Tag: Philippines

Manila, Philippines – Top e-wallet in the Philippines GCash has launched its new digital wallet designed for youth ages seven to 17 years old. Called ‘GCash Jr’, the new e-wallet aims to provide a safe and reliable digital transaction experience that is fit for the ‘next generation’ of Filipinos.

With the new e-wallet, minors can now buy their favourite things online, level up their gaming experiences, and explore a world of finances with their own GCash Jr. accounts.

GCash shared that there is a separate verification process for minors because there is a need to collect parents’ consent. This will be collected in the form of the requirements, and the parent will also be the one who needs to agree to the terms and conditions.

To verify the GCash Jr. account, app users must have a valid ID (passport, student ID, or national ID), and a parent that is fully verified on GCash with details, such as the parent’s full name, a fully verified GCash number, a picture of the parent holding the minor’s ID used in verification, and an original copy of the applicant’s birth certificate.

“This is just the first of many steps as we innovate for the youth,“ said GCash CEO Martha Sazon on her LinkedIn. 

Manila, Philippines – Global streetwear and footwear retailer Foot Locker is opening its first official store in the Philippines, slated to be the largest Foot Locker store in Southeast Asia. The store will be established in Glorietta by Ayala Malls in December 2022.

According to Preview.ph, the Philippine Foot Locker store will be managed by MAP Active Philippines, a local subsidiary of Indonesian lifestyle retail group Mitra Adiperkasa (MAP). 

MAP Active Philippines were actively posting job vacancies for Foot Locker on LinkedIn weeks before the announcement. Some of the work positions they were offering include store manager, assistant merchandise manager, account manager, and sales associate.

Virendra Prakash Sharma, CEO at MAP Group, said that the brand’s expansion to the Philippines will bring the culture of youth active lifestyle and sneaker enthusiasts in the country to the highest standard.

“We look forward to bringing together new standards that have never been achieved in retail in the Philippines,” he said.

Foot Locker is the latest global company to establish its largest SEA store in the Philippines. Recently, Nike opened its largest SEA store in Taguig in June this year. Same goes for brands such as Uniqlo and IKEA establishing their largest stores in the Philippines in the past few months.

Manila, Philippines – Grab in the Philippines has announced recently the acquisition of MOVE IT, a local motorcycle taxi firm. Through the acquisition, Grab aims to create at least 6,000 meaningful income opportunities for more driver-partners within 3 months.

Grab Philippines will help MOVE IT further scale its existing motorcycle taxi fleet and improve the efficiency of its platform to help serve more commuters, as well as working with MOVE IT to further enhance its safety and service quality standards – to be at par with Grab’s motorcycle taxi services across Southeast Asia.

MOVE IT will be independently operated using the existing technology and app, and it will continue to comply with the standards set by the DOTr’s Motorcycle Taxi Pilot Program. Francis Juan will continue to lead MOVE IT in his capacity as chairman – leveraging his deep knowledge of the motorcycle taxi industry to better address market gaps and leverage untapped market opportunities.

Juan said, “We appreciate the support and trust that Grab has given us – it’s a testament to MOVE IT’s excellence in recent years. And in this new phase: we will serve more riders who have great difficulty commuting, we will provide more Filipinos with a livelihood, and we will provide our countrymen with a proudly Pinoy motorcycle taxi service that they can be proud of to our Southeast Asian neighbours.”

Meanwhile, Grace Vera Cruz, country head at Grab Philippines, said, “As we turn a new chapter for our country, Grab Philippines will continue to play an active role in bringing forward the spirit of bayanihan and value-creation – and this milestone that we humbly share with MOVE IT clearly expresses that.” 

She added, “As one of the first tech platforms that firmly believed in the potential and value of the Philippine market ten years ago, we’re doubling down on our commitment to outserving the needs of the Filipino people, and we are optimistic that through MOVE IT, we will create more livelihood opportunities, spur greater economic activity, and help improve every Filipino’s daily commute.”

Philippines – InMobi, a provider of content, marketing, and monetisation technologies, has partnered with iNQUiRO, a technology company under AdSpark and 917Ventures. This partnership aims to provide access to iNQUiRO‘s significant and in-depth insights on consumer’s purchase behaviour and interest, and the end-to-end marketing solutions of InMobi to help brands deliver contextual communications at scale. 

In a recent study conducted by Forrester, 1 in 2 brands are increasingly concerned about the ability to drive efficient and effective marketing in the wake of identity deprecation, while at the same time ensuring consumer privacy compliance. This is where the strategic partnership comes in, as InMobi and iNQUiRO could solve the modern marketer’s need for data-driven decision-making with a privacy-by-design approach.

Rishi Bedi, InMobi’s managing director for APAC, shared that the Philippines stands as amongst the truly mobile-first markets in SEA with more than five hours of daily time on mobile and more than 60% of consumers shopping online.

“Through this partnership, brands will be able to reach iNQUiRO audiences programmatically on InMobi’s mobile Exchange via managed service with InMobi or their preferred DSP platform. Brands will be able to drive better reach, make use of innovative creative formats from our creative gallery, and improve end-to-end attribution using InMobi solutions.”

Meanwhile, Pancho Reyna, chief operating officer at iNQUiRO, commented that they are in a unique position to provide a unique understanding of customers at a deeper level by leveraging on insights from first-party data of millions of Filipino consumers, but more than that, they focus on being champions of data privacy and security for all their solutions and clients

“Enriching your audience’s understanding and sending the right message has never been easier. This is what makes our partnership with InMobi strategic and innovative,” he said.

In June 2022, InMobi also announced a direct integration of its InMobi Exchange supply-side side platform (SSP) into Yahoo’s demand-side platform (DSP), giving advertisers, brands, and media buyers across Yahoo’s extensive global portfolio of clients direct access to premium in-app supply and global user base, at scale.

Manila, Philippines – Building on their recent partnership agreements in Indonesia and Malaysia, media investment company GroupM and global outdoor advertising technology provider Moving Walls have partnered anew to bring automation and accountability to Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) advertising across the Philippines.

The latest collaboration enables GroupM Philippines’ agencies to leverage Moving Walls’ Moving Audiences, an end-to-end audience data-driven planning, buying, and verification solution for DOOH media. Moving Walls has developed a comprehensive technology stack including a DOOH planning tool that predicts audiences based on the most recent movement trends. The Moving Audiences platform has already been used to execute campaigns for multiple GroupM clients.

According to Moving Walls, a majority of DOOH inventory in the Philippines is already connected to this ecosystem by Location Media Xchange (LMX), the supply-focused subsidiary of the Moving Walls group. 

Yasmin Mallari, chief investment officer at GroupM Philippines, stated, “There is no doubt that DOOH’s role in the omnichannel mix will continue to grow as the potential reach of this medium is now across locations where consumers commute, work, eat, reside, and more. Brand investments will also grow when there is accountability around where the ads are being served and how campaigns perform. This partnership enables us to enrich our suite of offerings in DOOH planning and extend further measurement capabilities to our clients.”

Meanwhile, Norman Davadilla, CEO of Moving Walls Philippines, highlighted how this partnership will continue to transform DOOH media in the Philippines. 

He said, “Philippines is a regional DOOH leader where both the buy and sell side industry associations have launched initiatives to implement common measurement standards. We have partnered GroupM in other markets and are excited to extend these capabilities to brands in the Philippines.”

The partnership with GroupM comes less than a year after Moving Walls partnered with the Out-of-Home Advertising Association of the Philippines (OHAAP) to scale the data-driven OOH industry in the country for further growth.

Manila, Philippines – E-commerce platform Shopee in the Philippines has recently launched Shopee Cares PH, an online community platform where Shopee provides customer education and support to combat the rising number of online scams.

The goal of the platform is to empower consumers with proper know-hows and tips on how they can protect themselves from phishing scams, money and gift card scams, and third party seller scams.

With Shopee Cares PH, users are also encouraged to seek help for any product inquiry or concern, and inspire other users through their memorable Shopee finds and experiences. Sale tips and tricks are also provided to ensure online shopping is made enjoyable with exclusive deals and promos. 

Martin Yu, director at Shopee Philippines, said, “Shopee has always been committed to ensuring that every Filipino’s online shopping experience is safe and reliable, and Shopee Cares is a testament to that. Through this platform, we aim to equip them with knowledge on how to shop safely and combat these online scams together so that they can continuously enjoy shopping online.”

He added, “As more Filipinos rely on e-commerce, we continuously ensure that measures are in place to make their experience with Shopee more secure. What we want is for our shoppers to continue enjoying the benefits of online shopping, as this has become an essential part of their daily lives.”

Manila, Philippines – Setting a global stage for Filipino creatives, Likha Creative Entrepreneurship Summit is slated to be the biggest ‘phygital’ gathering of the country’s top creative entrepreneurs, freelancers, agencies, and organisations in 2022. 

The two-day hybrid conference happening at the Philippine International Convention Center on September 17 and September 18 will put the spotlight on local creative talents, build connections among different niche communities, and design unique learning opportunities that will unleash ‘Malikhain Minds’. (Creative minds) 

Emmy award-winning director, designer, strategist, and educator Chris Do will give a lecture on ‘Creativity Mind(Re)set’ and ‘Content Marketing Intensive’ where he will speak on how to adopt a global-ready mindset and create quality content with the right attitude. 

Do is the chief strategist and CEO of Blind, executive producer of The Skool, and the Founder of The Futur — an online education platform that teaches the business of design to creative thinkers. 

With a goal to empower Filipino creatives to create impact as entrepreneurs, the weekend event will tackle creativity in practice, impact, communication, and education. Attendees can expect to learn from renowned graphic designer AJ Dimarucot, Dream Project PH’s founder and Filipino Dreamagineer Prim Paypon, Braveworks Inc.’s CEO Kia Alvarez-Abrera, and educreator Lyqa Maravilla. 

The event offers three ticket tiers – Rajah (VIP pass) worth P20,000, Datu (Hybrid pass) worth P10,000, and Lakan (Digital pass) worth P5,000 – that may be purchased via a three-month instalment through Gcash, debit card, credit card, and other payment methods. 

Rajah pass holders are entitled to special access to the event’s networking night called ‘Piging’ (Banquet), where they can interact and chat with the Likha speakers and partners. 

Meanwhile, early ticket buyers have the chance to attend the Primer Events, a series of webinars that tackles various topics related to the creative industry, like branding, NFT Art, and design thinking, among others, every Saturday which started last May 14. 

Ticket buyers will receive merchandise depending on the pass purchased such as ‘Malikhain’ shirt, mousepad, tumbler, notepad, tote bag, Likha coffee table magazine, lanyard, and hoodie. 

The Summit aims to instil learning outcomes in the attendees, such as adopting and embracing a creative mindset and finding more ways to access, hone and use their creativity to do what they love while creating impact, and have tangible plans to leverage their creative assets to grow their practice/business without losing their integrity.

In addition, they will also learn top marketing trends in 2022 and what they can optimize for 2023 as the economy starts to open up and understand the audience psyche of “the next normal” so they can create marketing messages that resonate with their target market. To be part of the occasion meant to be a learning-filled event packed with life stories, experiences, and expert insights, interested participants may visit the Likha Creative Entrepreneurship Summit 2022 website at www.likhasummit.com for more information.

MARKETECH APAC is a media partner at Likha Creative Entrepreneurship Summit.

Manila, Philippines – Local live-streaming platform Kumu has announced a collaborative partnership with Huawei Ads through the platform’s ad agency AVOW to enhance user experience by improving advertising on the platform.

In this campaign, AVOW made use of the various ad solutions offered such as AppGallery, Petal Search and display ads to balance out their ad placements to generate the best results. 

Additionally, incorporating HUAWEI Ads multiple targeting options such as location, demographics and user behaviour into Kumu’s ad strategy brought about greater brand exposure to a diverse audience base. These features collectively amplified Kumu’s presence and audience conversion rates.

Furthermore, HUAWEI Ads Data Management Platform (DMP) provided Kumu with insights on the campaign performance through a comprehensive breakdown of key metrics. This information allows Kumu to make targeted improvements that will optimise their future ad strategies, with the help of AVOW.

Alex Tshering, chief growth officer at Kumu, said, “Thanks to the delivery of premium advertisements on HUAWEI Ads, Kumu has grown to be one of the highest grossing applications in the markets. Our partnership with HUAWEI Ads have helped us to generate leads far greater than our initial campaign goals.”

Based on activity data gathered from algorithms across all Huawei devices, HUAWEI Ads identified and recommended potential audiences who fit Kumu’s target profile, which ultimately helped them broaden their target audience and user base. In addition to growing Kumu’s user base and maximising its ad performance, the algorithm detects and filters out fraudulent inventory, effectively countering the issue of inflated ad performance metrics.

Meanwhile, Rei Xiao, director of mobile ecosystem business growth at Huawei Asia Pacific Region, commented, “Our partnership with Kumu highlights our commitment to delivering high quality ads that drive user growth and engagement. We have dedicated teams that work closely with our clients to get the best returns on their investment. We greatly look forward to deepening our strong partnership with Kumu, and to continue working as one team to meet their business objectives.”

Manila, Philippines – GoTyme Bank, a local fintech funded by the Gokongwei Group, has recently received a go signal from the country’s central bank Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to set up a local digital bank for Filipinos.

GoTyme Bank received its certificate of authority from BSP on July 29 this year, following prior approval from the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Monetary Board (MB).

Through GoTyme, clients can open an account in under five minutes through digital kiosks and avail of banking products and services such as bank transfers, shopping rewards, interest savings, trading, investing and customer service.

In addition, it combines the ease of immediate account opening with a personalised debit card released through kiosks located in shopping malls throughout the Philippines, plus the power of self-serve financial solutions accessible through an intuitive ‘all in one’ banking app.

GoTyme Bank is a joint venture by multinational digital banking group Tyme, involving members of the Gokongwei Group namely Robinsons Bank, Robinsons Land Corporation, and Robinsons Retail Holdings. 

Manila, Philippines – Insurance company Allianz PNB Life has launched its latest digital campaign that features a man’s best friend – a golden retriever named ‘Yanzy’ – who represents the company’s insurance agents ‘Life Changers’, who help potential customers to a more confident tomorrow.

Titled ‘Who’s A Good Hooman?’, the campaign continues the company’s June campaign called ‘Seeds of Tomorrow’. This time, it spotlights Allianz PNB Life’s insurance protection and ‘Life Changers’.

Apart from recognising the important role of ‘Life Changers’ in guiding prospective and existing policyholders when it comes to their insurance needs, the campaign also aims to inspire viewers and show the fun side of protection, as well as to encourage them to join Allianz PNB Life in this endeavour.

Alexander Grenz, Allianz PNB Life’s president and CEO, shared that the company firmly believes in securing the future of every Filipino, and one of the best ways to achieve this is by educating them on the importance of insurance, and encouraging them to get insured.

“This latest campaign was created to show how insurance can be like ‘man’s best friend’, who protects you and to connect you to the people responsible for this protection, our Life Changers,” said Grenz.

He added, “To the viewers who enjoyed the video, I would like to personally invite you to become part of Allianz PNB Life’s roster of Life Changers. There’s a reason we are called Life Changers. Whether you are a policyholder who trusts us with your future, or a Life Changer who has discovered a purpose in helping others, our end goal is always to change lives for the better.”