Acceptance speech of Tambuli Awards 2011’s first-ever Chief Marketing Officer of the Year, McDonald’s Philippines Vice President for Marketing, Margot Torres at the award ceremony on June 9, 2011.
When my daughter Isabel was 7, she asked me what my day was like doing my marketing job. So I shared: ‘Let’s see . . . I start my day in my office, by reading emails then I go to a meeting, then I go to another meeting and another one. I meet a lot of people along the way- and end my day checking emails again.’ My daughter will probably end up choosing another career.
Growing up, a career in marketing was not in my plan. During my first two years in college, I was taking a course in Management Engineering at the Ateneo— a course I chose only because I was told you can find a decent boyfriend there. The truth in that statement is debatable. But fate intervened and I graduated as a Psychology major.
After college, I joined Philippine Refining Company—Unilever to the young people in the room- because I wanted a job STAT. I was bored, so bored doing nothing after college that I had my hair curled and it was a disaster. Before I could do more damage to myself, I sought employment. My first job was working as a research executive at Unisearch then I moved to Brand after a year and a half. That is the story of the beginnings of my marketing journey—it started with hair. Now, 10 jobs and 24 years later, I am now “lovin’ it” at McDonald’s. For a believer in brands such as myself, this is indeed a dream job.
I used to think a marketing person’s career ends when they turn 40 since the perception is, it a profession suited for the young—keeping up with the latest trends, technology etc. I discovered the opposite. The longer you stay in the marketing profession, the better you get. I also used to see marketing as a job whose only goal was to make a brand earn a profit. Now, I have come to realize that there is more to marketing; something more powerful, deeper.
Marketing is like telling a story- a story with the intent to resonate and to strike a chord with people. Whether through images or sound, we tell a story every time we air a 30 seconder on TV. What never ceases to amaze me, something that we in the industry at times forget, is just how powerful this tool really is.
Marketing has the ability to reflect who and where we are as individuals, as Filipinos, as a country. Long after we are gone, the campaigns that we aired would remain. This is what the next generation would see and remember us for- our time, our life, our culture.
With such a powerful tool, responsible marketing is incumbent upon us. It is our duty and our responsibility to help in shaping the values of the youth and take part in nation building. This is what inspired me to champion BBDO’s Project AHON for 21st Philippine Advertising Congress to help typhoon victims, the PANA Brand Camp that showcases the Filipino talent of young marketers in a global arena at Cannes Lions Festival and PANA’s ‘Narito Ako’ campaign together with 7AD and PANA President John Rojo to ignite national pride.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank McDonald’s, especially my boss, Kenneth Yang, for allowing me to pursue these advocacies that I strongly believe in.
Contrary to popular belief and despite what some bishops may think, we take our marketing work at McDonald’s seriously. I am proud to be with a brand that shares the same values. We want to encourage generosity through our charity of choice RMHC (Ronald McDonald House Charities) and help Filipino children have a better life through education, instill discipline and teamwork with our Kiddie Crew program and tell stories that show what we value most in life– family and friends. As we say in McDonald’s, we love to make a difference. So I hope I can continue to make a difference for McDonald’s, for our industry and for our country.
Perhaps after sharing that marketing is not just about checking emails and attending numerous meetings, my daughter Isabel just might pursue a career in marketing.
Before I end, I would like to share this award with my loving husband Jet, my kids Diego and Isabel, my McDonald’s marketing team and our partners Leo Burnett, DDB and Starcom.
Thank you to University of Asia & the Pacific and Tambuli for this recognition.
