Latino Rebranded: Latinos and Social Media

A noticeable disappointing practice (arguable), is the  Google news search feature for latino social media: 90% of it is coverage of business and politics…not much of what YOU are doing in social media as individuals.

I like what Cafe Media is doing…there is much more of a cultural vibe to what they report on.  Also, this is why such organizations such as LATISM is important – it’s by individuals for individuals.

…holiday weekend, light to no posting.

Popularity: 32% [?]

Mindset – the perfect elixir for age and classification.  Lili says it perfectly, “…is it really about generation, or is it about lifestyle?  …put the ‘generation’ to the side for a second, (because) it’s a mindset…”

Popularity: 32% [?]

Is anyone surprised?  Are you still one to think social media won’t work?  Well then, read up:

Social media and a national road tour are part of the plan to drum up interest. The campaign will stress the importance and secrecy of the count.

This shows the further use and maturity of social media.

(Not that I thought they would succeed, but this further strengthens my belief that those groups who wanted to ban the census will not win.)

Popularity: 25% [?]

As impressive as the numbers are of the increasing involvement of Latinos on the web are (22% of the internet population), I think the one common denominator is population growth (45.5 million people).  All of the below, are summaries of what I’ve discussed via my social media portals throughout the year.

Spanish Language Content

With more Latinos now on the web, it only makes sense that we’ll start seeing more Spanish content. This may be misleading because those who access the web are generally more acculturated (78%), but there are those who are entering exclusively via mobile devices and it is this population that we’ll see more targeted material directed toward.

Latino Organizations Including Social Media

There will be more Latino organizations including ’social media’ within their agendas and conferences.  This year there was a conference from LatinVision:  Convergence 2009 Digital & Social Media Conference,  and then there is the upcoming  The 2010 Hispanic Public Relations & Social Marketing Conference. I know of another conference in Florida, and yet another in California that follow the same suit (not to mention the bold and ballsy LATISM group).

Multicultural Marketing

It’s always been a numbers games, because numbers equal influence.  With over 45.5 million Latinos in the US, with a buying power to reach $1 trillion by 2011, combined with an impressive adoption of technology, Latinos are poised to be the sweethearts of big business and professionals alike, if not already.  There will be huge increases toward targeting the Latino population and their money through 2010.

More Latinos in Social Media

With the recent release of Facebook demographics showing the trend of increasing diversity, it only makes sense that it won’t slow down.  Latinos are social, and are adapting social media by storm.  This also means more Latinos on micro-networks, and more blogs.

Popularity: 13% [?]

Subtitle:   “I always feel like, somebody’s watching me…” -MJackson

At this time, if you are a Latino in social media, it may not be such a straight forward deal.  Unknowingly you may have been recruited to be the representative voice for your locale or culture as a whole.

In the form of page visits and clicks there’s an audience watching and learning.  Many companies and individuals pick and choose which online site, group or individual will be their representative ‘lab-Latino.’

For instance, here’s a live one:  “Meet Tony, The Intern”

We recently hired an intern named Tony to help us with a couple of projects here at Captura Group. As I have gotten to know him, I realize that he personifies the online Hispanic consumers that we marketers are trying so hard to reach.Below, I introduce you to Tony and to the millions of Hispanics like him online today.

[excerpts...]

Tony is bilingual and bicultural
Tony is a proud “American Latino”
Tony is tech-savvy
Tony says “Don’t try too hard”

There are many examples of this.

I’m not saying this is a bad thing at all, but an interesting fact.  What better way to learn about the market than to study those who are identified as the key individuals?

Are you a lab-Latino?  How do you feel about being a possible study specimen?  Good?  Bad?  Why?

Popularity: 3% [?]