The 3rd PANA Brand Camp opens today at the Eastwood Richmonde Hotel. For three days, from March 29 to 31, young marketers—that’s under 30 year of age—from 11 PANA member companies will compete for a right to be Team PANA Philippines at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in June.
The 2012 PANA Brand Campers are from Century Pacific Group, Globe Telecom, Johnson & Johnson Phils., Jollibee Foods Corp., Golden Arches Dev’t. Corp. (McDonald’s), Monde Nissin Corp., Nestle Phils., Nutriasia, Inc., Procter & Gamble Distributing Phils., The Coca-Cola Export Corp. and Wyeth Philippines.
In 2010, the Cannes Lions opened the Young Marketers competition. Pepito Olarte, Director of Sales-The Inquirer Group of Companies, official Philippine representative to the Cannes Lions, approached PANA to field a representative. Then president Margot Torres, McDonald’s VP for Marketing and Communications, created PANA Brand Camp.
Torres reprises her role as president of PANA this year.
Designed as a boot camp for marketing excellence, PANA Brand Camp features intensive training and one-on-one alignment in critical preparation for the international arena in June.
The country’s best minds in advertising and integrated marketing communications act as Boot camp masters that hone skills necessary for a competitive edge. This year, Tey San Diego of Seven A.D. will give some Insights, while Gino Borromeo of McCann Worldgroup Philippines will share some Worst Briefs. Leo Burnett and Arc Worldwide Manila’s Pao Peña will show Best Digital Applications, and Russell Molina, also from Seven A.D. will give a Lecture on Storytelling.
A past PANA Brand Camp winner will also cue in the competing teams on what to expect at the Cannes Lions.
The intensive 3-day training results have not disappointed. On its first year, PANA Brand Camp awarded the pioneer title to Bayan Telecommunications duo Dave Buenviaje and Mei Marasigan. The team brought home the Silver Award in 2010.
In 2011, the 2nd team of Angeline Go and Justine Ferrer from Del Monte Philippines bagged the Gold.
All teams are given the same topic. The competing teams are required to create, afterwards present, their briefs to client-judges. In the manner of the actual Cannes Lions competition, teams are only given overnight to create their briefs.
As only the best of the advertising world will judge in Cannes Lions, PANA Brand Camp taps their Philippine counterparts in the fields of media, creative and brand management.
With excitement comes pressure, surely, but the learning is worth it. The experience of a professional boot camp cum competition has its thrills. For the winning team, the chance to represent the Philippine marketing industry in a prestigious event is once in a lifetime.
[nggallery id=45]
