The Marimar fever rages on

Aboard a jam-packed bus fighting its way through rush hour traffic, a male passenger sighs at the sight of a dancing Marimar. His female seatmate gazes entranced as Sergio Santibañez takes Marimar in his arms. Another male passenger’s eyes widen at the sight of scheming Angelica, seductive in her plunging neckline, mini-skirt number.

The Marimar fever is upon us. A month or so after GMA 7 aired the Filipinized version of the hit Mexican telenovela of years ago, the ratings are soaring up, up and away. Last week, the primetime series scored a whopping 39.3 rating, thus making its stars, Marian Rivera (Marimar), Dingdong Dantes (Sergio), Katrina Halili (Angelica), Richard Gomez (Renato Santibañez), Nadine Samonte (Inocencia) and the rest of the gang one of the most-watched in the showbiz firmament.

Even Marimar’s pet Fulgoso would have barked excitedly at the welcome piece of news.

That’s why GMA recently gave the show what it richly deserves: A well-prepared, no-holds-barred trade launch at The Fort’s Blue Leaf. The advertisers came in full force.

“We don’t mount trade launches very often,” GMA 7 Marketing and Productions, Inc. president and chief operating officer Manuel Quiogue reveals. In fact, the last trade launches the station had (for Enkantadia and Forever In My Heart) were held years back.

But Marimar is different. “We thought this is something advertisers will be excited about,” Quiogue reasons out.

So out came the flower garlands, the Hawaiian shirts and other things Marimar at the trade launch. A dance instructor taught the ladies how to do dance ala-Marimar. Then, the brave ones actually danced with Dingdong.

Not to be outdone, the men got up and danced with Marian no less. At the end of the grand bash, Bryant Ng of Zenith Optimedia and Maylene Espera of Maxus emerged as the Sergio and Marimar of the night.  Each went home richer by P5,000.

All the Marimar characters introduced themselves  via a line or two from their characters’ dialogues.

Fulgoso had his moment in time. The frisky Golden Retriever who bested other canines to bag the role performed some tricks.

The guests went home at 9  p.m. (just right for an early start the next working day) toting raffle prizes.  Could you blame some for not wanting to call it a night just yet?

As Quiogue notes, “The trade launch was a success. It generated goodwill.”

He cites data from the Ad Quest Top 10 Advertisers by Advertising Minutes (July 10 to Aug. 10), which show that seven out of 10 TV advertisers place more minutes in GMA as their preferred partner.

Quiogue says that GMA, as the leader in Mega Manila, enjoys advertising support where it matters: The center of trade and commerce.

“The sales come from Manila and Luzon. That’s what’s important,” he explains. “And top advertisers with the most sophisticated planning tools choose to buy in GMA. This calls for a celebration.”

Quiogue expects much better times ahead by the  first quarter of 2008, when he predicts GMA will take the lead nationwide. By then, he explains, the network would have fixed its signals in Bacolod, Naga, Dagupan, Zamboanga and all the other areas in the provinces.

GMA, he adds, is also ready to go digital, with its engineering department fixing the nuts and bolts for this one big step towards better service.

As for its sister network Q-11, the top bosses can’t be any happier. The almost two-year-old network is hitting the nail right on the head.

“Q-11 is on top of the female AB market’s shopping list,” Quiogue reports. He ventures into comparisons.

“Before,” he relates, “Q-11 duplicated the GMA and ABS-CBN’s target market, the masses.” Today, he notes how things have changed for the better. The shift to the AB female market. Advertisers are now plunking in their precious budgets on Q-11 instead of some of the cable channels. Now, they realize that Q-11 and the cable channels target one and the same upscale audience.

Result: as much as 60 percent growth rate, with Moms, The Sweet Life, Chef to Go, Proudly Filipina and Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader as some of the most popular shows.  

More than popularity though, the network executive is proud that Q-11 is making a difference. That’s what Jessica Soho’s Sana’y Muling Makapiling and At Your Service are doing. Soho’s show reunites families while At Your Service cheers up the lonely and the needy.

 And, in a dog-eat-dog world where ratings rule, it’s a comfort to know that a social conscience matters more. Juan de la Cruz has reason to rejoice.