Young Star Exclusive: DOT's Jimenez is all about the iconic

Selling the Philippines is just like selling Chickenjoy.” Perhaps it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. He is, after all, a legendary ad man, head of Jimenez Basic, the advertising firm behind brands as varied as Chowking and Unilab. If he has a way with words, a way with slogans, well, it’s all in a day’s work.

But it was a surprise, anyway. Here was Ramon Jimenez Jr., newly minted Tourism secretary, unwittingly charming a press conference full of jaded reporters. Evidently, all those years in the advertising industry did the man good. In that first press conference on Sept. 1, where he announced his ascension as tourism czar, Jimenez was negotiating the subtle art of selling himself in a political arena — with aplomb.

The appointment came at an opportune time, at the tail end of the failed “Pilipinas Kay Ganda” campaign. If there’s anyone who can sell the country properly, if there’s anyone who can bring the DOT aesthetic to the 21st century, it’s probably this guy.

We can count on that last one, at least. After all, the new DOT chief has a pretty talented designer for a daughter — Sassa Jimenez. And whether it was because of Sassa or because his work in the ad world, he seems more than willing to collaborate with young Filipino talent. A Team Manila-related inquiry during this interview, for example, was met with this: “I’ve never worked with Team Manila directly, but I am a big fan of their work. It is possible that they could play a role in crafting and identifying the images that will be truly iconic for the Philippines.”

Hear that? For the new tourism czar, it’s all about going iconic.

YOUNG STAR: You’re a well-established advertising executive. But for some people, you might seem a bit inexperienced in the political arena. What events and experiences in your career as an ad man have led to the DOT position?

RAMON JIMENEZ: I did not join politics when I joined the DOT. I see it more as a career in public service. The politics that surrounds it, however, is not new to me. I have spent 20 years as a communications adviser to many politicians. I understand their motivations, their needs and I think I can work very well with them. They have their job to do and I have mine. 

In your opinion, what edge does your background give you?

My training demands that I care a lot that people are genuinely moved and persuaded by what I do and what I say. I always work to an end result. 

Politicians make lots of promises all the time. So if you had to summarize your plans in one promise, what would it be?

I’m not a politician so I don’t make promises, I set goals and targets. My goal is to transform tourism into a genuinely people-based business, meaning, we will not only work to generate jobs for our people we will work to motivate our people to invest in tourism to create even more opportunities for everyone. Like I always say, tourism is the people’s business. 

Between you and Sassa, I guess it’s safe to say a knack for aesthetics is in the genes. As a creative, who and what are your influences?

We have a saying in communications: you are only as good as your last work. So my greatest motivation has always been the need to improve constantly. 

Young people in Manila are increasingly savvy about aesthetics and the art of selling (they were among the most vocal about the “Pilipinas Kay Ganda” campaign). How do you plan to tap into this potential? Moreover, what kind of involvement would you like to see from the youth?

You seem to suggest that the youth is interested. I like that. I will encourage the youth to set the tempo of tourism development in the Philippines. Their energy, artistry, etc. will definitely have a place in our marketing efforts.

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