Ayala Malls was recognized at the international Marketing Excellence Awards (MEA) 2021 for its excellence in the fields of marketing and business communications amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This win affirms Ayala Malls’ standing as the country’s premier lifestyle and culture shopping destination, setting the pace and trend for the local market.

Marketing Interactive’s Marketing Excellence Awards is a premier platform for marketers to showcase their creative excellence, successful strategies, and effective delivery. Launched 10 years ago in Singapore to cater to the Singapore market, this award-giving body later on expanded to Hong Kong, Malaysia, and the Philippines. In the Philippines, these awards attract entries from hundreds of retailers from all over the country, allowing brands to be recognized and honored for their retail excellence. The awards celebrate outstanding work from marketing communications, creative advertising, PR, and market research.

Ayala Malls wins five awards at the MEA 2021
The go-to lifestyle mall wins in five categories for its excellence in marketing and COVID-19 response, besting top retail stores from the country.

In an effort to elevate lifestyle amid the pandemic, Ayala Malls launched DriveBuy, which is a system of pick-up areas located in accessible mall driveways. The project aimed to acknowledge the challenges consumers were facing as a result of lockdown restrictions that barred malls from fully operating. Ayala Malls DriveBuy thus allowed safe shopping experiences through contactless transactions at dedicated meeting points between customers and merchants in 20 Ayala Malls nationwide. This airport-pickup-bay-inspired project won the silver award in the category “Excellence in Response to COVID-19”.

Among the recognitions, two were awarded to Alabang Town Center’s “Homegrown Circle” campaign. A sustaining commitment to help rebuild and grow local micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through a membership program providing them with relevant opportunities to grow amongst industry leaders. This platform helps MSMEs to test their products’ marketability, effectively create awareness for their brand, and reach a broader audience by capitalizing on the mall’s natural on-ground traffic and strong online following. Ultimately, the alliance between ATC and MSMEs would set a high standard for the Philippine shopping center industry, especially as the economy adjusts to the new normal standards and promising business concepts continue to emerge. For this, “Homegrown Circle” won a silver award in the category “Excellence in B2B Marketing” and a bronze award in the category “Excellence in Event Marketing” at the MEA 2021.

Additionally, Ayala Malls’ pursuit to enrich the lives of its patrons in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic led them to create the “Artists’ Alley” at the U.P. Town Center, a year-long campaign centered on art. A combination of on-ground and digital channels were utilized and executed into campaign components such as mall murals, art exhibits, musical performances and fund-raising initiatives through custom-designed tote bags and digital art commissions. The campaign was crafted based on 3 guiding principles surrounding the concept of art: Art is Livelihood, Art is Healing, and Art is Humanitarian, and was done in close collaboration with artists of all forms and non-profit organizations in the community. Artists’ Alley provided creatives who were economically affected by the pandemic with a source of income, allowed individuals struggling with the “new normal” to healthily express themselves and boost their overall wellbeing, and finally, it provided those who wish to make a positive impact on others with an avenue to contribute to members within their community who were severely affected by the pandemic. With this holistic and customer-centered campaign, U.P. Town Center’s “Artists’ Alley” was able to garner the bronze award in the “Excellence in Customer Engagement” category.

From the Filipino word that means “to wander leisurely,” Ayala Malls’ “Pasyal” is a first-of-its-kind initiative that is aimed to address the significant shift of activities to the digital platform. The lifestyle mall sought to recreate its distinct brand experience from on-ground to online through this initiative. Making use of technological innovations and utilizing a lifestyle storytelling approach to content, Ayala Malls continues to provide a safe and responsible digital malling journey, as well as deliver an engaging consumer experience through its official Pasyal blog and Youtube channel Pasyal TV. The project was thus hailed silver awardee of the category “Excellence in Digital Marketing” with Pasyal anchored on the strength of the brand to create amazing moments and memorable memories in shopping, dining, and moments spent with friends and family.

With the win at the Marketing Excellence Awards 2021, Ayala Malls continues on its campaign to help local businesses, its partner merchants, and customers with more innovative and adaptable solutions towards having an amazing experience without sacrificing safety.