“We are different from past generations of Latinas, we are modern and we are balancing everything: family, love, work, social life. The modern Latina can have it all, but there wasn’t anything out there to serve as a guide or offer helpful tips along the way.”

Interview by Kevin Ohashi of Ohashi Media
____________________________________________________________

This Interview was made possible by our friends at

Domain name registration, premium domain auctions, and domain monetization services

____________________________________________________________

Tanya Alvarez and Lizbeth Cardozo are the Founders of LaCosmopolatina.    Lizbeth is from Chicago, Tanya from the Miami area, and both with Colombian heritage.  Tanya graduated Wellesley College with a BA in International Relations and went straight into the marketing universe.  She has worked with some heavyweights such as Nike, US Olympics and Diners Club International.  She has been a VP at multiple media companies.  Lizbeth has spent most of her career in the marketing and advertising world.  She has experience as an on-air news reporter, public relations manager, copywriter, account executive and sales executive.  Today, Tanya is the owner of Blink Ads, a performance based marketing agency focused on the Hispanic market.  Lizbeth is a business development manager at Blink Ads.  Together they founded LaCosmopolatina.

LaCosmopolatina is a daily newsletter with tips targeted towards ‘the sophisticated Latina who moves with grace, strength and ritmo between her two worlds.’  The tips come in four general categories of beauty, style, tech and life.  LaCosmopolatina launched in May 2010.

MO:
What was the inspiration behind launching LaCosmopolatina? Surely there must be others targeting the same niche with similar types of information. What need wasn’t met yet and how do you better deliver it?

Tanya Alvarez:
The inspiration came from the lack of content out there that we could relate to. It seemed that everything directed at Latinas had to do with gossip and celebrities, or clichéd stereotypes. I wanted to be able to access information I could relate to and in which I could see my bi-cultural life reflected. And I didn’t want it to be in Spanish, because being Latina doesn’t automatically mean being fluent in Spanish. Nor did I find it to be effective or relatable having it in Spanglish. There was a void that needed to be filled, a space which addresses the topics Latinas need and want to know about; like health concerns [specifically affecting] Latinas, how to dress with the beautiful colors and styles Latinas love, how to reconcile Latin tradition with modern American life. There was nothing out there like this, we searched and the closest thing we could find only talks about celebrities.

Lizbeth Cardozo:
There are no magazines or publications that address issues or gives advice to American Latinas.  Like how to continue indulging in the Latin food we grew up with and love, but with a more modern, healthier twist. We are different from past generations of Latinas, we are modern and we are balancing everything: family, love, work, social life. The modern Latina can have it all, but there wasn’t anything out there to serve as a guide or offer helpful tips along the way. That’s where we come in. We want to serve as a pillar for bi-cultural values.

MO:
You both specialize in marketing to the Latino market. You also identify it as under-served (one of the reasons you started Blink Ads). What are the underlying reasons it is underserved? What makes it different from the broader American market?

Tanya Alvarez:
It’s underserved because marketers do not realize the purchasing power of Latinos. The number of Latinos is growing fast, in fact we are currently the largest minority group. But there wasn’t much data out there for marketers to rely on. Marketers did not know if they should write Spanish content, or a combination of English and Spanish. Most also do not know how to market to the Latino, and don’t even take the time to understand the cultural differences. This section of the market has been overlooked or grouped with other minority groups. Now, marketers are looking to target this fast-growing group realizing the influence Latinos are having on American culture. For example, dulce de leche is now popular among Americans.

Lizbeth Cardozo:
The American market is a hodgepodge of people who have immigrated to the US over the years, but decades later most of the cultural nuances pertaining to food, music and customs are lost; the person adopts the American culture as their own. The US Hispanic is newer to the US, and has embraced their new American culture but still hold on tightly to their values and customs. Language may be the first to go, but the culture remains.  We are still making our tamales, arroz con gandules, drinking cafe con leche and moving our hips to salsa and merengue.

MO:
Do you plan on engaging more with your readers on LaCosmopolatina? I see a Facebook group and a Twitter account but no forums or even comments enabled on the articles. How does social media play into your strategy?

Tanya Alvarez:
We interact with our readers through Facebook and Twitter. Our readers are Latinas on the move. They are multi-taskers. The newsletter simply serves as a conduit of information to enhance their lives.

Lizbeth Cardozo:
That’s right. Once the reader subscribes, she receives daily tips straight to her iPhone or Blackberry that she can read on-the-go while waiting for her next meeting or business flight. She comes to LaCosmo to get tips, but if she wants to interact with us, she goes to Twitter or Facebook.

MO:
You both work at Blink Ads, which specifically targets the Latino market. I understand the personal interest and your belief it’s underserved. How do you convince businesses to target it?

Tanya Alvarez:
Hispanic purchasing power in U.S. is approximately $1 trillion strong in 2010, and growing. That should be convincing enough. Hispanic purchasing power in the U.S. is actually growing faster than the purchasing power of any other segment in the US.

Lizbeth Cardozo:
Absolutely. Research also shows that Hispanic families overspend on groceries and telephony more than any other group.  Plus their buying patterns have deeply influenced footwear, apparel, beauty, food and beverage sectors. It would be plain ridiculous for a brand or marketer to ignore these facts.

MO:
The two of you stand out in the tech entrepreneur world being non-White/Asian and female. I recall seeing a funding chart from ReadWriteWeb that showed which racial groups were being funded. I am amazed they don’t even list Hispanic/Latino. How come you don’t see more of both categories in the tech entrepreneur world? What would you say to encourage others to jump in and become entrepreneurs?

Tanya Alvarez:
The main reason there aren’t as many entrepreneurs in technology is that there is no structure in place to encourage or inform Latinos. There isn’t one centralized source for Latinos to find this type of information, and there aren’t many programs and support groups. They might come up with a great idea, but they lack the guidance on how to execute it and secure funds. It can be both intimidating and overwhelming to be a pioneer, but as more resources and groups become available people tend to band together to help each other.

Lizbeth Cardozo:
I think females probably don’t even know that this industry exists or they feel that the tech world is a man’s world. Unless the Internet becomes obsolete, which I don’t see happening for a long time, there is a plethora of careers or businesses that a women can engage in or launch. She just has to be curious, have a dream, and vision and the determination to see it through.

MO:
What’s next for LaCosmospolatina and Blink Ads? Are there any other startups/websites in the pipeline you would like to tell us about?

Tanya Alvarez:
With BlinkAds we want to be trailblazers for the US Hispanic and Latin America market in the Affiliate Marketing space, and we want to continue to educate advertisers on how to reach the US Hispanic market. We also plan on taking the English-dominant Latina market by storm with LaCosmopolatina.

Lizbeth Cardozo:
Yes. We’ll be launching a number of social media campaigns to interact more with our LaCosmopolatina readers. We’ll offer giveaways and contests. We’re launching our own YouTube Channel and creating video content for Latinas, too. So, as you can tell, we’ll be pretty busy.