Mang Inasal, the grill expert from the Philippines, has been quite active on digital platforms over the last two years. Its official hashtag, #ILoveMangInasal, has received 315 million views on TikTok and over 128,000 shares on Facebook, and counting!
Was Mang Inasal the one who brought it about, one may wonder? No, not totally.
The beginning of MICC
The Mang Inasal Creators’ Circle (MICC) was established in March of 2022.
MICC was founded to bring together actual brand ambassadors and assist their influencer journey by including them in campaigns that allowed them to enjoy the Unli-Saya experience and Ihaw-Sarap food of Mang Inasal. Its thirty members are foodies and mommy nano-influencers who adore Mang Inasal.
“MICC started as an experiment because we wanted to try out better ways to promote Mang Inasal on social media,” shared Mang Inasal Digital and Public Relations Head, RJ Jabeguero-Rodillo. “Then during the first campaign, we saw that there’s promise in it as the MICCs’ posts looked and sounded so natural that netizens found them authentic and relatable. And the selection was perfect because MICC members are real loyal Mang Inasal patrons.”
IHAWtastic content co-creation
The content creator is given a short brief that allows them to publish about the campaign in any way they see fit. Influencers are the ones who work on the magic of their materials in a way that achieves the goals while being in line with their personalities and lifestyles, in addition to providing important messages, reminders about what to highlight in their photos and videos, and coordination with the stores for the products that Mang Inasal takes care of.
By 2023, the MICC had grown to over 160 members, an exponential growth from its original membership of thirty. The TikTokerists and Gen Zs are a new group of content makers that emerged as a result of this expansion in the community. With more than 30 ads planned for 2023, young people, mothers, and foodies can all easily share with their 29 million followers how much they love Mang Inasal.
In addition to collaborating with some of the largest content creators in the area, such as Simon Javier of Metro Manila, Mommy Hieds and Georgeous George of North Luzon, Mommy Diaries PH of South Luzon, Mortejo Twins, and Zamboanga Guide of Visayas and Mindanao, the community has been able to access a wide variety of content creators as MICC grows.
“We really appreciate how MICC has added a new spark to how we tell our brand story,” said Ed Timbungco, Mang Inasal Public Relations Manager. “It is a mutually beneficial partnership that has allowed Mang Inasal to help expand the followers of its partner content creators, while the MICCs enrich the Brand’s ways to share its campaigns to more people across the country. We are all kindred spirits exchanging stories about Mang Inasal, a brand we all love.”
Celebration of collaboration
The MICC was just granted the Black Dragon designation in the Best Brand Building/Awareness Campaign category at the esteemed 2023 Dragons of Asia, demonstrating that all of its efforts since its founding have been worthwhile.
“MICC is definitely one of our biggest wins this 2023 because we have connected with different communities of customers through our content partners nationwide,” said Rodillo. “We are thankful to all MICC members for their contribution in bringing all the great Mang Inasal updates to their followers. And the Dragons of Asia win confirms the power of their efforts.”
MICC Meet Ups were held across the country, in Mega Manila, North and South Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, to commemorate this recognition. This gave the brand the opportunity to meet the creators face-to-face and learn about each other’s MICC journeys. Additionally, a virtual celebration celebrating the inaugural MICC IHAWtastic Awards brought all members together via Zoom to round out the year.
While MICC is helping Mang Inasal close 2023 with the biggest bang possible, the upcoming year promises bigger and more IHAWtastic initiatives that will undoubtedly give digital video producers more opportunities to enjoy Unli-Saya and Ihaw-Sarap meals wherever and whenever they choose!
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