Yahoo! Philippines greets 2013 with beefed up consumer strategies

Yahoo! Philippines marks its fifth year with a slew of plans for the year, including amping up the many campaigns and events that have cemented its positioning as more than just a search engine, but also an online portal that brings people together via common interests and goals. “We are a global company with a local soul,” says Yahoo! Country and Sales Director Ambassador Arlene Amarante.

 

Last year, Yahoo initiated a number of successful, locally relevant campaigns designed to strengthen Pinoys’ online connections. These include Yahoo She, the local version of Yahoo Shine, a site which aims to empower women by offering them content geared towards their specific challenges and triumphs; Style Factor, a Procter and Gamble-sponsored site available on Yahoo’s entertainment site OMG! that featured exclusive celebrity insider style secrets; Technostorm, a tech-based site; and College Hoops, which launched a search for a college-level courtside reporter, as well as provide UAAP fans with up-to-date information on game scores and UAAP teams. 

 

And then there was also the second OMG Awards, which has already become one of the biggest entertainment events in the country, the awards night drawing a crowd of 13,000. Amarante promises that this year’s OMG Awards is “going to be in a big arena once again.” There are also plans to make tickets easier to access, giving more people the opportunity to see their favorite stars.

 

Yahoo! also spearheaded socially relevant campaigns such as the Pitong Pinoy Awards. Also on its second year, the Awards recognizes seven Filipinos who have made an impact on society.  Other significant events include the TechStormExpo, partnership with Smart Communications, and the launch of Yahoo! Mail and Flickr apps.

 

2013 heralds exciting developments for these projects as the company promises to make them more even engaging to the public. And with elections fast approaching, the site has been extensively covering events and candidates via election website Purple Thumb. The site has also launched an education campaign to better prepare citizens for the polls.

 

Yahoo! is also gearing up for Google’s entry in the Philippine market. “My answer to Google’s entry to the market? Why just now?” amarante says. “I think it’s a great thing... Yahoo! has been here for the past five years. It’s been educating, evangelizing this market... so adding Google here is a welcome change because... the industry is going to be a lot better, a lot bigger.” 

 

Yahoo! believes in Pinoys as social animals, and plans to work towards greater online interaction. “We have been here since 2008, and we will continue to invest in the Philippines because we know that Filipinos are engaging internet users,” Amarante says. “And that’s role Yahoo! plays... to bring... Pinoys closer to the web.” — TJD, GMA News