July 10, 2023, 5:16 PM
July 10, 2023, 5:16 PM
If something surprised users after the pandemic, it was to see how technology stepped on the accelerator. Being such a dynamic industry, it’s clear that there are winners and losers across platforms. So gaming and digital audio emerge -until now discriminated against in advertising investment- as the new business niches for companies due to their rapid growth in Bolivia.
Juan Pablo Soto, Master in Digital Marketing and Electronic Commerce, said that There are more than eight million Bolivians connected to the internet, which is undoubtedly a great opportunity for brands to connect with relevant messages and communication that add value to interactions.
“The Bolivian market was focused on social networks, now the strong activity is present in the gaming where there are more than three million users, where there is a lot of opportunity and several brands are using it in very interesting campaigns”, he said in the presentation of the Digital Overview organized by Big Brands with data for the first half of 2023.
In addition, There is digital audio, which in Bolivia has 1.9 million users. “The activity of digital audio is important to connect with the user, there is also digital radio such as EL DEBER Radio, as well as the Deezer platform with reading the news. And in EL DEBER web SE offers the opportunity to listen to the news and it is a space that can be used for the sale of advertising”, suggested Soto.
With 66% digital penetration in Bolivia compared to the total population, it implies that campaigns must be approached in a planned and strategic way with a focus on measuring the results they bring to the business. However, according to the expert, talking about digital now does not mean concentrating only on social networks that have more than seven million users, but also looking at what is happening within the growth of video, where there are more than six million users.
“Users who are constantly looking for information and are nourished by contents of THE DUTY, television channels and other platforms,” Soto said.
Some win, others lose
It is said that many users leave Facebook and go to TikTok. Is the trend noticeable?: “There is a decrease in Facebook and although it is true that TikTok capitalized many users, there is no data that says this is the figure, ”explained Soto.
Asked about companies that work with TikTok, he says that in other markets it takes a lot of advantage from the organic and viral side because it helps a lot to make the content more virile. In Peru and Argentina they already work with paid shares and I am sure that it will happen soon in Boliviaindicates.
Soto says that there are brand actions, but they are very timid. Banks, for example, give financial education through TikTok and that the media are capitalizing very well.
As for Twitter, there is growth. Until 2022 there were 400,000 and now there are more than 600,000 users.
While Instagram is stagnant. The growth is little, there are 1.9 million users and it doesn’t take off. It is powerful in fashion and lifestyles.
Alejandra Durán, CEO of Big Brands, said that from the point of view of complementarity, one cannot fail to see the importance of the digital world.
While Mónica Salvatierra, editor-in-chief of EL DEBER, considers that from the media -where content is generated- they are aware that nothing is defined and everything is yet to be done; and that what works today will no longer work tomorrow. So, “Apart from knowing how to reach audiences, one must know the essence of what will be delivered to them.”
Experiences from the firms
Businesses face the challenge of converting likes into sales. Diego Iturralde, co-founder of Tunic, said that the startup is an idea that arose in the pandemic and is the first clothing resale platform. “There is much talk about the complementarity of the physical and virtual world, ‘figital‘ and that’s Tunic, people must try on the clothes to make the sale. In Bolivia, we have a barrier and it is the lack of experience of people buying online. I think people use Facebook more than Google, which increases transactions, but also mistrust, ”he explained.
Given this, from Tunic they try to innovate. “We made a mistake: the campaign with the presence in networks, because Facebook appeals to certain types of customers, but it happened to us that we had 20,000 followers, but we were not working our conversion funnel”, he reflected.
Coherence between digital and face-to-face is important. Diana Hurtado, Yanbal’s country manager in Bolivia, specified that It is important to be in the digital world, but without losing face-to-face. “Beyond the business system you have, it is important to look for complementarity. Do not lose the essence of the connection, because any business is built on relationships and they are built in person. In digital media you build or you destroy,” she specified.
For example, he argued that if a crisis arises due to something that went wrong digitally, it is important that they know you in person.
The synergy between the digital and physical worlds is key. Stephanie Medina, an executive at Embol (Coca-Cola), said that the digital path is complicated. “In Embol we are trying to mix the digital with the physical, because ‘figital’ is beginning to develop. A perfect mix that works and we have a page with which we sell digital ”, she maintained.
For the retail sector, the digital environment increases sales. Magali Maldonado, commercial director of Far Play, said that during the pandemic they had a big boost with sales on the website and via WhatsApp, but after the confinement they saw that people like to try on the products.
So, they are buying technology and applications to work in the ‘conversion funnel’ and also in knowing their customer, who they have to ‘talk to’. “Facebook has become a search engine for users, but our clients are on TikTok and Instagram, so we work on various platforms to attract them to our page,” he said.
