Manila, Philippines — The Digital Marketing Association of the Philippines (DMAP), the leading organization known for its excellence and innovation in digital marketing, advocated for holistic, responsible personalization practices in the digital marketing landscape during its hosting of the 10th Digital Congress (DigiCon) last October 16-17 at the Marriott Grand Ballroom, Pasay City.
Themed “The Age of ‘i’: The Power of Personalization,” the biggest digital marketing conference in the Philippines gathered over 2,000 attendees from various sectors, including marketing, advertising, business, academia, and media, to explore the latest trends and emerging technologies in customer engagement.
Delegates gained valuable industry knowledge and experience during the two-day event through five focused tracks: Innovation (AI), Intelligence (Data Science), Immersive (Retail and Activations), Impact (Brand Building), and Integration (Business Transformation). This year’s edition of DigiCon featured a series of talks and discussions centered on the most relevant topics and issues in the digital landscape, including hyper-individualized customer experiences, responsible data practices and ethical AI use, content creation and curation, brand-building, and future-proofing businesses.
About 71% of consumers expect personalization, and high-growth companies generate 40% more revenue from it. In today’s AI-driven world, brands leverage this opportunity to create engaging, relevant customer experiences by analyzing data and predicting behavior, underscoring their critical role in meeting expectations and driving growth.
In his keynote speech, global emerging technologies expert Dex Hunter-Torricke highlighted the fast-evolving digital landscape and how it’s pushing the industry to keep up with exponentially rising customer expectations.
“The next decade is going to be the most challenging moment in history. There are transformations now building on the last wave of technology that are far greater, faster, and more interconnected than ever that we are all installing right now. In fact, over time, many of the leaders in the biggest AI labs in the world believe that we’re going to end up in the future with so-called Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), a human-level intelligence in AI that is much, much cleverer and capable of far more applications than anything you see right now. We’re entering an era now where AI, as it gets more and more intelligent, opens up the possibilities of hyper-personalization, something that is vastly more bespoke and customized to the needs of every single one of our customers, communities, and stakeholders,” said Hunter-Torricke, who served as a communications executive at Facebook and SpaceX.
DigiCon 2025 Chair Alan Fontanilla noted the importance of trust and consent as primary currencies in building a respectful, value-driven customer experience.
“Personalization has been democratized. Everyone, from big brands to small businesses and entrepreneurs, now has access to tools once reserved for the few. However, just because we can personalize, doesn’t mean we always should. Consent, privacy, ethics, and trust are the currencies of modern marketing. People don’t just want relevance, but they want respect. Let’s use personalization not just because we can, but because it truly adds value,” said Fontanilla.
Hunter-Torricke further emphasized the crucial role of future-focused, holistic thinking in shaping the next wave of digital marketing.
“Everything in this age and all the history to come is about a world where everything is connected. Therefore, the things we will do in the next century will be vastly more interesting and transformative. So, it’s essential that you take the future seriously and think about how everything you do fits into the context of a much, much larger story. And if you do that, you will be exceptional marketers.”
This year, DigiCon 2025 delegates had the opportunity to earn program certifications upon completing the program tracks in partnership with the Certified Digital Marketer (CDM). This initiative aligns with DMAP’s mission to future-proof the industry by providing crucial insights and skills, empowering marketers to stay ahead of the curve in the digital age amid evolving consumer behaviors and rapid technological shifts.
“The future is connected and powered by AI, but its success hinges on our collective commitment to responsible practices. DigiCon 2025 has not only charted the course toward hyper-personalization but has equipped our industry with the ethical compass needed to navigate it. The conversations started here will ensure DMAP and the whole digital marketing ecosystem remain at the forefront of digital excellence,” said DMAP President Miko David.
