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Is developing relevant content enough?
In the past year, it has been impossible for many to develop a client presentation without the words “relevant content” as the ultimate solve to better engage consumers. This is especially the case working at a Hispanic agency, where our ongoing objective is to shift the discussion away from language and steer our clients into conversation about how to leverage culture—whether that be ethnic culture, or a consumer’s own self-defined, life-style driven culture—to better connect with them. And since Hispanics have such a varying degree of Spanish-language usage, developing relevant content and communication is the catalyst for engagement.
But is this any longer enough?
After attending Internet Week 2010 a little over a week ago, it became very clear to me that content ALONE is no longer king. During TIME INC. PRESENTS: REACHING YOUR MOBILE AUDIENCE, Time Inc.’s Digital spearhead, John Cantarella, said it best; in a world where mobile adoption is outstripping other technologies, “interactivity is key, content is no longer enough.” Technology beyond the web, like the iPad and mobile apps, are now diversifying the delivery of content, leaving consumers looking for richer experiences in which to gobble it all up. Along with the rise of these new platforms, come new rules of engagement; with new learned behaviors and consumer-set expectations for brands to integrate themselves digitally. Consumers expect to be wowed. They want timely content that with a flip of a wrist and swish of the finger, tickles their senses and imagination in ways that they never imagined. They want, or rather expect, interactivity.
Cantarella then left us with a taxing question, which I will leave with you all: In a world where everything is ‘un-bundled’, how can we (as advertisers and marketers) integrate these platforms and personalize the user experience with our brands? As we all struggle to grasp this new realm of “interactivity”, and play within the new rules of engagement, the question is by no means an easy one to answer—but boy, will it be exciting to try.
Jessica Rodriguez, Sr. Brand Planner @ Latinminds
Will you wear my shirt?
So amidst all the World Cup fever, what do you do if your country’s national soccer team didn’t make the cut? Do you root for someone else? Or do you simply disengage from all the madness? The fact is that for most people, the excitement of the World Cup is simply too good to pass up.
That’s why you’ll find Ecuadorians wearing Italian jerseys, Colombians wearing Spanish jerseys and Guatemalans wearing Mexican green…or black as is the case this year.
But what determines what country you cheer for when yours doesn’t make it in? For many it’s a matter of going back a few generations. You hear things like: my grandparents were Spanish or I’m going for a Spanish-speaking country or I want the Cup brought back to South America, or I love French culture- allez les bleus! or I need Brazil to win so I can win the pool. People always manage to find an excuse to cheer because it’s so much more thrilling when you are invested in the game than when you are just a passive viewer.
You’ll find camaraderie is alive and well among people of many nations during this international month-long soccer extravaganza. But, as with everything, there are exceptions. There are certain countries whose jerseys some people simply cannot wear for fear they’ll break out in hives, or worse, be disowned. So if you ask a Colombian to wear the Argentinean shirt, the answer could very well be “Heeeeelll, no!” The rivalry and the history between the 2 countries simply prohibit this. You may be Colombian, and your best may be from Argentina, maybe even your wife, and you may love going to Argentina, and eating all the parts of the cow, and dancing the tango, but you will not, a celeste (sky blue) shirt wear if you don’t want to send your Colombian father to an early grave.
When it comes to soccer, it’s clear that passions run deep. So next time you see a Spaniard wearing a Mexican shirt, have some fun imagining the motivation behind it. All in all, it’s great to see the degree of camaraderie, support and enthusiasm that is generated around soccer and shared by so many. It makes you wish the World Cup were not every four years. Hope your team is doing well, but if their chances of making it to the next round of the World Cup are looking rather slim…what shirt will you be wearing?
-Mariella @Latinminds
Soccer is not for Women
It might have been true a few generations ago, when soccer was really only a stadium event. The real followers were those team membership card holders, all male with the exception of a few loving mothers that came to see “their babies” play. These staunch followers went with their team everywhere, while women, like early Christians, had to follow their faith and passion secretly, with the sole company of a portable radio.
This scenario is definitely history.
We can even say that soccer is ahead of other previously considered male sport “reserves”, with many female soccer media commentators and analysts, Spanish national team goalkeeper Iker Casillas’ girlfriend, Sara Carbonero, for one. The clubs have also noticed the shift and cater to women as much as men, to the point that women have changed soccer fashion! Who would have thought, not so long ago, that you would be able to buy your teams season shirt tailored to fit snuggly, show off your shoulders and with the added benefit of allowing your belly button watch the game too!
Just to drop a figure and eliminate any doubts, the 2010 FIFA World Cup global female audience share is estimated to be 42%, up one whole point from the 2006 World Cup, and if we look at U.S. Hispanic viewership (this is LatinMinds!), Univision female viewership is averaging over 32% and has been as high as 37%, and that’s before getting to semifinals.
And this is all for the good of the sport, relationships and collective entertainment (and the Real Madrids, Milans, and Chelseas of the world, that are making more money than ever!).
Those of you that have been around a little longer will remember when dinner conversations that turned to soccer split the table in two. Now, I am happy to say, the spectator sport of soccer is completely gender neutral, making it more universal and appealing than ever before, and a true ambassador of equality around the world (a bit of a stretch maybe?).
I don’t know when we will see the first professional, premier league, unisex game, but for those of you in New York I would suggest you check out the Puma soccer experience set up downtown next to Pier 17, where you will see men and women playing pick up games together.
What I can clearly picture and look forward to is regularly seeing professional, premier league, female referees…wouldn’t that put an end to challenging a call!
And now back to the World Cup, the single most important sporting event in the world…May the best team win! (For those of you less familiar with the sport, that would be Spain. España! España! Ole, ole, ole, ole…olee, olee).
Jimmy @ Latinminds
Embracing Cultural Differences
(Photo: www.lovingday.org)
In my opinion, one of the greatest aspects of living in a country like the U.S. is the fact that there are so many people from so many different countries and therefore living with so many different cultures.
And, what makes it even more interesting is when these people and their cultures mix…creating a fusion of cultural dynamics that don’t necessarily exist in other more homogeneous countries.
I want to focus on those instances when people’s cultures collide, specifically when one of those cultures is Hispanic mixed with another culture.
For example, I’m married to a Filipino, and while both of our countries were conquered by Spain, our cultures are very different- not just in the food we eat, the languages we speak but even in the way we enjoy parties. While I’ve been brought up to move every furniture in the living room to make room to dance at a house party, at my husband’s Filipino parties we make sure everyone has a shot at the microphone as the main event is karaoke- regardless of gender, age or your talent at singing. Thank goodness I like to sing!
So, what happens when my parents visit my in-laws? Since most of the songs are in English or Tagalog (language spoken in the Philippines) my parents enjoy singing the few songs that are available in Spanish such as “La Cucaracha” and “Las Mañanitas” in front of everyone – it’s hilarious!
An even funnier experience happened to Alex, a Latino who’s cultural difference is seen when he went to meet his American girlfriend’s mom for the first time and the regular hello kiss was interpreted a little bit different…check out as he shares his ‘Mundo’ with us (it’s in Spanish):
To read entire article click here.
Liliana @Latinminds
Latinas and the Happy Family
For me, a newbie to the multicultural world, Leylha Ahuile’s entire presentation on Marketing to Today’s Latina was fascinating. I felt like I was getting a peek behind the curtain of an entire universe I knew nothing about. Yet the one thing that really stands out, is the discussion on Latina and her relationship with her family.
Leylha describes the default ad image for a youngish Hispanic woman is a smiling
happy Latina, 2.5 kids by her side, a nice looking husband and usually, an older grandfatherly/motherly figure in the background. I was instantly able to pull up this
picture, vaguely thinking of some TV spot for a Minivan.
But, Leylha says, lets take a deeper look into this picture; how accurate is it really?
Hispanic woman have fertility rates twice as high as Non-Hispanic, so the kids part
check out. Yet, almost half of Latinas are unmarried – so does that image resonate with
those Latinas as well?
And, Newsflash: Not all Latinas enjoy spending time with their families – debunking that popular myth.
This might be because there is higher percentage of US-born Latina than Latinos, they are more likely to go to college, stay in college and as a result get a higher paid job than most Latinos. So either the Latina is, as a single parent, the only breadwinner in the house, or as the more educated of the family, the primary breadwinner. This, Leylha explained, might result in some resentment in the Latina and make spending time with her family less enjoyable and more stressful.
This was a real moment of insight for me, it humanized the Latina I had in my head, it gave her a voice. Now I understand who this woman is, that yes, she works hard, she’s ambitious, and loves her family to death, but sometimes having to work that hard for them makes her a little crazy. Now, I understand that there is more to her than just the fact that she is more into her lipstick than her eyeliner and she’s a nut about social media. Now, I understand that she is a real woman with mixed feelings about her family, something I can relate to.
Chanie the intern @ Latinminds
“Marketing to Latinas Conference”: An Overview
Last week I had the opportunity of attending a Latinvision conference named “Marketing to Latinas” it was a great event full of stats, insights and great information about the future and opportunity of Latinas in this country.
I love going to these events because not only do I get to see first hand what industry leaders have to say about our market but I also get to share a synopsis of the insights and findings with you.
The first and my favorite panel was “Marketing to Latina women of the New Age” with the following panelists:
Ruth Gaviria, CEO, Hispanic Media Venture, Meredith Corporation- Olivia Maloney, Director, US Hispanic Sales & Solutions, AOL Latino
- Andiara Peterle, CEO, Bolsa de Mulher
- Moderator: Laura Martinez, Founder, Mi Blog es tu blog
What was neat is that I didn’t feel alone when the moderator, Laura Martinez, said…“this morning I updated my twitter and facebook, told people about my blog post, all before I even had my coffee.” I could definitely relate and that’s when she said that many Latinas are doing the same around the U.S.
In fact, the discussion revolved around the need of providing appropriate online content for Latinas in the U.S. that appeals and is relevant to their needs. Andiara Peterle, CEO, Bolsa de Mulher in Brazil mentioned how her company had just conducted a proprietary study to understand Latina women in various countries. “You would think that women in every country should be targeted the same way with the same content when in fact there are so many differences to understand in order to truly relate to them.”
For example the study showed how Latinas in:
- Argentina want to know more about e-commerce, shopping – especially social shopping – where they can share with others what they want to buy before they buy it.
- Brazilian women want to have more social networks to communicate with friends.
- While Mexican women don’t want to connect with brands but do want brands to sponsor the content they read especially the videos they see.
- U.S. Latinas just want to be informed overall – they like to be in the know – and therefore crave more content
The new generation of Latinas (in their 20s) are becoming very similar in their needs to teenagers because they are more content creators than the mainstream or general market (or what we call white America). This is due to the way that technology is breaking economic and educational barriers. “If you can read and write you can communicate with everyone.” – Ruth Gaviria
The key is to understand women deeply via research and provide solutions with content, special products, projects and advertising. Such is the case with topics such as sex. Not all women want to hear about sex in the same manner. For example:
- Argentinians – you can’t talk to them about sex if you don’t talk about love and relationship
- Brazilians – to them, sex is like talking about health – they are very open to the topic but not in a sexy way
- Mexicans – they want to know about sex but you can’t go too far, as they don’t want to know about the details
“This just shows how it is so important to listen and understand in order to be relevant. That’s when you know you can’t reach women in the same way in all countries.” - Andiara Peterle, CEO, Bolsa de Mulher
To read more about the marketing to Latinas conference overview click here…
Liliana @ Latinminds
Can a man be faithful to just one sport?
Everyone assumes that if you’re a Hispanic man, you must like soccer.
Many will tell you that they don’t just like it, they loooooove it, they live it, they breathe it, it’s in their blood. But what about other sports? When men come from Latin America to the U.S. they are exposed to several other sports that may not have been popular in their home countries. Baseball which is popular in the Caribbean, suddenly gets new fans who come from places where it’s not traditionally played like Guatemala or Peru. They see
it on TV, they hear it on the radio, overhear their colleagues at work talking about the game, curiosity sets in, they give the game a chance and BAM! they’re hooked…It all starts with exposure.
Take me for example. I know I’m a girl, but this applies to us females a well. When I was young my aunt would babysit me when my mom was at work and I was off from school. Tía had a Dominican boyfriend (Ke lo ke? Sí señores una ecuatoriana con un dominicano…exposure. Y a ese tiguere le gustaba el beisbol). He was a Yankee fan and she would watch the games with him. If she was babysitting me and he was over, I’d watch the game too. This is before five TVs in the house was the norm. So I’d watch and ask my questions and before I knew it, I had learned the ins and outs of baseball and would be watching the Yankees on my own time. Holy cow! That’s right, on my own. My mom couldn’t believe I’d sit through nine innings, at eight years old, but I would. Exposure. You can’t like what you don’t know but when you’re exposed to it, you can love it.
Such was also the case with me and the other football: American football. At I thought it was just a bunch of big guys throwing themselves on top of each other, but I was fascinated by the fascination surrounding it. The pomp and circumstance, the rallies, the tailgating, the betting, the passion, not to mention the Super Bowl hoopla. I got hooked, and so have 78% of Hispanics in the U.S. making the NFL the #1 English-language program among Hispanics, 82% of the time during the 2009 regular season, according to Nielsen data.
Definitely if you’re a Hispanic living in the U.S., you’ve been exposed to baseball, football and other sports, perhaps even more so than soccer. We know it’s yet to gain a true foothold in the American sports landscape, despite the creation of Major League Soccer (MLS) or the arrival of David Beckham. But the demographics in America have changed and it’ll be interesting to see how much momentum soccer gains on the heels of this World Cup. So, how about you, can you be faithful to just one sport?
Let the exposure begin.
-Mariella @ Latinminds
American Beauty “Redefined”: Life isn’t a music video
Last Thursday we had the pleasure of conducting a Sobremesa on beauty that was chock full of information. Here’s a recap of what was discussed.
The experts on the subject were:
Lucia Ballas-Traynor, Publisher of People en Espanol
Jackie Gomez, Celebrity Makeup Artist for Beyonce and Zoe Saldana
Catherine Callahan, Multicultural Actress and Model
Cesar Ramirez, Celebrity Hairdresser
Going Natural is the new norm: Life isn’t a music video
The talk was all about the trend celebrities and multicultural women are moving towards in “looking natural”. From the red carpet, to a company party, to a night out on the town…women don’t want to look like they’ve tried too hard – although one of our experts Jacquie Gomez, Celebrity Makeup artist, guaranteed us that “making a woman look natural is much harder and takes much longer than giving her the perfect smokey eye look”. In fact, the same is happening with cosmetic surgery, while the majority of women who get plastic surgery mainly use it for their bodies vs. their face – many of them are looking for the natural look that enhances their appearance while keeping people guessing whether it’s natural or not. “Curves are definitely coming back, nowadays clients aren’t looking for the bulimic-looking model anymore…curves keep the ads more realistic.” – Catherine Callahan, model and actress
But how is the recession impacting beauty?
Actually, it isn’t. For multicultural women looking good and smelling good is extremely important even during a recession. “Latinas in particular prefer to sacrifice their caramel frappachino to get that beauty product or fragrance they want…the recession is not going to take that away from them- one Latina even told us, If I’m not doing well, at least I’ll look good.” – Lucia Ballas-Traynor, Publisher of People en Espanol on H.O.T. study
Is there loyalty within the cosmetic category?
Even our panel experts were honest about their own experience with beauty products…no way! they are not loyal to all the products as they like to play around and try out new ones but when it comes to their clients or their customers word of mouth and recommendations from their family and friends play a huge role. “As much as I like to try new products, I will always go back to those products that work for me and I can count on.” - Catherine Callahan, model and actress. So, in essence there is some type of loyalty but in very particular products. “This is where experiencing the products first-hand vs. buying it online becomes so important, places like Sephora are like a woman’s toy store…as you can see what works and what doesn’t and at the end you always take home much more than what you went to buy in the first place.” – Cesar Ramirez, Celebrity Hairdresser
And, when it comes to multicultural beauty how does sexiness play a role?
Multicultural women want to blend in “naturally” within the American culture while still keeping their sexiness intact. Lucia, mentioned: It’s a big difference, especially for Latinas since they are used to intense usage of makeup and hair color- it’s definitely a tug of war that adds to the cultural tension, because all Latinas want to do is flaunt it. (When speaking specifically about the more unacculturated Latina segment)
“I know I am inappropriately dressed at work” Latinas trying to fit into corporate America.
For this reason, there are programs that are teaching Latinas on dressing for success, toning it down a bit when it comes to hair and makeup and when it’s appropriate to be sexy.
But what are the products making the headlines and what tips can you provide?
- Mineral and Natural Makeup – not only is it good for the skin, it provides benefits, and won’t clog your pores – it’s become an extension of skin care…and when the makeup provides multi-uses it’s trending even more, for example a powder that has SPF
- Avon and Mary Kay – seem to do really well with the unacculturated Latina who enjoys the connection she gets from the live rep
- And, make up that is too cheap is considered to be not exclusive enough – it needs to be the right price for the right brand
- When it comes to hair – women are going for the Brazilian treatment which is an evolution from the straight hair phenomenon. They want to have shiny hair but still curly…with the flexibility of making it straight when they want to.
But the most important finding of all is that regardless of how fabulous a brand is, it needs to speak to you as transparent as possible. Nowadays, consumers are reading right between the lines. So, while it’s important for a brand to feel aspirational, they also need to be realistic. “Ads that promise, you will look like Angelina Jolie if you use their product, are just keeping consumers out of the conversation, as they don’t go for that anymore”. -Catherine Callahan, model and actress
Liliana @ Latinminds
Social Media as a means to an end…or just the end?
Two weeks ago I received a mass email invite from Time Out New York, which unbeknownst to me, sparked my long downward spiral down the rabbit hole of super-social-media. And when I say “super-social-media”, I’m not talking about Facebook; I’ve been all over that for a few years now, along with my mother, and more recently my grandmother. But I’m talking about everyone’s new favorite buzz-word, Twitter, and its oh-so-stalkeriffic step-brother Foursquare.
As I read the invite, I felt so confused…
Explore three iconic New York venues during theMSG 3 Venue Swarm on May 13.Find your way to the Beacon Theatre (2124 Broadway at 74th St) from 5-6pm,Radio City Music Hall (1260 Sixth Ave at 50th St) from 6-7pmand Madison Square Garden (4 Pennsylvania Plaza) from 7-8pm forcomplimentary cocktails and awesome prizes like MGMT or Pearl Jam tickets!Unlock a Super Swarm Badge and get your photo on the marquee at
Madison Square Garden by checking into all three venues via Foursquare.
To learn more about the MSG 3 Venue Swarm, follow @MSGEconcerts or click here! (Facebook invite)
What was a Venue Swarm? And what the heeeeeell was a Super Swarm Badge? I was intrigued. Along with free cocktails, and the chance to win VIP Pearl Jam and MGMT tickets?! I was so there. So I promptly accepted their Facebook invite and began to read the back and forth bantering about the event. I was truly getting excited.
But wait. What was this? In order to be able to sign up for the free tickets, I had to follow them on Twitter and re-tweet their messages? It was then and there that I decided to dust off my lonely Twitter account, and start following @MSGEconcerts. I must have broken Twitter etiquette and re-tweeted every one of their messages, but I didn’t care. This was fun! I was hooked. I started following more users, and people, strangers were even following me.
Every day for a week I checked Twitter, and re-tweeted, and as they added more concerts to the ticket list (Lady Gaga!), I began to tell friends about the event.
I even joined Foursquare and got one-on-one tutorials from veteran friends about check-in protocol and the coveted Super Swarm badge.
I was ready!
I was able to convince a couple of people to come with me, so by the day of the event, I could not have possibly hyped it up any more. So we get there….and…we drink…and…we sign up for the concert ticket raffle…and…we got our coveted Super Swarm badge…and that’s it? All of the excitement, the Twitter buzz, the tweeting and re-tweeting, the checking in on Foursquare, all leading up to this day…and this was it? We attempted to drum up some conversation with a few of the other attendees, but really, they we were just strangers in a room.
I was so disheartened. It left me wanting to go back to that first day when I started following @MSGEconcerts on Twitter and chatting with people on their Facebook page. And it lead me to think—that this was what was fun about this—the online side, the social media-izing of it all. The buzz and the chatter was just done so well, and was so exciting, that when I actually got to the minimally decorated and structured event, there was just nothing there to engage me any further.
It was completely anti-climactic, until two days later, I check Twitter and I learned that I had won the Pearl Jam VIP tickets for Friday’s show! My hard work actually paid off; the pay-off in my case, was far larger than I could have imagined.
But stepping back, if there’s one thing I really received from this process, is a first hand experience on how powerful a tool social media is for engaging an audience.
MSGE Concerts had the right approach. They were offering everything a young twenty-something would love—online social engagement, with offline free alcohol and concert tickets, and a blend of online & offline with the Foursquare Super Swarm Badge; an online ‘award’ that was only able to be won via offline camaraderie. But they just fell short engaging me in the flesh. Once I received my Super Swarm badge, and drank a few free drinks, I was completely bored.
If there’s a lesson to be learned here is that social media should never be the end, but merely a means to the end. Brands who utilize Twitter and Facebook to engage an online audience with hopes to traffic them offline to continue the engagement, cannot forget that social media is just one part of the complete brand experience. You want there to be a true climactic moment on the back end, and while I was fortunate enough to win the Pearl Jam tickets—what about those who didn’t?
Jessica Rodriguez
Sr. Brand Planner @ GlobalHue Latino
