Let yourself think under the influence at the AHAA conference
The best and the brightest in Hispanic and Latin American marketing will come together in Miami next week to look at where the industry is…
“Thinking Under the Influence” is the theme of the 2014 AHAA Convention behind held in Miami for 2014.(Shutterstock)
The best and the brightest in Hispanic and Latin American marketing will come together in Miami next week to look at where the industry is and where its going.
The Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies (AHAA: The Voice of Hispanic Marketing) is hosting from April 28th through 30th a three-day conference in Miami. Entitled Thinking Under the Influence: The Next Five Years, the event will include numerous speakers, workshops, and research roundtables on Hispanic marketing and marketing-related topics.
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Conference Chair and AHAA Chair-Elect Linda Lane Gonzalez spoke to VOXXI about the significance of AHAAs Thinking Under the Influence conference. She noted that the focus of the conference expanded significantly last year: The event will take into account Latinos influence in a wide variety of realms, including politics, social media, and entertainment, to name a few.
According to Gonzalez, the conferenceat its heartis about the reciprocal relationship created by how the Latino consumer is influencing the general market and whats happening in the general market thats influencing the Latino consumer.
Conference Topics and Workshops
Each day of the conference will include a plethora of lectures and discussions.
One of the highlights will be AHAAs research roundtable, which will explain the data behind the organizations Total Market framework, and the client panel on Total Market, which will give attendees the chance to hear clients discuss the best ways of applying that framework.
Gonzalez explained that Total Market, as a partnership between the brand and the agency, is much more than simply communicating to everyone in the same way, which is what its sometimes imagined to be. The two sessions will give conference participants a chance to learn about best practices in Total Market and how to effectively implement it in their organizations.
Other important events on the Thinking Under the Influence agenda are breakout sessions on the 2nd day, allowing attendees to discuss Hispanic marketing topics in smaller workshop groups. Sample topics include:
– Public Relations: Extending Marketing Investment Through Earned and Owned Platforms
– Creative: Innovating from WithinWhat is the Future of Advertising?
– Advertising: YesWeAd, the Evolution of the Advertising Industry
– Digital: Sports Content and the Hispanic Digital Media Consumer
Though the workshops represent a variety of topics, Gonzalez hopes that marketers and agencies will walk away with new consumer insights, like how to communicate and engage the Hispanic market and that theyll learn about the diversity of the market.
Shes hopeful that the conference will also help media representatives learn how to make decisions in the next five years about where theyre going in regard to the Hispanic market.
Speakers at the conference
Each day of the AHAA conference will include 3-5 keynote speakers.
Speaker topics vary widely: corporations will explain their Hispanic-specific marketing strategies, successful Latino entrepreneurs will describe lessons learned, and analysts will dissect the growth and importance of Latinos in the marketing sphere.
Marketing expert Linda Lane Gonzalez will be at the AHAA Convention this year.(VIVA Partnership)
Keynote speakers slated for April 28th are Rupert Murdoch of 21st Century Fox, Sol Trujillo of the Latino Donor Collaborative, and Prince Royce, who is a multi-platinum recording artist. While the latter two men will discuss the ways in which their businesses speak to the Hispanic consumer and the growing importance of that market, Prince Royce will describe his journey to become a successful Latin artist.
Speakers over the next two days come from the U.S. Army, Wells Fargo, Chrysler and Nickelodeon, among others. AHAA will also host authors and media directors, many of whom can speak directly to the experience of finding success as a Latino in the media or marketing industry.
Growing in Importance: The Importance of Latino Marketing in the U.S.
With 53 million Hispanics in the U.S. today, Gonzalez feels its hard to understate the importance of this market, making Thinking Under the Influence a powerful event.
The AHAA Chair-Elect pointed out that the last decade has seen significant changes in how companies market to Hispanics as well as how social networks and the media speak to this demographic.
Instead of simply translating their general market spots, as they might have done 15 or 20 years ago, Gonzalez now sees more companies with their eyes open to the possibilities they want to be genuine and authentic and communicate with Hispanics in a relevant way.
These last ten years have been very, very dynamic, she said. This is the best time to be in Hispanic marketing. Its exciting!
