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Words by Gaby Capule and Keegan Bernardo
Art by Gabs Cawili and Liane Baylosis
More with Marketing. This year, UP JMA took it one step further in achieving marketing excellence through the culmination of its projects of our different teams.
Despite limited face-to-face interactions, UP JMA's teams did not see these as roadblocks, as proven by the successful marketing activities and campaigns achieved by the different teams and the organization as a whole. These are the projects and initiatives of the University of the Philippines Junior Marketing Association (UP JMA ) that embodied #MoreWithMarketing during the school year 2021-2022.
But the question is, how was marketing excellence achieved by the organization’s different teams? Let's check out the teams and projects that embodied #MoreWithMarketing.
Cultivating marketing excellence with MarkEd Access Granted
In the past two semesters, with its holistic and relatable initiatives, the MarkEd Access Granted team has achieved its primary goal of cultivating the marketing competence of public high school students around the country.
The team started the year strong by conducting Think Like a Marketer: How to Turn Customer Feedback into New Business Ideas last October, which had a turnout of more than 630 live attendees. Here, aspiring young marketers were able to get an idea on how to transform market insights into successful campaigns from experts Pierre Samson of McDonald’s and Juni Ty of Lazada.
This seminar was followed by Marketing in Action: How to Position Your Brand to Disrupt an Industry, with Jenny Wieneke of Tokyo Tempura, Karla Zulueta of Pizzulu, and Steffi Santana of Lola Nena's. These three strong women in the field were able to share their knowledge about market gap analysis, unique selling propositions, and the big idea.
Finally, just last April, the Access Granted team also conducted the workshop From the Ground Up: How to Jumpstart Your Business. Speakers Neyza Indonto of Anindot Thrift and Richia Chua of The Cubic Studios were able to impart their insights on how they’ve been able to grow their respective businesses during the pandemic.
Now online, Access Granted transitioned to building a 2,740 member-strong online learning community in which relevant webinars were featured, an online marketing resource drive was published, and conversations between members of the organization and our partner schools were held, all in all to help both students and teachers access relevant marketing education and encourage the exchange of ideas between budding marketers from different schools, fields, and backgrounds.
MarkEd 360° Next: A platform for budding marketers
MarkEd 360° Next, the premier marketing inter-high school level marketing competition for budding marketers, provided a platform for high school students to learn all about the world of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) through an educational campaign and case competition.
Firstly, MarkEd 360° Next held a case competition in the first semester with Star 360, a distributor of school and office supplies in the Philippines. To help them in crafting their competitive IMC campaigns, students from Grades 9-12 with a passion for marketing learned the basics of IMC through a marketing bootcamp. Here, participants were able to learn from first-hand experiences of experts in the field, hearing from Summa Cum Laude graduates and UP JMA alumni Elaine Co Tan and Francesca Siasoyco, and Star 360's Michelle Diaz.
Their MarkEd 360° Next experience then culminated with a case competition held from November to December 2021. Over 100 high school students crafted an IMC campaign for the brand Paper Mate and their product of Kilometrico ballpens, with the aim of sustaining market relevance and of being a staple for elementary, high school, and college students. By challenging the youth to create initiatives for like-minded markets, they are given the opportunity to innovate and impact the lives of fellow students.
For the second semester, MarkEd 360° focused on IMC education through a series of interactive online posts and a culminating marketing bootcamp. Posts released covered analyses of famous brands, case competition tips from student marketers, basics of IMC-making, and interactive posts that discuss students’ opinions on marketing strategies. Meanwhile, the bootcamp invited student competition veterans and young entrepreneurs to discuss how IMC is applied to their businesses.
MarkEd 360° moves past regular workshops and competitions, taking a 360-degree approach to training and honing participants through guided modules and mentorship programs with industry professionals.
Purposeful marketing: #HandaHalalan by We Champion
Marketing with a purpose. True to its name, We Champion championed the Filipino voter through #HandaHalalan, a year-long initiative advocating for good governance by providing ample knowledge in preparation for the 2022 National Elections.
During the first semester of #HandaHalalan, the team directed its efforts toward educating the Filipino youth about voter registration as well as providing a deeper understanding of electoral activities through a variety of online events and publicity materials. Meanwhile in the second half of the campaign, #HandaHalalan focused on increasing awareness of the voting process and providing relevant information about the official candidates for the 2022 National Elections.
These efforts composed of a series of interviews, webinars, and podcasts that featured officials and personalities knowledgeable in the field of governance and politics. Among these are Director James Jimenez (former COMELEC Spokesperson and Director for Education and Information), Professors Dennis V. Blanco and Maria Ela L. Atienza, and student leaders such as Renee Co and John Carlo Borja.
Amid a time of rampant misinformation, We Champion empowers UP JMA to champion not only the Filipino, but also the truth – serving as a reliable source for accessible and digestible voter education during one of the most pivotal moments of Philippine history.
Rakrakan with a cause with Cosmos: An OPM Festival
This year, Cosmos provided yet another out-of-this-world benefit campaign that featured the best and emerging talents in the Filipino music scene.
Not only were avid OPM fans and listeners able to listen to their favorite artists, but the total donations of Php 129,000.00 from the event were directed to the Save Our Schools Network –– a network that aims to assist students, teachers, and volunteers for Lumad schools exercise their right to safe, quality, accessible, and dignified education.
The year-long campaign started with a bang with Cosmic Clash 2022: The Official Pre-Event of Cosmos: An OPM Festival in November. Here, emerging talents and artists fight for a spot to play in Cosmos in March 2022.
And after a long––but worth it!––wait, fans and listeners of OPM were finally able to hear from nationally acclaimed and emerging OPM artists in March with Cosmos. The online benefit concert was able to feature well-known talents such as The Itchyworms, Munimuni, Lola Amour, Clara Benin, Oh, Flamingo!, and so much more! They were also able to learn about the program’s cause by hearing from speakers Rose Hayahay, Volunteer Teacher from the Save our Schools Network, and Datu Benito Bay-ao from the Salugpongan Ta’tanu Igkanogon Community Learning Center INC.
At a time when physical connection was limited, Cosmos: An OPM Festival brought tens of thousands of people together through the power of OPM, reaching over 60,000 people and garnering over 13,100 total views.
But more than the number of viewers, at the heart of Cosmos: An OPM Festival was its mission to advocate for the academic rights of the youth – joining our beneficiary Save Our Schools Network in fighting for proper education especially for the indigenous peoples.
CRAFT’s venture in food marketing
YUM! For the past two semesters, CRAFT has held two campaigns in the field of food marketing with local emerging businesses, through Out of the Box and Oh My Goodness!
In the first semester of the school year, CRAFT’s Out of the Box took on the challenge of promoting the local donut industry. Together with food partners Gloria’s, Mancio's, and Tipsy Dough PH, CRAFT has shared the local donut scene through marketing campaigns and techniques such as giveaways, vouchers, and taste vlogs. The campaign culminated in an online bazaar held from December 1 to 7 last year.
CRAFT went on to promote local food businesses that provide healthy –– yet still absolutely delicious –– options through the campaign Oh My Goodness! The team showcased products from Tsukihina Coffee, Mamabuns, Pokebubs, and Ice Cream City’s Manila. The semester-long campaign also culminated through an online bazaar held last May 22 to 28.
At a time when businesses were forced to adapt in unprecedented circumstances, CRAFT was more than glad to lend a helping hand to help these businesses get back on their feet.
Highlighting local artisans with MANA
In UP JMA, #MoreWithMarketing is not only exclusive to our own initiatives but also extends to the communities and individuals the organization supports. MANA is a great example of the integration of UP JMA’s marketing excellence with the advocacies that the organization aims to support, such as supporting local businesses and sustainability.
From the word pamana, which means to pass down across generations, MANA celebrates cultural heritage by connecting the experiences and craftsmanship of local artisans with modern audiences. For four years, UP JMA has partnered with Marikeño sapatero Mang Jhun who has had 30 years of artisanal experience.
With the disruption of physical sales and the logistical difficulties brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was more than ever important for MANA to stay in operation to support its partner artisan. Thus, all throughout the year, the MANA team actively released innovative and engaging content that helped in generating sales for MANA. For example, seasonal sales such as 11.11 and Christmas sales helped incentivize consumers to buy and support MANA products. This then created an avenue for students and young professionals to appreciate local fashion and artisans, which is in line with MANA’s current advocacy of assisting local craftsmen in bringing their products to a wider market.
With the help of MANA's customers, UP JMA was able to further uplift Mang Jhun and support local businesses.
School pride in trend with 1958
UP JMA aims to utilize its marketing competency to its full potential, by establishing small businesses and innovative brands that are carried out year after year. These businesses are fundraising initiatives, in order to generate sustainable income for The UP JMA KIDS Program.
Part of this lineup of fundraising efforts is the merchandise business 1958. Its goal is to provide reasonably priced, high-quality, and fashionable UP-themed items while renewing school pride in the minds of Iskos all around the nation, and they definitely achieved this in the recently concluded school year of 2021-2022.
Through different social media platforms, 1958 generated content in the form of Instagram posts and TikTok videos, garnering up to 55,500 views! Not only is 1958 diverse in their use of different social media platforms to promote different UP themed merchandise, but they are even more diverse in utilizing different e-commerce platforms such as their own website and Shopee. Moreover, 1958 was also able to utilize different significant UP-centered events –– such as the recent victory of the UP Men’s Basketball team in the UAAP Finals and the release of the 2022 UPCA results –– which cleverly integrated different UP themed products and was the definition of hitting two birds with one stone!
All in all, these promotions helped the brand's unique and one-of-a-kind merchandise reach Iskos all over the country. From classic tees to trendy hoodies, 1958 didn't just help Iskolars ng Bayan stay in style, but it also helped support the heart of this organization –– The UP JMA KIDS Program.
More with marketing
It truly was a fruitful and eventful year for UP JMA. As an organization that prides itself in being at the forefront in the pursuit of marketing excellence, the different teams and initiatives that strived to do more with marketing have definitely proved that to be true.
UP JMA is not only a place for different people to socialize and get to know each other, but a place where members grow and develop their knowledge and skills in the field of marketing. Of course, members and teams don’t achieve these successes on their own; as the saying goes, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
From its award-winning events to its impactful initiatives, the organization was able to achieve all this and more — with marketing.
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