Pldt: SCREEN-AGE LOVE STORY

Credits & Description:

Type of entry: Use of Media
Category: Best Use of Social Media
Advertiser: PLDT
Product/Service: MYDSL
Agency: ACE SAATCHI & SAATCHI Manila, THE PHILIPPINES
Executive Creative Director: Andrew Petch (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
VP/Creative Director: Trixie Diyco (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Creative Director: Greg Martin (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Head Of Art: Denise Tee (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Copy Writer: Paw Berroya (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Copy Writer: Gelo Suarez (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Copy Writer: Jordan Santos (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Copy Writer: Petra Magno (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Copy Writer: Sara Badr (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Art Director: Glenn Lalogan (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Art Director: Windel Aboy (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Art Director: Hans Malang (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Art Director: Miguel Maier (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Agency Producer: Karen Sto. Domingo (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Client Service Director: Gigi Garcia (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Account Manager: April Landicho (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Account Manager: Claire Cruz (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Planner: Carmen Antunez (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Planner: Natalie Ang (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)
Director: Henry Frejas (Ace Saatchi & Saatchi)

Results and Effectiveness

Philippines' most viewed branded videos. Trended in twitter thrice. Over 40 copycat videos. Reposted by YouTube users. Shared in social media. Almost 6 million combined views. User and celebrity tweets caught over 1 million eyeballs. Covered by radio shows, tv news and print -- estimated P10 million in free media and WOM. PLDT myDSL website got 30% increase in total visits. 200% increase in applications. 30% revenue increase for PLDT myDSL. Post-launch tests: 93% now find brand more appealing. 83% prefer it to other internet services. 62% awareness after 4 weeks-- highest rate for any PLDT retail brand since 2010.

Creative Execution

In Virtual meets Reality Love Story , we first created our characters. A teen, Derek S. Lorenzo (DSL), his fictional family and crush were given social media accounts and treated like real people.
We launched with an unbranded YouTube video of Derek S. Lorenzo on his personal unbranded channel. Us-generated videos with links to the original video were used to sustain interest.
Viewers were driven to the video by having “Mom” support it through her Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, forums, flyering, and doing call-ins to radio stations.
We launched with tv, print, out-of-home, online ads all driving people to the re-skinned, now-branded channel.
TV “sightings” at sports events and guestings of the family in shows as well as online and print PR articles further blurred the lines of reality and fiction.
Anna breaks his heart with a video on her own personal channel. Search for new ‘Anna’ through TV, OOH, on-ground and online activation.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

90% of Philippine internet advertising is rational. So we decided to rise above the clutter of Mbps and speed and get emotional engagement. We reached out to the decision makers (moms) without alienating the influencers (their teens). We communicated to them that PLDT myDSL’s strong internet connections can create strong emotional connections. We brought this to life through Screen-Age Love Story wherein we created people both mom and teen can empathize with – a love struck boy named Derek S. Lorenzo (DSL), his ultra-supportive mom, his family and his crush, Anna. Launched online, revealed through traditional media and supported by a variety of branded and unbranded touchpoints throughout the campaign, we blurred the lines between fiction and reality. This became a “real life” demonstration of strong internet connections creating strong emotional connections extensively in a medium that PLDT myDSL is a provider of.