GCash won the highest local honor at the YouTube Works Awards Philippines 2026 for a campaign that combined relatable storytelling, first-party customer data, multiple video formats, and Google’s artificial intelligence tools to convert audience engagement into loan applications.
The fintech company’s “GLoan with Free Health Insurance: Loan Song Syndrome” campaign was named Best of Philippines and also received the Masters of Media award during the ceremony held in Manila on August 5.
Speaking at the event, Google Philippines Country Manager Prep Palacios described YouTube as an ecosystem that brings together culture, trusted creators, shopping experiences, and AI-powered advertising across multiple screens and video formats.
“From shorts and long-form videos to living-room TV content, podcasts, and online shopping, YouTube has built a complete ecosystem that connects with millions of Filipinos every single day,” Palacios said.
She added that the platform’s key advantage is the level of trust viewers place in creators, which can help brands turn product discovery into informed purchasing decisions and measurable business results.
From a catchy jingle to loan applications
The campaign promoted a GLoan offer that included free health insurance, positioning GLoan as more than a source of emergency funding.
Rather than relying on technical explanations of lending and insurancere, GCash used relatable “close call” situations, Filipino humor, and a jingle inspired by a familiar 1990s song.
The approach was designed to make the financial product easier to understand and remember.
Watch the campaign here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7J40pQ76U0
“When emergencies happen, having quick access to a financial ‘lifeline’ or a loan can make all the difference,” GCash Chief Marketing Officer Neil Trinidad said.
After establishing the creative concept, GCash used different YouTube formats to engage consumers at each stage of the customer journey.
The campaign began with longer videos that explained the offer. A video-view campaign, supported by GCash’s first-party eligibility signals, helped the company reach consumers who were already qualified to access GLoan.
GCash then used a video-reach campaign and six-second bumper advertisements to reinforce the campaign’s jingle and most memorable messages among previous viewers.
The final phase linked these awareness campaigns to GCash’s always-on Performance Max campaign, with Google’s AI-powered advertising tools helping convert consumer interest into loan applications.
GCash reports higher use and lower acquisition costs
GCash said daily users increased by 14.5%, while daily loan disbursements rose by 36.7% compared with the previous quarter.
Search interest for “free health insurance” increased by 684%. The campaign also produced a seven-point improvement in the brand attribute measuring whether consumers viewed GCash as a company they could depend on for emergency or additional funds.
The campaign generated 96.5 million impressions, reached 8.8 million people, and recorded 48 million views, according to the case study presented during the roundtable.
Running brand-building and performance campaigns simultaneously reduced GCash’s customer acquisition cost by 95% compared with its search-engine marketing baseline.
“In the end, we didn’t just make GLoan more memorable. We made protection more accessible,” Trinidad said.
The campaign illustrates how fintech companies can use video not only to build awareness, but also to identify qualified users, reinforce brand messaging, and drive measurable business outcomes.
YouTube expands its creator and commerce tools
Beyond recognizing the winning campaigns, Google used the awards to present YouTube’s growing role in product discovery, creator marketing, and digital commerce in the Philippines.
More than 19 million Filipinos now watch YouTube through connected television sets, while local uploads of YouTube Shorts increased by more than 90% year on year as of April 2026, according to YouTube’s internal data.
A Google and Kantar study also found that 81% of surveyed Filipino viewers considered YouTube creators trustworthy sources of content about products and brands they wanted to purchase.
Google has rolled out YouTube Creator Partnerships in the Philippines, allowing advertisers to discover and collaborate with creators through Google Ads and Display & Video 360.
The platform’s AI-supported search tools allow marketers to look for creators using keywords, categories, or trends. Advertisers can also review information such as audience demographics and engagement before approaching a creator.
Once a collaboration is established, brands can use Creator Partnerships Boost, previously called Partnership Ads, to promote a creator’s content as paid advertising and measure its performance.
YouTube is also connecting creator content with online purchases. Through the YouTube Shopping affiliate program, qualified creators can tag products in their videos and receive commissions from completed sales.
According to the Google and Kantar study cited by the company, 95% of surveyed local viewers used instructional videos for shopping-related information, while 89% watched unboxing content and 87% used product reviews.
Brands operating stores on Shopee and Lazada can also use the Commerce Media Suite to bring viewers from YouTube advertisements directly to marketplace checkout pages.
Google said its Gemini AI capabilities support this ecosystem by interpreting viewer intent and helping connect audiences with relevant content, products, advertisements, and creators.
A commissioned Analytic Edge meta-analysis found that YouTube delivered twice the return on investment of linear television. The analysis covered 21 Philippine consumer packaged goods marketing-mix studies completed between 2021 and 2025.
Philippine winners advance to regional competition
The winners were selected by a panel of industry leaders, with the process audited in partnership with Deloitte.
Del Monte Philippines received The Big Bang award for its Centennial Celebration campaign, while Jollibee won Multiformat Storytelling for “Jollibee Christmas 2025: Every Family’s Christmas Joy.”
Colgate Total’s campaign featuring Davao Conyo and Dr. Vicki Belo received the Brands & Creators award. Maggi Philippines won Best of Festive for “Get Pasko Ready with Maggi.”
WPP Media was named Media Agency of the Year, Publicis JimenezBasic received Creative Agency of the Year, and HIIP Philippines was recognized as Specialty Agency of the Year.
The winning Philippine campaigns will represent the country at the YouTube Works Awards Southeast Asia later this year.
For financial companies, GCash’s win demonstrates how digital marketing is increasingly being connected with first-party data, AI-supported media buying, creator influence, and measurable customer activity.
The campaign did not merely generate views for a loan product. It showed how a fintech platform could explain a bundled financial offer, reach eligible consumers, and connect brand storytelling with actual loan applications.
