Choose to flow your best!

ADS & Ends
Nanette Franco-Diyco

My own family has been using Wilkins drinking water for years. As far back as I remember, its advertising thrust has always been aimed at mothers who know what’s good for their families. A recent television commercial even featured actress Marian Rivera who had just given birth as the knowledgeable mother.

Then, all of a sudden, as gleaned from its newly launched television commercial, Wilkins has changed its primary target market to young adults. It’s a good strategy. The past campaigns over the years have already etched Wilkins onto the minds of housewives and mothers as the most trusted distilled water for their families.

Young adults now have become infinitely more independent, many living in their own condominium units, living fast and furious lives, and definitely have minds of their own.

Creative agency, Campaigns & Grey’s deputy executive creative director Rizza Tangan, said, “The 30-seconder TVC doesn’t reveal how everybody was just ON this. I’ve never experienced so much passion, push and pull on a launch idea. Brand, Accounts, Strat, Creative, Media… everyone had a say and everyone had a listen. It was tedious but necessary. Because that collaborative stamina saw this campaign through — ‘flowing its best’ in the end and executed wonderfully by an ace production team.”

The commercial’s flow is paced very well, not too fast but not slow either, lucidly exposing the viewer to varied everyday situations in almost every young working professional’s life. Director AF Benaza must have had a hand in this, as he himself lives the same fast-paced life.

I especially like the creative team’s partnering the selected situations with specific values — even stressing these in concrete letters on screen as the talents act out their lives. A female annotator off-screen goes bilingual, casually providing the rationale for the specific value. So, the effect is that she’s merely chatting with you and not homilizing. Good execution here.

As this young woman wakes up, she checks her cellphone while still in bed, which pops “Ready for Monday!” The next frame shows her smilingly walking some avenue on her way to work. “Choose to be positive.” “Para good vibes,” we hear.

We see her now in her office. She laughingly removes a coat brand’s tag from behind the suit of her colleague. “I choose to laugh,” “Pag nagkamali” (when you commit mistakes).

I also like the scene on a bus where a woman carrying a big parcel is given a seat. “Choose to help.” “Maski walang kapalit” (Even without expecting something in exchange.)

There are other interesting situations that enliven the material — all flowing onto the end of the commercial where, in effect, you have the product window that is able to partner the hard-sell with the soft-sell message.

“Choose to be pure” is visualized by the girl immaculately garbed in a white exercise outfit as she limbers up and stretches on her exercise board. Then the commercial segues to Wilkins’ push: “From the most pure trusted distilled water, internationally certified pure to the last drop.”

Director Benaza revealed that the infinity splash at the end was done with computer graphics, wedded with the water movement and lighting effects. Nice!

I like the “Choose to flow your best” tag that is able to strongly market Wilkins and simultaneously humanize it with great human values. Call it creative and marketing effectiveness that flow!

It is difficult to contain your selling message with its ramifications interestingly in a brief succinct 30-seconder. Congratulations to Wilkins, Campaigns & Grey, and Provil for the achievement.

Credits. Client team: Stephan Czypionka, marketing director; Jesus Ferreira, IMC director; Nikki Lee-Benitez, senior IMC content manager. Creative Agency, Campaigns & Grey. Creative team: Rizzo Tangan, executive creative director; Mags Sandoval, deputy executive creative director; Leklek Nacional, associate creative director; Rab Evangelista and Paolo Arco, copywriters; Nicole de Perio, art director. Account management team: Eres Aspi, VP account management; Marion Manalo, group account director; Mady Asis and Mica Valencia, senior account managers; Jem Lim and Danise Talaba, broadcast producers. Production house, Provil: AF Benaza, director; Cris Pasturan, assistant director; Nina Torres, designer; Ike Avellana, cinematographer. Post production house, Central Digital Lab.

Nanette Franco-Diyco ended her 15^th year advertising career as Vice-President of JWT, segueing into the world of academe, currently teaching communications at the Ateneo de Manila University.

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