Agency

Today’s US woman is expanding her “sphere of influence,” according to September 2011 research from Fleishman-Hillard, Hearst and Ipsos Mendelsohn. Through social networks and web tools, she is both contributing and seeking out purchase recommendations from friends and followers.

As many of you have seen in the movie 2012 and have heard from scholars based on their interpretation of Mayan culture and the Mayan calendar, the world will end December 2012. Doomsday is upon us in 355 days on December 21, 2012.

According to a national study released, moms are feeling overwhelming pressure to overspend on products for their babies even as they significantly cut back in nearly every other area of their lives to cope with these challenging times.

Denny’s, America’s iconic family diner, announced the launch of its first national online marketing campaign targeting the Hispanic consumer. The Funny Or Die spoof video, titled “Skillet Whisperer,” features famed dog behavioralist and TV personality, Cesar Millan, Star of National Geographic WILD’s ‘Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan,’ taming an unruly Denny’s Sizzlin’ Skillet. The video is produced in both Spanish and English to effectively reach a diverse audience.

In a cost-cutting move, Heineken’s Tecate beer brand is moving U.S. advertising from Kirshenbaum Bond Senecal & Partners’ U.S. Hispanic unit Ramona to its longtime Mexican agency, Olabuenaga Chemistri, the brewer told Ad Age.

Synergies with Leo Burnet and Lapiz are expect through Olabuenaga Chemistri‘s relationship with Publicis Groupe.

A comprehensive new research study, “ToGetHerThere: Girls’ Insights on Leadership,” commissioned by Girl Scouts in partnership with GFK Roper, reveals that while girls are generally optimistic about their futures, they still see glass ceilings in today’s society that will get in the way of achieving their leadership potential. DOWNLOAD Report Here.

Two out of three (66 percent) consumers switched companies – including wireless phone, cable and utilities – as a result of poor customer service in 2011 even as their satisfaction with the services provided by those companies rose, according to new research released by Accenture. The research findings pose new challenges for marketers as they focus on building customer loyalty and improving market share in a very competitive business environment. DOWNLOAD Report Here.

Consumers have more ways to mine for information about companies than ever before. While the Internet trumps all other sources, including advice from friends and family, the ability to reach consumers with a consistent message across the variety of channels available – such as social channels – is key to thriving in the ever-changing and competitive landscape.

You could say that that is our overall goal in advertising; to convince them to shop, to buy, to switch, to consider, to embrace, to support, etc. By: Enrique R. Turégano / alPunto Advertising

A study from Accenture, comScore, Inc., and dunnhumbyUSA aimed at helping consumer packaged goods (CPG) marketers better understand the link between consumers’ usage of brand websites and their in-store brand buying behavior found that visitors to CPG brand websites buy 37% more in retail stores than non-visitors to the brand site. The study, Are Your CPG Brands Maximizing the Return on Your Digital Investment?, also concluded, that to maximize impact, website content needs to be updated regularly and contain brand value messaging that both engages visitors while also providing compelling reasons for them to purchase the brand at retail. DOWNLOAD Report Here.

General Motors has selected New York advertising and communications agency, The Vox Collective, as its U.S. Hispanic public relations agency for 2012 following an extensive review of agency capabilities in public relations, corporate communications, and public affairs before the rapidly expanding Hispanic market.

Communications agency Cohn & Wolfe has launched INFUSE, an expanded and newly branded Latino and multicultural communications practice to help clients better understand specific market segments. The branding of the agency’s four-year-old multicultural practice comes in response to growing demand for culturally relevant campaigns and the hiring of Vice President Kerri Allen, who will lead and grow the new practice, reporting to US Consumer Lead Liz Beck.

Optimism returns to the media buying industry after it reports impressive growth during the fourth quarter 2011, according to a new STRATA quarterly survey of leading advertising agencies. The industry is confident that business and client spending on advertising will continue to increase in 2012. However, the STRATA Survey noted that Digital advertising was flat during the fourth quarter, but Mobile is building momentum.

This spring, AHAA will hold its Annual Conference on May 2-4, 2012 at the Intercontinental Hotel in Miami with the theme of “Listen Up!” As the Hispanic marketing landscape continues to evolve, the content of the conference will focus on the client and feature powerhouse speakers from top companies who consistently invest in the Hispanic market and develop creative and successful campaigns that leverage all marketing disciplines and resonate with the target.

Last week, I was talking to someone about what role a digital agency would play in the future. We went down all the usual paths and came up with the usual answers, but afterward the question still lingered. What is our role in the future? I’m reasonably certain it won’t be the same as our role in the past.

Mamiverse.com released results of a Florida Poll of Latina Mom voters. Conducted in partnership with Latino Decisions, a Washington DC based research firm, and impreMedia, these poll results provide a unique window into the minds of this influential Latina decision-maker and the key swing vote in states like Florida, Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada.