Alejandro Cardoso of Publicis, a solution provider at the marcus evans Latin CMO Summit 2013, on marketing in Latin America. Interview with: Alejandro Cardoso, President & Chief Executive Officer - Latin America, Publicis

1. Interview with: Alejandro Cardoso,
President & Chief Executive Officer -
Latin America, Publicis
The most effective way of engaging
consumers continues to be a powerful
message, regardless of the media used,
according to Alejandro Cardoso,
President & Chief Executive Officer -
Latin America, Publicis. “Chief
Marketing Officers (CMOs) should not
be tempted by the use of media, as it is
not the most important strategic
decision. The idea should come first,
media second,” he goes on to say.
Publicis is a solution provider company
attending the marcus evans Latin
CMO Summit 2013, in Panama City,
Panama, November 7-8.
As the Latin American consumer
market continues to grow rapidly,
what opportunities is it presenting
to CMOs in the region?
CMOs have the opportunity to build long
-term relationships with consumers, yet
many of them are focused on producing
short-term results, as they need to
demonstrate the effectiveness of their
strategies in a short period of time. The
ability of CMOs to work between these
two environments, short-term results
and long-term vision, has become
critical to their success.
Technology is also playing a critical role
and has dramatically changed the way
companies can connect with consumers.
CMOs have to understand how the
environment has changed and adapt
brand strategies to the new reality.
What has proven effective for
engaging with consumers in the
region?
Many marketing executives continue to
maintain a 360-degree integrated
communications strategy, but that has
proven ineffective and costly for
engaging consumers via multiple media
vehicles and points of contact. The
return on investment has not been
there.
The best way of engaging consumers
remains the power of the message and
brand experience. Secondly, a wise use
of media or touch points according to
target groups, shopper dynamics and
consumer experience. The experience
will hopefully be good enough for repeat
purchases. This is the same all over the
world.
Companies should never put at risk the
effectiveness of their idea, by engaging
with the right communication partners.
There has been an explosion of small
agencies in the region, which we are not
against, but CMOs are having to
coordinate, supervise and make sure all
the different agencies are speaking the
same language, in order to stay true to
the DNA of their brand. This is time
consuming, ineffective and placing an
additional burden on them as 15-20
partners may be involved.
As a former CMO, I know how
unproductive this can be and why it is
best to have one partner who is on
board with your long-term vision.
Could you give us an example of an
innovative use of social media?
We worked on a campaign for the
Mexican tourism industry, to attract
tourists from the US, Canada and
Europe, when there was a lot of
negatively publicity because of gang
killings. Although the violence was not
throughout and all around Mexico, we
needed a different approach and came
up with the idea of placing cameras
inside airport taxis and having the
drivers start conversations with people
returning from trips to Mexico.
Using a celebrity would have been the
easy option, but we chose to get
testimonials from real visitors. We had
big TV commercials and used social
media to amplify our message. The end
result was a record high 22 million
tourists when everyone expected 2012
to be the worst year ever.
What trends should CMOs get used
to?
CMOs have to admit that consumers
have much more power today, because
they have vehicles to express their
feelings about brands, positive or
negative. Technology convergence has
also created multiple ways of engaging
and connecting with consumers, who
may very often be in front of several
screens, TV, mobile phone and tablet, at
the same time. This is different from
what CMOs are used to.
Open broadcast TV still has the largest
penetration in Latin America, but
marketers should also pay attention to
social media and digital devices.
Success is very much about having the
right balance between all three.
CMOs
have to
admit that
consumers
have much
more power
today
Idea before Media
Engaging with Consumers in Latin America

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About the Latin CMO Summit 2013
This unique forum will take place at the Trump Ocean Club, Panama City, Panama,
November 7-8, 2013. Offering much more than any conference, exhibition or trade
show, this exclusive meeting will bring together esteemed industry thought leaders
and solution providers to a highly focused and interactive networking event.
http://latincmo.marcusevans-summits.com
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About Publicis
Lead the Change
We think about brands as if they were a living object.
We need to help our clients lead their categories.
Lead the change. That is what we stand for.
The only way to have a good creative reputation is building one. And there is no other way to build it than by doing great work.
Work that helps our clients lead the change.
www.publicisgroupe.com
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To view the web version of this interview, please click here: http://latincmo.marcusevans-summits.com/AlejandroCardoso