The auto company shares its strategies for becoming No. 1 in sales to Latinos.

Toyota was one of the first auto manufacturers to use the Internet to reach Hispanic customers. And it works -- Toyota has achieved the No. 1 ranking for new vehicle sales registered by Latinos, according to R.L. Polk & Co. (CYTD May ’04). Mark Simmons, national manager, advertising strategy and media for Toyota, talked with iMediaConnection about the company's success in this market.

iMediaConnection: How is Toyota using the Internet to target the Hispanic demographic? Which distribution channels have been the most effective?

Simmons: Currently, Toyota predominantly uses Flash, static and floating ad units to direct U.S. Hispanics to the Toyota.com/Español site. Additionally, Toyota sponsors an automotive newsletter published by Univision.com.

iMediaConnection: Please describe your relationship with MSNLatino, and why you have such a large presence there.

Simmons: Toyota has been working with MSNLatino since it was Yupi. Toyota began Hispanic Internet advertising efforts in 2001. Yupi was one of the very few sites selected for that plan. Toyota maintains a strong presence on MSNLatino as it is consistently one of the top five Spanish-language portals, according to comScore Media Metrix, May 2004, and the site continues to drive strong traffic to Toyota.com/Español.

iMediaConnection: Do you run any Toyota ads on pure Hispanic portals such as Univision and StarMedia? Which has been more successful -- advertising on the big 3 (AOL, YAHOO, MSN) or on the Univision type of portals?

Simmons: Toyota uses both the Spanish-language endemic sites such as Univision and Terra, as well as the Spanish-language versions of the "Big 3" (Yahoo en Español, AOL Latino, and MSNLatino). They are all fairly comparable in their delivery results. However, the endemic sites reflect a slightly better return on qualified traffic. Additionally, we use the Spanish-language pages of several auto sites, as well as a few bilingual lifestyle-type sites -- Batanga, ESPN. While the best traffic and qualified traffic rates are delivered by the auto sites, the portals and lifestyle sites deliver large audiences cost efficiently.

iMediaConnection: Please describe one of Toyota’s more successful campaigns targeting the Hispanic demographic. What kind of car was advertised? Were your banner ads in English and Spanish? What kind of response did you receive?

Simmons: The recent launch of the Tundra Hispanic interactive campaign has been very successful. Toyota used Spanish-language ad units across selected sites. The monthly visits to the  Toyota.com/Español Tundra landing page increased more than nine times (+939 percent) in the first two months of the campaign. Additionally, the total traffic rates increased 14 percent in the first two months.

iMediaConnection: Will Toyota be shifting more of its online ad dollars to reach the Hispanic market?

Simmons: We continue to evaluate the effectiveness of our interactive campaigns to determine whether additional spending is warranted.

iMediaConnection: Are you noticing that your competitors are taking as aggressive an approach as you are with regard to targeting this demographic?

Simmons: Yes, we have noticed that Toyota’s competitors are beginning to enter the Hispanic online universe. However, keep in mind that Toyota was one of the first auto manufacturers to enter the Hispanic interactive medium. And, Toyota has proudly achieved the No. 1 ranking for new vehicle sales registered by Latinos.

iMediaConnection: Do you believe the online medium is an excellent branding and direct response medium for the automobile industry?

Simmons: Toyota’s online focus is not on branding as much as on reaching the consumers that are  shopping the market via the Auto sites. Lifestyle sites are utilized to extend the reach of the offline model advertising efforts.

iMediaConnection: Has Toyota taken a comparable aggressive approach to interactive marketing to any other demographic?

Simmons: We include interactive marketing in certain campaigns to both extend the reach of new model advertising and to target in-market shoppers.

iMediaConnection: What are your plans for marketing to the Hispanic audience? More Web media advertising on niche Hispanic sites, more email use, more search?

Simmons: Future Hispanic interactive plans will continue to include a strong presence of a variety of ad unit types across the major Spanish-language sites, Auto sites that have Spanish-language channels, as well as several lifestyle sites. We continue to search for and evaluate new sites and other creative ideas as they become available.

iMediaConnection: In closing, what are some words of wisdom you can give to other major consumer marketers who want to use the Internet to target this rapidly growing market?

Simmons: The Hispanic market continues to be the fastest-growing consumer segment in the U.S.; this includes their continually increasing consumption of online media. As the online world is also growing and changing rapidly, it is important to continue to keep up with the medium. Because the online universe is so flexible, it can allow for working closely with the sites to create and build customized opportunities. Tracking and optimization -- which fit directly in line with Toyota’s philosophy of continuous improvement -- are key to maximizing online return on investment.

Elizabeth M. Lloyd is the director of corporate marketing for NetBlue, a provider of paying customers on the Internet. Previously, Elizabeth was the director of marketing for opt-in email provider NetCreations, Inc. in New York City. Prior to NetCreations, Elizabeth was responsible for the public relations department of ValueClick, Inc.