Manila, Philippines — Home Credit Philippines (HCPH), a consumer finance company, has launched the ‘Para sa Life’ campaign that shares a message of hope for a better life for Filipinos. This new initiative of Home Credit is launched through a campaign video with a song performed by Filipino singer-songwriter Moira dela Torre.

With the hope to inspire new beginnings, Home Credit positions itself as a reliable financial partner that assists Filipinos as they begin a new chapter in life. Apart from providing financial assistance and literacy, Home Credit aims to empower Filipinos to claim what they deserve and to jump-start a new life through various opportunities they offer.

Sheila Paul, CMO of HCPH, said, “This new song of Home Credit encapsulates the brand’s promise of companionship through the use of their easily accessible and affordable finance products, especially for the underbanked and underserved customers.”

Paul adds, “Furthermore, the song relays that Home Credit is ideal for young families and starting individuals who aspire to establish their lifelong plans and helping them turn small dreams into reality. The campaign video is posted on Home Credit’s Facebook and YouTube pages.

Aside from the new song and to continue its campaign for financial literacy Home Credit will be launching ‘Payo Para sa Life’ (‘Advice for Life’), a two-minute daily radio show. The show is produced in partnership with Manila Broadcasting Company (MBC), and local independent media agency PraXis.

The show aims to reach different communities and individuals across the country to discuss fundamental financial literacy issues and to educate them about the intricacies of finance, from primary budgeting to helping them make the most practical personal purchases. The radio show airs on DZRH primetime between 4:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. daily.

Singapore – Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), for the roll-out of its global campaign ‘Here for Good’, has partnered with dentsu for the use of its programmatic supply solution, dentsu Curate. 

SCB’s ‘Here for good’ has been piloted in September 2020 in more than 30 global markets, reinforcing the importance of global trade and SCB’s role in driving it. Around the same period, global communications network dentsu has launched dentsu Curate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKMBmDZaMVo

Dentsu Curate is a proprietary programmatic supply solution and is a proudly built-in Asia product. The communications network developed the solution in response to the emerging transparency issues in the programmatic industry, specifically the often-cluttered ecosystem where advertisers had to deal with a myriad of intermediaries and varying auction techniques. With a lot of work already going into demand-side optimization, dentsu Curate is positioned to be a strategic solution for clients’ supply path optimization (SPO) and curation needs, aimed at driving increased media visibility and campaign performance for brands. 

SCB was a marquee client for dentsu in the Asia Pacific region and was an early adopter of dentsu Curate.  

“To achieve the objective, dentsu Curate followed a meticulous planning and execution process; starting with the analysis of historical performance using granular data from existing demand and supply sources to identify and eliminate opaque supply paths and intermediaries. This was followed by curating high-quality video placements directly from publisher partners to drive engagement with complete transparency,” said Sunil Naryani, vice president for Commercials & Partnerships at dentsu Asia Pacific.

Asma Quadri, client partner at dentsu Asia Pacific, said that Standard Chartered has been a strategic client and has always challenged the network to bring constructive innovation in its work. 

“We are appreciative of their trust and openness to trying new solutions and we are delighted with the strong campaign improvements seen with dentsu Curate, highlighting the need and importance of incorporating a strong supply strategy to programmatic, alongside the ongoing DSP buying optimizations,” said Quadri. 

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Mimpikita, a local-based modest fashion label, has appointed martech company elfo in elevating its digital advertising and performance marketing initiatives.

Through the one-year partnership, elfo will be executing year-long bite-sized campaigns for Mimpikita to streamline and amplify its brand identity, as well as to align with the modest fashion label’s goals to be inclusive and provide meaningful experiences to its community known as #KitaGirls.

Furthermore, elfo will be running campaigns hand-in-hand with Mimpikita’s planned collections for the year. The campaigns, which will be deployed across all digital touchpoints – website, social media, email, conversational bot – are expected to build and uplift a Mimpikita community built on inclusivity, empowerment, and universal acceptance.

Mimpikita, originally founded by three sisters – Nurul, Amirah, and Syahira Zulkifli – has been in the fashion industry for more than 12 years, and has since then garnered a ‘local cult based on bespoke ready-to-wear pieces’, according to Rose Maria Bague, senior account manager at elfo.

“What we can bring to the table is our expertise in helping brands and businesses establish a solid brand identity and increase overall share of voice (SOV), by providing Mimpikita with brand consulting, performance optimization across all of its digital channels, and lead-generation campaigns,” Bague stated.

Meanwhile, Sri Yosephin, head at elfo, stated that their contribution to Mimpikita is part of the fashion brand’s aspiration to expand globally, as their fashion pieces have been prominently featured at the Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week and had intimate collaborations with other local designers.

From left to right – Syahira, Nurul, Amirah Zulkifli, Co-Founders of Mimpikita

“Our service offerings for Mimpikita are part of a bigger plan for this modest fashion label to go global. Besides harnessing our digital marketing expertise, we are also utilizing elfo’s proprietary digital platforms such as elfoMAP (an email marketing automation platform), elfoA2P (an application-to-person messaging platform), and soon, elfoBOT (an intuitive chatbot), to complement and enable our strategic campaigns for Mimpikita,” Yosephin explained.

For one of the founders, Nurul Zulkifli, their recent partnership with elfo will center on keeping their values with the #KitaGirls community, regardless of progress and expansion.

“As we continue to evolve and expand with the help of elfo, designing carefully crafted pieces for the everyday woman will still be at the heart of Mimpikita. Our wish is to build an inclusive community, to inspire women all over the world with our casualwear,” she added. 

Manila, Philippines – The Colgate brand has been doubling down on its global-wide advertising campaigns, where its optimism-themed #SmileStrong campaign released just recently in Southeast Asia market Malaysia. Today, another region-bound country, the Philippines, has officially announced its installment of the campaign, where the specific Colgate arm decided to spotlight on the optimistic attitude among individuals with special needs.

Three individuals are the protagonists of the Filipino ad spots – teacher and motivational speaker and born with down syndrome Brina Maxino, local actress Candy Pangilinan who is mother to a son who has ADHD, and Arizza Nocum, peace advocate and entrepreneur who co-founded KRIS, a non-profit organization promoting peace through education.

Much like the Malaysian campaign, the ambassadors in the spot states a recurring statement of “When they say…I smile,” where they share people’s judgments of their capabilities and capping it off with a positive “I smile.”

Colgate Philippines, in a press statement, shared that with the local implementation of the global advocacy, it hopes to make the same big impact that other #SmileStrong campaigns in other key markets have generated, which is “an increase of brand love and loyalty among consumers.”

The country’s Marketing Director Ari Mandelbaum speaks of how the ad aims to break the false positivity in “Filipino resilience” and inspire “optimism in action” instead.

“The common Filipino’s ‘resilience’ has constantly been held up as a shining character trait even in the face of natural disasters, violent conflict, poverty, and a number of deep-seated societal issues,” he said.

However, Mandelbaum added, “A growing number of people are seeing ‘The Filipino Resilience’ as a glorified coping mechanism, seemingly resigned to just powering through adversities with a mindset to live just to survive each day. At Colgate, we believe that it takes more than optimism to power through the challenges of today, thus launching #SmileStrong where we encourage Filipinos to believe and uphold the power of ‘optimism in action.’”

Together with Colgate-Palmolive’s global creative partner Red Fuse, which is advertising and communications company WPP’s integrated global team, the brand in the Philippines has tapped another WPP network – integrated marketing communications firm SOHO Square, its local arm – to bring the local rendition to fruition.

Caloy Sambrano, managing partner at SOHO Square Philippines said, “As an agency, we have developed and implemented various equity campaigns in the past, but we must say that this Colgate #SmileStrong campaign is one, if not the most, important campaign that we have ever done. We wanted each and every Filipino to feel inspired and relate to the stories of our muses especially when they see the contents that we put out.”

Following the global campaign’s wide marketing strategy, Colgate Philippines will be releasing integrated communications across digital and public relations, where activations in partnership with muses Arizza, Candy, and Brina will be run until 2021.

Aside from the #SmileStrong campaign, Colgate-Palmolive has earlier piloted its “Made for Greatness” campaign in Thailand, featuring professional climber and Academy Award-winning documentary director Jimmy Chin. The campaign is said to be progressively rolled out across Singapore, Malaysia, and Australia & New Zealand.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Colgate, alongside creative agency Ogilvy Malaysia, has launched an inspirational brand campaign titled #SmileStrongBersama, championing positive change within the community particularly during uncertain times.

The campaign, where Bersama means together, features “champions of optimism” CEO of social enterprise Biji-Biji Initiative Juliana Adam, CEO and Founder of YouthsToday.com Jazz Tan Yee Mei, Founder and Executive Director of Refuge for the Refugees Heidy Quah, and Bunga, an up-and-coming Hijabi rapper and musician in Malaysia.

In the ad, each of them says a statement of “When they say…,” sharing judgments experienced within their advocacies and capping it off with the campaign’s chorus “…I smile.”

Marketing Director of Colgate for Malaysia Amanda Klemm said the brand desires to celebrate those who choose to smile in the face of corrosive pessimism. 

“When faced with uncertainty and negativity, everyone has a choice. A choice to back down to fear or helplessness or to choose to let your positivity shine through. One of the ultimate expressions of optimism is a smile. The power in a smile can change the trajectory of someone’s day, it can elevate the mood of a room, it can create uplifting energy,” said Klemm.

Meanwhile, Ogilvy Malaysia Chief Executive Nizwani Shahar said, “The harsh reality of the unforeseeable future has left Malaysians anxious and lost. But some people have smiles that are strong enough to inspire the community. Creators, doers, and game-changers who lead with optimism and harness the power of a smile to promote change. We want to tell their stories to the Malaysian people and invite them to join our efforts and #SmileStrongBersama and spread positivity throughout our communities.”

The campaign was created in partnership with Red Fuse, the integrated global team of communications agency WPP, dedicated to Colgate-Palmolive.

The campaign will showcase long-form content for each of the “champions,” along with integrated communications across TV, digital, in-store, e-commerce, and public relations. In addition, a “Donate a Smile” web platform will provide a means for people to make a change together with the #SmileStrongBersama champions. A dedicated Instagram filter has also been rolled out to “capture smiles” and encourage users to share on their Instagram stories. For every 5 smiles collected, Colgate will send a “Box of Smiles” to the marginalized communities and refugees of Malaysia.

The campaign runs from 27 October 2020 onwards as a continuous and enduring multi-year campaign.

Sydney, Australia – Global digital creative agency AnalogFolk has created a new campaign via its Sydney arm, to launch Hyundai’s new N-Line sports package for the i30Sedan in Australia.

The 90-second launch film ‘After Dark’ takes an edgy and dark theme. The video features dream-like sequences with deconstructed nursery rhymes and rap performed by Australian talent.

The agency calls its latest creative endeavor as “taking a non-traditional approach to a traditional car.” The spot stars real people who are pursuing side hustles and passions outside of their day jobs.

AnalogFolk Executive Creative Director Richard Morgan said the campaign aims to capture the attention of people who have a quiet, innate sense of competitiveness and love the thrill of driving.

“Early on, we resolved that if you’re the sort of person who likes to curl up with a light Adam Sandler comedy on Netflix and an early night, then this isn’t the car, nor the spot for you,” said Morgan.

The agency said the car’s all-new virtual cockpit helped inspire the idea to set the campaign at night, when the car, like the characters who drive it, “light up and come alive.”

“The need to step outside of our comfort zone and overcome barriers – real or imagined – is something that our audience intuitively understands,” Morgan said.

“Setting the spot at night, when the senses are heightened and our hero characters are hard at work while most people are safely tucked up in bed, allowed us to interweave surprising, nocturnal elements in playful, non-
linear ways, using the urban landscape as a backdrop,” he added.

The campaign of 90-, 30-, and 15-second cutdowns are currently running, supported by online and out-of-home.

Australia – Special Group Australia has debuted Uber Eats’ “Tonight I’ll be eating” (TIBE) campaign in the United States and Canada, starting with an ad featuring Hollywood superstars Mark Hamill and Patrick Stewart.

The TIBE campaign is the brain child of the agency, and after gaining traction in Australia, Taiwan, and Japan, Uber Eats has decided to add the two countries in the campaign’s audience reach.

In the 45-second spot, Hamill and Stewart who are both in full black suits with a bat in hand are seen approaching each other in a dark warehouse as if on a showdown. Hamill starts delivering a line of “Tonight I’ll be eating,” saying the food he wants to get delivered, then Stewart thereafter. Before they go on a brief verbal showdown, their fierce exteriors momentarily break off as each of their Uber Eats delivery arrives, to say a casual ‘Thank you” and ‘Bravo” to the deliverer. 

The reference is made on the perpetual cultural argument of which sci-fi franchise is better between “Star Wars” and “Star Trek” in which both actors have starred in.

The latest spot follows the same format of past TIBE campaigns. The TIBE ads date back to its early spots in 2017. The campaign has been featuring prominent stars both in Australia and abroad such as British singer Boy George, actress Naomi Watts, and professional rugby league footballer Beau Ryan. The most recent TIBE iteration has global superstar Kim Kardashian-West and renowned Australian character Sharon Strezlecki from the sitcom Kath & Kim gracing the ad, where they are shown having a sarcastic argument on the right pronunciation of the word “nice.”

Hamill and Stewart’s ad follows a series of two other 15-second spots where the two actors compete against each other for the better Uber Eats meal, while simultaneously trying to beat each other at Air Hockey and Connect Four.

Cade Heyde, founding partner of Special Group Australia said, “The ‘Tonight I’ll be eating’ brand platform has had immense success in this market as well as across Asia Pacific. Expanding the platform to the other side of the world is a real honor and an incredibly proud moment for our agency. We couldn’t be more thrilled to share this loved campaign with the US.”

Meanwhile, Head of Marketing at Uber Eats for US and Canada Georgie Jeffreys believes that the launch of the Australia-grown campaign to the US and Canada is a natural progression as TIBE has proven to be a highly effective advertising campaign for the brand.

“It has helped drive record levels of customer penetration and brand affinity in the five markets in which it’s now live, and we’re excited to continue to expand the franchise with this latest launch,” said Jeffreys. 

Joint CCO and partners at Special Group Tom Martin and Julian Schreiber share that for them, the extension of the campaign is no common feat.

“We’re very proud ‘Tonight I’ll be eating’ has become such a cultural phenomenon in Australia and is being taken to the US and Canada. Bringing together two iconic space legends who’s appeal crosses generations feels like the right way to introduce ‘Tonight I’ll be eating’ to the US. It is not often Australian creative work travels to the other side of the world, and we are extremely excited to watch this platform grow,” they said.

Uber Eats is an America-headquartered food delivery platform first launched in 2014. It is the extension of the ride-hailing app Uber. 

Australia – Australia-based independent creative agency Town Square has announced Wednesday that leading airline company Qatar Airways and its destination management subsidiary, Discover Qatar have procured its services to launch a global marketing campaign, specifically two of them.

The campaigns will target people traveling through Doha’s Hamad International Airport encouraging them to stopover on their journey and discover what Qatar has to offer, which is slated to be the host country for the world cup in 2022.

Town Square has recently achieved a distinction in travel marketing, having bagged the awards Advertising Agency of the Year at media outlet Mumbrella’s 2020 Travel Marketing Awards. It has also been awarded Ad Campaign of the Year for the campaign “Made of Balarat,” which implores locals to explore the city of Balarat in Victoria, Australia.

Town Square Founder and Director Danielle Moeller said, “We’re honored and delighted to be partnering with two world-leading organizations, Qatar Airways and Discover Qatar. Qatar is one of the most exciting and innovative countries right now, and with the 2022 World Cup on the horizon, the world is soon going to turn its attention to Qatar and discover what we already know, that it is a truly special place.”

“This is a major win for Town Square and reaffirms our strength in tourism and destination marketing. It provides us with amazing opportunities to showcase the depth of our creative and strategic capabilities as we drive to be recognized as one of Australia’s leading independent agencies,” added Moeller.

Meanwhile, Qatar Airways’ Senior Vice President Steve Reynolds said, “I know first-hand the strength that the whole team at Town Square has at using robust consumer insights and category-defying creativity to help drive businesses success. We’re excited about our partnership and how it can drive growth in visitation to Qatar.”

Town Square shared that it has already started working on projects for the company which will be launched later this year. 

Qatar Airways is the ‘World’s Best Business Class’ in 2019. Currently, it operates a modern fleet of more than 250 aircraft connecting travelers to more than 160 destinations around the world.