28 Communication World • May–June 2009 www.iabc.com/cw

special report: latin america & the caribbean

Adding flavor

to theCaribbeanmarketing

mix Simple, cost-effective strategies

can help you reach the diverse

audiences of the region

While the Caribbean is certainly diverse, marketerscan use a variety of tools to reach residents like these(from left) from Barbados,Antigua, Trinidad, theBahamas, the DominicanRepublic (top) and Grenada.

BOB

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IMA

GES

CRI

S H

AIG

H/G

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IMA

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TOD

D W

ARN

OC

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IMA

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www.iabc.com/cw Communication World • May–June 2009 29

by Brevard Nelson

So how does it taste?” Iproudly asked mymom as she sampledmy attempt atcallaloo, a Caribbean

dish made by blending youngspinach leaves, vegetables, herbsand spices. After a long pause,she lovingly replied that some-thing was still missing. I wentthrough my mental checklistand realized that, even with allthe ingredients included, thedish just does not taste the samewithout her secret herbs andspices administered seeminglyunscientifically in dashes andpinches.

Back at my desk, ponderingmy freshly cut 2009 budget, Irealized that the challenge facingmarketing practitioners this year

is no different from my trying toreplicate Mom’s cooking. Howdo we differentiate ourselves inthe market by spicing up themix and measure our success inan environment where we areforced to do more with less?

Certainly every situation callsfor a unique solution, but thereare some steps that Caribbeanmarketers can take to demon-strate a higher return on invest-ment. You still need to get thebasic recipe right, but adjustingthe ingredients to taste andadding that secret spice can giveyou the edge.

Most marketing profession-als for Caribbean businessesI’ve spoken to have identified atleast one of the following asgoals for 2009, with the overallchallenge of finding a cost-effective way to achieve them.

1. Increase return on marketinginvestment. Many of us havehad to build business cases tojustify incremental expendituresin some areas or, at the CFO’srequest, attempt to apply scien-tific models to calculate ROIand explain variances. Fun!Practitioners have realized thatincreasing analytic sophistica-tion to capture the right datahelps to inform business deci-sions and can facilitate calculat-ing the return on marketinginvestment.

2. Generate more quality leadsfor the pipeline to surpass customer acquisition targets.Some companies operating inthe Caribbean have alreadyexhausted their organic growthoptions and are seeking to tap into new markets. The

PATR

ICK

MO

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A number of entre-

preneurs have launched

platforms that showcase

Caribbean content and

solicit user-generated

content.

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30 Communication World • May–June 2009 www.iabc.com/cw

special report: latin america & the caribbean

Caribbean diaspora (Caribbeannationals living outside theregion) is a market that somecompanies long to engagebecause of this group’s tradition-ally higher disposable incomesand greater connectivity. In thecurrent economic environment,however, many Caribbeannationals are repatriating fundsbecause of failing internationalcapital markets. Companies infinancial services, real estate andrecruitment are eager to connectwith this audience.

3. Tap into social media. TheInternet penetration rate of 17.3 percent in the Caribbean asa whole may seem anemic com-pared with the 73.1 percent inNorth America, but some coun-tries like Antigua (85.8 percent),Barbados (63.8 percent) andJamaica (53.5 percent) presentopportunities for communica-

tors. There has also been expo-nential growth in Caribbeancommunities on popular socialmedia platforms. Caribbeancommunicators are aware of thisbut are somewhat apprehensiveof formalizing a strategy toleverage these communities,especially to gauge brand aware-ness, test new product ideas oreven evaluate brand reputation.However, regional governmentshave committed to developingthe information and communi-cation technology sectors tohelp diversify their economies,which should help increaseInternet penetration rates.

4. Focus on customer engage-ment. We know that it costsmore to get a new customerthan to keep an existing one.But more important, a satisfiedcustomer is the best ambassadorfor your brand and the cheapestform of customer acquisition.Additionally, internal stakehold-ers are important in spreadingthe word on your behalf, and assuch, communicators have iden-tified these groups as important.

5. Take an integrated approachto communication. Traditionalmedia still play an importantrole in communication in theCaribbean. However, if a com-pany is interested in reaching agroup with specific demograph-ic or geographic characteristics(for example, 18- to 25-year-oldmale Caribbean nationals livingabroad), new media wouldbring a more cost-effectivetouch point to the mix.

A dash of new media To achieve these goals, Carib-bean communicators should

consider using new media toadd flavor in a measurable way,without draining the budget.The Caribbean Web is still nascent, but there are signs ofgrowth. Some regional mediahouses have started siphoningcontent from their traditionalTV, press and radio arms to sat-isfy the growing appetite foronline content. Two examples ofthis convergence are the JamaicaGleaner’s YouTube channel,which serves up local videos onits web site, and the recentlyrevamped Trinidad Guardianweb site, which cross-pollinatesits stories with video contentfrom sister TV station CNC3.Most Caribbean web sites havethe standard Web 2.0 tools (RSS feeds, podcasts, webcasts,bookmarking or sharing tools,blog links, etc.), allowing con-tent to be more accessible andenabling a viral spread if userswish to share.

A number of entrepreneurshave launched platforms thatshowcase Caribbean contentand solicit user-generated con-tent. The Caribbean communi-ties on established social mediaplatforms such as Facebook andHi5 have grown exponentially,and video-sharing applicationsare part of the online diet of theaverage Caribbean consumer.Blogs now outnumber the tradi-tional media web sites in theCaribbean, giving citizens avoice and more power. Sites likeblogoria.com and cariblogger.com aggregate blogs and pro-vide a platform upon whichCaribbean bloggers can build.These influencers are the newcatalysts of behavioral change,and the growth in this area can-not be ignored.

Caribbean nationals

are passionate and vocal

about many things, and

would willingly promote

a local brand they believe

in—if they are asked!

Cariblogger.com is an aggregate site that allows blog-gers from around the Caribbean

to post their thoughts.

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Traditional media are greatfor mass communication, but itis often difficult to quantifyactual returns on investment forthese channels or to measure thesuccess of a campaign. In thisenvironment, marketers arelooking for easy, cheap andmeasurable strategies to achievetheir goals, and a dash of newmedia may just do the trick.

Add water and stirIn stirring new media into the marketing mix, commu-nicators should recalibrate theoverall marketing strategy toensure that the combined tac-tics work synergistically andmore effectively. Other com-plementary, low-cost strategiescan be adopted to achieve yourgoals, such as:● Permission marketing. Engag-ing customers through permis-sion marketing opens up newways to cross-sell and up-sellproducts and services. In thismethod, customers are asked toopt in to receive the informa-tion, implicitly giving the mar-keter the right to send targetedads in the area of interest.Permission marketing has itsown techniques to increase sign-ups and, when used in tandemwith other new-media strategies,can increase returns. It tends tobe more efficient, since ads aresent only to people who areinterested in them.● Word of mouth. A compre-hensive online word-of-mouthstrategy is probably the mostcost-effective way to increasebrand awareness, build loyaltyand ultimately affect the bottomline. Caribbean nationals arepassionate and vocal aboutmany things, and would will-

ingly promote a local brand theybelieve in—if they are asked!● Paid advertising. Even withsmaller budgets, communica-tors can reach niche marketsthrough targeted online adver-tising. Facebook and Google’sAdwords allow marketers to runtargeted campaigns and allowyou to set your maximumbudget. Some marketers mayalso wish to advertise onCaribbean-centric sites.

Measuring cupsIt’s important to have a frame-work set up to measure the suc-cess or failure of a strategy. Asuse of the Internet evolves, so domeasurement models. Simplyput: Online marketing ROI = Net benefit derived / Cost ofachieving that benefit

Suitable “net benefits” ofonline marketing investmentsmight be:● Improved conversion rate([sales / number of clicks] x 100),that is, the percentage of visi-tors who have been successfully converted to customers. Thismetric is easier to calculate withnew media, since technologyallows us to track a click all the way through to fulfillment.Data captured can be used tocross-sell or up-sell to existingcustomers to extend their life-time value.● Better insight into the peoplewho interact with the brand.Analytical software gives mar-keters a sharper look at the target audience’s behavioral patterns, demographics, loca-tion and more—something thatis harder to discern from tradi-tional media.● Increased number of sign-ups on the web site, whether it

is for a newsletter or just for further communication. Thesepeople have given explicit per-mission to be marketed to.● Increased number of uniqueusers/visitors to the web site.Some communicators may havemetrics that track unique usersas part of their scorecards, andnew-media strategies can helpachieve these. ● Increased links back to theweb site, which increases searchengine rankings.

A measurement model isonly as good as the dataentered, and the onus is on themarketer to capture data accu-rately. Practitioners can nowadd the necessary numbers tosupport the request for morefunds or justify a shift to newmedia. With proper ingredientmeasurement, the callaloo canbe flavored to taste and enjoyedby all. ●

about the authorBrevard Nelson is a co-founderand vice president of customeracquisition and engagement atCaribbean Ideas Ltd. He is alsothe vice president of brandingand visual communication forIABC/Trinidad and Tobago.

The Trinidad Guardian’s web sitefeatures print stories as well asvideo content from the news-paper’s sister TV station, CNC3.

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