Upstarts challenging big media in reaching online Hispanics in English

81% of the 34 million online Hispanics prefer English or are bilingual. This reality coupled with the flood of advertising dollars that political campaigns will invest to sway the critical Latino vote make it an interesting time to look at English digital platforms that target Latinos.

Digital advertising tactics such as search, behavioral, re-targeting and contextual targeting have emerged to allow marketers to reach English preferring Hispanics, but they all require a relatively high level of expertise to execute. Today, brands looking to reach online Hispanics in English have another option thanks to English language digital platforms that target Latinos.

I took a quick look at the market of Latino themed, English language digital platforms and found that a couple of upstarts are challenging traditional media companies. I am sure that the competition to reach online Hispanics in English will heat up as a result of the following market dynamics.

• There are not that many players
• There is no clear leader
• Low barriers to entry provided by social media
• The ad dollars associated with the upcoming election
• The importance of the Latino vote

Below is a summary of some of the players targeting online Hispanics in English today.

The Upstarts

Two startups that had the foresight to cater to online Hispanics in English are Guanabee and Being Latino. Founded in 2006, Guanabee is a hip, Latino lifestyle and news site. Being Latino is just over two years old and pegs itself as an online magazine that that educates, entertains and connects Latinos.

Guanabee
o Website – 157,000 monthly visitors*
o Facebook – 2,500 likers
o Twitter – 2,300 followers

Being Latino
o Website – 11,000 monthly visitors*
o Facebook – 65,000 likers
o Twitter – 5,500 followers

Big Media

Several big media companies also are proactively targeting online Hispanics in English with digital platforms. These typically consist of a centralized website/blog supported by social media outlets. Of the bunch, NBC Universal’s Mun2 and MTV’s Tr3’s are the oldest and as a result have the most reach, here is how they all stack up.

Mun2
o Website – 150,000 monthly visitors*
o Facebook – 130,000 likers
o Twitter – 20,000 followers

MTV Tr3’s
o Website – 100,000 monthly visitors*
o Facebook – 65,000 likers
o Twitter – 48,000 followers

Fox News Latino
o Website – n/a*
o Facebook– 38,000 likers
o Twitter – 9,500 followers

Huffington Post – Latino Voices
o Website – n/a*
o Facebook – 2,500 likers
o Twitter– 4,200 followers

NBC Latino
o Tumblr Blog – n/a*
o Twitter – 200 followers

Univision News
o Tumblr Blog – 1,260 monthly visitors*
o Facebook – 2,000 likers
o Twitter– 29,000 followers

This quick analysis shows that upstarts are holding their own against big media when it comes to targeting online Hispanics in English. That said, it will be interesting to see who else enters the market and it is likely that those that can garner the lion’s share of election advertising dollars will emerge as the leaders next year.

I don’t know about you but I’m voting for the upstarts.

*Source: Compete.com