Online Publishers Double Down on Facebook

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A lot has changed since I first reported on how Hispanic online publishers were using Facebook in June 2010. Back then, only a few Hispanic publishers were taking Facebook seriously, but over the past year and a half, Hispanic publishers have significantly increased their presence on Facebook and now view it as a critical channel for them to remain competitive. For Hispanic publishers, a robust Facebook presence is critical for a few key reasons: 

• Facebook reaches the majority of online Hispanics. As a result, Facebook represents an ideal place for Hispanic publishers to acquire new -- and engage with existing -- users.
  
  
• Facebook’s Hispanic advertising offering is effective. It allows marketers to target Hispanics on Facebook on a cost-per-like or cost-per-click basis, making Hispanic user acquisition affordable and predictable.
  
  
• Facebook can help drive revenue. A large and engaged Hispanic community can effectively drive traffic to publisher’s websites, increasing advertising revenue. In addition, these communities are becoming increasingly attractive to advertisers.

So which Hispanic online publishers are winning on Facebook?

If we look back to June 2010, Hispanic media giants Telemundo and Univision clearly saw the importance of the social network. At the time, they had 138,000 and 92,000 Facebook likers, respectively. But nobody else had a strong Facebook presence. Fast-forward to today, and the importance of Facebook to Hispanic online publishers is quite evident. 

Here is a list of the top 10 Facebook communities of Hispanic online publishers. The list includes current likers, growth rate over the past 12 months and the current engagement rate (current “talking about” divided by likers). 

1. Yahoo en Español 
• 1,240,000 likers 
• 675% growth
• 3.46% engagement rate
2. Univision 
• 690,000 likers 
• 150% growth
• 6.23% engagement rate
3. Telemundo 
• 399,000 likers 
• 150% growth
• 5.19% engagement rate
4. Mun2 
• 274,000 likers 
• 113% growth
• 2.19% engagement rate
5. People en Español 
• 217,000 likers 
• 99% growth
• 9.99% engagement rate
6. Despierta America 
• 207,000 likers
• 250% growth
• 56.95% engagement rate
7. Latinos in Social Media 
• 150,000 likers
• 17% growth
• 0.10% engagement rate
8. Club de Noveleras Telemundo
• 137,000 
• 42% growth
• 1.38% engagement rate
9. Batanga 
• 92,000 likers
• 56% growth
• 0.93% engagement rate
10. Latina Magazine
• 82,000 likers
• 69% growth
• 6.78% engagement rate

How long will it last? 

Building and maintaining robust Facebook communities like these requires significant investment and effort. Clearly, Hispanic online publishers perceive that they are generating a return on their Facebook investment today.

That said, as Facebook’s growth begins to slow among Hispanics, and more publishers and advertisers jump onto the platform, it will be increasingly difficult to compete for the attention of users. To rise above the noise, publishers will need to continuously refine their targeting and content strategies in order to grow and engage their communities. This effort will likely require more time and resources.

What will happen to these Facebook communities in the future is anybody’s guess, but one thing we can bet on is that Facebook will continue to innovate so that Hispanic online publishers keep doubling down.

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1 comment on "Online Publishers Double Down on Facebook ".

1. Sebastian Aroca from Hispanic Market Advisors
   

   commented on: February 1, 2013 at 12:44 p.m.
   Thank you Lee for this post, very insightful. For me it boils down to hitting the right combination of quantity + quality (reaching # likes that is attractive + high engagement rate). Having a high number of likes but low engagement rate is like having lots of visits to your site but high abandon rate and low conversion rate. If I had to choose, I rather have a facebook fan page with 10,000 likes and 50% engagement rate, than 250,000 likes and 1% engagement rate. While the first example is obviously an active and engaged Facebook community of Hispanic users taking about a brand and interacting with it, the second example is like having a retail store with lots of walk-ins but 99% of them non-shoppers. I know each case is different (depending on the product or service, industry, marketplace, etc), but any general common sense ideas of how to boost the engagement rate on a facebook fan page?

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