crossculturalism

Avertising Week 2011 "Culture- The New Creative Brief"

2011-10-04T08:38:00.000-07:00

Looks like an interesting Panel in NY this morning. I wonder where these guys were last year as AHAA and the industry came out with knives flashing toward those of us that were talking about it?

All smart folks on the panel. Should be a great chat. If someone attends, please comment with some highlights!

Here's what the panel description says:

As the paradigm shifts from "Multicultural Marketing" to "Marketing to a Multicultural Nation" smart marketers (and their agencies) are realizing that many brands can present a more cohesive brand message by using a single creative strategy across different audience segments

Gustavo de Mello, SVP/Group Planning Director, DDB Chicago
Luis Miguel Messianu, President/Chief Creative Officer, Alma
Joan Dufresne, Senior Partner/Group Planning Director, Ogilvy & Mather
Kim Bealle, Senior Director/Consumer Communications Group, Kraft Foods Beverages
Antoinette Zel, CEO, La Comunidad
Moderator: Rick Boyko, Director, VCU Brandcenter

Why the new Spiderman is Half Black, Half Latino

2011-08-17T07:53:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you've heard by now, but Marvel announced that the new Spiderman in the Ultimate Spiderman series is half black, half Latino. His name is Miles Morales and according to Marvel, "What you have is a Spider-Man for the 21st century who's reflective of our culture and diversity. We think that readers will fall in love with Miles Morales the same way they fell in love with Peter Parker."

Smart move from Marvel, I think. Just envision a young Millennial, living in a generation that's 45% non white, listening to 90% black artists, seeing a black president, consuming anything but American food...and then think of Peter Parker. Slight disconnect?

Is this the beginning of a tide-change? Will most villains on TV cease to be black or Hispanic? Will our heros be more like Miles? I hope so, for the sake of this new generation. I can't imagine the "bad black or brown guy" is a nice stereotype to grow up with.

My guess is that as this new generation grows up and they're able to take over creative duties from out-of-touch older dudes, the tides will inevitably change.

The same thing will eventually happen in advertising, albeit more slowly.

Peter Parker-like brands don't seem to have much of a future with this new generation.

Univision strikes a nerve with "New American Reality" video

2011-05-02T16:43:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you've seen it. It's a video Univision created to spur interest in the Hispanic market. Frankly, it's a very smart piece. Inspiring but not pushy, thought provoking and very nicely executed in a great tone of voice. The thoughts are progressive too. They talk about Hispanics being bilingual and living in both worlds. Not the typical 'head in the sand' approach some in Hispanic marketing have taken ("What? Hispanics speaking English?! No, señor! Not here!")

But what's pretty interesting is the reaction from the viewers. The video seems to have been publicized heavily among Hispanics and Hispanic advertising pros, obviously. But a few non-Latino admirers have found their way to the video as well...and their--shall we say, Xenophobic--reactions are pretty loud and forceful. They see this whole Hispanic think as an invasion of their country.

Check out the word cloud below. You see a lot of "like" and "good" and "proud," which comes mostly from Latinos reacting positively to the message. Then you also see "Spanish," which is a predictable discussion topic..."we don't all speak only Spanish" and "I still speak Spanish at home."

The interesting part, though is the next layer of words: "America, White, Hate, Ignorant, English." Those words are really mostly used in an aggressive tone "If you are a true American...don't wave the Mexican flag" or "Enjoy having the dreams of your founding fathers completely obliterated by mexicans, america!" Anyway, nuts-a-plenty.

Now, if you get past all the anger and name-calling, what you'll see is that the discussion is actually about the identity of the country. The Hispanic commenters are saying that "being Latino doesn't make you any less American," while the other folks are claiming that unless you drop the language, forget your roots and completely blend in...you're not American. "My forefathers did it! So should you!"

But that's what's different about this wave of immigration, isn't it? It's not about to get cut off like the Northern European one was, and this time, young folks are embracing the different cultures, consuming the food, listening to the music...

I think we're facing a cultural change in this country like none it has ever experienced. The basic definition of "American" is changing. Some find it objectionable, while others celebrate it. Either way, it's happening and the implications for marketers are impossible to ignore.

Jarritos goes to GSD&M?

2011-04-20T12:04:00.000-07:00

No offense at all to GSD&M, but I have to say I'm a little disappointed Jarritos didn't go to a Hispanic shop or group.

I'm sure GSD&M's work was great and the brand will do great (I love their Southwest work). It just seemed like the perfect brand for a young, edgy Hispanic shop to own and break into the Gen Market. It was a perfect situation: an undeniably Latin brand, a US consumer that loves consuming cultural authenticity and discovering the next cool cultural thing...who better to tell that authentic story than Hispanic ad pros?

Maybe there's a lesson for us in this. (Maybe not). But maybe it's that the more narrowly we (Hispanic ad pros) focus on the short-term game (getting those Spanish media dollars), the less relevant we are for the (potentially) bigger game: the young, multicultural general market.

Of course there's a way to do both, but it seems we've created such a unique and siloed niche of an industry, that our credentials in the bigger pond are, well...not there. Too bad, because I honestly believe the talent is there--not to mention an absolutely authentic connection to the culture.

And again, congrats to GSD&M on a surely well-deserved win. And good luck to Jarritos. (My kids LOVE the Mandarina one)

The Impact of Crossculturalism on the English Language

2011-04-12T13:01:00.000-07:00

Originally posted by Kevin Hartman at Artistic Science

Language is a record of culture. One can deduce things about a culture based on how its members speak to each other. In Korea, for example, speakers base their culture on respect in relationships. The result is three phrases that are the equivalent to “thank you” each with a differing degree of formality to be used based on the relationship between the speaker and the listener.

It is not only the words of appreciation that people use to indicate culture. One can make a case that as culture develops, languages expand and words take on new meanings to capture this evolution. We can quantify cultural trends by examining the creation of words.

The best way to survey the record of language change is to observe words added to the Modern English Language. Through the analysis of the way the dictionary has changed in the past 10 years — some words added, other taken out – we can gain a better understanding of shifts in American Culture.

In approaching this research the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) was identified as the best candidate for a dictionary source. The dictionary is considered to be the most conservative within the English language. The editors of the OED have strict rules about adding words based on usage. It makes for a great resource to track changes over time.

On March 14 2000, the Oxford English Dictionary began a subscriber-based model that allowed digital access to the dictionary. The digital database also highlighted quarterly modifications made to the dictionary. Over the 10-year period from June 14, 2001 to June 10, 2010, thirty-five revisions were posted and 3,907 words were added to the dictionary.

By examining these words it becomes clear that the majority of the words can be classified into five different categories:

In the past ten years it is clear that these 5 classifications have been pervasive throughout American culture.

Over the past 10 years, new technologies have arrived in popular culture. The web, smartphone, digital camera well as countless new gaming systems have all been added to the technological landscape. All of these items, as well as other technological progress, require words to describe them. Despite all of this evolution only 18% of the more than 3,900 words that were added to the OED can be classified as technological.

In addition to technology, the world’s inhabitants have come to realize that they need to take care of their environment in order to give future generations the ability to thrive. The environmental movement has come to the forefront of popular culture. Discussions on a carbon tax, the discovery of new species and new words for differentiating organic and non-organic foods all occurred in the past 10 years. Yet only 11% of all words added to the OED in the past year can be classified as environmental.

One of the subjects that received the most press in American culture over the past ten years was politics. Two wars were begun in Iraq and Afghanistan. The first black President of the United States was elected. The Tea Party movement gained traction in the American landscape and the two major political parties diverged using rhetoric to differentiate themselves from each other. Still only 9% of the words added to the dictionary over the past ten years were political in nature.

As Baby Boomers age, they will continue to need more medical treatment. Advances in the medical and pharmaceutical industries and the production of new drugs have helped make the healthcare a key driver of language. But in spite of such shifts within culture only 13% of the words added to the OED can be classified as medical in orientation.

The largest category of new additions to the OED was, in fact, the result of the influence of other cultures. New English speakers brought with them customs, traditions and food from their cultures and introduced them into mainstream society. The resulting shift in the English language was the needed linguistic reaction to the cultural vestiges spread amongst the general public. Over the ten-year analysis period, 31% of the words added to the dictionary had a cross-cultural theme. This group was the largest segment of added words within the analysis by a wide margin.

One can expect the cross-cultural trend in American culture to continue. As the world becomes an easier place to explore and borders are overcome by instant communication tools, our language will continue to evolve. The reflection of these changes will illustrate the sharing of culture and the seepage of cultural nuances into the mainstream arena.

How does your brand communicate with its customers? Do you speak to them at their level using words they will understand? Language is a lagging indicator of culture. As marketers, communications must be part of the forefront of culture. Which of the five major themes does your brand most closely align with? Are you using vocabulary that aligns with your target segment and demographic?

Examine the language of your brand. Audit the words you are using and measure it over time. Make sure that the language evolves with your brand and your audience.

Originally posted by Kevin Hartman at Artistic Science

Asians beat Hispanics and 5 other 2010 Census surprises (plus a fun map!)

2011-03-29T09:35:00.000-07:00

So, most of us in Multicultural Marketing have been anxiously awaiting the results of the 2010 census. It's usually a massive boon to our industry as the average brand manager says "OMG! Where did all these Latinos come from!" (no, seriously, they do...the average brand manager is now young enough to be a millennial raised on Snookie-God help us all).

Anyway, as we've had some serious chunks of data come in already, I thought I'd highlight a few less than obvious conclusions you may have missed. I've also also summarized the basics at the end of the article. Those are still pretty amazing, so don't skip them!

Six less than obvious conclusions:

1- Asians--not Hispanics--are the biggest % gainers: they grew 43.3% over the last 10 years (vs Hispanic 43%), and now number 14.7M, or 4.8% of the population. Black bumped up from 12.3% to 12.6% of total pop, and now total 39M. Hispanics now total 50M

2- Despite the buzz and hype, Multicultural or Bicultural Americans (those that indicated more than one race), only account for 3% of the population. The census form DOES spell out that you can select more than one race (see right). But despite that, a full 97% of respondents chose to select only one. Obama famously ticked off only "black"--even though he's both black and white--so this 3% is probably more indicative of how we identify ourselves vs actual pop facts.

3- Asians and Whites mix MUCH better than Whites and Blacks: 1.6M people say they are a mix of White and Asian. 1.8M say they are mixed Black and White. Although numerically higher, remember that there are 39M Blacks and only 14.7M Asians. That means Asians and Whites are blending twice as well as Blacks and Whites (mixing rates: 11% vs 5%).

4- The south--of all places--is mixing it up! Blacks are heading to the suburbs in droves: 58% currently live in suburbs, vs 41% of Blacks nationally. Also, Hispanic growth in the south outpaced that of Blacks for the first time ever. The south! Who woulda thunk?

5- While minorities are still a minority (36% of totoal pop), this does not hold true at the State level. The most multicultural states are: Hawaii at 77% multicultural, D.C. at 65.2%, California at 59.9%, New Mexico 59.5%, Texas at 54.7%, Nevada at 45.9%, Maryland at 45.3% and Georgia at 44.1% (Texas is a new member of the Minority/Majority club in 2010!--In 2000% they were at 47.6% minority. Nevada is the fastest grower at 78% multicultural growth). And in smaller geographies, the story is even more surprising. In NY Metro area, for instance, Whites are a minority for the first time in history (49.6% white in all 23 counties)

6- Hispanic growth is of the US-born variety. Although 2010 Census data isn't out yet, the ACS from 2006 shows that 61% of Hispanics were born in the US, and immigration has slowed significantly since the recession hit. I'm guessing the 2010 will show something like 67% of the Hispanic Population is US Born. And if you're wondering how this affect marketing, I put up some thought starters here.

And for reference, here are the (still surprising) basics we all should probably know:

B1- There's a ton of Latinos: There were 50.5 Million Hispanics in the US in 2010, which is 16.3% of the population. In 2000, it was "only" 35.3M...so in a mere 10 years, the Hispanic population soared 43%. (By comparison, the non-Hispanic white pop "grew" an anemic 1%: from 164.6M to 169.8M)

B2- The country's growth is hugely non-white: a full 90%(!) of the growth in population over the last 10 years is Black, Hispanic and Asian. The largest chunk is, of course, Hispanics, who account for an incredible 56% of the total population growth of the country (Hispanics grew by 15.2M. The total US grew by 27.3M)

B3- Los niños! Ethnicity varies radically when looked at by age. Although Hispanics "only" represent 16.3% of the US, when you look at kids, the picture changes dramatically: for those under 18, nearly 1 in 4 is Hispanic (23%). The younger you look, the more Hispanic it gets. Stay tuned for more data releases from the Census.

And finally, a fun map to fool around with!

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Chrysler's Americana beats Chevrolet's. No questions.

2011-02-16T07:53:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I've been gripped by that sick feeling of jealousy in the pit of my stomach. The kind you get when you see a piece of communication that just nails it in every way. The kind that defines a brand brilliantly. The kind that simultaneously defines a generation and a people and a feeling...perfectly. But I got that feeling, in spades, during the Super Bowl watching Chrysler's version of America through the eyes of Detroit.

Funny thing is, Chevy has been trying to find this sweet spot with their "Runs Deep" campaign for a few months now...but they just can't seem to find it.

And here's why:

Chevy's version of Americana is appealing to white folks born pre 1950. They do that well. But younger kids? Hispanics? African Americans? Asians? Chevy conjures up images of America's past and the red blooded Americans that built this great land. But it's so profoundly old-school and white that it just feels, well... profoundly old-school and white.

I'm not sure about you, but looking at the latest Census numbers, or what kind of music sells today, or what TV shows are successful, "old-white-school" doesn't seem such a cool place to be for a brand that's trying to appeal to a new America.

"Hold on," you may argue. "Chevy is tapping into Americana. And Americana is just white, so deal with it!"

And up to the day of the Superbowl, I may have begrudgingly agreed with you. But Chrysler brilliantly proves that Americana CAN be cool, can be relevant, can be urban, young, black, modern and still be profoundly red-blooded American.

So even though my stomach churns with envy, I tip my hat to Chrysler. Your version of this country, this people and your brand inspire me.

A new subconscious study on prejudice

2010-12-08T07:40:00.000-08:00

A while back, as we started working out this whole Crossculturalism thing, we decided to find out what people really thought about the different ethnicities. Were people turned off by different folks? Were they attracted? Did they think positively of each other? Negatively? Clearly, asking these questions in a survey is absurd (nobody is honest about this stuff). So we decided to do 2 things: Understand what people feel subconsciously and then also find out who is dating whom. Both approaches avoid the conscious filter, and the results have been fascinating.

The first of the studies is the subconscious one, with a sample size of about 900. I'll post the other later. The one here is just a powerpoint with a VO. That's John Kenny, the co-author of Crossculturalism and one of the heads of Draftfcb's Institute of Decision Making (http://www.instituteofdecisionmaking.com/).

The results speak for themselves, but I think the opportunity for marketers is clear. People seem to dig each other a lot more than most expect. Including, or leading with their lifestyle/POV is probably a very healthy thing to do in your advertising.

Modern Family: Crossculturalism or just stereotypes.

2010-11-26T15:02:00.000-08:00

Catching up on some TV this holiday I was pretty amazed at just how Crosscultural things have gotten in the last few years. The number of shows that highlight different cultures seems to have tripled in a pretty short time frame. Sure, a lot is simply producers trying to appeal to a radically different demographic than what was around 10 years ago. But the the closer I look, the closer it seems to be that the "ethnic" element is actually a major part of the show's attraction--not just an attempt to lure ethnic audiences.

The question I have, though, is whether the way these groups are included is stereotypical? Good? Bad? Have we moved beyond Speedy Gonzales?

A few examples:

#1: Modern Family: The fiery latina and the effeminate gay couple add most of the fun to the show. Check out the clip here.

My take: Sure, stereotypical...but it seems to challenge viewers with it. I'd say 'good Crosscultural."

#2: Lost: Sayid, the Iraqui, an Asian couple, a Nigerian priest and many others. Not as heavy handed as Modern Family.

My take: plays on stereotypes: The dangerous Arab, the submissive Asian woman. Enough to hook in viewers with cultural interest, but perhaps without being offensive??

#3: Phineas and Ferb--kid cartoon: I watched their "Mexican Jewish cultural Festival." ????? Most bizarre kids cartoon segment I've watched in a long time. Seriously out there. A Dreidel-like hybrid of a Maraca and the phrase "Oy-lé" (seriously).

My take: mostly, I'm confused. So obviously stereotypical, you just have to laugh (my kids nearly peed their pants). But still...the show has the nerdy Indian kid who's obsessed with good grades as a regular. Perhaps too much reliance on cultural stereotypes?

In the end, what's most interesting (beyond the important question of whether it's detrimental or not) is that it's tough to find a show out there that doesn't have a hefty dose of non-traditional Caucasian culture in it.

It seems to be a big draw, the inclusion of different cultures in the mainstream shows. Given the fact that 50% of the babies born today are non-white, it makes sense: more than ever, the reality of this country is a bunch of different cultures all checking each other out.

Though I did notice one interesting gap in all the Crosscultural frenzy on TV: advertising.

With a few exceptions, that still seemed to be pretty homogenous (aside from obvious token casting here and there).

Looks like we have a ways to go to catch up.

Is advertising ghettoizing Multicultural Americans?

2010-11-23T10:27:00.000-08:00

My wife is an AP US History teacher. She's been doing it for 10 years. But just quit, disheartened by the homogenized Eurocentric textbooks she's forced to teach from. The story the textbooks tell, she explained, is a white story. African Americans, Hispanics and Asians are relegated to separate chapters or sections within the book (literally), and not as part of the main narrative. And this, she feels, essentially ghettoizes these groups and forbids them a place in the identity of the nation.

It turns out many historians, sociologists and researchers agree with the premise: by not including these groups in the mainstream discussion, you're essentially sidelining them, footnoting them...keeping them at bay. The resulting white national identity remains, therefore, in-tact. And multicultural Americans...well, they're not part of the MAIN American story. They're just sideshows.

Listening to her the other day discuss her thesis (she's now getting her Masters on the subject at UofChicago), I cringed as I wondered if we in advertising aren't adding to the problem. Sure, we're not writing textbooks, but we are creating pop culture--if we do our jobs right. And our business models are set up to take advantage of siloed ethnic groups (Gen market does white, Hispanic Hispanics, and so on...)

I understand where this all came from. For a long time, Multicultural America did not exist for marketers. It was up to pioneers in the area to show that these groups existed. General Market shops sure didn't care. Their staffs were as Ivy League, white-as-can-be.

So the Multicultural Advertising Industry was born. And in a way, it gave a voice to consumers and made them important to marketers (which is presumably a good thing). And you've got folks like me building campaigns for Hispanics and African Americans and Asians. Campaigns that live apart from the main campaign. Sales went up. Clients were happy. Good stuff.

But then demographics continued to change. And now you're talking about 40% of the population in some age groups is non-white. And you have to ask yourself...does the current model really work under those circumstances? Can you really have a gen market shop focusing primarily on the white folks, while the AA agency focuses only on the African Americans? Not only does it seem absolutely opposed to the way culture is created today...but it seems somehow...socially irresponsible. Doesn't it?

Keeping 40% of the population on the sidelines...forcing them into their own chapters and sections and away from the main discussion should probably make our skin crawl.

I know. I know. Their experiences are different, and intrinsically they are different folks in many ways. I wrote a piece on that very subject a while ago (see it here). And AHAA is beating that drum like there's no tomorrow. "The population is definitely more multicultural but that only reinforces the need for customized, one-to-one communication," says Jessica Pantanini, chair of AHAA.

But at what point do you say...ok, those "different folks"...well, they are no longer the "different" ones. They represent a huge chunk of this country and calling their experience not-mainstream seems wrong. At some point you say "their experience, THAT'S the new American experience"

Unfortunately, ghettoizing is good for business. Gen Market and MC shops alike (not to mention media outlets) benefit from it. So whereas in other areas (politics, say) you have inspiring African American voices clamoring for the inclusion in the mainstream discussion, in advertising you don't. Instead, you have multicultural folks pulling the other way. Fighting for the Multicultural-only angle. Gen Market shops have been happy to oblige...they were never terribly into marketing to multicultural folks. And in the end? You end up ghettoizing the groups. And everyone is happy. Right?

This is not meant to be a slamming of the industry, or a criticism of the way we've been doing business. It's simply meant as a thought starter. A question.

And no, I don't mean the solution to be strictly self-serving. I believe in Crossculturalism. Which is, essentially, leading with the multicultural consumer in the total market. I can do that at my current shop, which is staffed for that. But so can multicultural-only shops. And that's where I think the opportunity lays. Having Multicultural folks lead the discussion in the general market. Isn't that what La Comu and Translation are doing to some degree? It's a tough road...but I'm guessing it's probably the right one.

And it doesn't mean that you no longer do MC advertising. Why wouldn't you execute a platform in Spanish? Or a program with BET? Great places to reach and connect with those folks. But it does mean that if that's all you're doing...if that's the extent of your brand's multicultural voice, you're probably ghettoizing.

In the end, it's not easy to marginalize a majority, so I'm sure the problem will correct itself (and many brands will pay the price of being irrelevant to multicultural audiences). But given the current climate, it looks like it may take a while for advertising agencies (and history textbooks), to catch up.

We're presenting Crossculturalism at Advertising Week!

2010-09-23T07:41:00.000-07:00

So over the last 6 months we've been working furiously to create a new Multicultural/General Market advertising model. And we're done!

We've been working with OK Cupid, the online dating site, doing deep dives into their data, understanding how the different ethnicities interact.

We executed a 600 person subconscious study to understand what people really think about the different ethnicities. (wow, by the way)

Our crack CI team dove deep into 60 years of television history to understand how this whole minority thing has been changing in entertainment. They analyzed all the words that have been added to the English Oxford Academy dictionary in the last 10 years, analyzed the importation of spices over 20 years, looked at music since 1950...and more.

The results are shocking. This country has changed dramatically in the last 10 years.

Who would've guessed that "ethnicity" has changed our language more than the advent of technology?!

Or that ppl under the age of 35 are just not dating within their own race anymore?

Or that Justin Beiber (bless his heart) can't get on the top ten without partnering up with an African American artist?

And so with these facts as proof we lead two of our biggest clients: The US Census and State Farm down a brand new shiny path of Crossculturalism.

And here is the essence of it:

Stop thinking of ONLY how to target multicultural audiences, and start figuring out how to leverage them.

That's right. Leverage them.

Make your General Market advertising much more contemporary and relevant to today's generation by making it Multicultural.

Now, you still do targetted advertising to these groups. They're influential. You have to win with them. But that's not what I'm talking about.

What I'm talking about is that you can the idea of "general market" and make IT multicultural.

Maybe you've seen our State Farm campaign? Iconoculture called it one of their Multicultural best practices of 2010. The "General Market" campaign is Hispanic. The insight is Hispanic. The idea is Hispanic. Even the executions are Hispanic...some even have Spanish in them. And yes. That's the General Market campaign.

It flips things on its head.

It stops thinking of Multicultural folks as silos and brings them into the mainstream discussion.

(again, you still do Targeted efforts, but what changes is your General Market)

Come check it out Monday September 27 at the Paley Center in NY. It's part of Advertising Week. We'll be presenting case studies and all the research in detail. Fun stuff.

Shoot me an email if you want an invite to that specific conference.

http://www.advertisingweek.com/events.php

I'll start putting up our Data Visualizations soon too...stay tuned.

Millenial Melting-Pot Myth

2010-08-21T12:14:00.000-07:00

The news this week: Burger King takes their AA and Hispanic agencies out of the mix and gives all duties to cpb, because...and this seems to be a popular theme floating around: for today's youth it's all a color-blind love-fest of a "a melting pot."

Wow America. We did it! We're colorblind! There are no longer any distinctions between black, white, Asian and Hispanic!

Nothing against cpb or BK. I hope their work works gangbusters...but this notion of "Melting Pot" strikes me as....misguided.

To believe it, you'd have to ignore the fact that according to the Civil Rights Project at the University of California "Blacks and Hispanics are more separate from white students than at any time since the civil rights movement"

You'd have to essentially believe there are no more distinctions between ethnicities. (Wow...won't cultural anthropologist be shocked? I can already see them lining up at breadlines on Monday, poor souls)

And if you truly believed it, you'd have to alert Millenials that this is the case. Because they seem not to have gotten the memo.

They've actually done the opposite of the millenial-melting-pot marketers have lately "discovered." They erroneously have been fascinated and inspired by the different ethnicities. They foolishly have been celebrating their differences and uniqueness...not "melting" everything down to a bland tan.

Or...maybe it's just a coincidence that in 2007 90% of all billboard chart toppers were by African Americans. Maybe it's just a minor data blip (that's keeps on repeating itself year after year...blasted blips!)

If Millenials were truly colorblind and all ethnicity lines had melted away, as some folks claim, you'd see billboard artists be representative of the total market. Instead, the reality is that there is something that comes from African American artists that is incredibly powerful and unique...to Millenials. The same guys who are supposed to be colorblind.

And if you believed in the medium tan melting pot, you'd probably want to tell Dora The Explorer to stop speaking Spanish and connecting us with Latino Culture. Nobody cares about those foolish distinctions anymore (just ignore her astronomical ratings and endless spinoffs "Diego," "Maya and Miguel," etc).

And someone would have to please alert Michael Cera that his latest movie "Scott Pilgrem vs The World" shouldn't contain so many ethnic references and Asian influence! Millenials don't care about that, you see. They're not fascinated by Anime and Rap. It's all a mistake!

What's really happened, in my humble opinion is rather quite interesting and life-changing:

The G.I/Silent Generations: did not tolerate ethnicities
Generation X: learns to live with and tolerate them
Millenials: find them irresistibly interesting and unique.

Very different than a melting pot (nearly opposite, really).

And that leads to an extraordinarily different marketing approach too.

Older White Folks vs Young Multiculturals

2010-07-27T09:04:00.000-07:00

So if you've been paying attention to shifting demographics you'll have noticed: there's a battle brewing. A big one. And it's going to affect every single facet of life in the US for the next 20 years and beyond.

The defenders: Older White Folks. The challengers: Young Multiculturals. In the long run, demographers agree--the multiculturals will "win" (if for no other reason than for the simple fact that they'll outlive the older folk). But for the next few decades, it's going to get ugly--it already has, in fact (think Arizona or the controversy with the Texas Board of Education).

And now it's complicating the hell out of marketing too.

Here's the issue: Seniors are white; young folk are far less so (see chart).

And this disparity is scheduled to get even bigger:

"All of these numbers are likely to grow as the minority share of the youth population rises to nearly 55 percent by 2030 and almost 60 percent by 2040, according to Frey's projections." [National Journal Magazine. The Gray and the Brown. The Generational Mismatch, July 24, 2010]

So, what does it matter? Well in politics, quite a bit: it's the biggest battle in a while. Older whiter=republican. Younger multicultural=democrat. Invest in Social Security or in Education? Etc, etc.. The above referenced excellent article from the National Journal digs in further.

But here's the part that might interest marketers: who do you build a brand for? The older white folk, or the young multiculturals? It's a major decision. Brands that sit on the fence are likely to miss both targets. There's just not a lot of common ground. I'm sure you can argue there is, but if you're honest...there isn't. How many white seniors you know couldn't wait to download the latest Fat Joe album? And how many Latino teens tuned in last night to TV Land's broadcast of Gunsmoke?

So don't kid yourself. There's a call to made. Old Spice just made an absolute shift to younger multiculturals. I'm betting it will eventually pay off.

So what about your brand? You seem to have 3 options: go conservative and whiter, young and more multicultural, or live in a bland middle road: same 'ol work you've been doing but a little non-white casting randomly sprinkled in (which if the laws of marketing are correct, will simply be a slow death)?

Some brands are no brainers. Depends Adult Diapers, for instance. Or Adidas. But what about financial products? Do you become younger, hipper, browner and risk alienating the crowd that has money today? Or do you stay White and conservative and become increasingly irrelevant to the crowd that's going to continue increasing dramatically?

My prediction: some brands will stay white and more conservative and stay afloat by winning with that crowd, but more and more brands will break out a'la Old Spice and reap the benefits of realigning themselves with the changing demographics.

In the end, the right solution will vary by brand, but marketers that heed the change and make wise decisions will avoid riding away into the sunset... with Doc, Kitty, Festus and Mat to keep them company.

Multicultural audiences are invading the airwaves!

2010-07-15T05:51:00.000-07:00

Something's been brewing in TV ads--that might scare some folks: Multicultural actors playing starring roles in lots of spots. A while back I wrote about the Kin campaign--a long form, multi-spot saga that revolves entirely around a central character that is Latina. And now Doug Melville has written a piece for Adage.com that points out the mostly black casting in many recent spots.

And here's the interesting part: it's not white suburbanites that are nervous about this trend, it's Multicultural industry professionals. Many are afraid that this trend takes business away from their industry. Ie- why should I do Hispanic Advertising now that Hispanics are playing big roles in my gen market work?

But folks, the truth is, using African Americans, Hispanics and Asians in advertising is just good business. Not because these audiences are growing and important, but because these audiences are setting the trends! Why wouldn't you want a trendsetter endorsing your product?

But here's the rub (actually 2 rubs):

This isn't a replacement for your Multicultural efforts. It's just an improvement of your general market work. You're still going to want to reach out to these targets directly and get them to buy your product. Otherwise, you're leaving fruit on the ground.

If you're a Multicultural shop, you shouldn't see this as a threat. It's an opportunity. It's actually the biggest opportunity facing the industry since the advent of SIN (the first Spanish Language network in the US)! Think about it...your target...the one you know inside in out, is now leading the trends in the US. Shouldn't you be able to capitalize on that?

Multicultural audiences are different. (No, really. They are)

2010-06-13T15:37:00.000-07:00

From day one in my Multicultural advertising career I've been dealing with the same question: "Why do I need to do something special for African Americans or Hispanics. My General market campaign reaches everyone! And we're all basically the same!" (insert fuzzy warm feeling here).

So, after about 15 years in the industry, here's my long and detailed answer to that statement: No. We. Are. Not. The. Same.

Do folks really believe that a white guy from Kennebunkport, ME has a whole lot in common with an African American guy from Georgia or a Latino from Bakersfield? OK, they all breathe. And have a heartbeat. All three need to eat. And...well...that's about it. Everything else about them is different.

Ok. I'm exaggerating a little. But the point is this: they are intrinsically different because they view the world differently. Their culture--that intangible understanding of the world that has been handed down to them through the generations--filters everything they see. And African American culture is quite different than White culture and from Hispanic culture. This should be pretty self-evident, given their respective Histories.

Now, some General Market shops (or Multicultural shops striving to be General Market shops) may vehemently disagree. It is, after all, in their best interest to say, "Common Values--we all share some common values! So hire me and I'll tell you what values are shared and you can tap into them"

They'll cut their studies 1,200 different ways and end up with segments that cut across cultures. And yes, that's important too.

But the non-fuzzy, non-warm truth is, we're different. And that means different categories mean different things to us. And that's where Mr Rapaille kicks ass. His classic book The Culture Code, delves deep into some of those differences. While not necessarily Hispanic/AA, his philosophy still applies.

One particularly clear example he uses is FOOD. For the French, food is about pleasure. It's about enjoying the taste, the experience, the je-ne-se-whatever. OK. I buy that.

And for Americans, food is...fuel. Period. And therefore "the experience of food" doesn't matter all that much. What does matter is fast and calories and "on the go."

As your kid leaves home with his frozen go-gurt in his lunchbox and you head for the nearest McDonald's to pick up a high-protein wrapped whatever to eat on your way to work you might find yourself agreeing with Mr Rapaille.

Now, he doesn't touch on Hispanic...but thinking back to family dinners and those blasted "sobremesas" (the mandatory, two hour long chat after dinner) with drunk tios, I'd venture to guess that for Hispanics, Food=excuse to socialize.

Those are three intrinsically different attitudes toward food. Three different "Culture Codes" as Rapaille calls them.

Does that mean you need three ads (if for some reason the French were on your radar)? Maybe. Maybe not.

But it definitely means that you need to--at the very least, sit down and dig in to how the different segments relate to your category.

After that you can decide whether you can find a point in common or you need a separate effort.

Because...and I'll say it again, we're different.

(And by the way, that's kinda what makes this country cool. There. That's kinda fuzzy and warm. Now you can't accuse me of being heartless.)

So buy the book. It'll become a foundational piece of how you view marketing to different cultures.

Selling Cats as Rabbits - Classic Hispanic Advertising half-truths

2010-05-19T13:19:00.000-07:00

"Te vendieron gato por liebre" is the saying in Spanish. "You were sold a cat instead of a rabbit"

At some point in history I'm sure it alluded to a (presumably) common practice at meat markets where you intended to purchase a rabbit for dinner but instead were unwittingly sold a common stray cat that wasn't quick enough to escape the butcher.

Today, it simply means you were conned: you were sold something that looks almost right, but isn't. And in the Hispanic Advertising industry the practice of selling cats is--unfortunately--still somewhat present.

Now, plenty has been written about the cultural myths sold to American companies (Hispanics are conservative, Hispanics only care about the family, etc...), and if you're interested, I highly recommend Arlene Dávilas' Latinos Inc.

But that's not what this post is about.

I'm interested in far more pernicious cats--er, half-truths. Half-truths that lead marketers to invest unwisely. Sometimes they end up sinking too much money in Spanish, sometimes too much in an emerging media, and so on.

So, my advice to marketers: when you hear any of these following phrases, beware! You're most likely looking at a dead cat:

#1
"Hispanic spending power has reached $1 trillion!! Tap into it by advertising in Spanish!!"
This one, unfortunately, is the most common. It's used quite a bit by some as a way to sell the industry. So, how does it mislead?

Well, yes, Hispanics do spend nearly $1 trillion, but in actuality, only about 1/3 is best reached through Spanish. Here's the math: in one of my previous posts I showed how 'only' 42% of Hispanic adults are best reached in Spanish (which, by the way is nothing to sneeze at). Now, those folks best reached in Spanish have lower incomes than those reached in English ($30k/yr vs $20k/yr, according to the latest Simmons surveys), so....add it all up and here's the real number: $333 billion (again, nothing to sneeze at, but not $1 Trillion).

In Summary:

Cat: $1Trillion

Rabbit: $333 Billion

My advice: you should most likely still advertise in Spanish, especially if your category is relevant to the lower acculturation consumer. But allocate dollars wisely. Look at the numbers closely. Advertising in Spanish is NOT the same as advertising to Hispanics.

"Hispanics overindex in online usage! You absolutely must have a Spanish language digital campaign/website/blog/thingamajiggy!!"

This is a rather new half-truth: yes, some Hispanics do overindex in online usage (this is because they're a heck of a lot younger than the Gen Pop). But many of these digital-saavy Latinos are actually English Dominant Hispanics. Spanish dominant Hispanics, on the other hand, are still actually severely under-represented online:

And the disparity only widens as you look at online activities. The English Dominant folks are streaming videos, playing online games, blogging, facebooking and well, doing a lot more of practically everything than the Gen Pop. But that's not the case with Spanish Dominant Hispanics online. Read this Pew Hispanic report and check out these indices:

In Summary:

Cat: Digital is the Mecca for reaching Hispanics!

Rabbit: Digital is the Mecca for reaching English Dominant Hispanics. And a potentially profitable and viable approach for Span Dom's if done carefully.

My advice: If Hispanics are an opportunity for your brand, absolutely drop everything and go after Eng Dom Hispanics online. It's a no-brainer. If your opportunity is among the lower acculturation groups, proceed with caution. Translating your entire online e-commerce site into Spanish may have a pretty ugly ROI. It unquestionably makes sense for some products/brands, but not for others.

Overall advice on avoiding dead cats:

Demand accountability from your agency/marketing partners/consultants. Look at the numbers. Parse them and apply sound reasoning skills. Hispanic advertising can be extremely profitable if done correctly (one large client of mine sees a 3x higher ROI from his Spanish spend), or it can be a money pit (said client was initially investing 4X as much as he should have been in Spanish and had a very ugly ROI).

There are some very solid multicultural shops/pros/consultants out there that will guide you well. How can you tell who they are? Just do as you would at the meat market: smell what they're selling. Does it have the faint odor of cat? Or does it smell like a well-fed, soundly reasoned, intelligent and tasty rabbit? mmmm...

Hispanic Millenials causing big trouble for Hispanic Ad Agencies

2010-04-26T06:22:00.000-07:00

This is the campaign. You tell me who the target is.

A bunch of spots and long form vignettes centered around one young woman, Rosa Salazar. The story is this: she is extremely social. Very connected to friends and family. Spends a lot of time on social networks and chatting with La Familia. The product: a phone created by Microsoft to handle your social life.

Clearly a campaign targeting Hispanics, right? I mean "Rosa Salazar?" Jane Smith, she's not! It's not even an ambiguous name like Christina. And as far as "Hispanic Insight"...social, connected to family and friends. Loves sharing her life experience. It has it all.

But here's the rub: it ain't a Hispanic campaign. At least not in the Traditional-Hispanic-Agency way of thinking.

It's in English and it was created by agency215, a gen market shop. They're a pretty cool little spin off from McCann and responsible for some nice work for Xbox. And by all measures, the Kin is simply targeting millennials.

And this little case study, I think, clearly crystallizes the problem Hispanic (and AA) agencies have today--although many have not realized it.

General market shops that are going after Millenials, have no choice but to go after young Latinos. It's not even about "stealing" Hispanic business, as some specialty shops claim. It's about effectively reaching a whole generation. You CANNOT target Millenials without focusing on Hispanics and African Americans.

And so where does that leave Hispanic shops?

Many are just kicking back, relying on Univision's audience to keep the Hispanic Business. But as my previous post suggests, that audience is becoming a smaller piece of the pie. Marketers, I'd guess, are going to be lured by the dramatically growing #'s of young 2nd generation Latinos. They represent a big source of business. They have money. They are focused on brands and love consuming. And they're the future. I would even argue that if you win with them, you win with Millennials.

See the campaign here, or see the spot below ..then ask yourself "Do Hispanic Millennialls and their influence over a whole generation spell trouble for Hispanic shops? Or...could they maybe be an opportunity?"

Some Ugly Hispanic Numbers

2010-04-20T10:39:00.000-07:00

Numbers are numbers. And sometimes they have this annoying way of being inconvenient. And one big inconvenient number that is annoying many of us in the Hispanic advertising industry today is 58. That's the % of Adult Latinos' TV-time spent on English language programming vs Spanish. And that's frankly problematic for all of us in the industry.

According to the latest Simmons survey, a full majority of Hispanic adults prefer watching English language TV. Check out the annoying chart on the left.

First, look closely and you'll see the terribly inconvenient number 28 on the right side of the chart: 28% of Adult Latino Adults appear to be absolutely unreachable in Spanish.

Then there's the way-too-large-to-be-cool number of 32, representing 32% of Hispanic Adults who prefer to watch TV in English.

So, say you do the math, and ascribe each column their relative value. You end up with a chilling (directional) conclusion: 58% of Latino Adults' reported TV-time is in English. Cough-cough. Gag.

And wait. Another number that really stinks is 16! Only 16% of Hispanics watch TV only in Spanish. Ugh. That's a bummer. At least it is for most of us Hispanic advertising pro's.

But if you are one of those pro's and are feeling a bit nauseous with these numbers, grab your handy airline barf bag, because you ain't seen nothing yet.

These numbers (and most estimates you see out in the marketplace) only take into account Hispanic adults. (eek). So, lock your office door and don't let your clients or bosses see this ugly calculation coming up.

According to the IG's (The Intelligence group) latest Hispanic Teen Study, 69% of Hispanic teens NEVER watch any Spanish Language television. Ever.

Now, let's be overly generous to la lengua materna and assume that half of the remaining 31% watch 50% English/ 50% Spanish (not likely, but hey, we don't want heart-attacks here).

Assign values to the columns and voila you end up with another ugly number: 85% of Hispanic teens' TV-time is in English.

Now, just for kicks, let's assume it's the same for tweens and below. Again, I'm sure it skews even further towards English (when was the last time you took a look at the paltry ratings for the few Spanish-language Children's TV shows out there?)

According to the Pew Hispanic center's handy charts, 34% of Hispanics are under the age of 18. So, using 2008 estimates and the percentages from above...this is what you end up with: 67% of US Hispanic' TV time is in English. S#!^* ! (caveat: directional analysis using self reported data, bla, bla...but you get the point)

OK, so it's not pretty. And it's downright inconvenient for all of us in the Hispanic ad industry.

But what does it mean?

Does it mean that folks shouldn't advertise in Spanish? NO! They SHOULD still advertise in Spanish. Otherwise they're just leaving fruit on the ground. First of all, 33% is still a big chunk of time/people. And having a spot in Spanish really helps create a strong emotional bong with Latinos. Not to mention Spanish TV watcher are much (much!) more likely to respond to direct response.

But what it really means...the moral of the story... is that we all better make damn sure our general market campaigns are reaching Hispanics on all cylinders: media, strategy, message & creative.

Because believe it or not, if done right, your general market campaign could also be one of your most important means of reaching Hispanics today.

(oh, and for all us Hispanic advertising pros that have grown up in the industry, it means we should also probably think a bit about our business models. Spanish-only approaches may be destined for a little pain)

Soccer losing ground with Hispanics?

2010-04-14T06:10:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time coming, but it looks like soccer might soon be edged out as the king of sports among Hispanics. Given the huge percentage of US Born Latinos, and the number of those that are under the age of 30, it's not shocking that other sports are starting to get more play.

Hispanic teens are dribbling a heck of a lot more than kicking "goles", for instance. The NBA has taken note and has a pretty smart effort targeting that demographic. They've just rolled out a new TV campaign to capitalize on the popularity of the game, titled "ene-be-a"--NBA spelled phonetically in Spanish. Interesting to note, however, is the fact that the majority of Hispanic NBA fans are actually US Born/English dominant. Although the campaign seems targeted to the Spanish dominant group (they even have a site in Spanish) the campaign would probably do well with US-born Hispanics, if they cared to target them (a smart move, in my opinion).

And it's not just hoop dreams for Latinos. The pigskin is getting its fair share of attention as well. According to the NFL, the top two rated programs in English among Hispanics are actually NFL games. Add to that the fact that Latino NFL fans are super-fans spending 30% more time watching games than the average non-Hispanic and you've got an incredibly rich, targettable fan-base. The NFL has noticed and is going after this lucrative group to further grow the fan-base.

Bottom line: given the fact that everybody and their abuelita is sponsoring soccer among Hispanics, brands would be wise to make a more noticeable splash in the relative white space of what were once considered all-American sports.

Hispanics: the fastest growing Video Gaming segment

2010-04-13T08:34:00.000-07:00

Gamespot is teaming up with Univsion to tap into this quickly growing market. They're twice as likely to buy video games, play more hours, and so on. It really shouldn't surprise you: Hispanics are an extremely young target (80% of High Acculturation latinos are under the age of 34), and they're really into tech and cool gadgetry (1/4 of all iPhone owners are Hispanic). So the point is this...when you're looking for a young, cool, techy target ...you should probably be thinking Hispanic.

Home Depot & AHAA harken the end of the world

2010-04-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

Lot's of news last couple of weeks about the Home Depot shifting the Hispanic account to Richards/Lerma from Vidal. AHAA reacted by sending most members a "Member Alert" saying that they were "... Strategizing with United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) and Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR) to Protect Hispanic-Specialized Marketing Industry."

Over on Hispanicad the conversation got a bit heated.

Others have said this, but I think it bears repeating: reaching out to politicians for help is probably not the right approach.

I'll transcribe one Hispanicad reader's reaction that pretty much sums it up:

Jaime Enriquez Says:

April 1st, 2010 at 7:58 am ... I’m a little disappointed in your (and AHAA’s) argument. Instead of issuing a call to Hispanic agencies to up their game or reinvent the model, you call for politics. Political influence, I’m afraid, is nothing but a temporary crutch. Even if you do manage to temporarily stem the flow by exerting political influence on companies, it’ll only give Hispanic agencies the false delusion of security and discourage any sort of innovative thinking.

One of the reasons many of us came to the US is that smart business ideas, executed brilliantly eventually beat political meddling or favoritism. Isn’t that what makes this country unique? But now you (and AHAA) seem to be forgetting that.

There are a lot of great thinkers in the Hispanic Ad industry. Some brilliant business folks, some great creatives. I’m sure there’s a better solution than bringing politics into this. I may be wrong, but I don’t think that worked too well for AA agencies in the long run.
...
So instead of running to Papa, folks, let’s do the American pioneer thing and reinvent ourselves!

The majority blindspot

2010-04-12T08:49:00.000-07:00

I'm sure this is some sort of obvious sociological truism, but it's interesting to see in the flesh: the majority sees the world differently than the minority.

Whites, in this case, feel that racism has pretty much been evicted from this country, while African Americans still see it as a pretty dominant force in their lives.

I'm guessing this has a lot to do with the reason why AA agencies have had such a hard time recently. Most clients probably don't feel the need to have a special focus on a group that they see as "the same" as the rest of the country.

This is quite likely the same problem the Hispanic advertising industry will be facing shortly. As more and more Hispanics prefer English language television, more clients will start thinking there's no reason to focus on them since they're "the same" as everyone. And even though it's obvious to many that there's more to culture than language, I'm guessing the majority won't see that.

Check out the Pew Research study from Jan 2010. It's chock full of data and really great insights.