Advertising and marketing in the Philippines

Marketing opportunities

Consumer Profile

The Philippines has a population of around 114,597,229 (2022 est.) and a population growth rate of 1.6% (CIA, 2022 est.). The dominant religion is the Roman Catholic one, with 80.6%, followed with the Protestant one 8.2% (includes Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches 2.7%, National Council of Churches in the Philippines 1.2%, other Protestant 4.3%). Muslims represent 5.6% of the population. There are 49.8% of women and 50.2% of men (Data Reportal, 2022).

The median age is 26.3 years (Data Reportal, 2022). 32.4% of the population is aged 14 years or under, 19.2% of the population is between 15 and 24 years old, 37.4% of the population is between 25 and 54 years old, 6.2% of the population is between 55 and 64 years old and 4.9% of the population is 65 years or older (CIA).
48% of the population lives in urban areas; the rate of urbanisation is 2.04% annually. The population is concentrated near good farmlands; highest concentrations are northwest and south-central Luzon, the south-eastern extension of Luzon and the islands of the Visayan Sea, particularly Cebu and Negros; Manila is home to one-eighth of the entire national population.

The average households size is 4.1 people (PSA, 2020), 9% of the households count only one person, 30% of the households count 2 or 3 people, 37% of the households count 4 or 5 people and 24% of the households count 6 people or more (UN, latest data available).
The major urban areas are Manila with 14.406 million inhabitants, Davao, with 1.908 million inhabitants, Cebu City with 1.009 million inhabitants, Zamboanga, with 931,000 inhabitants and Antipolo with 925,000 inhabitants (CIA, 2022).
96% of the population ages 15 and above can read and write (World Bank, 2019). Recent education reforms have sought to boost enrolment levels, graduation rates and mean years of schooling in elementary and secondary education, and to improve the quality of higher education. Many of these reforms were adopted against a backdrop of declining educational standards in the Philippine education system during the first decade of the 21st century.
23% of the population work in agriculture, 19% in industry and 58% in services (World Bank, 2020).

Purchasing Power

The GDP per capita (PPP) is estimated at USD 9,119.7 (World Bank, 2021). The Gini index in the Philippines is 42.3 (World Bank, 2018), placing the country on the 40th spot worldwide. The average salary in the Philippines is estimated at PHP 16,486 (PSA), whereas the country has daily minimum wage rates that vary from region to region, ranging from PHP 265.49 to PHP 508.02 a day (NWPC). The wages are set by tripartite regional wage boards located in every region.
According to the Family Income and Expenditure Survey published by the Philippine Statistics Authority, the average annual family income of Filipino families was approximately PHP 313,348 in 2018. In comparison, the average annual family expenditure was PHP 238,641; hence, Filipino families had savings of around PHP 74,707 in a year, on average.
The Philippines ranked 19th out of 146 countries in terms of gender equality, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report 2022, ranking as the first Asian country. However, the country ranked 8th in a previous edition, and has been losing ground on gender pay equality in recent years.

Consumer Behaviour

The Philippines is a youthful and vibrant consumer market with strong growth potential. The shopping experience is important to Filipino consumers, who visit malls not only to make purchases but also as a family or social activity. Aspiring Filipino middle-class consumers see shopping in modern retail as a representation of urban lifestyle. But at the same time the Filipino consumer does not like ostentatious expenditure, gives priority to his family life and is rather conformist and spontaneous. Advertising has helped increase consumer culture by portraying physical attractiveness and material goods as a gateway to happiness and success.

Online shopping is becoming more and more popular among young Filipinos, Philippine consumers enjoy visits to retail stores in which they are able to touch and feel the product, and value the services throughout the shopping process. Filipinos are among the most socially conscious consumers in the world. 86% of them are willing to pay extra for products and services that come from companies committed to positive social and environmental impact.

Younger consumers have also helped drive considerable growth of internet and mobile internet retailing. The increasing number of single-person and smaller households is boosting demand for compact household items. Low-income households tend to buy products in lower volumes or weights, even though these are more expensive than larger packs. Use of collaborative platforms such as Airbnb and Uber is trending in the country over the past few years.

Consumers Associations

Consumers Union of the Philippines

Main Advertising Agencies

McCann Worldgroup
Ogilvy and Mather Philippines
TBWA Santiago-Mangada-Puno
BDDO Guerrero
Ace Saatchi & Saatchi