Business

Whoever wins this election, major governmental changes that could significantly affect the advertising sector are almost certain to take place. A major turnover of personnel will occur in D.C. next year regardless of the election’s winner. One of the first jobs for the new President will be to nominate someone to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court. Since many of the recent decisions supporting First Amendment protection for advertising have been 5-4 decisions, the newly appointed Justice could have a very large impact on our industry.  

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

• Apple is, allegedly, about to launch its new lineup of iPhones with one notable absence among its functionalities: the audio jack will, according to rumors, be discontinued.
• Yeah, say adiós to the little hole that connects your headphones to your device.
• Another of the bold disruptive moves that has made the Cupertino giant a sexy tech darling and global corporate leader.
• Another surprise to reinvent the game, attract the world’s attention and generate buzz.
• Speaking of bold moves and surprises that make people talk, who wasn’t taken aback when, a year or so ago, Univision terminated its decades-old, money-printing relationship with Mr. Mario Kreutzberger, aka Don Francisco?

In a constantly evolving digital landscape, it’s no wonder that US marketers want their personnel to remain both informed and nimble. According to March research, almost seven in 10 feel the drive to innovate will likely impact their staffing decisions over the next two years.

While the number of independent workers is expected to grow to 54 million people by 2020 (MBO Partners: State of Independence in America 2015), the rise of the “gig economy” many forecasters see on the horizon may develop slower than expected.

The Deloitte Greenhouse™ Experience team recently completed a survey asking more than 23,000 professionals about their stress levels at work and found statistically significant variation in how respondents react to workplace stressors. Overall, the majority of respondents reported modest levels of stress. Fourteen percent reported being stressed only rarely and 57 percent reported being stressed sometimes, while 26 percent reported being stressed often, and 3 percent reported being always stressed.

Telemundo announced the promotion of Angel Domenech to Vice President of Creative Strategy. He will oversee the strategic creative approach, development and execution of the network’s high profile launches and overall branding initiatives for Telemundo Network. Domenech will report to Aileen Angulo-Merciel, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Creative, Telemundo.

Variety has hired Betsie Batista as National Sales Director for Variety Latino. Batista, who most recently led new business development for ESPN Multimedia Sales & Sponsorships, will be based in Variety’s Gotham offices where she will lead all of Variety Latino’s sales initiatives.

In the last two weeks, NBC’s Rio Olympics has garnered nearly half of the total national TV revenue of many top ad categories.

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

• Some companies have courage.
• Aka cojones.
• Others don’t.
• Apple belongs to the former group.
• As does Univision.

For many companies, cost reduction efforts become an endless downward spiral.  As soon as one cost reduction program is completed, it’s followed by another.  Competitors become locked in a race to the bottom, as price reductions predicated on cost reductions are countered by more cost-cutting from competitors to drive another round of price declines.  Before you know it, the industry has shrunk and retailers, manufacturers and consumers alike all lose out on greater growth and access to greater innovation.  By Jason Green, CEO, The Cambridge Group, and Dan Vucovich, former SVP, President U.S.,
The Hershey Co.

Univision Communications Inc. (UCI) announced the promotion of Silvia García to senior vice president of Media Planning and Multiplatform Strategy. She will continue to be based in Miami and report to Jessica Rodriguez, EVP and chief marketing officer at UCI.

Univision Communications Inc. (UCI) announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire digital media assets as part of the bankruptcy proceedings of Gawker Media Group, Inc. and related companies that produce content under a series of original brands.

Univision Communications, Inc.Univision Holdings, the nation’s biggest Hispanic-focused multimedia company, has emerged as the successful bidder for bankrupt digital media publisher Gawker Media.  Courtesy of Radio + Television Business Report

The media business, in the face of competition from Facebook and Google, is fighting for attention, eyeballs and advertising dollars.  And the challenges facing media sellers are becoming increasingly more complex, as our focus shifts from targeting audience “segments” to reaching individuals.  How can marketers and media brands continue to serve and succeed?

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

• In the age of social white noise and constant chatter -aka “the conversation”-, maintaining a high profile seems to be the only way to keep careers alive.
• Measurable results?    
• Nobody cares about results, let alone attempting to measure them.
• In corporate America, particularly in the marketing world, the revolving door swirls so fast it is simply impossible to know who’s responsible for what.
• It is all about how you spin it and how you market yourself.

Bauducco Foods celebrated the grand opening of its new U.S. headquarters manufacturing facility located at 1705 NW 133 Ave. in Miami, FL.

Given Puerto Rico’s long-term economic malaise and ongoing fiscal crisis, it is no wonder that out-migration of the Island’s residents has picked up. Over the past five years alone, migration has resulted in a net outflow of almost 300,000 people, a staggering loss. It would make matters worse, however, if Puerto Rico were losing an outsized share of its highest-paid workers.  By Jaison R. Abel, Giacomo De Giorgi, Richard Deitz, and Harry Wheeler

In the bid to be completely measurable and provide every figure a marketing executive could ever need, digital marketers are at the point of having an excel sheet worth of figures but not a whole lot of meaning. Many of the metrics I can think of are now turning into hygiene. Did my ad run, did it appear where it could be seen, did we keep it away from porn and was it actually seen by a human rather than a bot?

We need some new memes, some new topics of interest for the industry to grab hold of and beat into the ground on panel after panel, at industry conferences and in columns like this one.  

lmost a decade after the global financial crisis rattled national economies, many in the world feel their respective countries’ economies remain weak. A new Pew Research Center survey reveals a bleak picture in parts of Europe, with more than eight-in-ten in Greece, France and Spain describing their country’s economic situation as bad. This gloom is not shared by all in the European Union, however – most Swedes, Germans and Dutch say their economy is doing well. And in China, India and Australia, views are mostly positive.