannel strengths by channels
Omnichannel is about sequencing and context, delivering the right message, at the right time, on the right channel. A day might start with a DOOH teaser, continue with an audio ad during a commute and finish with a personalised online video offer, each touchpoint building on the last. Our report breaks down channel strengths further.
Here are some examples:
CTV/OTT, building connection and trust
Three in five Southeast Asians own or use a smart TV. Singapore leads with usage 30% above the regional average. In Thailand, CTV boosts recall by 23% and trust by 16%.
Audio, lasting recall
Streaming rules and podcasts are gaining momentum with one in three more listeners than last year. Half say they remember brands here better than on any other channel.
DOOH, priming behaviours
Seen weekly by 71% SEA consumers, DOOH dominates morning exposure, planting memorable messages during commute that make later touchpoints more effective.
Online Video & Display, driving action
84% watch online video daily; two-thirds browse websites. 55% say ads influence purchases (66% in Thailand).
My call to action to marketers
We understand that marketers across the region are under more pressure than ever to prove to their companies that they are an engine for growth. The most effective way I believe to do that is to leverage the understanding of not only where audiences are, but what moments and channels will drive the most connection. Building connections is what drives growth.
Whilst, audience attention is finite, relevance and connection can scale. The findings make one thing obvious: ad fatigue isn’t inevitable, it’s a symptom of disconnected strategies. Consumers in SEA remain receptive when ads are relevant: half say they influence purchase decisions, well above global averages.
The path forward is clear
Unify planning, buying and measurement on a single platform, sequence messages across the journey, and focus on high-trust environments that build recall and credibility. Brands that take this approach will cut through fragmentation and turn each ad into more meaningful, memorable moments.
In a world of limiting consumer attention, the winners will be the ones that consistently deliver more relevance - compounding brand equity that pays off longer term.
You can explore the full findings in The Untapped Opportunity of Connected Omnichannel here.
Authored by Simon Morgan, SVP, Business Development - South Asia, The Trade Desk.
The Trade Desk are partners of The Marketing Society
