Investment in technology is paying off for a digitally-connected audience, says Sameer Deen, Chief Digital Officer, Univision Communications Inc.
How is Univision evolving its digital business?
Univision’s digital platforms continue to grow and deliver stellar results in a competitive media environment. Our focus on providing a voice to the communities we serve, including expanding our local editorial coverage in key cities, offering access to the latest breaking news, weather and vital information Hispanics need and cannot find elsewhere, has played an important role in our digital growth.
Our continued investment in talent, technology and innovation has helped further cement our leadership position. In addition, our investment in mobile and video user experience has yielded significant growth on our O&O platforms. Over the last few years, we have also developed a robust video content strategy that incorporates innovative live formats and original storytelling around Hispanics’ key passion points: Sports, Entertainment and Music. As the Home of Soccer, we deliver first-class coverage of premiere tournaments such as UEFA Champions League and Ligia MX. For Music, we have unified local stations, audio, digital media and music under one cohesive umbrella – Uforia, the Home of Latin Music – offering listeners, brands and artists new opportunities.
How does the Spanish-language audience differ from English-language when it comes to digital?
We know that Hispanics over-index in a big way when it comes to content consumption on digital and social platforms, and we see this in the strength of Univision’s reach across several key platforms. Hispanics are young, digitally-connected and social engaged; they share content on social five times more often than non-Hispanics, and that content is 35% more likely to be clicked on than content shared by non-Hispanics. When it comes to video consumption, Hispanics spend 66% more time/week watching videos via smartphone than general market.
Knowing this, we’ve built a strong content strategy across these platforms and we’ve strong relationship with our audience by providing them with content that is in culture, in language and in an authentic voice. Storytelling is a core to Univision’s DNA and we have created unique ways to connect with our audience, delivering compelling content that informs, entertains and empower on every device.
Now more than ever, it is so important inform our community about the issues that matter most, that’s why we developed innovative formats such as “Real America with Jorge Ramos” on Facebook Watch and “Patricia Janiot PM” on IGTV. We also recently announced a video content partnership with Twitter across News, Sports and Entertainment to better serve the Hispanic community.
What is the purpose of Univision’s Creator Network?
The Univision Creator Network (UCN) is our in-house creator network and studio for influencers that we launched in 2016. Early on, we saw the growing power and influence of digital creators and how they resonated with younger audiences. It was a great opportunity to attract new audiences to our platforms as well as complement our digital strategy. We currently leverage creators across our linear and digital properties, including incorporating them in key tentpoles and franchises such as Nuestra Belleza Latina, Uforia concerts and Premios Juventud.
The creator network has also expanded our value proposition to our advertisers to reach younger audiences in a more authentic and organic way. For brands, we offer innovative solutions to partner with us on influencer marketing campaigns that include standalone opportunities as well as more integrated campaigns across our portfolio. Some examples of these influencer branded content campaigns include T-Mobile, Walgreens, Mazda, Walmart, and many more.
