FH Hispania Plaza

This Week in las Noticias

Social media connecting with Hispanic market (San Antonio Business Journal) – Tornoe, collaborating with SAVisíon (the American Marketing Association’s Hispanic marketing arm) recently shared his insight in regard to the quest for Latino social media users and how Hispanics compare to the general market in terms of technology adoption and usage trends that are relevant to both advertisers and marketers.

Pitched battle to marketing MLS in Portland and beyond: Rough and rowdy vs. family-friendly (Oregon Live) – As MLS moves closer to adding a Portland franchise in 2011, it is moving away from the longtime mirage of capturing soccer's masses of youth players, and seeking more of the 18- to-34-year-olds already chanting, singing and filling the stands.

FIFA’s World Cup, Confederation’s Cup, the USA wins Spain and soccer…

**Thanks to Ana Toro, in our Atlanta office, for the following collaboration.**

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These days, when we are hearing so many news updates about FIFA’s World Cup next year in South Africa  and the countries that are still classifying for a spot, it makes me glad to see how much the United States has embraced the sport and how so many companies have used it to reach out to the US Hispanics.

Last Wednesday, the U.S. soccer team achieved a long time dream…. advancing to its first men’s FIFA final since starting to play in 1916.  They beat the planet’s top-ranked team, Spain, 2-0.  Even more stunning was the fact that  the US soccer team was on the verge of elimination and ready to head home last weekend before this reversal of fortune.  Just as recently as yesterday, it was all looking good for the Americans, playing in the men's final of a FIFA tournament for the first time, against Brazil.  But it was Brazil's "Beautiful Game" that came alive in the second half  with three comeback goals in a 3-2 Confederations Cup final win.

Last week, an exhibition game between the Mexican National Team (El Tri) and Venezuela, took place at the Georgia Dome, in Atlanta, which attracted over 50,000 spectators and even  had the general market media covering the event.   The Atlanta Journal Constitution, the city’s main newspaper, indicated that Atlanta got a glimpse of what soccer in the city could bring.

Atlanta, which according to the UGA’s Selig Center for Economic Growth is an emerging Hispanic market and U.S. market, hopes to not only host more of these events, but now is hopeful to become one of the U.S. host sites when the World Cup bid is submitted next year. 

As a matter of fact, next month, Georgia will host another good soccer game: Club America, one of Mexico’s most popular teams, against the A.C. Milan, one of most popular teams in the world.

For years, many companies have tried to tap the Hispanic market by sponsoring soccer leagues and tournaments nationwide, among them Gatorade1, The Home Depot, NAPA, Budweiser, Dick’s, Pepsi1 and Visa1, among many others.  And while people from Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and other fan nations can still root for their hometown favorites and watch games here, many teams in the U.S. have Latino players attracting fans to the stadiums. Whether you call it fútbol or soccer, the sport has proven to be a hot item and it will continue to be in years to come.   La fiebre del deporte is here to stay.

Note:
1 Fleishman-Hillard’s clients

Latinos and Twitter

Latinos were doing social networking online long before the term was coined.  For our culture, online technologies just broadened opportunities to stay connected to family and friends, and as connectivity became more affordable, more Latinos where doing more online. But this is old news, as it is too well known that we easily navigate English and Spanish content, on our mobiles or computers, very frequently.

In the marketing space, a lot of our colleagues have been on board with Twitter for a while. (Hello Dieste, Latinworks, Juan Tornoe, LatinaLista and many others.) But for those who argue whether Latino consumers are catching on, like they say in Spanish, para muestra un boton.

While catching up on Despierta America yesterday morning, it was great to hear that Twitter came up during a gossip segment with Piolin related to Paulina Rubio.  Turns out the singer has been tweeting during the promo tour for her new CD, including a tweet on a burglary at her Miami home and about her appearance on the Piolin show—the leading radio show in L.A. and the U.S. Also interesting is the mix of Twittters she follows and who follow her as it provides a glimpse into her interests and circle of influence. 

Ana Maria Canseco, one of Despierta America’s anchors, also is on Twitter and has more than 200 people following her… in Spanish. She talks about events she attends, musings and comments about daily events, and even brands she’s working with.  Many more Latino celebs are also on, some more active than others: Ricardo Arjona, Juanes, etc.  Among them, acts like Wisin y Yandel with a younger following, have a larger number of followers (4,000 plus), and Shakira, whose audience reaches far beyond Latinos, has more than 25,000. Univision and Telemundo also are on Twitter… and I am sure this list grows every day.

Ivette and others on our team are avid users…As for me, I do have an account but I use it to follow and learn about others, instead of tweeting about me ;) Are you on?  Drop me a line and you may just get a new follower.

This Week in las Noticias

Friday is final curtain for analog TV signals (Sacramento Bee) – Moe Shakkour, manager of an independent electronics store in a largely Hispanic area of New York City, said people have come in with converter box coupons, without knowing what they are for, or that analog TV signals are going away.

Boy Scouts make big push to get Latinos to join (Chicago Tribune) – Worried about dwindling membership, the organization has launched a pilot recruitment effort to double its ranks of Latinos to 200,000 before its centennial in February. Chicago is among six test sites for even more ambitious plans to tap into the nation's fastest-growing demographic.

Supreme Court to Look More like America

President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor during a press conference on Tuesday. Supporters argue Sotomayor would bring a much-needed perspective from a population that is increasingly becoming the face of America in many cities and neighborhoods, including the candidate’s own hometown of the Bronx.

Sotomayor serves on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York and is a member of the Puerto Rican Bar Association. Another Latino, Justice Carlos R. Moreno from California, was also considered.

For more on the story, click on CNN’s Obama nominates Sotomayor to Supreme Court, or la Opinion’s Obama nomina a jueza hispana Sonia Sotomayor a la Corte Suprema.

This Week in las Noticias

MasterCard Preps Hispanic Push (Brandweek) - MasterCard is augmenting its mass-media push with a community approach that promotes financial literacy at a grass-roots level, taking the effort into cash-driven businesses like check-cashing centers and laundromats.

Terra Relaunches its Hispanic-Targeted Broadband TV Service, Terra TV (InteractiveTV Today) - The service, which is accessed from the Terra.com portal, offers programming free-of-charge in three "channels": Entertainment, News and Sports.

This Week in las Noticias

The Marketing of Mark Sanchez to Hispanic Fans (New York Times) - Soccer and baseball are commonly thought to be the sports with the broadest appeal to Hispanics. How popular is Sanchez in the Hispanic community, and can the Jets and the N.F.L. convert that into dollars?

Ford Targets Women Via AOL Latino, 'Essence' (Marketing Daily) - AOL Latino centers on a new Ford-branded women's destination, Tu Voz, tuvozentuvida.com, part of AOL's Latina lifestyle network, "Tu Vida y Mas."

1ero de Mayo Marches Go On-- Four Years Later

Today marks el Dia de Trabajo (Workers’ Day) in many Latin American countries.  This Friday May 1, and for the fourth consecutive year, thousands of immigrant Hispanic workers will take to the streets to demand immigration reform.  According to a Univision.com story, groups have planned marches in 23 cities.  In Los Angeles alone, the #1 Hispanic market in the nation, 3 different groups are scheduled to walk the streets and not even the HN1 – better known as swine—flu will deter them.

Workers are demanding reform for many reasons, including fair treatment, keeping families together, the ability to legalize their situation and normalize their family future and lives.

Yesterday, the current administration had its first session to discuss immigration and groups are waiting for Obama to put an end to raids at job sites, even if temporary. And in that meeting, Greenspan told a Senate subcommittee that illegal immigrants are good for the economy because they provide a flexible workforce or safety valve. With that argument, we are sure he got a lot of criticism-- and praise.

A recently release report from the Pew Hispanic Center notes that there are 11.9 million unauthorized immigrants in the United States—76% of whom are Hispanic. Yet, 73% of children born to unauthorized immigrants are U.S. citizens so deportations imply family separation and custody arrangements for millions of kids.

In a story by Bloomberg news from last week, the topic of immigration taking a backseat to the economy emerged yet again.  True, we have larger issues to tackle, but we can’t ignore the fact that the economy and fair immigration reform are more than connected.  

Minding the Swine Flu

With travel bans now in place to Mexico and several other measures under way, the country and the world are keeping a watchful eye on swine flu.  The fast-spreading virus now has been suspected of taking the lives of more than 100 people in Mexico, according to the country’s health secretary, and there have been confirmed cases in California, New York, Texas—some reports say up to 5 states have confirmed cases.

Health matters are a key concern for Hispanics in the U.S. – and for many that means not only personal health but that of family and community members.  Hispanic media are doing their part in keeping people informed, as millions of Hispanics with family in Mexico worry about their loved ones. In El Paso, media are reporting that border crossing procedures remain unchanged since they already screen for people who appear ill and the CDC has a quarantine station in the city.  Los Angeles’ La Opinion picked up a story from the Reforma news agency in Mexico listing precautionary measures to stop the spread, Univision.com is featuring videos from both the U.S. and Mexico health secretaries and news pieces, in addition to in-depth stories of the virus.

This morning, the president said there is no cause for alarm, and while that is an important message to heed, so are the precautionary measures being put in place. And while we watch experts prevent the spread, know this:

• Airlines are being very flexible in changing travel plans to Mexico

• Be mindful of normal flu precautions if you think you can be exposed or have been exposed

• The swine flu, when treated in time, is not deadly

We hope this quickly passes and we can go back to normal.  Kudos to the CDC, health workers and reporters who are working without rest to keep people safe. For more info, visit: cdc.gov.

Dia de la Tierra (Earth Day!)

Today we celebrate Earth Day and to observe the occasion, Hispanic media has done a good job of providing content that can raise awareness and help get us all more environmentally savvy so we may preserve the planet for generations to come. No matter what side of conservation or conversation you are on, we all can agree that our generation creates too much waste and the worst part is that some of it will carry on to our kids and grandkids.

Latinos and minorities in the country are more sensitive to environmental issues not just because they think ‘green’, but out of need.  For many 1st and 2nd generation Latinos, preserving resources such as water and energy are part of their daily lifestyle because of behaviors from their home country where they may have depended on precious private water sources and even supply their own energy.  Most have an acute awareness of turning off appliances to prevent high energy bills, turn off the water while brushing their teeth and are mindful of pre-packaged items that have extra plastic or materials that end up in landfills.  In the U.S., minorities also have experience working in sites and living in places that are impacted by air and water quality issues and environmental justice disparities have long been issues to overcome.  Also, according to surveys conducted in time for last year’s presidential elections, the environment is among top concerns for Latino voters.

As we all take a moment to think about Earth Day, kudos go to Hispanic media and organizations that keep the consumer education information coming to Latinos in the U.S. and who make it a point to help us all be mindful of simple, complex, involved or plain no-brainer actions we can take to preserve and conserve the resources we share.

Some of the highlights for the week:

• On April 25th, Discovery Channel en Espanol will air An Inconvenient Truth in Spanish
• Terra.com has feature coverage on the site, including a profile on ‘environmental criminals’
• Univision.com has a great spread for its campaign, Piensa Verde, Actua Verde (Think Green, Act Green)
• Impredia and pubs La Opinion, El Diario La Prensa, have call outs to stories on the front page

And last but not least, for Hispanics looking to get more engaged with the environment, following are a few groups and associations worth noting:

• La Onda Verde de NRDC:  A program from the (Natural Resources Defense Council—an organization with more than  1.2 million members.—created to help Latinos become more aware of environmental issues.  They have an interesting partnership  with Warner Music for Latin artists downloads benefiting the non-profit’s efforts.
• LatinosGoGreen.org: A project of non-partisan group Democracia USA, it began as a voter education campaign on green issues and now continues to educate and mobilize.
• SierraClub’s EcoCentro: A comprehensive site about Sierra Club’s initiative to inform and empower Latinos to take environmental action.

Don’t see your favorite group or initiative listed here?  Drop us a line and we’ll include it.  For now, happy Dia de la Tierra to all.