TV Execs Agree On Urgent Need For Online Model:
"One size does not fit all was the message from executives discussing the futu..."
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
13th Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival
13TH LOS ANGELES LATINO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
(LALIFF)
Sunday, October 11 – Friday, October 16, 2009
Mann Chinese 6 Cinemas • Hollywood
Celebrating the Diversity & Richness of Latino Cinema in Hollywood
Hollywood rolls out the red carpet for the best Latino Cinema from around the world for the 13th Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF). The festival will run from Sunday, October 11 through Friday, October 16, 2009 at the Mann Chinese 6 Cinemas, in the heart of the entertainment capital.
LALIFF, co-founded by Oscar® nominated & Golden Globe and Emmy winner actor, director, and activist Edward James Olmos, celebrates the diversity and richness of the best of emerging and established Latino talent in cinema. The festival’s mission is to support and promote the development and exhibition of the work by Latino filmmakers including producers, directors, writers and actors, as well as movies that depict Latino culture.
Since its inception in 1997, LALIFF has grown to become an internationally renowned festival that attracts and unites film enthusiasts from a culturally diverse audience from the Los Angeles community, as well as industry executives and Hollywood celebrities. Through the years, LALIFF has hosted the premieres of hundreds of Latino films, many of which have followed their world premieres at the prestigious Montreal, Toronto, Venice and San Sebastian film festivals.
The Academy of Motion Picture, Arts and Science validates the festival’s films excellence by recognizing LALIFF as a qualifying festival for the Academy’s Short Film Category for the Oscar® race. LALIFF and the Academy’s Film Archive have also established the LALIFF Collection where Latino films are preserved and available for free viewing to the public.
LALIFF 2009 will presents feature films, documentaries, shorts and special screenings. In addition, filmmakers and the public will be able to participate in workshops presented by the Writers Guild and Directors Guilds of America as well as musical and arts events.
For the third consecutive year, the festival will kick off with the Opening Night and GABI Award Presentation & Gala at most famous theatre in the world, the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre located at 6925 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90028 to take place on Sunday, October 11. Festival screenings will take place Monday, October 12 through Thursday, October 15 at the Mann Chinese 6 Cinemas, 6801 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood, CA 90028. The Closing Night and the Award Ceremony & Gala will take place on Friday, October 16 at Paramount Theatre at the Paramount Studio Lot, 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90038. For more information on LALIFF 2009 screenings and events, please visit: www.latinofilm.org.
About LALIFF:
The Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) was founded in 1997 by producer, director, actor and activist Edward James Olmos; independent producer Marlene Dermer, and independent film and music producer George Hernández†. LALIFF is a non-profit 501c (3) organization with the mission to support the development and exhibition of diverse visions by Latino filmmakers and to promote awareness of the richness and diversity of Latin cultures, artistry and countries through film, the most powerful medium in the world. A competitive festival with prizes, LALIFF serves as a venue where Latino filmmakers come together with industry buyers and distributors. LALIFF also offers industry workshops, panels, labs, networking receptions, educational programs, and hosts some of the best Galas in tinseltown.
Rethink The Market
This article from Gavin Johnston at Media Post brings the view of an anthropologist that recognizes the fluidity of the Hispanic market. No doubts that as Hispanics reach critical mass, it influence politics, cuisine, entertainment and other elements of American culture.
For marketers, 45 million Hispanics can be the life saver for a brand that appeals to the segment or it can contribute to that 5% annual growth in revenue or market share. However, he also brings up a key point: the Hispanic market is unique and it is that uniqueness what requires a multi platform approach. Based on the profile of your key target, that mix will change. Read his article bellow:
Rethink The Market
by Gavin Johnston, Thursday, August 27, 2009, 9:48 AM
In the last few years, we have witnessed growth in Hispanic marketing. This is sometimes a well-developed plan and, at other times, it is something of a short-sighted one. In both cases, however, the definition of the Hispanic customer is often one dimensional.
Even as we’ve witnessed the growth in interest on the part of marketers, we have also seen the Hispanic market rapidly maturing in multiple dimensions. Examples include a proliferation of ad campaigns targeting Spanish speakers and the continued growth of media sources geared toward consumption by the Hispanic market.
Interestingly, it is at the moment this market seems to have arrived that it is changing in ways that will again challenge businesses. It is precisely at the point where the Hispanic market has become large enough to warrant such interest that it is changing and becoming something altogether new.
The Emerging Biculturalism
Marketers obviously need to be well informed to successfully merchandise a brand to Hispanic consumers, but before they can take that step they must define what it is they mean by “Hispanic.” Identity and language are dynamic, and so how we perceive ourselves changes with our community at a given moment, allowing us multiple identities within a day.
The same can be said for a brand as people internalize it. One extremely difficult but fundamentally important piece of information is coming to an understanding that “Hispanic” is a loaded term and changes meaning frequently. Because ethnic identity is fluid, it means people work within a set of roles that are created in social interaction with other people. As people change, so does the meaning of “Hispanic.”
A great deal has been written about levels of acculturation and the ongoing shift from Hispanic and/or ethnic dominant cultural patterns to bicultural cultural patterns. Material is continually being written about how this shift will reshape key issues in marketing, the role of language, and the continuation of aspirational advertising.
There are, as might be expected, individuals and companies conducting research to dispel the fact that language use and language preferences are changing. Of course, they have a vested interest in promoting a Spanish-language focus. On the other side, there are those who embrace the notion that English is playing an increasing role in the lives of Hispanics.
Degrees of Language Loyalty
The reality is that increasingly, the norm lies somewhere in between and that there are varying degrees of language loyalty on any given day. Considering this segment is growing at twice the rate of other Hispanic segments, it is a significant issue. They have more disposable income, higher levels of education, and a greater influence on popular culture at large.
What this means for companies reaching out to Hispanics is that the would-be consumer target is in the process of becoming something entirely new. Targeting these evolving consumers will no doubt lead to increased awareness and profits, but understanding them, reaching them and deciding how they fit into a broader business strategy is decidedly complex and requires a subtle approach.
As the market matures and becomes a fixture of the larger American experience, the question is less about whether or not the Hispanic market is viable and a point of growth. Instead, it is about uncovering how we respond in the long term.
Inevitably, as companies increase their presence in the Hispanic market, they invariably change its nature and help create something new. It is the companies who can think creatively and act quickly that will succeed in this newly developing conversation and approach to understanding.
Nielsen Charts Increase In Hispanic TV Homes
The article bellow talks about Nielsen information and Hispanic TV homes. In traditional media, TV is holding up much better than other formats and this is true of Hispanic TV. Los Angeles is the largest market for Hispanic TV and if TV is working for you, leverage the TV format on the LA Metro buses and reach an additional 1.2 million people on a daily bases. From that total riders weekdays number, about 720,000 are Hispanic.
For disclosure, I am providing branded content and other made for TV programs to the Transit TV operators. If interested on more information, please leave a comment here.
Bellow is the MediaPost article on Hispanic TV homes.
The number of Hispanic TV homes continues to outpace the market overall.
The Nielsen Co. says Hispanic TV homes showed a 2.3% increase for the 2009-2010 TV season, to 12.95 million. Nielsen's overall projections are that the entire U.S. TV home population will grow 0.3% to 114.9 million, up from 114.5 million in the previous year.
African-American TV homes will be 14.0 million, a 0.3% rise over the season before. Asian TV homes will be at 4.78 million, a 0.8% gain.
In terms of total viewers, there will be a similar rise among all TV homes. Hispanic TV viewers will climb 2.4% to 44.3 million; African-American viewers will be at 37.5 million, a 1.3% gain; and Asian TV viewers will stay the same versus a year ago, at 14.5 million.
The two biggest Hispanic markets continue to be Los Angeles and New York: Los Angeles now with 1.87 million Hispanic homes and New York with 1.25 million. LA grew about 14,000 homes and New York about 9,000 homes year-to-year. The next-biggest market -- Miami-Fort Lauderdale -- is around half of New York's numbers, at 666,230 homes.
Overall, Nielsen projects that total TV viewers in the U.S. will increase slightly to 292 million for the 2009-2010 season.
Read the entire article: http://bit.ly/HispanicTV
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
The Triumvirate: TV, Online Video And Social Media
Old formulas need to be revised, books re-written, strategies re-thought and facts re-tested. In fact I was reading a marketing book that was 2 years old and its content does not apply any more.
I read an interview with Eisner, former head of Disney, and his message is clear: the CEO’s to Fortune 500 corporations do not have a clear answer nor can figure out a business model around the internet when it relates to content, programming and marketing. It is all up for grabs. What will be the next break away technology or company.
In the interim, I see some glimpses of strategies that are working or providing results to those who to dare to experiment and innovate. Bellow is an essay by Cory Treffiletti:
There are two primary schools of thought in online marketing (at least if you ask me, there are). Which do you subscribe to?
The first school of thought is “The Basics,” used by the folks who do search, affiliates and general display. They do it efficiently and it works well at achieving core business objectives, but there’s not a lot of risk and there’s not a lot of reward beyond the forecasted expectations. The second is what I lovingly refer to as “The Triumvirate,” and it refers to the domination of three primary vehicles that work exceptionally well when they are coordinated properly: TV, online video and social.
When properly planned, these three vehicles are powerful. TV is, and will be for the foreseeable future, the primary medium with which to generate consumer awareness, but online video and social media are becoming the primary outlet for consumer interaction and the strongest support vehicles that TV will ever have. According to a recent report from Nielsen (A2/M2 Three Screen Report, 1st Quarter 2009), there are 284 million people watching TV at home in the U.S., and 131 million people watching video online. The difference is that TV growth was only about 1.9% year over year, while online video growth was closer to 53% year over year. This becomes very interesting when you also realize that people are starting to watch more long-form video content online, moving away from the “snacking” that was the previously dominant form of online video interaction. If you couple this with the growth of social media usage from 2008-2009, you end up with a very interesting strategy for launching and seeding messaging to an audience that is highly engaged with a dynamic form of media that achieves the sight, sound and motion of video with the social and viral components of online.
For the Triumvirate to work strategically, you need to think of your messaging platform as a tripod, with TV, online video and social media as the legs. In the old days you could use TV alone to build your brand and convey your message, but TV is now just as cluttered an environment as the rest of the landscape, due to fragmentation of stations and audience. TV cannot sustain an ad campaign solo anymore, and the tripod cannot stand with only one or two of the legs in place; you need all three.
TV provides reach and impact. Online video provides additional reach, additional impact and a component of interactivity. Social media provides reach, frequency, and the implicit approval of other consumers who support and follow a brand, as well as another opportunity for syndicating a message beyond a Web site and into mobile platforms.
I would argue that in today’s environment brand marketers could effectively generate an audience using ONLY these tools and foregoing search, display and other formats altogether — if they have the nerve and the buy-in internally to give it a try.
The Triumvirate is the core of a strategy that can be effective, provided you have understanding of the audience and their motivations, and have developed creative that resonates with them. Unlike search and even display, creative MUST be on target here. In search and display, you have more flexibility to change messaging at the drop of a hat, so you have more forgiveness regarding the creative. Online video can be changed out, but once something is launched in the social media world, it can become viral — so it must be well-thought-out and on-target from the beginning. Once it’s out there, it’s no longer yours to control, so you need to get it right the first time! Of course, I would always recommend that you look at The Basics and The Triumvirate together as differing stages of the strategy, with one providing a baseline and the other providing opportunity for growth and expansion. When you’re planning a digital effort, you want to know what will work, and create a line item for what may provide extra “oomph” for your campaign. If you develop a plan that utilizes both of these in unison, you can get a stronger return for your marketing spend.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Access to Entertainment Capital Conference & Pitch
MEDIA ADVISORY
CALIFORNIA HISPANIC CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE (CHCC) ANNUAL CONVENTION TO INCLUDE AN ENTERTAINMENT FINANCING TRACK FEATURING ENTERTAINMENT EXPERTS AND EXECUTIVES
WHAT: The 30th Annual California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce Annual Convention will feature an Entertainment Financing and pitch track organized by the Access to Entertainment Capital (AEC) Committee that will bring together top entertainment business executives, Senators and influential leaders in the United States to discuss the past, present and future of the Latino entertainment business.
The importance of the Hispanic market to the entertainment industry is highlighted by recent statistics. According to Reuters, Hispanics accounted for 46 percent of ticket-buyers of “Fast & Furious” on opening weekend and gave the picture the top spot at the box office. In the United States and Canada, the picture earned $72.5 million during its first three days, smashing “Monsters vs. Aliens’” week-old record for the best opening of the year.
About 1,000 people, most of them Latino business men and women, will converge for three days on the US Grant Hotel in San Diego to attend more than 50 presentations, exhibits and business seminars, as well as to take advantage of contracting opportunities and meet with major financial institutions. One track of presentations will be dedicated exclusively to entertainment financing and will include a pitch by producers to funding professionals.
WHEN: Friday, August 21, 2009, from 10:30 a.m. through 3 p.m.
As the AEC official event, Senator Ron S. Calderon will open the entertainment track at 10:30 a.m. and share what the Governor’s office is doing to keep entertainment jobs in California. A second session starts at 11:00 a.m. and puts together leading entertainment investors who will share how they select projects.
At 2 p.m. after lunch, we will hold a pitch session, during which selected producers will pitch their projects to our panel of investors.
WHERE: US Grant Hotel
800-237-5029
326 Broadway
San Diego, CA 92101
Media check-in next is to the general registration in the front lobby.
WHO: Speakers include:
Senator Ron S. Calderon, Co-Chair of the Art and Entertainment Committee for the State of California; Alexis Garcia an agent in the independent packaging group with the William Morris Agency, where he identifies and works with international financiers, producers, and filmmakers; Christopher Petzel, media entrepreneur and CEO of Northwind Capital, an investment banking advisory and private equity boutique with a focus on the entertainment and media industries; Jeffrey Andrick, Founder/Owner, XL.Ent Media Group, an investor who has financed a large number of Motion Pictures of varying sizes and genres, including major studio releases and independent projects. Other speakers TBA.
In addition to the above speakers, other business, community and political leaders will be available for media interviews.
CONTACT: Ivan Cevallos
Paid Media Grows, Free Media Slows
This article by Eric Saas in DailyMediaNews covers a forecast for the communications industry from Veronis Suhler Stevenson. The forcast paints a bleak picture for traditional media with declines across 20 major communications industry sectors, all concentrated in the traditional media, including newspapers, magazines, broadcast TV, radio, traditional out-of-home and Yellow Pages.
The bright spot is digital and alternative marketing and advertising, which together will total almost $139.5 billion in 2013. Email marketing will grow by double-digits throughout the forecast period, contributing to an overall annual growth rate of 5.6% for direct marketing from 2008-2013.
Alternative segments, like branded entertainment and word-of-mouth, will enjoy a post-recession boom, with an annual growth rate of 12.6% from 2008-2013; VSS said branded entertainment in particular grew 12% to just under $25 billion in 2008, and will return to a cumulative annual growth rate of 9.3% from 2008-2013, putting total revenues for branded entertainment at about $38.9 billion in 2013.
Alternative advertising will grow at 12.3% over the same period, powered by online and digital out-of-home revenue.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Interactive Marketing Will Cannibalize Traditional Channels: Forrester
There’s bad news for those who sell traditional marketing channels: Six in ten marketers surveyed by Forrester Research Inc. will increase their interactive marketing budgets by shifting funds from traditional media.
Read the whole article
Read the whole article
What McDonald’s, HP, Virgin America, and Walmart Have in Common
Posted by: David Kiley on July 13
By Pete Krainik
Founder of The CMO Club
People ask me all the time about the success of McDonalds, HP, Virgin America, and Walmart with new products and services, and their ongoing buzz. For me one key factor is the strength of their marketing leadership and the fact that their CMOs have an active seat at the C-Level table.
No surprise then that gaining this seat is always a big topic of chatter at The CMO Club website and events. What can you do to make sure you obtain and keep your seat at the table? Based on our recent research, the secret to earning a seat at the table is to go beyond branding and lead generation and help the business make decisions that create customer value.
I enlisted the help of Mark Bonchek, a long time friend and Founder of Truman Company, to speak with CMOs in the club these past few months on this topic of earning a seat at the table. In all of these conversations with leading CMOs, three key practices emerged over and over again:
(1) Think like a CFO
(2) Speak business, not marketing
(3) Be the voice of your customer
Global Advertising: Consumers Trust Real Friends and Virtual Strangers the Most | Nielsen Wire
90% of people around the world trust recommendations from someone they know and 70% refer to online posts! Read the entire article from Nielsen.
Read more
Read more
Friday, July 10, 2009
The Power of Women & Hispanic Moms
I was at the last day of the LATV festival today and one of the items that caught my attention was a comment by a presenter on the fast growth of women as players of casual online games.
This reminded me of a person that I met online via a social network. It started in one platform and soon found her on another platform and in no time, we crossed paths at an event. She is a mother, a wife, a business women and a brand evangelist. Look her up: Jessica Gottlieb.
Yesterday, another friend, Cynthia Nelson, published a related article and here it is.
How To Build Mom Brand Evangelists
by Cynthia Nelson, Yesterday, 12:30 PMIt’s no big news that moms are word-of-mouth mavens. From the beginning of time, women have been the communicators and the central point of all things home and family.Luckily for advertisers, women have many facets (think diamond) that influence her ability to be a sparkling evangelist for a particular brand, product or service. The role of wife, mother, sister, aunt, chef, chauffeur, maid, teacher, referee, family CFO, PTA volunteer, and nurse all play a part in the products that she engages with at a particular life stage and how the success or failure is communicated to her peers.
The Glass is Half Full
Great article that I would like to share with you on opportunities that you can capitalize with a strategy that recognizes the reality of the market.
Source: MediaPost Publications.
Market Focus: Band of Hermanos
by Liz Tascio, Monday, June 1, 2009, 12:00 AM
There is a hope for the ailing media economy
Amid the general downturn of everything, here’s some good news: Hispanics rocketed ticket sales of Fast and Furious so high on its opening weekend that Variety took note. Hispanics were 46 percent of the audience, Variety reported, for a domestic opening of $72.5 million, second only to
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
The Writing is on the Wall
A couple of articles this week bring insight into what the future of broadcast media will look like: the ability to micro target (comes with a premium). A saying comes to mind: what do you rather have: a bird on hand or one thousand flying?
Google TV started the trend and continues to build but the fact that Microsoft cut a deal with a network, will open new doors. SEO expert Gregory Markel shared his view on the deal:
“In a paradigm busting move that dramatically enables Microsoft to gain ground on Google TV’s lead in the space, Microsoft’s answer to Google TV, “Navic” has closed a deal with NBC Universal to sell ad time on its cable networks and for the first time in history, one local BROADCAST network. Yes, a BROADCAST network. Navic still has a much smaller reach than Google TV, however, this precedent setting foray into BROADCAST network TV, albeit local for now, is ground breaking and perhaps a harbinger of the traditional approach to buying network TV.
We will remain vigilant on this front and keep you apprised of this momentum via Navic briefings as both Google TV and Navic appear to be entering the Broadcast TV arena. One thing that is for sure, you can bet Google will be working furiously to keep up/better Microsoft’s foray into offering bid based BROADCAST network buys. (read WSJ article)
Monday, May 11, 2009
The U.S. Hispanic State of Transition
A number of articles related to the U.S Hispanic market were published in the last few weeks. At times they sound contradicting and clearly highlight the transition taking place in this market due to the disruption caused by a new generation of young Hispanics, the shift of media preferences due to the raise of internet audiences and erosion of traditional media.
Illustrating the challenge is the Wall Street Journal story on Home Depot shuttering its Spanish site while DeWalt is building one. I do not have complete details for either campaign but I imagine the agency/client teams behind both companies did their due diligence, conducted research, looked at secondary information, created a target profile or “persona,” reviewed best ways to communicate with their targets and presented the client with a marketing communications plan for the brand.
There is a wealth of information available for offline strategies that have been extremely successful. After all, Hispanic advertising is a 25 years old industry. The common denominator among all successful campaigns is marketers with well defined targets and a precise marketing communications strategy.
In the Tecate beer study (above link), the target was Mexican Americans, Spanish dominant, who like boxing. Their effort translated into the number one position in the foreign beer category, and a 6% annual growth in a segment that is flat. In a second stage the marketer is looking at reaching another Hispanic segment: Assimilated Hispanics that are bilingual. I am sure the media mix and strategies will take in consideration this group preference.
Getting back to the online world, most Hispanic advertising agencies have not launched fully integrated online campaigns. They have mostly created Spanish web sites for clients and made digital buys at Spanish language portals. That was fine under a Web 1.0 premise. That period saw the growth of AOL, Yahoo, and display advertising.
In today’s market, a build it and they will come state of mind does not sync with the online world. In 2009, search accounts for about half of all online advertising. There are about 20 million Hispanics online, the leading Spanish online destination made it to the 55 spot among the top 100 destinations, with 1.6 million unique visitors. Here I invite you to do the math: The U.S. market has about 48 million Hispanics, 20 million of them are online and 1.6 million are at Univision.com, the leading Spanish language site. That leaves about 18.4 million Hispanics visiting other sites, many of which are English sites.
The same report lists other online media properties with a strong following among Hispanics: Facebook (9), CBS Interactive (12), Viacom (14), New York Times Digital (16), NBC Universal (53, which includes Telemundo), Hearst Digital Media (64) and Gannett (66). E- Commerce oriented websites have very high rankings, including: eBay (7), Apple (10), Amazon (11) and WalMart (25).
Please be aware that some sites may be popular among Spanish speakers but the bulk of their users and traffic comes from overseas. Using those sites will not deliver the U.S. Hispanic market.
Now back to the basic questions:
Do you know how to effectively reach Hispanics?
Do you have a profile or persona for your target?
Who is it?
Where can you find it?
What kind of media he/she consumes?
What is the context for a marketing communications strategy?
The closer you are to effectively addressing the above points (among others) the closer you will be to effectively reaching your Hispanic targets both online and offline.
As marketers, we sometimes have to connect the dots among isolated but interdependent elements to determine the best course of action. To close, I will share a few points about the Hispanic market that will give you an idea of current trends during this stage of transition:
1) Comment from a colleague close to Google: about 85% of searches by Hispanics were done in English.
2) Hispanic online demographic is expanding more than 50% faster than the overall US online population.
3) 78.2% of students enrolled at the Los Angeles School District are Hispanic (Los Angeles is the #1 Hispanic market).
4) 89% of Hispanic teens were online as of 2004. That number is probably close to 95% in 2009.
If you have any questions, please leave a comment.
Illustrating the challenge is the Wall Street Journal story on Home Depot shuttering its Spanish site while DeWalt is building one. I do not have complete details for either campaign but I imagine the agency/client teams behind both companies did their due diligence, conducted research, looked at secondary information, created a target profile or “persona,” reviewed best ways to communicate with their targets and presented the client with a marketing communications plan for the brand.
There is a wealth of information available for offline strategies that have been extremely successful. After all, Hispanic advertising is a 25 years old industry. The common denominator among all successful campaigns is marketers with well defined targets and a precise marketing communications strategy.
In the Tecate beer study (above link), the target was Mexican Americans, Spanish dominant, who like boxing. Their effort translated into the number one position in the foreign beer category, and a 6% annual growth in a segment that is flat. In a second stage the marketer is looking at reaching another Hispanic segment: Assimilated Hispanics that are bilingual. I am sure the media mix and strategies will take in consideration this group preference.
Getting back to the online world, most Hispanic advertising agencies have not launched fully integrated online campaigns. They have mostly created Spanish web sites for clients and made digital buys at Spanish language portals. That was fine under a Web 1.0 premise. That period saw the growth of AOL, Yahoo, and display advertising.
In today’s market, a build it and they will come state of mind does not sync with the online world. In 2009, search accounts for about half of all online advertising. There are about 20 million Hispanics online, the leading Spanish online destination made it to the 55 spot among the top 100 destinations, with 1.6 million unique visitors. Here I invite you to do the math: The U.S. market has about 48 million Hispanics, 20 million of them are online and 1.6 million are at Univision.com, the leading Spanish language site. That leaves about 18.4 million Hispanics visiting other sites, many of which are English sites.
The same report lists other online media properties with a strong following among Hispanics: Facebook (9), CBS Interactive (12), Viacom (14), New York Times Digital (16), NBC Universal (53, which includes Telemundo), Hearst Digital Media (64) and Gannett (66). E- Commerce oriented websites have very high rankings, including: eBay (7), Apple (10), Amazon (11) and WalMart (25).
Please be aware that some sites may be popular among Spanish speakers but the bulk of their users and traffic comes from overseas. Using those sites will not deliver the U.S. Hispanic market.
Now back to the basic questions:
Do you know how to effectively reach Hispanics?
Do you have a profile or persona for your target?
Who is it?
Where can you find it?
What kind of media he/she consumes?
What is the context for a marketing communications strategy?
The closer you are to effectively addressing the above points (among others) the closer you will be to effectively reaching your Hispanic targets both online and offline.
As marketers, we sometimes have to connect the dots among isolated but interdependent elements to determine the best course of action. To close, I will share a few points about the Hispanic market that will give you an idea of current trends during this stage of transition:
1) Comment from a colleague close to Google: about 85% of searches by Hispanics were done in English.
2) Hispanic online demographic is expanding more than 50% faster than the overall US online population.
3) 78.2% of students enrolled at the Los Angeles School District are Hispanic (Los Angeles is the #1 Hispanic market).
4) 89% of Hispanic teens were online as of 2004. That number is probably close to 95% in 2009.
If you have any questions, please leave a comment.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Hispanic Fan Base Fuels Film's Success
Reed Johnson’s article identifies the importance of having relevant content for diverse markets. On a related topic, I had a conversation with a film executive that shared information on another film that did well among Hispanics: ”The Haunting in Connecticut,” where the genre of the film makes it popular among Hispanics.
Reed Johnson--Los Angeles Times
HOLLYWOOD -- In addition to the roar of car engines and the blast of automatic weapons fire, there's another sound in "Fast & Furious" that's been integral to the franchise's success: Spanish-language dialogue and accents.
The latest installment of the action-thriller series has a distinctly Hispanic feel, including its south-of-the-border location settings (although some actually were shot in California), its soundtrack, several of its characters (including one played by Puerto Rican rapper Tego Calderon) and its plot line (hot-rodding hero Dominic Toretto battles Mexico-based drug runners).
Those elements are no coincidence, and they're partly responsible for the disproportionately large Hispanic crowds that the current film -- and the franchise in general -- have drawn, according to Universal Pictures, the movie's distributor.
Adam Fogelson, Universal's president of marketing and distribution, said that a limited sampling in five U.S. markets last weekend showed that 46 percent of the "Fast & Furious" audience was Hispanic.
Although that percentage was not necessarily "representative of the national sample," Fogelson said, "it was again recognition of a huge part of the core fan base of this movie."
The movie has performed well so far in Latin American territories, bagging the biggest opening of 2009 in Mexico and Central America and accounting for 50 percent of the weekend box office in Mexico and Brazil, according to Universal.
Fogelson said that the Hispanic media marketing budget for "Fast & Furious" was the largest ever for a Universal film.
The promotional campaign included running advertisements during a Mexico-U.S. World Cup qualifying match last winter, tapping into Spanish-language Internet social networking sites and dispatching stars Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez to do publicity in key Hispanic markets.
Fogelson said any future installments of the franchise would continue to take care of an audience segment that always has "taken care of the franchise."
Reed Johnson--Los Angeles Times
HOLLYWOOD -- In addition to the roar of car engines and the blast of automatic weapons fire, there's another sound in "Fast & Furious" that's been integral to the franchise's success: Spanish-language dialogue and accents.
The latest installment of the action-thriller series has a distinctly Hispanic feel, including its south-of-the-border location settings (although some actually were shot in California), its soundtrack, several of its characters (including one played by Puerto Rican rapper Tego Calderon) and its plot line (hot-rodding hero Dominic Toretto battles Mexico-based drug runners).
Those elements are no coincidence, and they're partly responsible for the disproportionately large Hispanic crowds that the current film -- and the franchise in general -- have drawn, according to Universal Pictures, the movie's distributor.
Adam Fogelson, Universal's president of marketing and distribution, said that a limited sampling in five U.S. markets last weekend showed that 46 percent of the "Fast & Furious" audience was Hispanic.
Although that percentage was not necessarily "representative of the national sample," Fogelson said, "it was again recognition of a huge part of the core fan base of this movie."
The movie has performed well so far in Latin American territories, bagging the biggest opening of 2009 in Mexico and Central America and accounting for 50 percent of the weekend box office in Mexico and Brazil, according to Universal.
Fogelson said that the Hispanic media marketing budget for "Fast & Furious" was the largest ever for a Universal film.
The promotional campaign included running advertisements during a Mexico-U.S. World Cup qualifying match last winter, tapping into Spanish-language Internet social networking sites and dispatching stars Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez to do publicity in key Hispanic markets.
Fogelson said any future installments of the franchise would continue to take care of an audience segment that always has "taken care of the franchise."
Thursday, April 16, 2009
The Sign is at the Box Office
The news of downward trends among many industries paint a scary picture of the current economy but if you do your homework and search, you find areas of growth and opportunity.
Case in point, the entertainment industry that in a down economy continues to grow box office results year after year. On March 29, 2009, the domestic B.O. was up a whopping 40% over the same frame last year, thanks to "Monsters" and Lionsgate's horror entry "The Haunting in Connecticut." This was not an isolated incident and continued on April with the opening of "The Fast and Furious" that brought the box office 65 percent ahead of same week last year.
What makes the success of "The Haunting in Connecticut", "Monsters" and "Fast" unique is the contribution of Hispanics to the box office office success. According to exit poll stats, Hispanics made up 46% of Furious and50% of Haunting's audience. The core audience for both movies is young man and women (17-24).
I was not able to find exit polls for "Monsters" but the genre of the film (animation) has children and families as their key demo. I will venture to make an estimate and place the percentage of Hispanic audience for this movie at 30%. After all, the majority of first graders at the top 10 DMA's in the U.S. are Latino. You do the math.
Talk about purchasing power, economics, opportunity and the implications for corporations targeting Hispanics: they generated about 63 million dollars at the box office in 2 weekends. Most film studios recognize this market and its potential but few know how to reach it successfully.
Recent news from comScore on the growth of online Hispanics further highlights the value and potential of the market but also presents the need of experts when communicating with them.
My questions for marketers that have not implemented a Hispanic strategy is:
Can any other segment in your business contribute about 63 million dollars in 2 weekends?
And if you already have a Hispanic strategy, is it effective, efficient or are you leaving money on the table?
Do you know how to reach them on line?
It all starts with how you see the current situation: is your glass half full or half empty. If you have done everything possible in the general market and your glass is half full, it is time you look for new opportunities and fill the other half.
By Ivan Cevallos, founder and CEO of ethosGroup Inc.
April 17, 2009
Case in point, the entertainment industry that in a down economy continues to grow box office results year after year. On March 29, 2009, the domestic B.O. was up a whopping 40% over the same frame last year, thanks to "Monsters" and Lionsgate's horror entry "The Haunting in Connecticut." This was not an isolated incident and continued on April with the opening of "The Fast and Furious" that brought the box office 65 percent ahead of same week last year.
What makes the success of "The Haunting in Connecticut", "Monsters" and "Fast" unique is the contribution of Hispanics to the box office office success. According to exit poll stats, Hispanics made up 46% of Furious and50% of Haunting's audience. The core audience for both movies is young man and women (17-24).
I was not able to find exit polls for "Monsters" but the genre of the film (animation) has children and families as their key demo. I will venture to make an estimate and place the percentage of Hispanic audience for this movie at 30%. After all, the majority of first graders at the top 10 DMA's in the U.S. are Latino. You do the math.
Talk about purchasing power, economics, opportunity and the implications for corporations targeting Hispanics: they generated about 63 million dollars at the box office in 2 weekends. Most film studios recognize this market and its potential but few know how to reach it successfully.
Recent news from comScore on the growth of online Hispanics further highlights the value and potential of the market but also presents the need of experts when communicating with them.
My questions for marketers that have not implemented a Hispanic strategy is:
Can any other segment in your business contribute about 63 million dollars in 2 weekends?
And if you already have a Hispanic strategy, is it effective, efficient or are you leaving money on the table?
Do you know how to reach them on line?
It all starts with how you see the current situation: is your glass half full or half empty. If you have done everything possible in the general market and your glass is half full, it is time you look for new opportunities and fill the other half.
By Ivan Cevallos, founder and CEO of ethosGroup Inc.
April 17, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
When They Go Online, Hispanics Download
Adoption of broadband, digital downloads high.
More US Hispanics are going online than ever before, and most are using broadband.
According to Scarborough Research, 54% of Hispanics were online in 2008. While that is up slightly over the previous year, it still trails the 69% penetration rate of total US users.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
The Paradigm of Transformation
We are going through a period where media and communication models that have been used to deliver messages to consumers at eroding at a rapid pace. That in combination with the transfer of control from marketers to consumers has left traditional media and the echo system they support wondering what to do next. The shift is taking place among all segments of the population. This is both a tread and an opportunity for companies that develop new communication models and understand the role consumers play in a brand's strategy under the new paradigm. There is no magic potion but the answer lays on a good understanding of the basics: know your target and how your product or service satisfies a specific need in the target.
Confronted with these changes, marketers can not use the same strategies they have used for the last 30 years. It is not about old or new media, it is about the role consumers have taken as creators of content whose distribution is facilitated by technology. This content can be in the form of a consumer complaining about your product and notifying the entire network in Facebook or all their followers in twitter. So brands listen up to what consumers have to say and use the same technology to empower your brand evangelizers.
The common denominator here is that the same technology consumers use to communicate is available to brands and they can identify trends and truthfully engage audiences in a conversation. You may not have the entire resources in house and need to bring them on board or outsource. There is no single formula for success. What can make a difference is the preparation of your internal resources along with a strategy that was derived from research and arrives at the intersection of a clearly defined consumer profile and how your product or service satisfies a specific need.
Confronted with these changes, marketers can not use the same strategies they have used for the last 30 years. It is not about old or new media, it is about the role consumers have taken as creators of content whose distribution is facilitated by technology. This content can be in the form of a consumer complaining about your product and notifying the entire network in Facebook or all their followers in twitter. So brands listen up to what consumers have to say and use the same technology to empower your brand evangelizers.
The common denominator here is that the same technology consumers use to communicate is available to brands and they can identify trends and truthfully engage audiences in a conversation. You may not have the entire resources in house and need to bring them on board or outsource. There is no single formula for success. What can make a difference is the preparation of your internal resources along with a strategy that was derived from research and arrives at the intersection of a clearly defined consumer profile and how your product or service satisfies a specific need.
The Paradigm of Transformation
We are going through a period where media and communication models that have been used to deliver messages to consumers at eroding at a rapid pace. That in combination with the transfer of control from marketers to consumers has left traditional media and the echo system they support wondering what to do next. The shift is taking place among all segments of the population. This is both a tread and an opportunity for companies that develop new communication models and understand the role consumers play in a brand's strategy under the new paradigm. There is no magic potion but the answer lays on a good understanding of the basics: know your target and how your product or service satisfies a specific need in the target.
Confronted with these changes, marketers can not use the same strategies they have used for the last 30 years. It is not about old or new media, it is about the role consumers have taken as creators of content whose distribution is facilitated by technology. This content can be in the form of a consumer complaining about your product and notifying the entire network in Facebook or all their followers in twitter. So brands listen up to what consumers have to say and use the same technology to empower your brand evangelizers.
The common denominator here is that the same technology consumers use to communicate is available to brands and they can identify trends and truthfully engage audiences in a conversation. You may not have the entire resources in house and need to bring them on board or outsource. There is no single formula for success. What can make a difference is the preparation of your internal resources along with a strategy that was derived from research and arrives at the intersection of a clearly defined consumer profile and how your product or service satisfies a specific need.
Confronted with these changes, marketers can not use the same strategies they have used for the last 30 years. It is not about old or new media, it is about the role consumers have taken as creators of content whose distribution is facilitated by technology. This content can be in the form of a consumer complaining about your product and notifying the entire network in Facebook or all their followers in twitter. So brands listen up to what consumers have to say and use the same technology to empower your brand evangelizers.
The common denominator here is that the same technology consumers use to communicate is available to brands and they can identify trends and truthfully engage audiences in a conversation. You may not have the entire resources in house and need to bring them on board or outsource. There is no single formula for success. What can make a difference is the preparation of your internal resources along with a strategy that was derived from research and arrives at the intersection of a clearly defined consumer profile and how your product or service satisfies a specific need.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Where Shall We Invest?
Hispanics 211% More Likely to Download Digital Content
Univision the # 3 Network
Though their use of broadband is slightly lower, online Hispanics in the
Univision the # 3 Network
Univision held its Premio Lo Nuestro a la Musica Latina last week
Latino Kids are Majority of First Graders in 10 largest DMA’s
According to new data from the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute at USC, Latino kids are a majority or near majority of first graders in nine out of the ten largest cities in the country with 74% in
Coke unveils marketing pitch for Hispanics
The Coca-Cola Co. has launched a multi-media marketing campaign aimed at the nation’s 45 million Hispanics
The campaign began airing a new television commercial on March 20, and expanded its media presence with a strong showing during Univision’s highest rated program “Premio Lo Nuestro” music awards, on March 26
Also, beginning in May, Coca-Cola will start national marketing, advertising and public relations campaign featuring the Mexican National Team in the
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Ask What Webisodes Can Do For You
According to Wikipedia, a webisode is a short episode which airs initially as an Internet download or stream as opposed to first airing on broadcast or cable television. The format can be used as a preview, a promotion, as part of a collection of shorts, or a commercial.[1][2] A webisode can be part of an already established drama or series or it may consist of entirely original material. Depending on its purpose, the webisode may or may not be considered a part of an established program's continuity.
A webisode is simply a web episode – collectively it is part of a web series, a form of new media that characteristically features a dramatic, serial storyline, where the primary method of viewership is streaming online over the Internet. [3] While there is no set standard for length, most webisodes are relatively short, ranging from 4–15 minutes in length. [4]
The changing business of advertising requires that you look at new ways to bring your messages to consumers. Online and interactive video are a way to deal with two major issues facing CMO’s in 2009: the growth of online audiences and the need for better targeting and accountability. Recent research conducted by Permission TV forcasts adoption of interactive video in 2009 and illustrates the point. The study was conducted among 400 senior-level, decision making executives. More than two thirds of these executives put online video at the top of their priorities for digital campaigns in 2009.
Why Online Video?
By nature, humans are visual and enjoy story telling. Branded content engages people with a narrative that is in context with product usage and target. Dr. Albert Mehrabian presents in his Communication Perception Study that 55% of perception is generated by visuals, 38% by vocal and 7% verbal. We process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.
There are many sources that allow you to leverage content that already has been produced for specific categories or you could create new content from the ground up. We are in the age of 360° Marketing where multi-media means multi-choices for consumers. We need to make new people-centered plans with strategic precision because interactive, social media is fast becoming the new set of media. Is not mass any more, it is personal. It is about conversations and engagement where success depends on new tools, new technologies and new models that put the human at the center of marketing. Via cable, online or mobile, branded content will put your brand center stage with consumers.
To review your online strategy, integrated marketing needs and content requirements, contact us at: info@ethosagency.com
A webisode is simply a web episode – collectively it is part of a web series, a form of new media that characteristically features a dramatic, serial storyline, where the primary method of viewership is streaming online over the Internet
The changing business of advertising requires that you look at new ways to bring your messages to consumers
Why Online Video?
By nature, humans are visual and enjoy story telling. Branded content engages people with a narrative that is in context with product usage and target. Dr. Albert Mehrabian presents in his Communication Perception Study that 55% of perception is generated by visuals, 38% by vocal and 7% verbal. We process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.
There are many sources that allow you to leverage content that already has been produced for specific categories or you could create new content from the ground up. We are in the age of 360° Marketing where multi-media means multi-choices for consumers. We need to make new people-centered plans with strategic precision because interactive, social media is fast becoming the new set of media. Is not mass any more, it is personal. It is about conversations and engagement where success depends on new tools, new technologies and new models that put the human at the center of marketing. Via cable, online or mobile, branded content will put your brand center stage with consumers.
To review your online strategy, integrated marketing needs and content requirements, contact us at: info@ethosagency.com
Digital Marketing Focus in 2009 (% of Respondents, Multiple Response OK) | |
Anticipated Focus | % of Respondents |
Online video | 66 |
Social media | 41 |
Search | 34 |
Podcasts/Webcasts | 32 |
Rich media | 30 |
Banner ads | 22 |
17 | |
Source: Permission TV, January 2009 | |
Most Likely Online Video Initiatives in 2009 (% of Respondents) | |
Video Initiative | % of Respondents |
Branded content/video destination | 63 |
Viral video | 39 |
Interactive experience | 38 |
User-generated video | 29 |
E-mail video campaign | 28 |
Video syndication | 22 |
E-commerce | 21 |
Source: Permission TV, January 2009 | |
We need innovation on all fronts
I was reading a post by Joe Marchese at his OnlineSPIN and found it fascinating that there are parallels in completely separate worlds. I have been working on multicultural advertising for the past 15 years and on digital advertising for the last 3 years and have identified similarities among the two sectors. They both are organic transformations that are changing the status quo in the market place. The Hispanic and Asian markets grew due to migration from Latin America and Asia while online marketing was a logical next step to the explosion of the Web. I will use the Hispanic market when referring to multicultural later in the article.
Since I started to work in multicultural media and in over two years of producing this column for ethosGROUP and an enzine for the California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, I have read, researched and presented to corporate marketers the need to change the double standard between general market advertising and Hispanic advertising. Marchese take on the double standard between offline and online advertising is quoted here: “It truly goes against the laws of marketing that the allocation of marketing efforts/dollars dedicated to a medium would not be in proportion to the amount of time people spend with that medium.”
The double standard for Hispanic marketing, it is the allocation of marketing efforts and dollars dedicated to the group that has the highest concentration in certain markets and that has produce the number one medium among all networks in those DMAs!
Hispanics account for 15% of the U.S. population and in New Mexico, Hispanics comprised the highest proportion of the total population (44 percent), with California and Texas (36 percent each) next in line. Still brand marketers only allocate about 3% of their budgets to Hispanic marketing. On the media front, Hispanic TV powerhouse Univision dominates ratings at prime time among all networks in cities like Los Angeles, Miami and New York.
Here I quote Joe’s argument for the online – offline take: “Sure there are reasons why some media just doesn't work for advertising, but the highly engaging and personal experience that people have on the Internet isn't one of them. It's just that it takes more work and resetting of the metrics that define success to make advertising work on the Web. More work, because people will demand that advertising give something back to the experience of content consumption on the Internet, and that Internet advertising appropriately incorporate demands for an interactive, relevant and customized experience. Redefining the metrics that determine success will free marketers and their agencies to focus on what matters: Did we reach people? Did we tell them our story? Did they talk back - and, how will these impact sales? These would seem to be universal questions, regardless of medium, but for some reason on the Internet the rules have been established as being different.”
On the Hispanic front, successful advertising calls for messaging that is relevant to Hispanic consumers. In a general market campaign, we start with the entire U.S. population and segment it in different buckets to create targeted campaigns. We have a senior market, teens, women, families, etc. The same process should be applied to the Hispanic market. A disconnect in the communication process between the brand and the target market will not generate the desire results. And as Joe points out, the media mix needs to be adjusted to reflect media consumption or lifestyle. Once you are able to determine the optimum mix, the right creative and offer will give you the best ROI. What story are you telling, who are you reaching? These are again the universal questions and they apply to the Hispanic market too.
Since I started to work in multicultural media and in over two years of producing this column for ethosGROUP and an enzine for the California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, I have read, researched and presented to corporate marketers the need to change the double standard between general market advertising and Hispanic advertising. Marchese take on the double standard between offline and online advertising is quoted here: “It truly goes against the laws of marketing that the allocation of marketing efforts/dollars dedicated to a medium would not be in proportion to the amount of time people spend with that medium.”
The double standard for Hispanic marketing, it is the allocation of marketing efforts and dollars dedicated to the group that has the highest concentration in certain markets and that has produce the number one medium among all networks in those DMAs!
Hispanics account for 15% of the U.S. population and in New Mexico, Hispanics comprised the highest proportion of the total population (44 percent), with California and Texas (36 percent each) next in line. Still brand marketers only allocate about 3% of their budgets to Hispanic marketing. On the media front, Hispanic TV powerhouse Univision dominates ratings at prime time among all networks in cities like Los Angeles, Miami and New York.
Here I quote Joe’s argument for the online – offline take: “Sure there are reasons why some media just doesn't work for advertising, but the highly engaging and personal experience that people have on the Internet isn't one of them. It's just that it takes more work and resetting of the metrics that define success to make advertising work on the Web. More work, because people will demand that advertising give something back to the experience of content consumption on the Internet, and that Internet advertising appropriately incorporate demands for an interactive, relevant and customized experience. Redefining the metrics that determine success will free marketers and their agencies to focus on what matters: Did we reach people? Did we tell them our story? Did they talk back - and, how will these impact sales? These would seem to be universal questions, regardless of medium, but for some reason on the Internet the rules have been established as being different.”
On the Hispanic front, successful advertising calls for messaging that is relevant to Hispanic consumers. In a general market campaign, we start with the entire U.S. population and segment it in different buckets to create targeted campaigns. We have a senior market, teens, women, families, etc. The same process should be applied to the Hispanic market. A disconnect in the communication process between the brand and the target market will not generate the desire results. And as Joe points out, the media mix needs to be adjusted to reflect media consumption or lifestyle. Once you are able to determine the optimum mix, the right creative and offer will give you the best ROI. What story are you telling, who are you reaching? These are again the universal questions and they apply to the Hispanic market too.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Breaking the mold
I was reading an article on how people look in the wrong places for solutions to their problems. If we are lucky and have enough time, we resolve our issue. The solution usually comes once we look inside.
Adweek reported findings of a study on the current status of the advertising industry. Minorities are under represented. Another article cites figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, African-American workers made up only 3.8% of the advertising industry in 2007.
If you reside in one of the top 10 DMA's you experience first hand the diversity of these cities. A clear sample is
When you look at the disparity between those two figures, you do not have to be a rocket scientist to recognize that something is wrong. An industry that prides on the application of sophisticated research techniques to discover "consumer insights" and build campaigns around that element, is not using basic common sense to improve what the New York Times calls a poor record in hiring and promoting minorities.
The problem is not due to lack of talent. Just look at recent deals that have taken place in the entertainment industry. Latino directors and artist have received multi million contracts with studios or are attached to pictures like Harry Potter.
In many forums, the topic still is about language. In my opinion, the topic should be about creating great products and spreading that message to as many people as possible. To create the best work possible, we need to look inside and find the truth. That truth will be different because people are unique. Using advertising principles, we need to find themes that cross borders and nationalities and tell those stories in short or long format.
If you want to tell Latino stories, let the Latinos tell them. If it is a Chinese story, let the Chinese tell the story. If you want to create great work, let everyone show their talent and may the best one get the job. If it is about advertising, we all consume most of the same products and have the same basic needs. Why are we afraid to break the mold? Give everyone a break in the land of opportunity.
Choose Hope Over Fear
Choose wisely in 2009
As we kick off 2009, there are trends that started last year and will expand into the next one. Some are the result of the current economic conditions while others are the result of technology development, social issues and concern for the environment. A couple of patterns emerged: one is the importance of "trusted advisors" and their opinions and number two is the speed at which change is taking place. I have collected stories that reflect these patterns. Marketing in 2009 requires an understanding of the basics as well as how & when they can integrate with the cutting edge. The overall tone today, spurred by the inauguration of President Elect Barack Obama, was one of change and hope.
Obama takes office, saying choose 'hope over fear'Stepping into history, Barack Hussein Obama grasped the reins of power as America's first black president on Tuesday, saying the nation must choose "hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord" to overcome the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. In frigid temperatures, an exuberant crowd of more than a million packed the National Mall and parade route to celebrate Obama's inauguration in a high-noon ceremony. They filled the National Mall, stretching from the inaugural platform at the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial in the distance. With 11 million Americans out of work and trillions of dollars lost in the stock market's tumble, Obama emphasized that his biggest challenge is to repair the tattered economy left behind by outgoing President George W. Bush. "Our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed," Obama said in an undisguised shot at Bush administration policies. "Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and begin the work of remaking America." Read the Whole Story.
JWT futurist eyes brand trends for 2009
While corporate budgets and consumer belts are tightening, marketing and media companies that seize on certain social and entertainment trends will successfully ride out the new year, according to Ann Mack, director of trendspotting for ad agency JWT. Among the hot-button trends for 2009 are environmental responsibility, brand authenticity and content mobility. MediaPost Communications (12/29)
Back To Basics For Marketers
The Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG) and Anderson Analytics, in its second annual survey of Top Marketing Trends for 2009, report that marketing executives are going back to basics this year, putting renewed focus on satisfying and retaining customers and investing in research and insights, but are sick of hearing about Web 2.0. Marketers expressed concern on how a recession would impact priorities moving forward, and half of the executives believe their marketing budgets will decrease in 2009, while 56% indicated their staffing plans will either stay the same or increase. For a complete copy of survey results, please visit here and select second report.
WOM: Real People Win Deals, Corporate Blogs Spin Wheels
Word-of-mouth marketing remains one of the most effective marketing channels--provided that it's done well, according to two new studies from DEI Worldwide and Forrester Research. Consumers don't put much trust in corporate blogs or social network profiles, but will readily listen to people. Read the whole story.
‘Center of Gravity’ Has Shifted in Media M&A
The “center of gravity” has shifted in media M&A, with deals moving from larger traditional media deals to mid-sized digital and data deals, the Jordan, Edmiston Group said in its 2008 year-end report released this week. In fact, only 12 percent of the dollars spent on media industry deals tracked by JEGI last year came from traditional media. JEGI tracked 758 media deals in 2008, down 13.1 percent from 872 in 2007. Deal values last year, however, dropped 68.1 percent to $33.3 billion, down from $104.4 billion in 2007. “2008 was the year that magazine M&A didn’t get done,” JEGI managing director Scott Peters told FOLIO:. “There were very few, if any, transformational, sort of eye-popping magazine deals.” Instead, JEGI identified four growth sectors in 2008: database and information, b-to-b online media, consumer online media and interactive marketing services—a sector Peters described as including service providers that “sit between advertiser, marketer and the end user or medium.” “In the old days, they would have been ad agencies. Today, they are a mix of technology companies, service providers and marketing companies,” Peters said. Read the complete Story here.
Internet Tops Newspapers As News Source, Still Lags TV
The Internet is now the most popular source of news after TV, according to the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, which released its year-end roundup of news media consumption last week. While TV is still king of the hill, its steady decline in the face of Internet competition bodes ill in the long term. Read the whole story.
Local Sports, Events Help Marketers In Hard Times
The recession might prove to be a boon for out-of-home media and event marketing--especially for local sports. As cash-strapped consumers hunker down and people increasing maintain friendships virtually on the Internet, they yearn for the community of local events. Less appealing are the big national events that advertisers gravitate toward. The virtual gathering of people in social networks is only intensifying the need for real community gathering, not supplanting it. "Kids now are able to see the whole world," he said. "It's worldwide, but it's an inch deep. And there's this pane of glass that separates them from experiencing that entire world. Read the whole story.
YouTube still towers above MySpace, Hulu for online video
YouTube, with nearly 5.6 billion streams to some 85 million unique visitors, was the No. 1 destination for online video viewers in November, according to Nielsen research. YouTube was followed by MySpace, with 244 million streams to 20 million unique visitors, and Hulu, with 221 million streams to about 7.5 million unique visitors. TVWeek.com (12/29)
Suit Your Shelf
After years of being overlooked, shopper marketing's proving it can finally deliver the goods. If you want to see one of the reasons why shopper marketing has been carving off an ever-bigger slice of the marketing pie, just compare the number of weekly shoppers at major retail chains with the number of Americans who tune in to top TV shows. Take Dancing with the Stars and American Idol, for example. While 21 million people waltzed over to their sets to watch an average episode of Dancing last year, and Idol. cast its spell on still more (35 million for the season finale), those audiences pale when compared to the crowds that pack the aisles of the big-box retailers. Costco, Walgreens, Safeway and Kroger boast weekly shopper counts of 20 million, 30 million, 44 million and 68 million, respectively. Passing through the revolving doors of Wal-Mart locations across America each week are 150 million people. Read the entire article here.
Five Billion Mobiles Worldwide
By 2012According to Informa Telecoms & Media's Global Mobile Forecasts, annual revenues from the global mobile market will top (US) $1.03 trillion by 2013, when the number of subscriptions worldwide will have risen to more than 5.3 billion. It took over 20 years to reach 3 billion subscriptions, says the report, but another 1.9 billion net additions are forecast in just six years, with the global total nudging past the 5-billion milestone in 2011. With this extraordinary growth, total annual revenues derived from mobile operators will grow by over a third, jumping from $769 billion in 2007 to $1.03 trillion six years later. Informa Telecoms & Media forecasts 78% of global net additions between 2007 and 2013 to come from markets in Asia Pacific, Africa and Latin America. 47% of the 1.9 billion global net adds will come from just five markets - India, China, Indonesia, Brazil and Russia. For more information from Informa, please visit here.
Quote
A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.
-Winston Churchill
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