Hispanic PR and Social Media Conference attendees enjoy a night of fun at Joyce Lounge in Dallas.

VPE staffer Alicia Lopez guest writes to give her perspective on the Hispanic Public Relations & Social Media Conference 2010.

Lourdes Rodriguez, Hispanic Public Relations Association (HPRA) Los Angeles chapter presidentand fellow colleague at VPE Public Relations, summed it up well on Tuesday, May 11^th, by stating that those in attendance at the Hispanic Public Relations and Social Media Conference that recently took place in Dallas were at the epicenter of a large quake in the US marketing and PR scene.  While I believe Lourdes was right I, however, personally consider the conference to be a foreshock of what is to come, in other words, “The Big One is coming.”

As Lourdes stated, for those accustomed to living in earthquake territory, it often takes a large quake to grab attention.  Earthquakes in the 2, 3, and sometimes even 4 range on the Richter Scale don’t really cause a stir in California. To a degree the Hispanic market has had a lot to share with earthquakes. For years the market has been brushed aside by PR and marketing departments, especially during times of economic struggle. Today however, more corporations have taken note of the Hispanic and the multicultural markets in general and recognize their importance. The 2010 Census results are predicted to trigger “The Big One” in our field as they are expected to reveal growth in population and purchasing power among the U. S. Hispanic population. The figures are also expected to illustrate the growth of the Hispanic population throughout the country and not exclusively in traditionally strong Hispanic markets such as Los Angeles, New York, Miami and Chicago, but in other areas of the country such as Georgia, North Carolina, and Arkansas,  to name a few.

The Census results will trigger a large earthquake as corporations will once again see the importance of the Hispanic consumer market. Rudy Rodriguez, director of multicultural marketing at General Mills discussed during his breakfast keynote on May 12^th titled “Building Digital Expertise to Win With Hispanics,” some compelling figures about the growing multicultural market. For example, more than 50% of today’s mothers are women of color. Also, 40% of today’s youth are of a multicultural background. All of this data clearly indicates a promising future for the Hispanic marketing and PR industries.

The Hispanic PR and Social Media Conference was indeed a foreshock to “The Big One.” Hispanic PR and marketing executives and professionals from across the country united in Dallas for thought provoking and insightful dialogue on the industry and the importance of social media in our field of work. The camaraderie at the conference was strong with many attendees connecting with former colleagues, clients, and friends now located in different parts of the country.  I don’t know if the conference attendees noticed that we ourselves were a great case study into the behaviors and attitudes and the future of the U.S. Hispanic market. Here are some of my own observations and insight from the conference:

• US Latinos have a strong tie to their identity. It’s not news to anyone that Latinos are proud of their roots and history. What may be news, is that Latinos have a strong passion for their state of residence. For example, the Hispanic PR and Social Media Conference offered attendees an after party at a local night club. While the attendees danced and had a great time, the DJ asked over the microphone, “Where are my people from Dallas? Houston? Miami? Chicago? New York? What about LA???”  The crowd erupted to each mention of their home city or state, forecasting that as the U.S. Latino population becomes more acculturated, pride for U.S. home cities and states become the norm versus pride for a country of origin.
• US Latinos can have fun anywhere and we are social beings. . Comedian Rick Najera entertained the conference attendees during the event’s networking dinner. Rick had the crowd rolling with jokes about the Hispanic world with jokes ranging from the conquest of Mexico to current travel on Southwest airlines.  But not only did conference attendees enjoy a good laugh thanks to Rick, but they also sought out the conference’s most upbeat, hilarious and approachable attendees for a great laugh.  The attendees added the element of fun to the conference with many of us leaving with new business contacts and friends, a clear indication that the element of family and friends runs strong in our community.
• US Latinos are loyal to brands and friends. Brand loyalty was evident throughout the conference in the drinks, clothing, and other attire of choice among conference attendees. While we all made new friends at the event, we connected with old acquaintances and renewed connections.  The underlying message at the event was that we needed to promote and support each other.  Instead of competition, it was camaraderie.   

Overall the conference was an excellent opportunity to network and explore current trends and topics of discussion affecting our industry which without a doubt is ready for “The Big One.”  Hope to see you all next year.  

When Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law Senate Bill 1070 on April 23, 2010, she used the international platform to convey her reasoning behind her decision to approve this controversial and divisive measure. This was certainly a no-win situation for the governor.  She could either antagonize her political party and donors or she could anger a community that, while large in numbers, has not fully developed or flexed its political muscle and influence.

This law could either make or break her political future. She could either become her party’s darling or fall by the wayside as did California Governor Pete Wilson due to his support of Prop. 187, which like what may happen in Arizona, was overturned by the courts as unconstitutional. Gov. Brewer had a captive, global audience and she was not going to squander the opportunity to deliver her message.

As a communications professional, I listened to her speech and was impressed at how focused she was on speaking to her base of supporters. Her entire speech centered on two main points:

1) Linking undocumented immigrants to public safety

“Border-related violence and crime due to illegal immigration are critically important issues to the people of our state, to my Administration and to me, as your Governor and as a citizen.”

- Gov. Jan Brewer

2) Place the responsibility of enforcing the law to police.

“Today I am issuing an executive order directing the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board – AZPOST — to develop training to appropriately implement SB 1070. Importantly, this training will include what DOES – and DOES NOT – constitute “reasonable suspicion” that a person is not legally present in the United States.”

- Gov. Jan Brewer

Her public safety angle fails to provide a real link between illegal immigration and violence occurring due to drug wars. To provide some perspective, one of the deadliest cities in the world, Juarez, borders a U.S. town, El Paso, Texas, which has seen limited increases in violence. Gov. Brewer also fails to take into account the difference between migrant workers coming to the U.S. to work and drug cartels that are engaging in violent acts to protect their illegal economy, an international issue that will not be stopped by immigration policy.

Gov. Brewer tries to position herself as a civil rights advocate by shifting the responsibility of SB1070 on law enforcement officers to implement the law appropriately. She begins to wash her hands of the issue, but as media coverage has continued to say, it is almost impossible to distinguish between an illegal immigrant just by looking at him or her.

While community activists claim they will never forget and that Gov. Brewer’s political future is over due to her hard stance, only history will see whether this holds true. The media focus immediately shifted from Gov. Brewer to the police and racial profiling, proving her speech worked. Maybe Governor Brewer’s 15 minutes of fame are actually over.

Escalante had a straightforward approach to education: “The key to my success with youngsters is a very simple and time honored tradition: hard work for teacher and student alike.” He summed it all in just one word – ganas. The Spanish word meaning drive/desire. The lessons Escalante taught went beyond his classroom, however, and reached even those who were not his students. While we never sat in his AP Calculus class at Garfield High School, we learned a valuable public relations lesson from Escalante.

In the early ‘90’s one of our clients asked us to coordinate an event at Garfield High School to encourage more Latinos to enter the engineering field. A known advocate for increasing Latino representation in engineering, Escalante served as a spokesperson for the campaign. During a news conference, Escalante explained how learning math and calculus today could lead to jobs in the engineering and electronics fields tomorrow. It was after the official program that, without knowing, Escalante would teach us all a lesson in handling the media and reporters.

Following the news conference, reporters went seeking one-on-one interviews with students. Escalante sat down for an informal chat with a reporter from a local newspaper. Assuming the interviews were over, Escalante spoke to the reporter candidly regarding his opinions on the educational system in Los Angeles, and about the tension he said he felt at Garfield. All innocent issues you would share with a friend, except that he was speaking to a journalist.

Our staff person arrived in the scene just in time to hear the reporter ask Escalante “Don’t you ever get tired and just want to leave the school?” Escalante’s simple answer was “Yes.” The next day’s front-page headline for the paper stated “Escalante Considering Leaving Garfield High School.” He left Garfield shortly after the story ran.

Although it was ultimately Escalante’s decision to move on, we learned some valuable and hard lessons that day. Here are a few:

• Don’t assume anyone is a media expert just because they have given many interviews. Escalante, like many celebrities and elected officials, can be caught off guard when they relax and forget they are always in the public eye.
• Though you do not want to impose on interviews, you want to be involved enough to ensure that your spokespeople are staying on message. If a reporter begins to deviate your spokesperson from the interview topic, step in and remind the reporter what the interview should be about.
• Have adequate staffing to ensure that you properly work the media. There should be enough team members to guarantee that there is always a staff person with your spokesperson. This will help prevent misrepresentations of your organization or your spokesperson, such as the one that happened in this case.
• Understand that by simply agreeing to a statement that another person makes, you automatically make that statement your own. The fact that you or your spokesperson did not personally make the statement does not matter. If you agree, it can be attributed to you.

Closely monitoring the way your spokesperson interacts with the media will not only prevent negative stories, it will help ensure that the story you want conveyed gets printed. The lessons Escalante taught his students stay with them beyond the classroom and have reached the facets of their personal and professional lives. Even we who were not fortunate enough to sit in one of Mr. Escalante’s classrooms at Garfield High School, were still his students.

Sponsored by the Hispanic PR Blog and the Hispanic Public Relations Association (HPRA), the Hispanic Public Relations and Social Marketing Conference (is expected to attract PR pros from the agency, corporate, non-profit and government sectors to share case studies and best practices.

As a Hispanic agency owner for 20 years plus, this conference represents a historic and long overdue coming of age for our industry. Hispanic public relations has come a long way in its short 30-year history that is fueled by three primary factors:

First, of course, is the tremendous growth of the Hispanic market. Hispanics will solidify their standing as the country’s largest ethnic group in the current Census with a projected population of 50 million, up 42% from the 2000 Census. At that rate, by 2050 one in four Americans will be of Hispanic descent.

The second driving factor is Hispanic media growth. As the Hispanic population grows, Hispanic media grows in tandem. Today, the market is served by four full-time broadcast TV networks and hundreds of cable, radio, print and Internet outlets. While not immune to advertising downturns, the most significant growth has been in “emerging” markets that have sprouted entrepreneurial community newspapers and radio stations.

The final factor is the breakdown of the Digital Divide. Hispanic young adults especially have been rapid adapters to all forms of social and mobile media and over-index in many categories. Today, more than 70% of all Hispanics are regular Internet users, and even though Spanish-language sites are limited, nearly 64% of the Spanish-dominant group are avid web surfers.

Unfortunately, many firms are still slow to adapt Hispanic public relations into their marketing plans. A recent survey of 9,300 senior marketers of Fortune 1000 companies found that 50% have no Hispanic marketing plans, and 82% say they have no plans to initiate or increase plans in the next year. That effectively means that they’re missing out on a market with almost one trillion dollars of annual purchasing power that spends more on baby products, food, entertainment, mobile devices, fashion and cosmetics than other groups.

Hispanic public relations is still in its infancy stage, simply because so few have embraced it as a marketing imperative. Bringing together the key leaders in the field for this historic conference represents a major leap forward in moving Hispanic PR from an after-thought to its rightful place front and center as a smart, effective strategy to serve the country’s most dynamic market force.

by VPE partner John Echeveste.

• Go over your timeline and event checklist the day before your event takes place. Experienced planners have an event timeline tracking tasks that need to be completed prior to the event. If there are incomplete tasks the day before your event, ensure you complete them. Never wait until the day of your event. Be familiar with your checklist prior to the day of your event. Knowing what tasks you and your team will need to fulfill will help you structure your day and your team’s day.

• Make sure your team is well briefed. Your entire team will be as vital to the success of your event as you will. Giving them a thorough brief the morning of the event is fundamental.  The entire team should be aware of key aspects of the event.   Individual team members should have a clear understanding of their role for the day.

• Identify your lead or leads at the beginning of the day. Similar to your team briefing, you should also brief your leads as to how they will support you and the team throughout the day. Select leads that are not only willing to direct team members but, individuals who will also be able to fill in whenever the need may arise.

• Check-in with your team members throughout the day. Be aware of what issues, if any, your team is facing. Checking in with your team often will help to solve problems before they arise. If you cannot consistently check-in with the team select an individual who can.

• Expect the unexpected. As much as you plan and prepare for an event, something is likely to occur that you were not prepared for. Care for the situation as it occurs and do not let it deter you from continuing to have a successful event.

Remember, strategic planning will always contribute to the success of your event. Add these five points to your planning and we assure the day of your event you will be more organized and prepared to execute an excellent event.

1. Identify the community your organization works with and what the type of services you provide.

Before you start building relationships with the media you must first have a clear understanding of what your organization has to offer. Know the population you work with and identify the services you provide. Having a clear understanding of these two things will give you better insight when deciding which media you will benefit most from. To get started ask yourself these questions:

• What type of people benefit from our organization?
• In the next year, what events do we expect to bring to the community?
• What types of services are available to the population we assist?
• What specific information do we want the public to know about us?

2. Identify your local media.

Identifying possible media outlets requires time, patience, and research. When conducting research keep in mind the previous questions you asked yourself. Look for the news stations, radio shows, magazines, etc. that cover the type of stories your organization can offer. Spot the outlets that will reach the population you want to target. The better fitted your organization is for the media you contact, the more likely you are to have your story covered.

3. Get to know reporters.

Reaching out directly to a reporter can be more beneficial than contacting an editor. Research the reporters for the media you have found. Who covers stories similar to yours? Those are individuals who would possibly be interested in your story.

4. Make yourself available to your media contacts.

Be available to the media connections you make. If they spotlight your event, campaign, or organization in general, be willing to make their job as easy as possible. Give them the information they need, when they need them. Do what you can to ensure they will get a great story from you. If you show your new media connections that you have a worthwhile story to cover and will make obtaining that story easy, they will be more willing to work with you in the future.

5. Thank the reporter/editor for their coverage.

After you gain the trust of your new media contacts, make sure you keep it. Thank the reporter and editor for the coverage given to your organization. A simple thank you goes a long way.

Now start getting the coverage your organization needs!

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The young people in your office are a great resource to get you learning the ins & outs of Facebook, Twitter & Youtube. Gen Y’ers spend hours hanging out on Facebook or chatting up on Twitter; they speak the language innately.

And even though social media is often seen as Gen Y thing, social media tools are now being harnessed by seasoned professionals to help meet strategic goals. Don’t worry yet about which social media tool is right for you, first learn to speak the language and the rest will follow.

To get you going, we’re going to route you to a few websites to help you get more familiar with Facebook. Mashable is a great source for Social Media information & Youtube will help visual learners get ahead.

Mashable How to:

http://mashable.com/2009/08/14/facebook-networking/

These short tutorial videos are easy to understand and give you an introduction to Facebook capabilities.

• Facebook Overview (Facebook Tutorials)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqBVLoJgDVc

• How to register & join Facebook (Expert Village)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSHxSlUuZxo

• How to create & build a Facebook profile (Expert Village)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9wwgAeCV7s

To get you started on netiquette (manners over the internet), here’s a video by Yourtango.com on what not to do (or share) on Facebook, or anywhere else for that matter.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iROYzrm5SBM

Ready, set, socialize!

Some highlights include:
• iPhone is the most buzzed about brand on the social web

• Game consoles dominate the top of the list Wii #7, Xbox#9, PlayStation #13, Nintendo #21

• Biggest gainer this year was Adidas, also NBA, Nike, MLB, Nissan, Victoria’s Secret, HP, and KFC

• Luxury brands became active in social media this year – Gucci #27, Louis Vuitton #81, Prada #88 and Burberry #94

• Media brands make up 8% of list – CNN #3, MTV #4, ESPN #23, CBS #32, ABC #33, Turner #36, Fox News #56, NBC #68

• Cosmetic brands under represented missing outside of Avon at #97 as well as travel brands as Jet Blue was the only airline to make this year’s list

The Vitrue 100: Top Social Brands of 2009
1. iPhone
2. Disney
3. CNN
4. MTV
5. NBA
6. iTunes
7. Wii
8. Apple
9. Xbox
10. Nike
11. Starbucks
12. NFL
13. PlayStation
14. Adidas
15. BlackBerry
16. Sony
17. Mercedes
18. Microsoft
19. Samsung
20. BMW
21. Nintendo
22. Best Buy
23. ESPN
24. Ford
25. Honda
26. Ferrari
27. Gucci
28. Nokia
29. Major League Baseball
30. Dell
31. Coca-Cola
32. CBS
33. ABC
34. iPod
35. Mac
36. Turner
37. Nissan
38. Toyota
39. eBay
40. Amazon
41. Victoria’s Secret
42. Nutella
43. NASCAR
44. Disneyland
45. Audi
46. NHL
47. Red Bull
48. Verizon
49. Intel
50. Subway
51. Hewlett-Packard
52. Puma
53. Kia
54. Fox News
55. Porsche
56. Jeep
57. Dodge
58. Pandora
59. Walmart
60. Zappos
61. Suzuki
62. McDonald’s
63. Krystal
64. T-Mobile
65. Skittles
66. KFC
67. Volkswagen
68. NBC
69. Sprint
70. Pixar
71. Motorola
72. IKEA
73. Pepsi
74. Cisco
75. REI
76. LG
77. AT&T
78. Converse
79. The Gap
80. Chevrolet
81. Louis Vuitton
82. Toys”R”Us
83. H&M
84. Philips
85. General Motors
86. Pringles
87. Visa
88. Prada
89. Panasonic
90. IBM
91. VH1
92. Hulu
93. Oracle
94. Burberry
95. SEGA
96. Sears
97. Avon
98. Jet Blue
99. Lacoste
100. Comcast

More engagement from brands will transpire as they become more aggressive and creative with their social media efforts. For more information visit: http://vitrue.com/blog/2010/01/04/the-vitrue-100-top-social-brands-of-2009

From Maricela Cueva.

• BethKanter.org  – social media strategies for nonprofits website
• compete.com – Web analytics website, allows you to see how big audiences are, tool allows you to see who is talking about you.
• socialmention.com – Social media analysis
• google.com/alerts  - Comprehensive news alerts
• peoplebrowsr.com  - Data mine and social search engine for real time conversations. Allows you to monitor your brand, identify audience, analyze tweet sentiment, filter the buzz, manage feedback, share accounts, run campaigns, track keywords, build widgets and engage across multiple social networks simultaneously.
• trackur.com –  Reputation monitoring
• quickreprepair.com – Online reputation repair
• knowem.com – Let’s you instantly check username availability across hundreds of social media sites.

• act.ly = Activism tool to be used on Twitter
• technorati – You can see Authority & Rank of bloggers   What you’re looking for: Authority to be high & Rank to be as low as possible
• proactivereport.com – Sally Falkow’s blog on media trends, social media strategy and online PR.
• tweetstats.com – Provide statistics for your Twitter feed
• twitalyzer.com – Free evaluation tool for Twitter users
• twitterGrader.com – Provides Twitter rank
• retweetist.com  – Provides trends, popular topics & tweeters on Twitter.com
• blog.ogilvypr.com – Ogilvy PR’s 360 Digital Influence blog on Social Media
• Youtube Channels
  • The Vatican – youtube.com/vatican
  • Barack Obama – youtube.com/barackobama
  • Fresh Air Fund – youtube.com/freshairfund
• WordPress.com – Popular blogging website, provides free blog platform.

For more information, contact Alfredo Lee Escudero at (626) 403-3200, ext. 219 or email to alfredo@vpepr.com.