Agency

U.S. smartphone penetration is nearing 50 percent, so it’s no surprise that the adoption of mobile shopping tools has been rapid.

The global study surveyed more than 798 senior executives worldwide, finding that more than half (58 percent) of C-level respondents consider the CEO responsible for new customer communications channels like social media and mobile.

It’s industry awards season, and the Hispanic Public Relations Association (HPRA), the leading non-profit organization founded to advance the careers of Hispanics in the field of communications, is in search for the best public relations campaigns that target the Hispanic market and leading industry professionals.

IBM’s new survey of the marketing industry finds that chief marketing officers (CMO) and chief information officers (CIO) must join forces in order to connect with today’s consumer across new channels including mobile devices and social networks. Fully 60 percent of marketers point to their lack of alignment with the company’s IT department as the biggest obstacle to reaching today’s consumers.

NCLR (National Council of La Raza) announced that Jorge A. Plasencia, chairman, CEO, and cofounder of Miami-based advertising, digital, and communications company República, has been elected Chair of the NCLR Board of Directors.

Procter & Gamble and its Orgullosa program have partnered with Olympic Wrestling Athlete Henry Cejudo and his mom Nelly Rico to drive the importance of sports and encourage the community to help raise $500,000 for the P&G|Team USA Youth Sports Fund, which supports the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) youth sports organizations across the country.

Pepsi and Billboard announced the first-ever “Summer Beats Concert Series.” This new and exciting program will include three Twitter enabled shows during music’s hottest season featuring performances by Billboard chart-topping artists across multiple genres, marking yet another extension of Pepsi’s “Live for Now” global campaign.

Medalla Light, Puerto Rico’s top-selling light beer, is now available in bars and retail locations across Florida for the first time. Cervecera de Puerto Rico finalized distribution arrangements with Launch Beverage Companies. Cervecera de Puerto Rico has contracted with The Bravo Group to handle advertising responsibilities.

Círculo Creativo, a non-profit organization dedicated to promote creative excellence within the Hispanic Advertising arena in the United States, announces its new President, Claudio Vera.

The Huffington Post Media Group (HPMG) announced that Gabriel Lerner, Senior News Editor, HuffPost Voces and Latino Voices, has been promoted to Editorial Director for HuffPost Voces.

I was fortunate enough to be able to attend Iconosphere 2012 in Miami Beach a couple of weeks ago. Among the interesting breakout sessions was one entitled: Generational Quasars: Exploring the Boomer-Millennial Hot Spot. I was intrigued because one of our clients is doing a lot of exploration into Millennials. As it relates to Alma’s field of expertise, the Hispanic market, I think the topic is very complex because Hispanic Millennials are extremely heterogeneous but that’s not what piqued my interest about the breakout session. By Henry Gomez- Director of Strategic Insights / Alma

When it comes to making their voices heard to businesses, customers are showing they’re not shy about taking to the web. An April 2012 survey of US internet users conducted by Maritz Research found that, overall, consumers preferred using email to making a phone call when they sought to provide businesses with direct feedback.

The number one life goal among Hispanic Millennials is to have a successful career, according to the 2011 Maximo Report. But getting a start on that career is no easy feat: while young adults in general have been hit hard by the weak economy, Hispanics have been hit even harder.