As we spent our Christmas and New Year holidays in the Philippines visiting with family and friends, from the pristine and quiet beaches of Puerto Galera to the hustle and bustle of Metro Manila, I couldn’t help but notice how similar and, at the same time, how different the Philippine and American cultures are.
Then my next thought was how technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and deep learning need to account for similarities and differences across geographies, people, cultures, and societies. Not a trivial undertaking and if we choose to ignore or consider less important can potentially have sustained impacts on economies, morality, humanity, and more. In the martech (marketing technology) world, some have discussed the opportunity to combine data science with social science, and it requires the human element. IBM refers to this need for humans and machines to work together as augmented intelligence or intelligence augmented (IA, not to be confused with AI meaning artificial intelligence). Rather than replacing human intelligence, augmented intelligence capitalize on the combination of algorithms, machine learning, and data science to inform human decision-making abilities. In other words, the human element can’t be forgotten.
Augmenting Knowledge of Less Predictable Human Elements with AI
Throughout my marketing career, I’ve always worked for multinational companies serving customers all over the world. That, plus me being an immigrant, has made me extra sensitive and passionate about deeply understanding different target segments, especially people’s motivations, challenges, desires, fears, preferences, beliefs, biases, passions, attitudes, values, and the reasons for these differences.
Segment characteristics like firmographics (e.g., industry, revenue, number of employees, headquarters location) and demographics (e.g., age, gender, household income, years of education, race) tend to be easier to analyze and action. However, digging deep into sociographics (e.g., values, beliefs, culture) and reflecting it as an integral part of sales and marketing efforts are much more complex but I would argue are, ultimately, more interesting and have more profound impacts.
As more companies globalize their businesses and go through or enable digital transformation, the need to automate, predict, and act on-demand has become critical to ensure a fast and agile business. As they say, transform or die, right? It’s happening in all facets of the business—manufacturing, product development, engineering, inventory, e-commerce, finance, supply chain, sales and marketing, logistics, and more. However, we run the risk of compromising deep consideration of sociographic elements for speed and agility. One can imagine a much better outcome when we apply human intelligence about peoples’ values and beliefs in conjunction with AI.
Deeper Understanding of Sociographics
Just for fun and to offer real life examples to analyze, I’d like to share with you some sociographics about the Filipino culture. I’m Filipino American. I was born and raised in Manila and have been living in the US for the past 35 years. I’ve been fortunate to have opportunities to visit friends and family for vacations (as I just did recently) and have dropped by occasionally when I’m in Asia for work.
Let’s think about how AI can help and how we may need to augment AI with human intelligence about less predictable, unique, or even irrational segment behaviors to determine the best ways to market, sell, and serve. Some of these examples might have more relevance to B2C companies and others to B2B companies. However, even B2B companies can benefit from deeply understanding the ultimate end users’ behaviors—it’s about understanding not just our customers but also our customers’ customers.
1. Malling is Cultural. Online shopping in the Philippines can and does present some challenges, from slow or no Internet access to traffic congestion with the ever increasing number of vehicles on already crowded streets of Manila. The traffic makes executing a concept like Amazon Prime nearly impossible given that even emergency vehicles have a tough time navigating through the dense traffic. There’s no space for other vehicles to move to make way for ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks. Package delivery would probably take more like a week or more. But these aren’t necessarily the reasons why malls are flourishing and more malls are being built.
You wouldn’t think you’re in a developing nation when entering these mega malls. Some are multi-story buildings interconnected by overpasses built over busy roads, occupying five or six square blocks. And rest assured that you’ll find stores for most well-known global retail brands.
Malls are not just for shopping in the Philippines. Malls are a place for family and friends to gather. With air conditioning, they’re also a place where people escape the heat. Because of the heavy, everyday traffic in Metro Manila, malls have become a one-stop destination for literally everything. Yes, everything! (Running errands would be a full-time job and quite stressful if you had to go to different places to buy different things.) You can shop for shoes and furniture, buy drill bits, eat lunch, enjoy a movie, entertain the kids at a play zone, relax with a foot massage, grab groceries for the week, mail packages, pay bills, stroll along a rooftop garden, and watch amateur singers showcase their talents using demo karaoke machines (some of whom end up on YouTube and become YouTube sensations!). Worried about missing church on Sunday if you go to the mall? No problem, there are malls with churches complete with cry areas for the kids and multiple scheduled masses. That’s the ultimate in malling!
Think about the big data analytics at play here. We can collect so much data for different products and services plus a variety of behaviors and patterns, all in one mall complex. A marketer’s dream! It’s like shooting fish in a barrel. Think about the integrated marketing and omnichannel experience as people go from one store to another and also interact via mobile and web.
Someone who ignores or fails to recognize this cultural phenomenon can miss out and leave a lot on the table! AI can only go so far without this human intelligence.
2. A Round-the-Clock Society. The Philippines ranks fourth in the number of English speakers with 90 million people who know how to speak English. Excluding English-speaking countries like the US and the UK, the Philippines ranks sixth (behind Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland) where professionals are most proficient in English. In fact, because of the many dialects in the Philippines, you can say that English is the currency in the country, even among the locals.
The Filipinos’ fluency in English, close affinity to western culture, more patient trait which comes in handy in dealing with irate customers, and high problem-solving skills have contributed to the rise of value-added BPO (Business Process Outsourcing), such as contact centers, in the Philippines. Although people work graveyard hours, the industry offers lucrative opportunities and is an economic lifeline for many, employing more than a million people. People also benefit from not having to deal with rush hour traffic hence improving their quality of life. (How bad is the traffic in Metro Manila? It was ranked as having the “worst traffic on Earth,” based on a global evaluation conducted by Waze, a GPS-based navigation app. Filipinos don’t talk distance when traveling, they talk time. It may take 30 mins to go 3 km in parts of Metro Manila!)
24-hour fast food places have cropped up everywhere (not just at major highway exits) to cater to this growing segment of the market. When we arrived in Manila at 2 am on December 23rd, we drove by 24-hour Jollibee and McDonald’s with long lines and wall-to-wall people. As lunchtime shifts, so does happy hour. Booze start flowing at 6 am!
All sorts of business ideas come to mind when operating in a round-the-clock society. Pretty much everything that people typically do during the day may need to be done at night—from mailing things, to buying groceries, to picking up dry cleaning, and more. Imagine the role that AI and automation can play here given less resources available at night. But first, someone needs to deeply understand this way of living which is unique to certain parts of the world.
Ironically, AI is a double-edged sword as it can potentially threaten this industry, replacing people with machines and the use of chatbots. So the country is taking steps to complement the employees’ good command of the English language with training on data mining, analytics, and machine learning. This is yet another dynamic to watch closely to determine how it may affect a round-the-clock society.
3. Important Role of Status Symbols. Considered a third world nation, the Philippines suffers from a wide divide between the rich and the poor, with a miniscule middle class. People have gravitated towards status symbols to elevate others’ perception of their value and improve their self esteem, even for just a few fleeting moments.
As a result, preference towards wearing branded items like Nike, Gucci, Lacoste, and others abound. Starbucks is a place to see and be seen. Despite the meager wages, barely enough to feed their families, some people spend money on expensive coffee, not necessarily for great tasting coffee, but for the feeling of social acceptance and greater self worth.
People avoid extended sun exposure to keep from getting darker. On hot sunny days, you’d think that it’s raining outside because so many walk around with their umbrellas open. There’s a general perception or misconception that people with dark skin hail from poor farming families in the provinces. As a result, the popularity of skin whitening products has skyrocketed. Seeing beaches lined with sun worshipping Causasians next to locals sitting in the shade under coconut trees is quite comical. In a society that considers light skin to be more beautiful than dark, companies often feature mestizo and mestiza (part Filipino and part Caucasian) models, actors, and actresses on TV commercials, online ads, billboards, magazine covers, and movies.
It’s not easy to predict what may become a status symbol. But it starts with the realization that status symbols are an important part of the buying process and may, in fact, be the primary deciding factor.
Human intelligence about status symbols coupled with AI can create powerful brands, presence, and experiences in the market.
4. Hospitable and Service-Oriented People. The Filipinos’ passion for providing exceptional customer service is partly cultural and partly economic. The family is the nucleus of the social structure and includes the immediate family, extended family, godparents, and close family friends. New friends instantly feel part of the family as it is common for people to welcome new friends into their homes, share meals, and enjoy each other’s company. There are words to show respect for the people within the structure like Ate (older sister) and Kuya (older brother). Even close friends are referred to as Ate or Kuya, or Tita (Aunt) or Tito (Uncle). The sign of respect extends to the business world calling customers and supervisors as Sir or Madam/Mam and are often greeted with a smile.
Products, particularly imported goods, are expensive but services are cheap. Check out this promotion for a 70-minute, full body massage for 199 Philippine pesos. That’s $4!
The law of supply and demand is at work here. There are more people available to work than there are job opportunities. In the service industry (e.g., retail sales, salons and spas, entertainment, domestic helpers, etc.), people do their best to provide the best possible service to attract new customers, retain customers, and keep their jobs.
At a retail store, I had four sales ladies helping me find the right t-shirt size. You’d think I was buying hundreds of shirts. An employee at a fast food restaurant politely stopped me when I got up to put away my tray and throw trash in the bin myself. He told me his job is to do that for me. People may not be able to afford air conditioning, a washer and dryer, or a hot water heater, but they have a nanny, maid, and driver. Comfort, convenience, and time savings are achieved through cheap labor and not through machines, automation, and self-service.
One needs to carefully assess the effects of introducing automation and AI in the services industry as it can have significant economic and social implications, especially in a country already plagued with more available workers than jobs.
5. Nomadic Creatures. Many of the things we’ve already discussed are great proof points for why Filipinos are nomadic creatures: family orientation, high literacy rates and highly educated people, desire for a much better life and increased self worth, economic struggles, and lack of work opportunities.
Education in the Philippines is of paramount importance. It’s been described as “indispensable, a national legacy passed from one generation to the next.” Everyone deeply appreciates hard work in school and academic excellence. Medals are awarded, Top 10s (list of 10 kids with the highest grades in class) start in elementary school, Summa and Magna Cum Laudes are glorified, “topnotchers” in board and bar exams with their scores are full-page news, and parents speak proudly of their children’s accomplishments.
However, many find themselves unemployed or underemployed even with a college degree. Educated individuals in this situation are among the first to emigrate to find work. Additionally, the Philippine labor cost is among the lowest in Southeast Asia which makes Filipinos easy targets for overseas work. It is not uncommon to have families supported by a parent, spouse, sibling, or close relative working overseas. This puts immense pressure on tight-knit Filipino families but it is, oftentimes, what is necessary to sustain the family. Eventually, some are able to bring their entire family with them abroad. Here’s the top 10 list of countries where Filipinos migrate permanently, led by the US with greater than 3.1 million Filipino residents.
As we stood in line at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport to check-in for our flight back to the US, the area was packed with Filipinos going everywhere—San Francisco, Riyadh, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Abu Dhabi, Toronto, Melbourne, Tokyo, Kuwait City, London, etc. You’ll find many working in the healthcare, technology, aviation, hospitality, education, entertainment, and various service industries globally.
The impact of a highly nomadic society is far reaching, creating tentacles of brand awareness, advocacy, and loyalty (or the opposite) in more countries than originally intended, as an example. It is also a unique use case for businesses enabling real-time collaboration and communications, as well as electronic funds transfer. That human intelligence applied to assess this unique dynamic and the decision to pursue expansion then create an opportunity for AI to help introduce and scale the business in other parts of the world.
6. Proud to be Filipino. Filipinos are proud people—proud of their people, heritage, and country. They’re especially proud of successful people recognized internationally for their accomplishments: Manny Pacquiao (world boxing champion), Arnel Pineda (lead singer of Journey), Cheryl Diaz Meyer (Pulitzer Prize winner), Dr. Eduardo San Juan (NASA engineer who designed the moon buggy used by Apollo astronauts), Lea Salonga (Tony award winner for Miss Saigon and singing voices of Princess Jasmine and Mulan), Cristeta Comerford (White House Executive Chef), Pia Wurtzbach (Miss Universe 2015), Sean Reyes (Utah Attorney General), Monique Lhuillier (Hollywood fashion designer), Peter Valdes (co-founder of Tivoli Systems Inc., an IBM company), Liz Masakayan (1988 US Olympian in volleyball), Dr. Jose Natalio Rodriguez (inventor of the leprosy control program), Robert Lopez (Tony award winner, writer of Let It Go from the movie Frozen), and so many more.
Filipinos draw inspiration from these people, giving them hope that they can be more and accomplish more. But what’s more interesting is what happens when these successful Filipinos are featured on a world stage.
The crime rate dropped to zero in Metro Manila during the 12 rounds that Manny Pacquiao fought Floyd Mayweather, Jr. in 2015. Everyone, including criminals, tuned into the heavily advertised, pay-per-view fight. The author of the article Manny Pacquaio Fights for the Filipino points out that nothing connects Filipinos worldwide like Manny Pacquiao, “For Filipino Americans, it’s a battle for recognition, for identity in a culture where, for the mainstream, Asians tend to fade into a monochromatic racialized other.” Last year, Filipinos across the country stopped their normal routine to watch the Miss Universe pageant, hosted by the Philippines after more than two decades. Many beauty salons closed for the day. Beauty pageants are a cultural obsession.
From knowing not to schedule a live webinar during these times to predicting other potential impacts (e.g., street closures for parades, declaration of a national holiday, big rallies, jammed mobile networks, major stock market fluctuations, etc.) of these proud Filipino moments requires human intelligence. Complementing that with data-driven AI can transform how business is conducted to make the most out of these important micro instances, be-there-be-useful or avert.
Key Takeaways
None of these is rocket science but it’s worth reminding ourselves of the following:
AI is not intended to replace all human intelligence but to enhance and assist it.
Powerful sales and marketing stem from deeply understanding firmographics, demographics, and sociographics of customer segments.
Human intelligence can be better leveraged for knowledge of sociographic characteristics like values, beliefs, culture, biases, attitudes, particularly unpredictable, unique, and irrational behaviors.
Marrying the human element with AI not only helps with winning business in different cultures but also creates opportunities to personalize and make products and services more relevant.
In this digital transformation age, we can best affect change globally when humans and machines work together.
If you found this article helpful, please click the thumbs up icon below and let me know! Please feel free to share in the comments your thoughts, other examples of how machines and humans can work together, and potential impacts and implications. I also invite you to read my article on a separate but related marketing topic of telling a more human story, Humanize how we Market Technology as Technology Relies Less on Humans.