Du’s integrated Tropa for Life campaign, targeting the UAE Filipino community, was awarded a gold Effie at the Mena Effie awards, held earlier this month.

The creative campaign has touched the expatriate Filipino community on a very personal level, it has inspired brand affinity through creativity and music, so much so that du was recently recognised by the Filipino Times Awards as the preferred Telecom Operator of the Year. Tropa for Life also received recognition on a global scale when it was shortlisted at Cannes, and was lauded regionally with gold statues at Dubai Lynx, and now the Effies.
 
The campaign brought the Filipino expatriate culture to life through an engaging advertisement, coupled with a creative rap song that caught the attention of the entire community to bring them together.
 
“We are so pleased to be taking an award for creativity to the UAE. At du, the way that we communicate our brand messaging is extremely important for us all, which is why we took on the challenge to integrate into this incredibly unique and colourful community in a way that would resonate with them, while staying true to our brand,” said Hala Badri, executive vice president, Brand and Communication, du. “We worked together with our creative agency, Leo Burnett, to come up with the story line and the videos for the campaign – and with the rap song that has really become an integral part of Filipino entertainment in the UAE.”

“We really listened to what the consumer wanted – even from an advertising perspective, and we worked hard to ensure that their needs were met. We went beyond our scope as a telco to really provide a unique product for the customer,” added Badri.

Du launched the Kabayan bundle at its store in conjunction with a store visit by Filipino boxer Manny Pacqiao posing with a Tropa for Life t-shirt as he met fans. In addition to the commercial and the Tropa for Life track, du also sponsored the Philippine Basketball League, the biggest basketball event in the UAE, and the telco ensured that leaflets and posters were available at major malls in the country to further integrate with the community on a more holistic level. - TradeArabia News Service