I was born in 1971 in Mexico City and spent most of my childhood playing outside or on the tennis court. I still remember the year McDonald´s opened up in the city. There were lines of people lined up to buy a Big Mac. Back then life was more about enjoying the moment than being worried about what clothes you were going to buy for your next event.
During those days credit cards were only limited to the few people who could afford. The vast majority of people in Latin America who lived in poverty didn´t have a voice or access to the mass consumption we see today. We have been invaded by the big retailers who have copy-pasted their stores from Istanbul to Guadalajara, Mexico where I am sitting right now.
But there is something missing, there are many options and yes, people are buying like never before; but people are more unhappy and empty now than they were back then. I thought that the theory the more you have and the more you get the happier you are! But it´s not the case!
There is a big opportunity for brands to really go beyond the point of only meeting their financial goals at all cost.
There has to be more than that to life!
I am not saying no one is inspiring and connecting with people, companies like TOMS and others are doing a good job. But there is an opportunity like never before to make a positive impact in the lives of people and in-store retail and online are the biggest platforms to do it.
In 2016 alone, about 56% of
Latin Americans accessed the internet. In 2017 the number of users
accessing the internet increased to 404 million users. Consequently,
online sites benefit from the increased internet traffic, with 183.6
million unique visitors visiting their sites each month. According to
researchers, Latin Americans spent an average of 18.6 hours a month, per
user, on the internet during 2016. These growth habits are only
expected to continue, with the internet user penetration in Latin
America predicted to increase to 60.9% by 2019. – Source Natcomglobal.com
Latin America has the highest daily mobile internet usage in the world.
In 2016, 60% of mobile phone users went online from their mobile phone
in Latin America. The average time users spend on their phone is an
estimated 3.59 hours a day. The global number of mobile buyers grew to
43% in 2016, with Latin America placing among the top 10 in mobile
shopper growth. Peru, Columbia, Mexico, and Chile had an average of 50%
growth in mobile shopping. In 2016, there was an estimate of 120 million digital buyers in Latin America with most buyers purchasing through mobile. Most of all, users
make 28% of their monthly purchases using a mobile device, according to
a 2016 report by IAB Columbia & Mercado Libre. The three main
product categories users purchase from are mobile internet data, digital
content, and services requested from a web page or app.
So taking this into consideration we as brand owners must stop and think of people not only with a dollar sign on their face. But let´s figure out how we can take this opportunity to make a positive impact in the world.
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