Southeast Asia's digital advertising firm Thoughtful Media Group aims to attract 2,000 Filipino content creators or influencers this year amid the booming global creator economy seen to reach a market value of $500 billion in the next four years.

Thoughtful Media Group CEO Dennis Nguyen said it already has 10,000 content creators across Southeast Asia who use the firm's services to connect with brands and help design effective and wide-reaching advertising campaigns on social media.

"Our plans in the Philippines are multifold," Nguyen said Monday in an interview on the Daily Tribune's show Business Sense with Komfie Manalo. "First, we want to create a large influencer pool on board. We are actively identifying the up-and-coming influencers on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook and having conversations with such people; they're very interested. We have signed up several people quickly since our launch in Manila a couple of weeks ago."

According to him, the second order of business is to market to advertisers actively.

"Big companies, a couple of the companies sponsoring your television, your webcast today, are very interested in Thoughtful Media products and joining that advertising platform. We are lining up advertisers," he added.

The creator economy brings influencers, brands, and advertising companies to market products and services and promotes ideas using social media. So far, the creator economy expanded to a market value of $250 billion over the past five years.

"We're actively going out to the market, identifying the up-and-coming influencers on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. We've signed up several people very quickly since our launch in Manila a couple of weeks ago," Nguyen said Monday in an interview on the Daily Tribune's show Business Sense with Komfie Manalo.

Nguyen said the Philippines offers ample opportunities for digital advertising as the country has a high Internet penetration rate of over 80 percent.

"The creator economy now is slightly bigger in North America, especially the United States and Europe. But Asia is forecasted to be the biggest part of the creator economy in the next four years," he stressed.

As a business, Nguyen said the company is meticulous in partnering with the right influencers who amplify the identities of partner brands and has established a substantial number of active followers.

'Big companies, a couple of the companies sponsoring your television, your webcast today, are very interested in Thoughtful Media products and joining that advertising platform. We are lining up advertisers.'

"For example, that lady has one million followers. Is this person having engagements with their posts? What products is she selling? Do her followers buy what she advertises? The influencer and product have to be appropriate and aligned with what advertiser will come in," he explained.

Nguyen said his company produces advertisements with other firms, such as financial institutions, real estate developers, mall operators, online stores, and retail brands.