The online consumer is constantly presented with a increasingly wide array of choice in regards to media, entertainment, commerce, communications, social networking and more. This year's panel examined the driving forces behind the push toward greater engagement particularly among U.S. Hispanic and Latin American youth. A review of the main points presented by each panelist:
ARMANDO RODRIGUEZ, Senior Director, Global Partner Solutions, Yahoo! Hispanic America:
Consumer habits of 16-24 year-old Internet users in LatAm (Excluding Brasil) The challenge is “Delivering the right message at the right time in the right place to the right audience.”
A day in the life of a connected LatAm teen:
• Always connected, planning for the weekend, music all the time.
• Being par f the tribe, while expressing own identity.
• Ipod/MP3 Generation
• Cell phones as an extension of themselves.
• They are not reading Print! They are still watching TV… Internet Usage to this group is all about Messenger with friends, social networking, entertainment, and lastly homework.
VICTOR KONG, VP and Managing Director, Latin America and US Hispanics, MySpace/Fox Interactive Media:
Myspace Latin America:
* 70,00 videos downloaded per day.
*72% of users 15-24
*Myspace Latin America: 60 million users.
Most common ways of communicating with friends: First is cell phone, second is not email, but on Social Networking Sites. Ease: One message, click send to all friends. Findings:
1) Social networking is not a fashion. It’s a whole new communication medium. Primary reason users are online is a need to be accepted; be part of a group.
2) 70% of all 15-34 year olds use their SNS at all hours of the day; 800 page views per month, per user. 3-4 hours a day.
3) Enriching existing Relationships: Follow-up on meeting acquaintances.
4) Meaningful brand connections: People including brand logos on their homepages. Adidas icon was recently downloaded to 100,00 pages. Don’t do traditional advertising, e.g. banners. They focus on alliances with MTV, Rolling Stone and put on events to foster a “coolness effect,” and grow word of mouth advertising.
FABIA JULIASZ, CEO, Latin America, ibope/NetRatings: Big research company, present in 13 LatAm countries.
• Immense growth in internet access in public places, e.g. Cyber-cafes.
• 80% of Latin Americans rely wholly on traditional media 10% of Latin Americans are fully engaged on the Internet and are multimedia engaged, consuming various media simultaneously.
•70% of Argentinean population in 2006 were connected to the internet, largely through locutorios. Now that fgure is even greater with growing economy. Mexico:
•Mexico Pop: 104,200,000 Internet users: 22,700,000 Internet Pen: 22% Broadband Pen.: 35.4%