Project: Two-way Radio Car Runover Test

Background:

Motorola RPG wanted to promote its GP68 two-way radio in a unique, innovative and memorable way to enhance public recall of the product. The plan was to highlight GP68 radio as the toughest and most durable two-way communication tool. In addition to helping increase awareness on the Motorola radios, the MarCom objectives are designed to convince its dealers and distributors to aggressively market the radio and at the same time penetrate a new market segment for Motorola - the young professionals.

Strategy:

An event dubbed "The Two-way Radio Car Runover Test" was held to prove the strength of Motorola's GP68 radio. WORLDCOM (Phils.) coordinated with one of the top five FM radio stations in the country to hype up the event for Motorola RPG. The car runover test was held in a public area frequented by young upper and middle class men and women on a weekend to create an alternative audience and let as many people as possible to witness the event. Selected print and broadcast media people were invited to witness the event in order to generate greater media mileage.

Actions:

1. Tie-up with radio stations which covered the event through live/remote broadcast announcements.
2. Giveaways (e.g. caps, pins, shirts, etc.) to motorists and the public within the vicinity.
3. Car runover every hour starting at 10:00 am until 6:00 pm
4. An on-the-air five-minute interview with the country manager of Motorola RPG by one of the radio station's hosts.

Result:

The Motorola Two-way Radio Car Runover Test substantiated GP68's slogan "We're Talking Tough Here!". Motorola GP68 radio still worked after having been runover by 12 different vehicle types, ranging from 2-wheel to 4-wheel drives. More than a hundred people from the upper and middle AB classes got curious, and visited the Motorola booth. Every national daily came out with the car runover release. The event was also featured in the business segment of a top-rated news program. Dealers noted that sales of Motorola GP68 went up during the quarter after the event. In view of the increase in GP68 sales volume and the media mileage and public awareness it generated, Motorola is planning to duplicate this event in other Asian countries.

Project: Pre-launch Publicity Campaign

Background:

ACeSPhil is the newest Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite service operator. The company was set to launch the service in November 22, 2000. Prior to the launch ACeSPhil wanted to generate awareness and appreciation for their GMPCS service, which is a fairly new technology. ACeSPhil also wanted to overcome some misconceptions about GMPCS being expensive and impractical due to the cumbersome handsets being used. These misconceptions were borne out of the track record of ACeSPhil's predecessors, namely Iridium and Globalstar.

Strategy:

An intensive pre-launch publicity campaign was initiated focusing on the benefits and advantages of ACeSPhil. A media plan was developed by WORLDCOM (Phils.) to strategically and effectively educate and inform the public about ACeSPhil and to shape the perceptions of the public on the technology.

Actions:

1. Industry research on the current situation of mobile communications in the Philippines conducted by InfoRRMMS Consulting, a subsidiary of WORLDCOM (Phils.).
2. Development of print advertorial highlighting the advantages of using the ACeSPhil.
3. Drafting of several articles and press releases dealing with a broad range of information and issues relevant to ACeSPhil in accordance with the media plan.
4. Development of a product brochure targeting ACeSPhil's niche markets.
5. Conduct of several TV interviews with technology-oriented shows like Stock Market Live: Tech Talk (ANC).
6. Press Launch with key media people to establish rapport and create support for ACeSPhil, immediately followed by a thematic Market Launch at The Tent in Fort Bonifacio.

Result:

The pre-launch publicity campaign has created excitement among ACeSPhil's target markets with a number of companies and individual submitting pre-launch orders in anticipation of the service. After the successful launch of the ACeSPhil Service the marketing communications efforts for the product was handed over to SMART Communications where it is now known as SMART ACeS Satellite GSM.

Project: Marketing Communications

Background:

The National Statistics Office (NSO) with the help of Unisys (Phils.), Inc. is set to launch e-Census (www.e-Census.com.ph), an online service that allows users to request for birth, marriage and death certificates online. After the request has been processed the desired certificate is then delivered to the user. Prior to e-Census, people had to go and line up at the NSO office in Manila to request for the certificates. This was particularly time consuming and costly for people living outside Manila.

Strategy:

A nationwide marketing communications campaign highlighting the advantages and convenience that e-Census provides the public was mounted.

Actions:

1. A press conference immediately followed by a formal launch attended by guests from institutions, like travel agents, embassies, the SSS and GSIS, who would also benefit from e-Census was staged to kick-off e-Census. PC stations with access to e-Census were set-up in the venue with media and guests as the firsts to use the service.
2. TV interviews with tech-oriented shows like Digital Tour (Studio 23) and popular morning shows like Alas Singko Y Medya (ABS-CBN) was facilitated to further promote the service.
3. e-Census posters were developed and placed in strategic locations, such as internet cafes, nationwide.
4. Constant media releases through press materials supported the key messages highlighted by the campaign.
5. A media blitz directed to regional newspapers like SunStar Cebu was implemented to strengthen awareness for e-Census on a regional scale.

Result:

The communications strategy employed to promote e-Census generated much enthusiasm and support for the service. In its first month, more than 1000 requests, not to mention the site hits, for various certificates were logged through e-Census.

Project: Information Education Campaign

Background:

The National Statistics Office (NSO) under the NSO Civil Registry System (NSO-CRS) project is currently pursuing the computerization of its processes for its civil registry services. The CRS aims to bring NSO's services closer to the public and provide them with a more convenient and cost-effective means of acquiring copies of their birth, marriage and death certificates and securing Certificates of No Marriage Record (CENOMAR).

At present, the NSO receives an average of 10,000 to 14,000 requests daily for copies of civil registry documents. With the full implementation of the NSO-CRS, the agency envisions the expeditious processing of requests, shorter queues at the application and payment counters with improved facilities. In the course of the project, six Metro Manila outlets and seventy-eight regional/provincial outlets will be established nationwide to achieve its vision of a "request-anywhere" capability. These outlets will be known as the "Census Serbilis Centers".

Strategy:

An Information and Education Campaign on the extent and difficulty of implementing the NSO-CRS project was implemented while managing the expectations of the public through increased awareness.

Actions:

1. Developed collaterals and equipment for the Census Serbilis Centers that are user-friendly in order to facilitate an efficient transition to the new system. These include transactional aids, site streamers, signages and an interactive instructional video.
2. Facilitated TV and radio interviews to illicit the public's patience and cooperation while the NSO-CRS project is going through its transition phase.

Result:

Despite the technical problems, difficulties and delays usually encountered in undertakings with the size and scope as the NSO-CRS Project, the system is well on its way to full implementation and acceptance with the opening of several Census Serbilis Centers. This was made possible through an effective Information and Education Campaign that strengthened the public's awareness and appreciation of the project.

Project: Sponsorship Marketing

Background:

The World Young Business Achiever Award is an annual competition recognizing outstanding first-generation entrepreneurs from all over the world. It started in 1995 and has been going around the world for its yearly World Finals. The host country sponsors the air fare, accommodation and other expenses of World Finalists from other countries; therefore intensive sponsorship efforts should be in place.

The Philippines has been an active proponent of WYBA and has won several awards since 1995. In 2002, Manila hosted the 8th WYBA World Finals in November of the said year. Twelve countries and more than 50 delegates participated in the competitions. A Business Forum was held participated in by delegates and a Filipino audience. The Grand Awards Night was held in Malacañang Palace attended by top government officials and the private sector.

Strategy:

A sponsorship marketing strategy was employed to raise funds for the event which covers air fare of candidates, hotel accommodations, incidentals, sponsored functions and exchange deals with media.

Actions:

1. Developing sponsorship packages for traditional sponsorship marketing.
2. Traditional sponsorship marketing and exchange deals were forged.
3. Staged an intensive corporate sponsorship effort for the WYBA while forging partnerships with private companies, government agencies and non-government organizations.
4. Forge exchange deals with media outfits for media mileage of sponsors. Staged a press conference to hype up publicity and promotion.

Result:

With the challenge of raising funds for an international event, the 8th WYBA World Finals in Manila was well participated in by delegates from all over the world. Much support was gained from the media and the government and private sectors. The funds generated amounted to less than PhP3M. This amount contributed greatly to the defrayal of the expenses incurred during the World Finals.

Project: Corporate Reputation Management

Background:

Syngenta is a world-leading agribusiness committed to sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology. The company is a leader in crop protection, seeds and biotechnology.

Syngenta Philippines was incorporated on 16 February 2001, a product of the merger of Novartis Agro Philippines and Zeneca Agrochemicals.

Very little about the company is known outside the agribusiness industry. Due to its expanding business, Syngenta has decided to embark on a corporate reputation management campaign to establish company's reputation as the leading global agribusiness solutions provider among its stakeholders.

One of the activities undertaken for the corporate reputation management campaign is the sponsorship of the first Philippine Summit for the News Media held on January 29 to 31, 2004. Considering media as one of its key stakeholders, Syngenta saw the sponsorship of the media summit as a good opportunity to introduce itself and develop contacts among the news media.

In exchange for a sponsorship fee of P120,000.00, Syngenta was acknowledged in all the conference collaterals and advertising placements. Syngenta was also credited for the lunch served after the first session of the conference.

Strategy:

Considering that there were several sponsors for the media summit, it was easy for Syngenta to become one among many sponsors that are easily forgotten. Worldcom saw the need to enhance the value of Syngenta's sponsorship of the media summit beyond the standard exposure provided by the organizers.

Actions:

1. Coordinate with organizers to include a 15-minute presentation by Syngenta before the sponsored lunch.
2. Develop a presentation on sustainable agriculture entitled "Renewing the Strength of Philippine Agriculture". The presentation introduced Syngenta through a 2-minute corporate ad on the role of the company in sustainable agriculture and food security. The presentation discussed the current state and potential of Philippine agriculture, the importance of a strong agriculture sector, and how the government, private sector and media contribute to renewing Philippine agriculture.

Result:

Prior to the presentation, as expected the media summit participants didn't have an idea on what Syngenta was. The first session prior to Syngenta's presentation and sponsored lunch was entitled News and Public Affairs Media as Power, where one of the main discussion points was the need for media to provide adequate focus on positive news.

The discussions held during the first session served as a good backdrop for Syngenta's presentation, where it was suggested that developments and news from the agriculture sector maybe one of the media's sources for positive news. Rather than just delivering a straight forward company presentation, the customized presentation on sustainable agriculture became a relevant component of the first session and allowed Syngenta to contribute to the objectives and concerns of the media summit.

Project: Corporate Communications Campaign

Background:

In 1998 GoldQuest International, Ltd a retailer of gold products, specifically numismatic (collector) gold coins as well as gold coin jewelry was established, with the Philippines as its first market. Being the pioneer in the Philippine gold coin retailing industry, GoldQuest was met with a lot of skepticism about its credibility in view of the high value of the products they carry.

Strategy:

A corporate communications campaign was launched and anchored on GoldQuest's high quality products and its partnership with an international mint that supplies their products. The cornerstones of the campaign served as proof of the integrity and credibility of GoldQuest.

Actions:

1. Benchmarking of the public's perceptions.
2. Development of corporate name and logo.
3. Thematic product launches highlighting the uniqueness and value of the coins.
4. Design and development of various marketing collaterals highlighting the company's numerous products.
5. Development of the company's newsletter, The Quest, as means of communicating with the company's customers.
6. Feature articles on the story behind each coin were crafted and strategically published. Articles highlighting the enhanced capability gained by GoldQuest through its partnership with an international mint were also developed.

Result:

From its initial foray that began in the Philippines, GoldQuest has grown to be a top retailer of gold coins worldwide leading to the establishment of seven (7) representative offices outside the Philippines. The global expansion of GoldQuest has been propelled further by the company's successful e-commerce strategy.