GM Thailand continues partnership with Weber Shandwick

A re-pitch of GM Thailand's PR business found incumbent Weber Shandwick winning the US$1.5 million per year account over Arc Leo Burnett. Weber Shandwick had been handling the car manufacturer's communications initiatives since 2001.

Monica White, CEO of McCann Worldgroup (Thailand) said, “The trust we have from GM Thailand is significant. It reflects how much we understand GM, the organisation, and its brand Chevrolet, as well as the overall needs of its customers. Hence, we are propelled to continue to deliver more groundbreaking PR initiatives.”

Working closely with GM's internal PR team in its headquarters in Bangkok, the account is headed by Steven Yong, vice president at Weber Shandwick Bangkok. “We work so closely with GM, we have become an extension of GM’s Corporate Communications team. Weber Shandwick and McCann Worldgroup are more than pleased to continue this relationship. A multi-year contract allows for great stability and continuity. This is important especially since GM has done well with the Chevrolet brand and is geared for further growth, not just in Thailand but also in the ASEAN region. It will be challenging but similarly exciting to play an active role in charting GM and Chevrolet’s further growth,” he said.

The agency will employ traditional and non-traditional tactics and social media in GM's communications objectives, and its scope will encompass product, corporate and internal communications, community outreach and corporate social responsibility programmes. While the agency willl have oversight on GM's other markets in the ASEAN region, a representative said they will not have direct and on-ground involvement in those markets at this point.