Social TV … what a concept!

We in the digital side of the business had many dreams of multi-screen Brand mentions, the usage of social as a rally point for creating social currency with a TV program, or even a brand spot.

As I read this article in Ad Age “What a Short (But Packed) Trip It’s Been for Social TV” http://adage.com/article/digital/a-short-packed-trip-social-tv/234142/>, I realize that those of us in digital marketing have always seen the digital ecosystem grow in this natural manner, where we share, comment, gripe and learn.

As Hispanics we are more social than our general market peers, our mobile usage is higher and our adoption of tablets is documented, and so – where are the US Hispanic campaigns that use the multi-screen approach as our “go to” digital planning?

We need to think holistically about how our TV and our mobile interact. Gone is the time for “mobile components”, now is the time for “mobile strategy”. When I was on the agency side, I always asked about mobile, and there was this quizzical look given back as if this was a very hard question to ask a partner (Vendor). Now on the other side of the fence, I am impressed how much mobile gets attention, “air time” if you will, but little strategic thinking and that show by the low level of investment.

The large handset manufacturers are starting to develop data driven advertising models, Samsung put out a press release about their plans and Sprint (which in the spirit of full disclosure, is our strategic partner) will also launch a new ad platform this summer.

These changes will allow CPG and Shopper Marketing to coexist on handheld devices (that is the promise at least). So let’s see what the agencies decide in this upfront season.

Yes, we have heard “it’s the year of mobile” for a long time…but don’t let it sneak up on you, or scare you – it’s a great challenge, and for the Hispanic marketer, it’s the time to let great campaign ideas work across all screens. It’s time to make mobile a part of the thinking and not just an add-on to our budgets.

By Xavier Mantilla | Director of Sales – RedMas