Professional Latino

A word that gets thrown around a lot in business is diversity. Companies talk about how important it is to have a diverse workforce and how it’s important to make sure everyone feels respected in the workplace. The problem seems to lie in the fact that minorities might be hired, but many times they don’t necessarily make it up the corporate ladder- almost as if they should be happy to just have a job.

It turns out that some companies have done more than just promote diversity in the workplace, they have actually put Hispanics in some high-level positions. When I was reading the July/August edition of Fast Company, I came across a feature called “Latin Lovers” by Edward and Malia Wollan. They featured people like Ruby Anik, who is the SVP of Brand Marketing for JCPenney, and is responsible for the marketing of the JCPenney brand. Also profiled was Jackie Hernandez, the COO of Telemundo. She oversees all revenue, marketing and digital media for the Telemundo brand.

Some notable hires as of late include the hiring of Anna Maria Chavez by the Girl Scouts of America as CEO this past summer, as well as Showtime hiring Stephen Espinoza to head their sports and event programming. Stephen was a lawyer who had worked with Oscar De La Hoya and Mike Tyson in the past.

I hope this trend continues in the business world.

Nielsen family

Fast Company recently reported on Nielsen’s partnership with Facebook to provide more targeted measurements for online advertising. Just as we currently speak of Nielsen ratings for TV shows, which determine the prices advertisers pay for air time, we may soon speak of web ratings, based on a user’s viewing of a banner ad, which would in turn allow web publishers to command higher prices for CPMs on their site.

The unique aspect of this partnership is that Facebook will be used to measure user engagement with the ads. That is, Nielsen’s ad server will work in conjunction with Facebook’s to show which individuals are seeing ads on a given site. This will lead to better demographic information about who is viewing the ads.

I take issue with the article’s tone that this new partnership will finally give advertisers the precise measurements they’ve been seeking when it comes to online advertising. I believe that current forms of measurement- through Comscore, Google Analytics, Visitsperday.com, and others allow the online advertiser a host of information about when, who, and how people are engaging with their online ads. These analytics simply do not compare with the Nielsen TV ratings, which are based on one family representing the viewing habits of thousands of families in a given metro area. Nevertheless, I will be curious to see if this new form of online ad measurement will entice the last remaining advertisers who have been hesitant to venture online.

Lady Gaga Marketing

Louis Marino recently wrote an interesting article describing what marketers can learn about building a community in “5 Things Lady Gaga Can Teach Marketers About Community Building“. At first I thought Marino’s approach was smart in using a pop culture phenomenon and a handy numbered list in one article, but in addition to hitting those sweet spots, he also has some interesting insight to the way Lady Gaga connects to her fans, and how marketers can similarly build community around their brands.

So what does Lady Gaga know that marketers could use? For one thing, she knows her audience. Her fans are passionate about her, and she embraces them. She treats them as her boss, interacting with them frequently through social media. Marketers must know their customers and put them first. The customers, in turn, will appreciate this. Secondly, and perhaps most counterintuitively for many marketers, Lady Gaga makes herself vulnerable. The takeaway for marketers is that when brands are honest about who they are, they will attract strong devotees. As a commenter replied to the article, the key component of Lady Gaga’s fanbase and a successful marketing campaign is PASSION. When musicians and marketers, plus fans and customers, are passionate about something, it shows.