Got Facebook?
According to a study published by The Cocktail Analysis (links to Spanish article), social networks- well, only a few- have reason to smile: there is no sense by users of strong advertising pressure. Even 1 out of 3 users think that the ads shown to them on social networks can be “interesting or fun”.
On Facebook, which is without a doubt the number one social network, brands have become another addition to one’s sphere of relationships; half of Facebook’s users state that they join and actively follow the page activity of the brands that advertise. But perhaps the most important detail of this study is the fact that users actively search for information about brands: 40% of Facebook users have conducted a search for a brand they like. Contests, discounts, offers, and the like are the advertising actions that are most widely accepted: 70% of users are interested in this kind of advertising, with leisure activities such as travel, hobbies, technology and computer science, clothing and accessories being the most widely accepted category for advertising activity on social networks.
One of the reasons for the success of social networks in promoting brands is the fact that the opinions and comments of one’s friends and family are taken more seriously by users.
Person to person meeting
As I walked inside the Oakland Airport on a Sunday afternoon, I again took pause to wonder if the cost in both time, out of office, and travel expense is worth it. After all, this is Northern California, and I could be up in the mountains snowboarding, mountain biking or relaxing for a nice brunch.
This month has seen New York, Chicago, and now Mexico City, while another member or our team is in Miami to meet with both prospective as well as current clients. The folks at Go To Meeting have an excellent selling point when they promote the potential savings with holding meetings online versus travelling.
While the costs are well documented, what about the benefits? Simply put, the main benefit and goal of business travel is to cultivate business and to generate relationships. In an age where companies have been cutting their sales and service staff and budgets, this is an opportunity to set yourself apart. Meeting with someone in person, whether for a formal meeting, grabbing a coffee, or just stopping by to shake hands, there is something about a personal meeting that stands out versus the numerous phone calls that come in a day. There is the ability to open up the conversation and see how people react to your product or presentation that you cannot get from email or telephone. There is the ability to form a lasting relationship with a person in your industry or client that has a potentially long-term benefit. Some of this may be more important for a smaller company that may not have a reputation and needs to build its brand and build confidence among its clients.
Forming relationships with clients is the key to any successful organization, and as such business travel and in person meetings can be very important. Realistically, it doesn’t make sense to have everyone in the company travelling nor meet each and every client. However, by focusing on certain regions that offer a large cluster of current and potential clients, making the trips short, and taking advantage of planning early, there are significant benefits to be had for a relatively minor investment.
Working abroad
At the “Global American Technology Alliance” blog of Michael Muth, a graduate of the prestigious Thunderbird School of International Management, there is a recent post describing the author’s experience living and working in Germany, and how it compares to that of other international business students in the U.S. Muth describes the experience of arriving in Germany with “textbook German”, and then, after an extended stay in the country, improving his language to the point of being mistaken for a local. He became familiar with the rhythms of everyday life in Germany, and learned the work culture from the inside out. This stands in contrast to the experiences of students from the University of South Carolina’s International Business program, who stayed for a semester, and only observed German workplaces. While this provides an eagle eye view of the German company and German culture, 3 months is barely enough time to scratch the surface of a foreign culture.
I can say from personal experience that Muth is absolutely correct. It was my observation, as a student who spent a year of study in Spain, that the students in the semester program left the country just as their language skills were beginning to improve. After ten months in Spain, I thought, spoke and felt like somewhat of a Spaniard. And yet, year later, after three months in Mexico, I felt that just I was beginning to really learn the local culture and pick up the slang, I had to pick up and leave. For the person who wants to get into international business, a thorough knowledge of the host country is vital. “Helicoptering” in, observing a company’s behavior and saying a few words in the local language can be done by anyone. But to get the deal closed, to get to the heart of the matter easily with foreign colleagues, it is so important to feel at ease in the language and culture in the country where one does business.
Joe Kutchera
In an article from dotGlobal founder Joe Kutchera and published in MediaPost, Kutchera examines the expansion of advertising networks focused on reaching the Hispanic market.
With 64% of U.S. Hispanics using the internet and foreign-born Latinos exceeding 52%, there continues to be new interest on the part of users as well as marketers in the expansion of media options. Have a look at the full article from MediaPost; Alcance Media Group’s advertising network is examined along with others. Joe Kutchera knows of what he speaks, since he consults companies on the convergence of online marketing and the U.S. Hispanic market, whether Spanish dominant, English-speaking, or bilingual. Thus, we believe he provides a knowledgeable and objective perspective on the emerging market for Hispanic digital networks: what they offer, the advantages and drawbacks of working with one, and who the main players are. Go ahead and take a look and tell us what you think.
Measurement
It doesn’t have to be rocket science. In fact, it really isn’t. Sometimes it just boils down to knowing what it is you need to know about your business. This is ever so important when it comes to marketing and marketing expenditures. Building a brand is great. But never should one attempt to build (or sustain) a brand on messaging and style alone. Business is about substance. Measurable, meaningful substance. Even those who are in the business of “selling air” live or die, win or lose by their careful, continuous and consistent measurement of those elements that are most important. Not the least of which are “revenue” and “expense.” That careful balance and attention to detail are the things that make the difference between winning market share and growing in good times and losing market share and maybe your shirt when times get tough. The Hispanic market is a segment of the greater whole. A “fraction” if you will. It is exciting and lucrative because of the great and growing potential it represents. Still, efforts to market to this segment deserve if not demand measurable media and measurable results. Online efforts may not always be the only way to reach and measure such a dynamic market segment, but they are certainly one of the most measurable in simple terms.
Chile earthquake
Each of us have our media sources that we trust for information about certain topics. In the U.S. and in many cases internationally, a few names come to mind such as ESPN for sports, TMZ for celebrity gossip, CNN for news, and the Wall Street Journal for business information.
With the earthquake in Chile- a country I lived in for four years- my first choice was to forgo the hours of analysis on CNN regarding the potential impact of the resulting 2-foot waves produced by the tsunami to find information directly from news sources in Chile. Not so surprisingly, I found the largest Chilean newspaper El Mercurio’s website EMOL was down. While I am not exactly sure which of the many legitimate causes (traffic, power outages, damage) were responsible, this highlights the challenges of finding reliable information from your country of origin or a country that you care about.
Outside of major occurrences, usually catastrophic or war-related, there is limited information available without accessing the country’s media publication. For those who speak the language of the country this is not a major problem in the digital age; however for others, blogs, Twitter, and Facebook have become a source of information. While very useful, I for one rely on and hope to continue to rely on the journalists that make up local news sources from every city or country.
Tweet Tweet
Twitter, the popular microblogging system, could be on the brink of changing the world of online advertising. Everything seems to indicate that we could soon begin to see ads on its pages. Until now, people wondered, besides agreements with certain companies, when Twitter would start to generate profit. Now we have the answer.
According to rumor, the start date would be some time in March.
Twitter -again, according to rumor- would have the intention of showing relevant and truly useful ads and, of course, they would not be intrusive. This last point will surely be controversial for some of the more “sensitive” Twitter users.
Bearing in mind that Google, Yahoo and Bing have begun to include Twitter conversations in search results, and that there has been a tremendous growth in users and page visits, the future couldn’t be brighter for a company that many didn’t take seriously when it first appeared.
Acculturation
Right before attending a meeting in Chicago on “How Social Media makes Financial Cents” I was forwarded an article about how online media may be affecting acculturation. The full article is available in Media Post’s Engage Hispanic post by Joe Kutchera of dotGlobal.
He raises the interesting question of how social media may delay the acculturation of Hispanics in the U.S. As someone who has lived abroad with limited knowledge of the language I definitely understand that there is a lot of effort required to learn a new language and culture. However, while it may be easier to communicate and get along with a group from the same cultural background, it was important for me to make the extra effort to build links with the country in which I lived.
Social Media has a great benefit of allowing people to keep in touch, however I also feel that ultimately acculturation is at least partly if not mostly is in part a choice. It is not easy, but with the effort one can manage to make the most of their community without losing their cultural identity.
Tags: alcance media, alcance media group, alcancemg, cultural background, digital age, dotglobal, Hispanic Marketing, joe kutchera, latino, mediapost, social media, spanish language, U.S. Hispanic
Posted in Hispanic Marketing, International Marketing, Marketing
Proverbial Bean Counter
It has been said that advertising is the second oldest profession. If that is so, then creative services must be almost older than dirt. Which begs the question in today’s turned on, linked-in, digital age (we aren’t talking fingers and toes here), does creative still have the value that it did in days past? I mean, are impressions and clicks more important than the message? Does pounding the message home in plain old black and white Times New Roman or Arial do the same heavy lifting as a thoughtful, creative, crafty and well-executed ad, video, sound bite, etc.? Or is beauty merely in the eye of the beholder? With more and more people gaining access to more and more technology and more and more tools that were once the domain of the creative genii, that distinction becomes fuzzier and fuzzier. Suddenly it seems that almost everyone is a “designer,” “photographer,” “film-maker,” or “internet guru.” Does that trump the odd “SEO Master” or “Conversion Specialist?” Hell no. They all have their roles and they all have their importance. And as media and marketing continue to that finely honed point of conversion to gain the eyes, ears and dollars, Euros, yen and pesos of consumers (and we are ALL consumers of some sort or another), creative approaches to messaging will still be vital, needed and valued. Smart marketers know this. Smart consumers respond to it. No matter what the language and no matter what the conventional “wisdom” of the frijole counters. It still helps to know beans about creative messaging.
OMExpo Latino 2010
The organization Eventos OME S.L. will host the conference OMExpo Latino 2010. Eventos OME S.L. organizes the most important annual event in the digital marketing sector in Spain, OMExpo Madrid, with over 100 exhibitors. This is all a gamble for the lucrative Latin American market every day.
This first annual event will take place at the WTC of São Paulo, Brazil, on May 19th and 20th 2010. As of this date, there will be 50 exhibitors, 70 invited speakers and over 2,000 registered attendees. OMExpo Latino will also be supported by the Latin American offices of the IAB.
Among the highlights of the conference include presentations by Chris Anderson (author of “The Long Tail” and “Free”); Lars Bastholm (Head of Creative Digital for Director North America); Rand Fishkin (CEO and cofounder of SEOmoz); and Leo Prieto (Founder of Betazeta).
At the end of this year, one day conferences on digital marketing will be held in other Latin American cities; this is a great reason for telling the boss that you simply have to attend these events, and also spend a few days in, say, Buenos Aires….
