For immediate release
October 17, 2007
NEW YORK—MRM Worldwide, a leading global, digital advertising agency, has formed an American-Hispanic Advisory Panel whose goal is to explore, inform and support digital and direct marketing to second-generation, hyper-acculturated U.S. Hispanics.
MRM Worldwide CEO Reuben Hendell said, “MRM is dedicated to delivering supremely targeted, relevant, and compelling consumer messages on behalf of our clients. We believe the American-Hispanic panel is a necessary, insightful asset that will help us learn more about this rapidly expanding segment and optimize our program offerings.”
In 2005, 14 percent of the U.S. adult population was considered Hispanic, making Hispanics the largest minority in the nation. While growth of the Hispanic population from 1960 to 2000 was driven primarily by immigration, the birth rates among those immigrants will be the primary driver of population growth from 2000 to 2020.
There are approximately 44 million Hispanic consumers in the U.S., according to the U.S. Census, and The Selig Center estimates that their buying power will reach an estimated $863.1 billion in 2007.
Today, almost a quarter of U.S. Hispanics are second-generation and almost universally bilingual (but English-dominant) and bi-cultural. This segment is expected to grow considerably over the next decade, doubling in size by the year 2020 and outnumbering the first-generation Hispanic population (Pew Hispanic Center).
Second-generation Hispanics are also more Internet savvy than the first-generation, Spanish-language dominant segment. According to a Pew Hispanic Center report, 76 percent of U.S.-born Hispanics use the Internet regularly compared to 43 percent of foreign-born Latinos.
Maria Lopez-Knowles, a senior vice president at MRM Worldwide, led the first meeting of the panel at the agency’s New York headquarters in September.
“You've got the first generation, which are the immigrants,” said Lopez-Knowles. “They come to the United States challenged by language and culture. So their offspring end up translating the language and interpreting the culture for them, and therefore, actually influencing their brand purchases.”
As such, this consumer segment is a powerful brand influencer within multi-generational families and communities and is grossly under-served by marketers.
Marketers cannot effectively speak to a “pan-Hispanic” U.S. population through the traditional, Spanish-language media channels because they will likely miss the most lucrative segment of the market, she said.
Chris Velasco, Director of Branded Entertainment at MSN, said, “As the Hispanic population in the U.S., continues to grow, the American-Hispanic Advisory Panel is an essential think tank that can provide guidance on how best to reach the second-generation Hispanic consumer through multi-media channels.”
Velasco, a second-generation Hispanic, is also on the American-Hispanic Advisory Panel.
Added Lopez-Knowles, “Marketers need to develop programs that are informed by linguistic, cultural and assimilation relevance and reach the target through the media in which the target is engaged.”
In all, seven leading marketing executives comprise the American-Hispanic Advisory Panel. They are as follows:
Lorena Sandoval Denny, Vice President, Hispanic Advertising, Washington Mutual. Ms. Sandoval Denny was promoted to her current position at WaMu in March 2006, leading the planning and development of award-winning campaigns that require integration with non-Hispanic advertising.
Luisa Acosta-Franco, Assistant Vice President of Emerging Markets, Farmers Insurance. Ms. Acosta-Franco has the distinction of being the first Latina to serve as an officer at Farmers Insurance. In her position, she is responsible for implementing marketing strategies that include, but are not limited to, the Hispanic, Asian, African-American and women’s segments.
Maria Lopez-Knowles, Senior Vice President, MRM Worldwide. Ms. Lopez-Knowles has more than 20 years of marketing communications experience and understands both the online and offline demands of global clients in the B2B and B2C space. During her career, she has worked on accounts including, Microsoft, Visa, General Electric and Avery Dennison.
James Ortiz, Executive Marketing Director, U.S. Army Recruiting. Mr. Ortiz has more than 25 years of domestic and international marketing experience. He has worked in product development, brand management, business development, strategic marketing and multi-cultural marketing for the U.S. Army, The Coca-Cola Co. (Minute Maid Division), U.S. West Inc., Nestlé, Dannon/Gervais Danone, Slim Fast Foods and The Dole Food Co.
José Piñero, Director, Diversity and Multicultural Marketing, Microsoft. Since July 2005, Mr. Piñero has led the diversity and multicultural marketing efforts for Microsoft. Before that, he was on assignment in the Caribbean, supervising all marketing efforts for Microsoft in the region, including launches for Microsoft Windows XP and Microsoft Office XP. Mr. Piñero began his career at Microsoft in 1996, managing all marketing related to Microsoft Flight Simulator, one of the best selling PC games ever.
Todd A. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing & Research Development, Office Products Worldwide, Avery Dennison. Mr. Thompson joined Avery Dennison in March 2004 and has held his current position since 2005. His marketing experience is extensive, especially in the packaged, consumer goods sector of food and confections. Prior to joining Avery Dennison, he held various executive positions in marketing and research at Mars Inc., and Nestlé U.S.A.
Chris Velasco, Director of Branded Entertainment, MSN. Mr. Velasco heads the European and Latin American development of programs for MSN and works with leading global marketers to reach the massive MSN consumer audience through experiential marketing and entertainment. These unique and powerful online experiences tap into consumer passions for sports, music, movies, video, instant messaging and additional online experiences on MSN.
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