As mentioned on my last blog post, Latina Bloggers: Rise of the Mami Blogueras Part 1, moms have strong purchasing power and their consumer behavior is based around their family, lifestyle and life experiences. The above graph was researched by Advertising Age and you can see that the top three purchasing influences are personal care, clothing and books. Marketers need to develop strategical campaigns that will help drive brand loyalty and product purchases for each of these purchasing influences. The greatest challenge lies in capturing the interest of the Latina moms and that’s where the mami blogueras comes in. Mami blogueras not only post product information and reviews but also personal experiences and how it involves the everyday lives of their families. Marketers are now taking a closer look at the mami blogueras as they utilize their blogs to monitor product satisfaction and to encourage personal product reviews to boost overall popularity. One perfect example is General Mill’s QueRicaVida, a site focusing on Latina moms and families. They celebrated its re-launch by inviting Hispanic journalists and bloggers to a special gala in Miami and of course the very special guests are the mami blogueras because they are the key element in QueRicaVida’s online media campaigns.

Mami blogueras’ blogs varies because each have their own style of posting information. For example, there may be a blog just about raising children and another on shopping tips or a combination. No matter how a blog is built, it shows that mami blogueras have the ability to gather and disseminate content online. Also, a strong online community can be formed when mami blogueras socialize with one another on family raising experiences, trying products, using online media and gathering content. The BlogHer Conference held earlier this year helped transfer the online interaction to a more intimate face-to-face interaction, a perfect example of the power of social intelligence.

Below are three successful mami blogueras that I have the privilege of knowing online. I interviewed each of them with the same questions to find out their blogging experiences and how their blog content differ from one another. I really appreciate their time in helping me with this research.

Meet the Mami Blogueras

Melanie Edwards of ModerniMami™ and 40weeks Plus

1. What was your goal in starting a mami blog?

I originally started blogging in 2006, 6 months after my daughter was born, with the goal of being able to work from home. I soon found out it wasn’t as easy as others made it seem, but also found a great community of other women and mothers, with whom I was able to connect, learn from, and share my experiences.

2. What have you experienced now that you never did when you began your blog?

A big trend recently is sponsored posts. This is something I did not experience until sometime last year. More brands are wanting to reach our audiences and want to tap into our personal voices to help connect our readers with their product or service. It provides another level of exposure for them that advertising does not.

3. Are you using other social media platforms to help you build an online presence and if so, what are they?

Yes, definitely. I use and belong to various social media platforms such as
Facebook, Twitter, Ning communities, StumbleUpon, etc. They all provide different methods for connecting with your community and marketing your blog.

4. What advice can you give those who would like to start their own mami blog?

I would advise that they focus on their content and who they want to connect with and speak to first. It’s important to narrow down what type of content you wish to publish and who will be your key reader. It’s also important to remember that you own your web space and blog and do not need to cater it for others. Do what you love; the rest will follow.

Denisse Icaza of Ahorros para Mamá

1. What was your goal in starting a mami blog?

My blog is a deals blog in Spanish so my main goal when I started it was to educate and inspire other Spanish-speaking Latina moms so they can start saving by using coupons, requesting free samples, and buying online.

2. What have you experienced now that you never did when you began your blog?

I had never helped so many people at once, and it is very rewarding when I get their letters telling me how much the site has helped them to save and to reduce their spending.

3. Are you using other social media platforms to help you build an online presence and if so, what are they?

I use Facebook mainly, because that is where a large part of my audience comes from. I use Twitter mainly for networking.

4. What advice can you give those who would like to start their own mami blog?

To just start it and stop thinking about it as they may regret not starting it sooner.  Also, that it is a lot of work, but if they blog about something that they really care about, the rewards of having that blog will be great.

Jennifer Hutcheson of Mami2Mommy

1. What was your goal in starting a mami blog?

Originally it was just to use as a way to journal my experiences as a new mom, as well as keep friends and family posted on Shaunsito.  My goal has since changed a bit and I have also decided to use it as a means to provide una comunidad with many voices so that we could all share our experiences and learn from one another.

2. What have you experienced now that you never did when you began your blog?

A true Latina uprising!  Que viva Latina Mamis!  It is incredible to see all moms building these communities but when I see my fellow mami bloggers coming out in full force it truly makes me proud and emocional.

3. Are you using other social media platforms to help you build an online presence and if so, what are they?

Absolutely!  I am a Public Relations/Social Media Consultant so I make it a point to stay up-to-date on the most effective social media platforms out there.  Currently Mami 2 Mommy can be found on Twitter, Facebook and Youtube and more to come!

4. What advice can you give those who would like to start their own mami blog?

Be yourself.  You may think you need to write for your readers and can only do it by speaking “their language” but you’ll find it much easier if you stay true to yourself and add your own personal flair – I know you have it in you! And if you have any preguntas please feel free to reach out to me. Buena suerte in your mami blogging adventures!

The lesson here is that all mommy blogs are a fantastic source of marketing research information and product promotion. I highly recommend you build relationships with them. The traditional way of emailing them new releases and requesting product reviews won’t work in the online media realm. You have to build that human social connection with them and treat them with great professionalism and transparency and know that what they post on their blogs and discuss within their community will reflect on your brand, both negatively and positively.

Below is a list of other mami blogueras for you to check out and you can also go to Blogs by Latinas for other blog topics.

List of other Mami Blogueras

SpanglishBaby

Cuponeando™

Zelma’s Workshop

Positive Mommies

Aspiring Mama

Mamá Latina Tips

Tiki Tiki

Mamá Contemporánea

Mami Talks

The Adventures of a NYC Mama

Mom’s Tree House

Mommy This and That

Crabby Mommy

Mommy Glow

Tacones y Cupones

If you’re a mami bloguera or if you know of any other mami blogueras please comment and share a link.

Related articles

• OFFICIAL BLOGHER ’10 LIVEBLOG: ROYO – Latinas in Social Media (blogher.com)
• New Messaging Needed to Reach ‘New Majority’ (adage.com)
• Why Marketers Should Care About Reaching Latina Bloggers (mpdailyfix.com)

A recent conference focusing on successful women bloggers held in New York City called the BlogHer Conference 2010 with the support of LATISM (Latinos in Social Media) is proof that now more than ever Latina bloggers have the ability to utilize online media, control content, gather information and be involved with communities of shared interests. One particular niche that caught my interest are the Latina mommy bloggers or the “mami blogueras.” After some time researching I can see why the mami blogueras are becoming the ultimate resources for parenting tips, shopping, cooking and family care.

Sophia Mind, a research and marketing intelligence agency, reports that U.S. Hispanic women are one of the fastest-growing demographics online, and more than 85% visit social networks on a regular basis.

What’s attracting companies to the mami blogueras is the all powerful word of mouth, which is very strong among Latinas. More than 90% of all consumers report that the recommendation of a friend, family member or expert is the leading influence on their purchase behavior and with 77% of Hispanics engaging in some kind of online socializing, social media is becoming the online arena for brands seeking consumer loyalty and the mami blogueras are key targets.

Below is a copy of an article edited by Maria Trivisonno of Taylor PRimero. The selected excerpts of the information is so well illustrated that I just posted the exact content. You can also download the pdf from my Digital Archive.

Hispanic Women Lead the Mom Market Becoming One of the Most Appealing Targets for Marketers

Hispanic women lead the Mom Market in many ways; it goes beyond birth rates, it involves larger families as well (they have an average of 2.8 children versus 1.8 for non Hispanics) and managing a functioning family budget considerable smaller than their counterparts making them not only super moms but an appealing target for marketers.

How Are Latino Moms Today?

What are her thoughts about motherhood, the challenges she faces, how to reach her, and what motivates her as a consumer? Most Hispanic moms describe their style of parenting as more cautious, more often rooted in religion and with a conservative approach, compared to non-Hispanic moms. They consider their children and families the central focus of their lives. Shopping is a family affair; and bringing quality to their families is of most importance to them. Hispanics as a whole, moms included, are more brand-loyal; they prefer to buy a well-know brand, even it is more expensive. They consider it to be risky to buy a brand they are not familiar with and prefer to choose brands they recognize and trust, according to a study conducted by Yankelovich. Hispanic women in general are often asking friends and family for advice on certain products and brands, adopting those that are more recommended for people they know and trust.

Communicating Effectively with Hispanics Mothers

Being successful in marketing this segment of Hispanics goes beyond speaking to them in Spanish, it needs to include themes and imagery that are culturally relevant to the audience and that are somewhat different from what advertising and communication agencies may be using to engage Caucasian mothers. Education and information campaigns with the use of experts, especially doctor’s advices, are well perceived and highly valued, often influencing their purchase decisions. Hispanic celebrity mom endorsements have a positive impact on Hispanic moms and offer a great vehicle to enhance and make the brand more memorable. Hispanic mothers in general are motivated by helpful tools and information they need to raise healthy and happy children in the U.S. while maintaining their rich culture and heritage. They enjoy activities that bring families together and appreciate the recognition of their hard work and dedication as mothers.

I had a great opportunity to interview three very well known mami blogueras: Melanie Edwards of ModerniMami™ and 40weeks Plus, Denisse Icaza of Ahorros para Mamá and Jennifer Hutcheson of Mami2Mommy. What’s great about these blogueras is that despite their diverse Latino backgrounds, they all have a common interest of providing information from a mother’s perspective each in their own creative way. I’ll share their interviews in my next blog post, Latina Bloggers: Rise of the Mami Blogueras Part 2, so stay tuned!

Related articles

• A Latina Looks at Social Media Marketing and the Hispanic Community (marketingconversation.com)
• LATINA Style Magazine Includes Verizon in its List of Best Companies for Latinas to Work For (pamil-visions.net)
• Top Hispanic Marketers Discuss Emerging Trends, New Strategies During LatinVision Media’s “Marketing to Latinas” Conference on June 10 (eon.businesswire.com)
• OFFICIAL BLOGHER ’10 LIVEBLOG: ROYO – Latinas in Social Media (blogher.com)

Jorge Bauermeister

I really could not believe it. The same organization that has called net neutrality the civil rights issue of the new century has created a strategy to take advantage of the minorities it claims to protect. The New York Times and The Hill, reported that advocacy group Free Press and the Pacific Foundation joined forces with the Harmony Institute to develop a report on how to change our minds on net neutrality… at the movies.

After overcoming the initial shock, and coming to terms with the fact that Free Press had actually paid for a report that suggests people can be persuaded to support their own version of net neutrality I dove in for the details.

By this time, I must admit, I had become desensitized to Free Press’ overly dramatic style (for example, the panel they planned and sponsored at the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Convention in Denver, Colorado carried the title “The end of the Internet as we know it”). But reading the report made feelings of outrage rush back to the surface. The report suggests using movies and television shows with stories of innocent children failing math because they do not have an Internet connection.

The report titled, “Net Neutrality for the Win: How Entertainment and the Science of Influence Can Save Your Internet” establishes guidelines on how to manipulate a particular group of Americans they identify as the “persuadables” to adopt their own brand of net-neutrality message. Here is where Free Press, the self-proclaimed champion of civil rights, shows its true colors. You guessed it; the “persuadables” are minorities, poor women and America’s Southern, rural poor.  They even included a cartoon reminiscent of the “separate but equal” days, showing two separate drinking fountains. All of this is part of an effort to have minorities reject the positions taken by the NAACP, LULAC, and other time-honored civil rights organizations, and to support a cause that (according to the same report) is supported (almost exclusively) by rich, white males.

As if the selection of minorities as prime targets for their manipulation was not enough, the way they wanted to deliver their message was even worse. Instead of addressing the issue via clear information showing the pros and cons of the debate, they want to gather support via subliminal messaging. If you have something to say, tell it to my face. The selection of using underhanded methods of communications reveals not only a weakness in their arguments, but a damned if I care attitude.

Why do they need to deliver their message in such an underhanded manner to minorities?  Because, the report states that most Americans think the Internet is working fine and do not want the government fooling around with it. The goal is to convince the persuadables, that their perception is wrong, and that they have to substitute their reality with Free Press’  (page 16). (Have you watched Inception?)

Net Neutrality proponents don’t care about minorities. Every time, a well-established civil rights group comes out and voices an opinion contrary to their position, they insult them by calling them sell-outs or “Astroturf”. The report is further proof of this. It states that minorities have concerns about the Internet: access and affordability. However, the entire goal of the report is to move minorities away from their very real (and important) concerns, and towards Free Press’ concerns.

Let met sum up their strategy. Free Press wants to manipulate this group into forgetting their issues, accepting ours and then based on this lie, on this fiendish scheme go “for the win.” By doing so, Free Press ignores the fact that once we “win”, broadband access to minorities will be severely hampered.

I am deeply disturbed by this strategy, and its planned method of execution. It’s racist, sexist, and morally impure. Minorities lag behind whites in access to broadband Internet, and are suffering the economic consequences of not being plugged into the net. These issues should be discussed openly, and not through behavioral sciences, subliminal messaging, or plain old style lying.

If Free Press truly believes that net neutrality is the civil rights issue of this decade, then they need to move away from what benefits affluent whites want (this is pursuant to their own report) and to focus on the issues identified by the minorities: affordability and access.

The fact that net neutrality proponents have to resort to these tactics reflects their desperation, that their message is not taking hold on its own weight. But, don’t take my word for it, if you care about net neutrality read the Harmony Institute report <savemyinternet.com/index> and the tactics it recommends.

Note: After the news reports came out, References to Free Press on the site and in the report have been removed or toned down. However, I have the before and after screen shots for anyone interested.

Related articles

• Harmony Institute & Free Press Seek to Create Net Neutrality Propaganda (pff.org)
• Transparency for thee, but not for Free Press? (hotair.com)
• Net Neutrality Supporters to Protest at Google HQ (pcworld.com)
• Keep the Internet Corporate-Free Says Anti-Business Free Press (pff.org)
• How FCC Bungling Led to the Google-Verizon Net Neutrality Deal (dailyfinance.com)
• Net neutrality supporters to protest at Google HQ (macworld.com)
• Google Internet Plan Disillusions Some Allies (nytimes.com)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6tMgmTFAdc

Salitre: True Colors of Puerto Rico.
Producer -- Barbara Crudeli
Director -- Otto Flores
Director of Photography/ Editor -- Alex Berge

When we think of branding, we think of ads, radio and television commercials, special events; any form of  medium that will communicate to the audience. Normally we have imagery and text that are combined in a way to tell a story to the intended target market the value of a product or service. That’s what branding and advertising is all about, good storytelling.

You want to create content that will grab the audience’s attention both emotionally and visually. This can be possible using today’s online media, particularly online videos. With good video shots, music and editing a video can successfully capture both the visual and emotional elements that can successfully produce a narrative. What’s more, any creative individual can make it possible with little or no cost and post it online to online video sites such as Youtube and Vimeo.

I think this one video I found on Youtube successfully created the digital video narrative and so far it has over 4,000 views and it”ll be interesting to see how far it’ll go. The video is called Salitre: True Colors of Puerto Rico and it’s a narrative of Puerto Rico seen through the eyes of a surfer.

The moment you play the video you’re whisked away to a collage of landscapes and ocean waves being surfed with some soothing music enhancing the mood. What’s great about this video is that they also reveal shots of some of the Puerto Rican locals, those you might see walking along Old San Juan or playing dominos, that’s the true Puerto Rico.

I’m sure this will make an excellent branding tool to drive tourism back to Puerto Rico, especially for surfers looking for new waves and travelers wanting to explore a new place and culture but stay close to the US. What do you think? Would video narratives like this make great branding tools?

Related articles

• San Juan, Puerto Rico To Become Walkable City (gas2.org)
• YouTube Tries to Get More Artsy, With Help From the Guggenheim (newteevee.com)
• If You Build a Web Series Around It, Will They Come? [Voices] (voices.allthingsd.com)
• It’s No Cars Go In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Makeover (fastcompany.com)
• City of the future: San Juan, Puerto Rico plans a no-car reboot (shortformblog.com)
• It’s No Cars Go In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Makeover (fastcompany.com)
• City of the future: San Juan, Puerto Rico plans a no-car reboot (shortformblog.com)

Sun of Spanish Harlem by Santiago

This blog was something I needed to post because this is an artist that everyone should check out whether your Latino or non-Latino. I happened to find New York based artist, Santiago, on Facebook through a fellow colleague of Latino cultural studies and also an online mentor, George “Urban Jibaro” Torres. George also has his own blog called Sofrito for Your Soul, a great blog that promotes Latino cultural heritage.

After seeing some of Santiago’s artworks on his Facebook Fanpage, I went ahead and studied his personal website, RiceandBeanz.net and what I saw visually blew me away. As an Art major at the University of North Texas, I was in classes that focused on European art studies, which is good but I wanted to study more art within Latin American culture. Fortunately, they offered a Spanish Colonial Art class before I graduated which really encouraged me to research Latin American art on my own.

What I like about Santiago’s work is that he breaks from tradition and created his own art expression. It’s a fusion of two cultures, urban pop and Latino with a touch of retro and futuristic elements. Santiago successfully combines the two into a celebration of modern Latino culture and heritage here in the US and the Caribbean islands of Cuba, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic.

“I am simply an image maker that illustrates, paints sculpts, web design and does graphic art.” Santiago told me when I asked him what his art concentration was and so I’m very impressed that he can express his art in other mediums.

The deep rich and diverse color of his artworks will definitely capture the eye’s attention and the abstract shapes in some of his pieces provides a sense of dynamic movement to the figures, which themselves express some sense of emotion and/or sensuality. When I see Santiago’s artworks, I see art that communicates Latino identity, nostalgia and passion.

Another great thing about Santiago is that he is able utilize the power of online and social media to promote his art on his own. As mentioned before, not only does Santiago has a website where he displays and sells his art but he also uses the popular microblogger, Tumblr, for another gallery which he also calls RICEANDBEANZ. On top of that he has over 8,000 Facebook fans and is on Twitter with over 3,000 followers and yes! he’s also on MySpace.

I encourage you to check out his art and I also encourage Santiago to keep up the great work. His imagination and creativity are really limitless.

Related articles

• Latinos by heart (mysanantonio.com)
• International Emerging Artists Now Living in NY/NJ on Exhibit in Riverdale NY Through 9/12 (your-story.org)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nthy1yEhKUQ

What’s great about the Latino Cultural Center is that they invite visitors to explore art galleries of all different kinds of visual mediums contributed by locally and nationally known Latino artists as well as live performances from Latinos from all parts of Latin America. The center also hosts their own special events and festivals for the entire family. Their website will offer further information and you can also follow their Facebook fanpage for up to date news, pictures and videos.

I highly recommend you pay a visit and if you live somewhere else besides Dallas, what cultural center where you live do you like to visit?

Related articles

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• Mysa.com: Latino family expo scheduled (mysanantonio.com)
• Pan American Bank Hosts Latino Literacy Fundraiser (eon.businesswire.com)

Aruba

Puerto Rico

St. Thomas

After I graduated from college a couple years ago, I decided that for a gift from my friends and family was a cruise throughout the Caribbean…by myself. At first, I was abit nervous because it was the first time I have been away from everybody that I know, but I knew in my heart I had to start building my own sense of independence and what better way than a reward from all the hard work of making the Dean’s List for several semesters and graduating Cum Laude.

While traveling, I never felt such a sense of calmness and tranquility before in my life. I was not only traveling to a different locations but I was also experiencing a lifestyle and culture that differed greatly from the states. In the islands, time is not a factor, it has slowed down to a pace. The people were so friendly and social as they walk about the neighborhoods talking to neighbors about the latest gossip or heading to the local pool hall for a drink of beer and watching baseball on TV.

What I would remember the most from my travels is the time I was in St. Thomas where I happen to strike up a conversation with a gentleman native to the island. Despite the fact that he was missing a leg, he was quite cheerful and we ended up talking about the weather and things to do on the island. Now, I’m sure if this happened in the states some people might find it abit uncomfortable but this was not the fact in the islands, everybody enjoyed life. The pursuit of status, money, and stocks were far from their minds and I found it most enlightening. It was as if I have transcended and understood how my life should be lived. Before, I was a nervous wreck, worrying about the littlest things but now I take it day by day and just slow down from time to time.

I see my travels as a metaphor of my personal life, I will always be traveling in the path of life, gaining new experiences and knowledge along the way.

This week we have seen the first teams play in the 2010 FIFA World Cup of Soccer (or Futbol for the rest of Latin America). Of course, broadcast channels such as ESPN and ABC are covering the games but not as intensely. Latinos living in the United States and Latin America are avid soccer fans, it’s part of the culture as much as baseball and football is part of the United States and that’s where Univision comes in. In this year’s event, Univision, the broadcast network channel that produces programs for Latinos, is going all out to offer soccer fans access to up to date FIFA World Cup information through online and new media technology as well as traditional media campaigns.

According to Elianne Ramos, a well known frequent blogger  and Co-Chair for Latinos in Social Media (LATISM) “Univision, in its efforts to heighten awareness about its unprecedented FIFA World Cup coverage, has rolled out an advertising campaign in movie theaters across the country which features international superstar Shakira singing Waka Waka (Esto es Africa/This Time for Africa) the official 2010 FIFA World Cup song and Univision’s official theme for all of its coverage of this world sport event.

This vibrant 30-second spot features images of Shakira singing, exciting soccer moments and the cultural richness of the host country of South Africa. It conveys the incredible energy of this month-long event and the passion the fans feel for the game.”

Recent studies in Hispanic marketing shows that Hispanics outpace non-Hispanics in every aspect of engagement and according to the 2009 Hispanic Fact Pack from Advertising Age, Univision is ranked #1 in Hispanic TV Network Viewership. With this much viewership on television and Hispanics’ quick adaptation to new technology, particularly with online and social media platforms, Univision has already developed the means to reach their viewers through all forms of media throughout the World Cup.

Univision’s Official 2010 FIFA World Cup website offers full coverage for each match and you can stream all 64 games for free through your computer. What’s different about the coverage this year than four years ago is the utilization of smartphone technology. Now you can download apps that offer real time FIFA World Cup information for your iPhone, Blackberry and Android based smartphones. Of course, for full television coverage of the FIFA World Cup in Spanish, you can watch all 64 games in Univision, Galavision and Telefutura as well as visiting their respective websites for schedules.

Speaking of using social media, you can join the World Cup on Facebook fanpage and follow the Twitter hashtags: #univisionfutbol #copamundial #worldcup #pasiondelmundial #latism

With exclusive Spanish-language television and digital rights, soccer fans can rely on Univision’s TV networks, Univision On Demand, and the company’s online and mobile platforms for full coverage. With the addition of new media in Univision’s media campaign to promote World Cup soccer, I hope the popularity in soccer will increase here in the United States even after the World Cup ends.

If you want to further your study into how Hispanics are utilizing new media and social media, I highly recommend you check out the blog, Latinos in Social Media (LATISM). They offer insightful information into social media and promote special events in social media and everything Latino, like the Mundial party that occurred on  Thursday, June 10.

Related articles

• Univision Network Unveils National Advertising Campaign for its Exclusive Spanish-Language Coverage of 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa™ Shakira and Univision Invite Soccer Fans Across the Country to Live “La Pasión Del Mundial” on Univision
• Univision Interactive Media Launches Unprecedented Soccer and Sports Coverage, Including Live Online Streaming of All 64 Matches of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
• Univision Announces Additional Commentators to Round Out Seasoned Team for its Exclusive Spanish-Language Broadcast of the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa

Four years has passed and now it’s time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup of soccer (or futbol as it is called in Latin American countries). You might think of it as the superbowl of soccer that pits 32 soccer teams from around the world against each other to be the world champion. I know for countries who are pure soccer fans, particulalry in Europe and all of Latin America, it will be an intense and emotional few weeks, as teams advance or get eliminated.

Latin Americans living in the United States are still extreme soccer fans, they watch it religiously and they are truly loyal to their favorite soccer teams and players, there have been times where coliseums have been filled to the brim with soccer fans trying to watch a match. I for one am excited to watch some games. I used to play soccer when I was little and it was exciting to be out in the field trying to kick that ball to score one for my team.

What’s different now than four years ago when it was last played is how Hispanic soccer fans are going to use the popularity of social media during this event. According to Lee Vann of the Captura Group, about 50% of US Latinos are connected online and by 2013 it will rise to 57%

To answer my own question, I do see some trends going during the World Cup when it begins on June 11. Blogs will be posted on favorite teams and matchups, Facebook users will build World Cup fanpages and create discussions and Twitter users will tweet up to date scores,stats, injuries, pictures and interviews. This is a chance for Hispanics to build online communities based around one of their favorite sports and it’ll be interesting to watch how it starts and grows.

And what about companies who are building campaigns for the Hispanic market? I say monitor all the mainstream social media platforms in the coming weeks and see how Hispanics are engaging and interacting with one other on all things related to the World Cup. I’m sure major comapnies such as Gatorade and Adidas will use the platforms along with the more traditional forms of marketing such as print, television and radio. This will be a perfect time for smaller companies who want to expand to the Hisanic target market to see and learn what works and what doesn’t.

Related articles

• 2010 FIFA World Cup Marketing Strategies Launched. Today: VISA (pamil-visions.net)
• Web Goes Wild for World Cup [STATS] (mashable.com)
• Univision Network Unveils National Advertising Campaign for Its Exclusive Spanish-Language Coverage of 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ (eon.businesswire.com)
• Visa Launches YouTube Channel to Host FIFA World Cup™ Fans’ Goal Call Videos (eon.businesswire.com)

This blog post has the final two sessions that I attended at the 2010 Hispanic PR and Social Media Conference on Day 2. Please check out my previous blog posts if you want to read more of what I posted while I was at the conference. It was very informative and I hope you’ll get alot out of it.

Meet the Blogueros: A Roundtable Discussion with the Top Guys in Social Media

Bloggers don’t want jazzy words they want content, keep it simple.

• Use feeds in blogging
• Give your blog a personality
• Bloggers, accept releases that you believe in
• When receiving products for review, give it disclosure and it’s yours to keep

Insights on the Do’s and Don’ts of Hispanic Social Media Measurements

How to engage.

• Social equity equals trust
• Do your research
• Determine your goals
• Determine a profile that works for you (brand)

To be successful at Twitter.

• You have to build trust and credibility
• Be human
• Do not buy Twitter followers
• Do not overpopulate tweets with brand messages
• Retweet articles unless you actually read it
• Determine how influential you are within your community. Use Tweet Level or Twitalyzer
• Don’t automate
• Be conversational
• Follow people who are relevant
• Answer @ replies
• Use Twitter to also ask questions

Your story’s potential reach.

• Hispanics are 31% more likely to be in Twitter than the net population
• Measuring realistic growth prospects based on the brand’s equity against key competitors by Hispanic sub-segment
• In social media, don’t over commit sales growth
• Optimize your targeting technique on a weekly basis
• Find the audience even when the client isn’t looking
• Expert monitoring and analysis allows for informal decisions
• Action listening incorporates discernment

Your Ultimate Guide to Scoring Great Coverage with Traditional, Broadcast and Online Hispanic Media

Latino media is all about connecting to your culture.

• Trends: Hispanic print first to penetrate a certain market
• Latinos are informal and personal
• Make sure what you pitch affects the Hispanic culture
• Latino media-appreciate them to reach them
• In press releases, know who you are targeting. Blind distribution is dead
• The most important angles stories: Advice for living, entertainment, education and family

Related articles

• New Survey Finds American Advertisers Acknowledge Hispanics’ Impact on U.S. Culture but Half Don’t Market to Nation’s Largest Minority (eon.businesswire.com)
• Core Values And General Cultural Insights Of Us Hispanics (slideshare.net)
• Texas Power Company Launches Facebook Game for Local Hispanic Consumers (insidefacebook.com)
• Twitter for Corporate PR (costpernews.com)
• Strategic Social Media conference (stuartbruce.biz)