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This week our agency won gold.

It was 2010 when I returned from an in-depth digital immersion in New York. I had no idea where I was supposed to go next but Planning for MRM ended up that next move. I could never have imagined that I would eventually end up in Singapore at the Campaign Asia awards, shortlisted as SEA Account Person of the Year. (Despite its title the award is for both suits and strategic planners.) By some crazy miracle I ended up winning.

I never even aspired to this because only creatives win awards! Not planners. Especially not specialist digital planners. But what must have given me the edge is the hardcore education I've received from so many stellar mentors throughout the years.

This is my feeling-Oscar winner post but 
I absolutely need to thank these people who believed in me and taught me through the years.

MARICEL & DINO: My first mentors, and first set of advertising parents. They showed me that, in an industry that can be a little too cutthroat sometimes, absolute trust can exist in the agency as long as there is some hot pan de sal, some of Alex's sisig and as long as bosses are leaders, too.

BUDJETTE: My first-ever advertising boss! Remember? As an intern on his Globe Prepaid creative team I picked up an appreciation for ideas, art and copy. Through the years that I've been so lucky to have kept working with him, He has been the best example of a leader who will never abandon his team and the work. He will tirelessly search for truths and even creative articulations that properly convey brand role yet set his people free to grow. Replete with creative temper/ament yet devoid of cliche creative airs, he is the Madonna of creative - able to re-tool and re-invent through the evolution of our industry.

NANDY: I will never forget the day Nandy asked me to move to Planning. Through intense one-on-one internals, he tooled me up for (hopefully) a career's worth of briefs, campaigns and brand strategies. He remains the Planning bar to which I aspire - a masterclass in razorsharp problem-definition, insighitng and brand stewardship. He is the Fr. Dacanay of our discipline - the "tough love" teacher who will stretch each learning opportunity. Most importantly is he a leader who will inspire people to reach outside themselves in work, craft, grace and integrity.

GEN, VIBOY, BEAU & EZ (and later Jen!): Almost everything I know about Planning I learned from watching these guys work. I'm a baby in this discipline, only 2.5 years old! But I joined the best team in the country, and they took me under their wings. They were willing to partner with and teach me, and indulged me in many existential Planning discussions. My original planning family, who taught by example.

DONALD: Our fearless leader who inspires confidence from his hardcore marketing background, solid business instincts and slightly experimental management approach. He espouses ongoing education to sharpen our craft and has been so willing to take chances on young people with possibly ridiculous ideals. A man with vision and a personal roadmap to carry us to the top spot.

MY TEAM: I wouldn't have gotten through this insane year without Beau & El. They inspire me everyday to be the best leader I can be, and push me to create room for each of us to grow. Their crazy hard and awesome work assures me that our future is so bright.

TEAM MRM: The dedicated and tireless OT crew! Who sticks with each problem until it is solved, no matter how many hours and sleepless nights it takes. Accounts, creatives, community managers, production guys whose passion never seems to run out and who remind me everyday why it is more fun in MRM.

The sweetest part of all this is that our agency was also awarded gold, as Philippine Digital Agency of the Year by this regional body. This award succeeds a local Digital Excellence AOY award, which we won earlier this year.

Two years ago, and even last week, I would have laughed this thought off. But as I stream of conscious-ly posted in our MRM Manila page: We don't know what will come our way next year, but as of today, this week, this month, we are the best in the business. 

where do we go from here?

Facebook has been the king of Philippine digital marketing for the past two-three years. I don't think this will change drastically next year, but I think we will have to start moving past this gated community.


The Philippine digital branding ecosystem skipped a stage when brands went straight into social media and skipped building the "Web 1.0" assets - websites with sound SEO, e-commerce portals, etc. Most "motherbrand" FMCGs (the Nestles, P&Gs or Unilevers, even the San Miguels or Universal Robina Corps) do have properties but it is not rare to come across a brand without a local and content-rich dot.com. Many marketers we were working with in 2009-2010 were hesitant to build websites. There was no social ad equivalent back then, and banner ads were expensive to produce, optimize and place. So, many brands skipped building these sites. Luckily Facebook came along, and saved marketers from having to pay for programming, CMS, database management. Even social ads are much more cost-effective than the usual banner ads.

But I think that next year will one to go back to digital basics that we might have skipped in the rush and excitement to build Facebook communities.
Because for brands looking to create a deeper layer of utility and engagement beyond the Wall, apps may not be enough. Many clients have started to ask us to start think about what comes after Facebook. What happens to our community when people stop signing up or frequenting the social network? I don't think there will be another Facebook after this (just like nobody really succeeded Google), but there could be a new trend after social networking. And while we have the Likes, brands don't necessarily own the database of their hundred thousand-to-million fans.

*Note: This is completely based on personal experience and observation.

Ultimately the issue is one of ownership. Many brands don't necessarily own their databases, unless they've secured additional contact information through an app. Most of all, brands are subject to each of Facebook's changes and re-designs. We once developed an app for a client to give fans a feature missing on Facebook, only to have that exact feature launched as we were programming. So brands looking to be more content-heavy may start going back to the dot.com. Content will probably always best-propagated on social network sites but this doesn't mean that wholly-owned properties cannot work complementary to communities.

This might be too old school for brands and agencies in more developed markets. But a lot of us might have room and occasion to build and/or improve on these foundational assets.