Results and Effectiveness

Running the extra media mile allowed Milo to exceed its targets: the 34th National MILO® Marathon gave away 4,200 pairs of shoes ,+5% vs. target; 200,367 runners participated,+3% vs. 2009 and generated heart warming buzz for MILO® helping “build champions in life.” Spontaneous Awareness for MILO®’s “Give a Child a Pair of Shoes” was 83% (Millward Brown Q4, 2010.) 2010 sales volume increased over 4% year-on-year, market share rose to 90%. The rousing success of the 34th National MILO® Marathon has become a new benchmark: the 35th MILO® Marathon now targets to provide an ambitious 10,000 shoes to indigent children.

Creative Execution

Our solution, a campaign called: “Help Give a Child a Pair of Shoes.” This noble cause needed very sensitive approach to stir nationwide empathy leading to buzz and participation. We executed a 3-part campaign: Seeding: Kick-off the campaign with GreenDay: three top celebrities “marathoned” through different TV shows promoting MILO® Marathon’s cause - a market first. “Running” with them were the early recipients of pairs of shoes. Activation: Create empathy by bringing the story of these courageous kids, creating a sense of urgency to do your part: • Vignettes sharing engaging stories of recipients • Count-up to the number of Milo shoes given • Live countdowns on different Milo Marathon elimination races • Custom-made emotional music video showcasing the ‘passion to win’ Amplification: Spread the word through TV spots, creative magazine pop-ups, metro train wraps, billboards in strategic locations encouraging more runners to join the 34th MILO® Marathon.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

MILO® dominated market with 88% share; growth was challenging. A core pillar of MILO®’s positioning is the annual National MILO® Marathon. The task: re-energize the MILO® Marathon franchise creating clear differentiation from amongst clutter of marathons. The objective: sustain the almost 200,000 number of runners. Beyond MILO®’s primary target of mothers with children ages 7-12, the MILO® Marathon targeted a wide audience: people from all walks of life, moving in one direction, in varying speed and distance. Winning is reaching their destination, hurdling whatever barriers come their way. Previous marathons revealed an interesting fact: underprivileged children running these races barefoot, some even winning the provincial legs. The insight “My passion to win will overcome any barrier”, in line with MILO®’s ‘building champions’ overcoming all barriers. This led to the idea of harnessing the ‘Filipinos’ innate spirit of goodness’ through an advocacy campaign - ‘give a child a pair of shoes’.