New Nielsen People Meters tune to local Hispanics

July 20, 8:02 PMBaltimore Hispanic Business ExaminerElianne Ramos

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Rather than waiting for US Census numbers -however flawed- to validate their media purchasing and programming decisions, the advertising and media industries have depended on ratings by Nielsen Media Research since the 1950s.

At the beginning of July, the media consumption research giant introduced what they call the Local People Meters (LPMs, for short) in Baltimore, part of an ambitious national campaign that will cover a total of 56 local markets or approximately 70% of U.S. households by 2011.

According to the company, the devices will allow them to determine exactly who is watching what in each of the 11 counties that make up the Baltimore designated market area. Given the importance of these numbers for the tracking and segmentation of different audiences, the implementation of the LPMs in the area has people in the media-related industries watching its development very closely.

THE CONTROVERSY

Ever since the company first introduced the first LPMs back in 2004, their arrival to other cities has been mired in controversy. In the past, different organizations –including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP, a civil rights organization for ethnic minorities in the United States), leading members of Congress and executives at many broadcast television networks– have alleged that Nielsen’s system does not accurately measure national viewership among minority audiences.

These inaccurate numbers pose a problem for ad agencies, particularly for the ones specializing in minority markets. As Rubén González, President of Olé Ad Media, a full-service Hispanic advertising agency based in Crofton, MD, explains: “We, as marketers, are interested in seeing real, honest measurements. Even if the Hispanic population in Baltimore is very small compared to other markets, every bit of accurate information we can obtain is valuable. This is information that we use as part of client presentations as we pitch for accounts and helps us set the direction for what we want to accomplish with our campaigns.“

Meanwhile, Nielsen insists that they have taken the steps necessary to prevent any inconsistencies in the data from happening again. In an interview with Crystal Barnes, Director of Client Communications and Business Initiatives for the company, she affirmed that “throughout this entire process we have worked closely with our clients, providing preliminary data, to ensure that the sample is reflective and representative of the Baltimore DMA. We take the accuracy and integrity of our data very seriously." She added that the Baltimore LPM implementation was treated with a high level of importance, as was the case in previous markets. “This isn’t the first time that we’ve done this. We’ve been through this process before. We have a statistical process in place to recruit Nielsen families. The sample is randomly selected with an eye towards diversity. We work with various governing bodies, such as the Hispanic Latino Advisory Council to help inform and enhance our efforts to recruit, measure and accurately report on Hispanic television households in the U.S.”

THE BIGGER PUZZLE

While Nielsen may have a handle on the miscounting allegations, there’s another issue on which they may have to work a little harder. Nielsen’s brand name, so recognized and well established in most every major market, virtually draws a blank for Hispanics in the area. Lack of recognition breeds distrust, which has posed a whole new set of challenges for the company, particularly when it comes to recruiting Hispanic families into the sample. “If you think about it, it kind of makes sense,” says Ms. Barnes. “When a representative from Nielsen comes and knocks on your door, even though we explain who we are and what we do, you may not be as receptive to have someone know what you’re watching on TV.”

Also compounding the distrust might be what some consider the “elephant in the room”: the issue of immigration status among a section of the Baltimore Hispanic population. With news of crackdowns against illegal immigrants being a common news item in the city, certain families might be wary of letting a complete stranger come into their home. Maritza Gonzalez, Program Director for Education-based Latino Outreach (EBLO) –one of many community organizations who have supported Nielsen’s Hispanic awareness efforts in the city – agrees that “this might be a big influence, though I cannot say this is necessarily the only factor. Many times, people in our community tend to shy away from the greater culture simply out of fear of being in unfamiliar territory. If [Hispanics] don’t know someone well or are in an environment where they don’t feel secure, they may be apprehensive about opening the door to someone, especially if that person is not a Latino.” Maritza does, however, feel that getting the right counts for Hispanic TV viewership is extremely important to this often undercounted and underserved community. “It goes hand in hand with being counted in general,” she believes. “Those numbers go directly into programming that the stations want to present to our community as well as the advertising dollars that make so many things possible.”

She may be right. Besides encouraging the national television networks to develop and run programs with minority lead actors, accurate numbers may discourage the cancellation of TV shows geared Latino viewers. It may influence more marketers to buy airtime on Latino shows aired locally. It may also prompt more local clients to pursue this audience and produce Spanish language advertising. Which, in turn, may open the door to more local jobs in the industry.

Culturally, the impact might be even greater. Besides the obvious ‘power of numbers’ benefits to the fast-growing local Latino community, it may encourage more diversity in the TV industry, making the entertainment industry more reflective of the rich makeup of our country as a whole.

Up in the air is whether or not Nielsen can succeed in providing accurate viewership numbers and gaining the trust of its Hispanic customer base in the area. That is definitely something that marketers, media people and Hispanics alike may want to 'stay tuned' for. I know I will.

Agree? Disagree? Your comments are encouraged and appreciated. Please add them below or send them to eramos@elianneramos.com

© 2009 Elianne Ramos. All Rights Reserved.