Business

Like “strategy” and “analytics,” “design” is a term that suffers from misuse. Design is not just about making objects pretty. Design is the process of understanding customer needs and then creating a product or service—physical, digital, or both—that addresses their unmet needs. It sounds simple, but it’s actually a high bar: the design must simultaneously achieve functional utility, emotional connection, and ease of use, while fitting into customers’ broader experience.

If you had questions about whether the U.S. Hispanic market should be in your marketing sights for 2018, we’re here to answer with a resounding SÍ.

By Gonzalo López Martí – Creative director, etc  /  LMMiami.com

• You might’ve seen the meme: “Stop making stupid people famous”.
• It’s been bouncing around the interwebs in various forms for quite a while.
• It’s purpose is quite self-explanatory: it is calling into question our collective drooling fascination with untalented imbeciles who subsequently become cyber celebs.

Facebook and Google command most of the money now being funneled toward video advertising  There’s no doubt that content publishers are struggling with the ongoing dominance of the digital advertising ecosystem by Google and Facebook. And while the embrace of video content—and the higher ad revenues expected to attend the format—was bandied as a possible solution to their problem, the reality is that the duopoly has extended its dominion well into the realm of digital video.

Geometry appointed Amy Gómez as the new North American Senior Vice President, Cross-Cultural Marketing.

Fusion Media Group (FMG) announced plans for international expansion into Latin America through a new multi-platform agreement, spanning digital and television, with Grupo Televisa S.A.B. Televisa has acquired a license to the brands and content from FMG’s collection of digital publications for Mexico and will launch a new FUSION branded 24-hour cable network in Spanish.

As our nation faces an avalanche of sexual predatory accusations across numerous professions including our very own media industry, we should take note of our circle of influence between associates and agency-client relations.  By Gaby Alcantara-Diaz – Semilla

GroupM updated its ad investment forecasts for 2017 and 2018. Globally, GroupM anticipates growth of 3.1% this year and 4.3% in 2018, an increase of $23B next year.  

Amid growing debate as to whether brands are overspending on digital media, Zenith research has found that the effectiveness of internet advertising has now caught up with digital adspend.

In an era marked by rapid advances in automation and artificial intelligence, new research assesses the jobs lost and jobs gained under different scenarios through 2030.

RAZE, the Hispanic digital media and production company founded by “Modern Family” star Sofia Vergara and seasoned industry leaders Emiliano Calemzuk and Luis Balaguer, was the recipient of the first-ever PromaxBDA Latin America’s “Game Changer Award.”

Univision Communications Inc. announced the appointment of Antonio Roman to senior vice president, Local Media New York Sales for Univision New York. Roman will lead the company’s NY-based sales teams across TV, Digital, Radio and Experiential Marketing.

By Gonzalo López Martí – Creative director, etc / LMMiami.com

• Last week I waxed poetic about the Hollywood film industry and its blatant double standards.
• The self-proclaimed hotbed of progressive liberalism where greed, sexism, bullying and the exaltation of gun violence is the order of the day.
• Granted, we ad people might not have the highest moral cred to point fingers when it comes to hypocrisy.
• In the ad biz we’re all staunchly anti-tobacco until Philip Morris sends us an RFP.
• Our principles are malleable to say the least.
• In any case, let’s move west of Madison Avenue and north of the Hollywood hills.
• Welcome to Silicon Valley.

A new analysis by Korn Ferry shows that while there are still very few Hispanics on large corporate boards, there are signs of improvement.  The study finds that the percentage of Hispanics on Fortune 500 Boards has remained stagnant since 2015, with 2.6 percent of board members being Hispanic as of summer 2017, and 2.5 percent at the end of 2015. Three-quarters of Fortune 500 companies have no Hispanic board members.

After decades of big-box expansion, the retail industry is now shifting to smaller stores. In 2015, small format retail categories — drug, dollar and convenience stores— outgrew larger format stores by almost 400%, and now make up a more than $1 trillion market.  This growth is no accident. Demographic shifts paired with online shopping behavior and shifting consumer demands are forcing leading retailers to think small.  

GroupM announced the appointment of Marissa Jimenez to President of MODI Media, GroupM’s advanced TV advertising specialty business.

Campbell Soup Company has appointed Monica Diaz Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer.

By Gonzalo López Martí – Creative director, etc / LMMiami.com

• You know what they say: in Hollywood nobody knows anything.
• The line alludes to the inability of even the most experienced moviemakers to know in advance whether a movie will be a box office hit.
• The history of Tinseltown is littered with flops with the best talent and the fattest budgets, the highest screening scores and even the best reviews.
• The art & craft of making movies, not unlike that of making ads, is an obscure art for odd people.

The ANA Alliance for Inclusive & Multicultural Marketing (AIMM) today announced a set of key priorities for the coming year that are specifically designed to help marketers increase their focus on multicultural marketing to help drive overall corporate growth.

The pace of change in today’s corporate world is astonishing. A quick glance at the most highly valued companies of 2017 compared to those in 1990 will make obvious how rapidly things have changed on Wall Street and board rooms across the nation. In 1990, the most highly valued companies in the U.S. included mostly petroleum, automotive and prior generation electronics whereas today, companies like Apple, Comcast, Tesla, Facebook, Google and Amazon have quickly taken prominent positions as employers, innovators and highly sought-after blue chip stocks. 

By César M Melgoza, Founder & CEO of Geoscape