Agency

When Alaska Airlines’ jets first landed in Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta in 1988, part of the carrier’s rationale was to increase use of aircraft that weren’t needed during the winter in its namesake state.

Today, the airline serves 10 Mexico cities and generates significant profits. More than one-quarter of Alaska’s customers flying between Seattle/Portland and Los Angeles International Airport start or end their trip south of the border. From LAX, Alaska carries nearly half of all travelers flying to Los Cabos and 55 percent of those bound for Puerto Vallarta.

Mediamark Research Inc. (MRI) released a new consumer segmentation analysis that groups adults according to their level of comfort with personal debt. Interestingly, when consumers’ financial attitudes are cross-referenced with their financial behavior, it’s clear that the majority of people borrow money despite being uncomfortable doing so.

Burst Media announced the results of an online survey of women 25 years and older. This survey interviewed 1,896 women over the age of 25 years and focused on women’s online behavior and how the Internet impacts their everyday lives.

Offering Latinas a culturally relevant way to communicate with one another, Unilever’s Hispanic beauty platform, Pasa La Belleza, has a wide-range of activities, including an interactive Web site, organic product integration on TV, in-store beauty demonstrations, beauty parties in key local Hispanic markets, access to stylists’ beauty tips, product samples and a special sweepstakes where entrants could Win a Day of Beauty with their favorite celebrity stylists in their own home.

The Dallas/Ft. Worth-Arlington Metropolitan Area is experiencing a substantial Latino population boom that is helping many area retailers remain profitable in a tough economy. According to the Census Bureau, the Dallas/Ft. Worth-Arlington Metropolitan Area was the second-fast growing metropolitan area in the United States, adding an estimated 601,242 residents since the year 2000. Hispanics comprised 60 percent of these new residents, whose estimated buying power of $20 billion has benefited the bottom-line for area retailers.

Given all the negativity surrounding the sub-prime mortgage marketplace, it is no surprise that consumers have questioned the credibility of the current marketing and advertising for mortgage products. Just one-third of US adults (34%) view the advertising and marketing of mortgage products as credible, with the majority (66%) viewing it as not credible. In fact, one in five adults (22%) report that they view the advertising and marketing of these products as ‘not at all credible.’

Coca Cola continues its rise as it moves into the top position of the annual Harris Poll of “best brands” for the first time and rises from No. 3 last year. Sony, which had been in the top position for seven straight years, drops one spot to No. 2, while Toyota, previously in the fourth position, moves up to No. 3. Dell, which had been in the second spot last year drops two spots to No. 4 this year.

New York advertising agency Latinvox is set to launch the new creative campaign developed for the latest edition of the New York International Latino Film Festival, which opens on July 24th. The multi-platform campaign consists of television, print and out of home advertisements, as well a website.

California’s population is projected to reach almost 60 million people by 2050, adding over 25 million since the 2000 decennial census, according to long-range population projections released by the California Department of Finance.

From less than 34 million Californians counted in that census, the new data series shows that the state will pass the 40 million mark in 2012, and exceed 50 million by 2032.

U.S. retailers of beauty products are banking on multi-channel sales and personalized customer relations strategies to maintain a competitive edge, according to a newly published study by global management consulting and market research firm Kline & Company. Faced with a challenging, mature market and growing competition from the direct-to-consumer sales channel, beauty retailers are beefing up enticements like customer loyalty programs and purchase rewards in an effort to retain customers and attract new ones.

During the America Revolutionary War, John Paul Jones supposedly uttered these words in the midst of a fierce battle against a far superior British fleet. He actually yelled them — otherwise the Brits wouldn’t have heard. With the seemingly overwhelming odds that a small agency will succeed, I identify with Jones’ attitude. It’s so easy to get discouraged by all of the negative things that can happen in this business. Like today, the air conditioner isn’t working on my side of our offices. Courtesy of Advertising Age.

More than two-thirds of Americans say they consider a company’s business practices when deciding what to buy, according to the 2007 Cone Cause Evolution Survey. At the same time, there is a substantial increase in the number of American workers who want their employers to support a social cause or issue. The latest study in Cone’s 14 years of Cause Branding and corporate responsibility research indicates an evolution in consumer thinking about the ways businesses interact with society.