Kraft bags 2007 Global IMC Awards Thanks to Philippine Bloggers

I’m talking tomorrow at the AIM together with Andrian Lee on the subject of corporate blogging. With my boil spots on the verge of healing (I acquired a severe boil in my last Ho Chi Minh – Siam Reap trip), I need a motivator to help alleviate the pain on my side and I guess writing this will help me procure my thoughts on the matter.

I realized that the blogosphere is no longer in a state that’s “trying hard” to be accepted by corporations as legit avenues for marketing and opinion. In fact, its the big ones that are now pushing new media as supplements and drivers of PR campaigns. One such achievement which I would like to share would be the Toblerone Thank You Day campaign which not only won an Anvil Award, but also bagged the Global 2007 IMC Award for Kraft. This information is being shared to bloggers who played part in the campaign in the next few days. Parcels of the email follows:

Congratulations to all of you for some outstanding IMC programs. This year’s the judging was particularly challenging with a number of very worthy regional programs. This year we will celebrate three global winners Toblerone (AP/Phillipines), Carte Noir (EU/France) and Freia (EU/Norway) along new award category for “best use of ” in which we will acknowledge some innovative work done by Club Social (LA/Brazil) for their use of digital/mobile technology.

Toblerone’s Thank You Day campaign was highly spearheaded by bloggers and viral marketers. Some of these would include Noemi’s family, Karla and Pinoycentric, Gail and Marc, Anton and family, Markku, Juned, Annalyn, Bianca and Lucky, Pam, the gentle boys and lovely girls from the Man Blog, and many many other people who wrote about the event (so many bloggers!), and went to the concert despite the tragic bombing of an Ayala mall the previous day.

On behalf of the 2007 Kraft Global IMC Awards Committee, I wanted to congratulate you for your outstanding IMC work on the Toblerone “Thank You Day” program in the Philippines. Among some truly outstanding IMC programs around the world, your Toblerone program has been recognized as the “best-of-the-best” IMC programs in all of Kraft Foods for 2007. See the winning program summary compiled on your behalf, along with that of the other 2007 Award winners.

Of particular significance, this is the first time that an entry from within the Asia-Pacific Region has been recognized with this prestigious honour. I wanted to congratulate you for the strong work on the Toblerone “Thank-You Day” IMC program, setting a great example of what an entrepreneurial spirit can accomplish with a modest budget, and I trust that you will continue to build on this program momentum for years to come.

Shawn Warren
Vice President, Marketing
Kraft Foods Asia Pacific

There were a few billboard ads and some PR on the newspapers but these were superseded by the Thank You Day website and the DRM-free music that was given away for free by True Faith, Cynthia Alexander, Salindiwa, Mozzie and other bands who participated in this campaign. With a modest budget, the word got out through the Internet via local blogs and online Thank You greeting cards which you could send out via the website. Do a Google search for “Toblerone Thank You Day” and you’ll see.

I guess it only goes to show that a big thanks is owed to everyone who believed in Thank You Day, which is now a national holiday celebrated on October 20 in the city of Makati, Philippines. Thank you! Thank you very much.