The 2008 Google Zeitgeist is out and seems to backup some of what we've been seeing at The Mambo - Facebook is gaining popularity among Spanish dominant users.

On February 7, 2008 Facebook launched its Spanish version. Since then, we've been noticing a lift in Hispanics on our own pages and with our own friends both from the U.S. and from other Latin American countries.

According to the Zeitgeist, Facebook is highly ranked as one of the fastest rising sites in all Latin countries that made the list. "Fastest rising" means that Google looked at the most popular searches conducted for 11 months of 2008 (compiled by early December) and then ranked them based on how much their popularity increased compared to 2007.

In preparing for a presentation early last week, I came across an incredible report on Multicultural America put out by Geoscape.  Geoscape has always been a leader in providing demographic data, population projections and mapping services to agencies and marketers alike that are tapping into this segment.  Based on their latest report, the AMDS Executive Summary Report, (available as a free download on the Geoscape site), this segment is not so much as "segment" as it is about to become the mainstream population.

Now for most of you, I  know this is not new news.  But based on the recent article published in Promo Magazine, it might be to corporate management across the country.

The Promo survey among ANA members reported that while 77% of respondents were implementing multicultural efforts of some kind, over a quarter of them were either somewhat or very dissatisfied with those efforts.  The study revealed that corporate blinders remain the biggest obstacle.  Pain points cited included lack of adequate funding (58%), lack of internal support (45%), and inconsistent support from top managers (34%).

In economic times such as these, it's imperative that corporations spend every dollar wisely.  If I were looking at the following maps, there's no question where I would be allocating my marketing dollars.

The term "shopper marketing" has become a pretty powerful buzz word around the halls of CPG manufacturers and retailers alike lately.  What I find curious is that many marketers are unclear as to the exact definition of the term.  A quick Google search uncovered a multitude of definitions ranging from

"...collaborating with the retailer to advance the shoppers in-store experience"

on the ANA Website to

"...the employment of any marketing stimuli developed, based on a deep understanding of shopper behavior, designed to build brand equity, engage the shopper (i.e., an individual in “shopping mode”), and lead him/her to make a purchase"

from the Grocery Marketer Association.

At Mercury Mambo, we define shopper marketing from a Latino POV.

Occasion - definition

1. a favorable opportunity or circumstance
2. a state of affairs that provides a ground or reason b: an occurrence or condition that brings something about ; especially : the immediate inciting circumstance as distinguished from the fundamental cause
3. happening , incident b: a time at which something happens : instances
4. a need arising from a particular circumstance

Occasion based marketing or OBM has been the focus for grocery stores, QSRs, chewing gum, sports drinks for some time now.  The concept is nothing new, but effective OBM programs can help create new usage occasions, leverage brand equity from participating partners or increase display space and in some cases even distribution.