BBDO Guerrero wins contract for tourism campaign

MANILA, Philippines - Advertising firm BBDO Guerrero won the contract for the Philippines’ tourism branding campaign, besting seven other marketing and advertising companies, but the company and the government will delay the launch as the country deals with the effects of tropical storm “Sendong,” the Department of Tourism (DOT) announced yesterday.

“Theme reveal will have to wait for a more opportune time in early January,” Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez told ABS-CBN, citing the deaths and devastation wrought by Sendong in Northern Mindanao and parts of the Visayas.

He said BBDO Guerrero “was able to capture and encapsulate this complex problem into a motivating and exciting campaign. They were the last of the eight agencies presenting. And they were the exclamation point at the end of a long sentence.”

Jimenez said BBDO’s selection and appointment came after a rigorous bidding process in which Aspac, DDB, Dentsu, J. Romero, JWT, Lowe and Y&R participated.

The P13-million contract covers all media at home and abroad, including social media.

BBDO Guerrero won the contract earlier this year but agreed to a cancellation, allowing Jimenez to revise the terms of reference.

Then Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim unveiled the “Pilipinas Kay Ganda” slogan and logo, which was dropped after it drew heavy criticism. Lim, a former executive director of Makati Business Club and president and owner of the El Nido resort in Palawan, resigned in August.

Jimenez, who headed several marketing and advertising companies in three decades in the industry and was appointed in September, vowed to unveil a new campaign by yearend.