The country’s group of marketing professionals hopes to promote the Asean brand, which refers to the products and services of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the regional trade bloc that includes the Philippines.
The Philippine Marketing Association hopes to make the Asean Economic Community its launch pad to innovate marketing strategies and facilitate the promotion of Asean products and services around the globe.
“There are challenges especially in marketing Philippine brands and we intend to address these challenges. The Philippines is not the only country in Asean that wants to seize opportunities presented in the global market. We will collaborate with other Asean nations to make this happen,” says PMA executive vice president Germaine Reyes.
The key, she says, is to identify what is unique in the product or market and find its competitive advantage.
PMA is staging the 47th National Marketing Conference at the Marriott Hotel Grand Ballroom in Newport City, Pasay City on July 28 to 29, 2016.
PMA says AEC members are eager to welcome investments and partnerships from neighboring countries as well as equitable collaborations to spur greater wealth and a better life for all citizens.
This growing and vibrant economic community is projected to be the third largest by 2030, after the US and China. It seeks to create a highly integrated and cohesive economy that is people-oriented and people-centered that will produce products and professionals of world-class caliber.
Adopting this vision, PMA came up with the theme Hello Asean for its 47th National Marketing Conference 2016.
Hello Asean brings the spotlight on the Asean Economic Community—its strengths as a growing consumer base and the prevailing opportunities for business.
“This is a long running event for the marketing industry. We meant to showcase success stories to inspire participants to move on to the next level. We aim to catalyze creativity and innovation and ways to apply that,” Reyes says.
The sessions will appeal to CEOs and CMOs as the presenters and facilitators are all top-notch branding experts and business consultants who will share brand stories and scenarios that are backed by meticulous research and actual case studies.
A common denominator of Asian businesses, big and small, is the family, according to Reyes.
Reyes says businesses are usually established by a patriarch of humble beginnings. His business grows alongside his family and soon his offspring are ready to take on the helm and bring in new vision and management style.
The transition could make or break the business.
Family business consultant Eric Soriano has guided hundreds of companies in their transition from one generation to the next.
As senior advisor of Wong and Bernstein Advisory Group, Soriano has enabled the seamless transition of countless Asian family businesses from entrepreneurial to corporate organizations.
Wong and Bernstein is a leading advisory agency that offers guidance to Asean organizations on branding, strategic leadership and organizational change.
Soriano will examine the key characteristics of family businesses and will share his prescription for sustained growth and harmony within an organization bound by bloodlines and a common vision.
Subsequent sessions will tackle how corporations can determine if they are ready for expansions overseas and if their products have the necessary attributes to be a winning Asean brand.
The program will also feature top tier marketing gurus who will assess the intricacies of AEC as a region and present possible scenarios for market penetration.
Speakers including Jimmy Bautista of Philippine Air Lines, Asia Brewery’s Chay Cruel, Angelica Suiza of Under Armour and Citibank’s Bea Beh Tan will engage the audience with thought-provoking lessons from their own experiences.
Cruel of Asia Brewery will present a framework that begins with an assessment of a company’s organic capabilities, taking into consideration the commitment from management and their organizational structure or setup as key factors for outward growth.
Under Armour’s Suiza will describe their expansion strategy, making this US brand one of today’s most favored sports apparel line in Asia.
Citibank’s Bea Beh Tan will talk about how this multinational bank is leading the pack in breaking barriers in the Asean Financial landscape, a healthy indication that the Asean Economic Community is keen on enabling a free flow of goods and services among member countries.
The global communications company, Havas Group, will present a profile of the millennials as decision makers of the future.
Havas executives from the region will share media and communications strategies that integrate technology, media, creativity and strategy in marketing to today’s discerning and opinionated consumers who are mostly under 30 years of age.
Media giant Bloomberg Cignal TV Philippines also signed up a major partner.