Linking Creativity and Effectiveness the Latin Way with Jorge Becerra

After five years at DDB Colombia, Jorge Becerra made the jump to DDB’s Miami-based agency alma in 2021. Since then, he’s operated as the company’s strategic planning director, helping to - as alma describes its work - ‘unlock modern culture for effective creativity’.

Joining the latin-led agency in the States was always part of Jorge’s “American dream” and now alma’s strategic direction is driven by his 15-plus years of experience with successful brands in both Latin America and the Hispanic US market. 

He has a proven track record of delivering effective, creative strategies, which has resulted in his work accumulating over 100 awards, including four Grand Effies and over 50 Golds. In fact, he also helped steer alma to reach the number one spot on the Effies’ 2022 effectiveness index.

Speaking to LBB’s Ben Conway, he discusses how he made the transition from DDB Colombia to alma, how advertisers can leverage the power of multicultural insights in a United States that is undergoing a “generational transformation”, and the strategy behind award-winning creative effectiveness.

LBB> You were a strategist in the Colombian market for 15+ years - why did you jump to alma in Miami?

Jorge> It all started with curiosity and admiration. Early in my advertising career, I began seeing the US as the epicentre of the world’s best marketing. Most, if not all, of the brands I grew up admiring were built in the US. All those ad wizards I read about? They were working in American agencies. So, I became kind of obsessed with the idea of experiencing work and life in the States, challenging myself to work in English, and being where the best brands in the world are born. 

In this context, alma was always a point of reference for many of us in Latin America. It was always inspiring to witness how an agency led by Latinos was making history in the US market. That's why alma was also part of my ‘American dream’, and I was fortunate enough to have them welcome me to the team. 

LBB> How are your roles and responsibilities different at alma? What are some of the agency’s main focuses and clients that excite you?

Jorge> The US is undergoing an exciting demographic and generational transformation. Recent data from the US census reveals that America is more diverse and multiracial than ever before. At the core of this cultural shift, alma has risen to become the largest multicultural agency in the US and this success has a lot to do with having one of the best planning departments in the country.

As part of this great team, my work has been mainly focused on helping clients have a better understanding of what multicultural marketing means and how modern advertisers can leverage the power of multicultural insights to make their brands more relevant and meaningful to a new generation of consumers that are the most diverse - and multicultural - in our history. On this journey, I have had the chance to collaborate with brands like P&G, Google, CVS, Intuit QuickBooks, PNC Bank, and MSK.

On the other hand, the agency has also taken its cultural expertise to audiences that are distinguished beyond ethnicities. The use of powerful cultural insights in modern marketing goes beyond multicultural; for Opendoor, we have crafted strategies for the 55+ segment. That’s probably what excites me the most about alma: that I can work on different segments, categories and projects that are not limited to one ‘box’.  

LBB> How are you applying your Latin American experience and insights to your work at alma? What new experiences and lessons have you learned and adjusted to in the US market?

Jorge> I think the biggest lesson I have learned is that we are similar but not the same. Hispanics and Latin Americans in the US share a common culture and language. However, there are a lot of differences that will influence how a Latin American consumer or a US Hispanic will react to a brand’s message. The state of the economy and the overall social, cultural, technological and political context are very distinct to each region. The Latin America region is also very volatile from an economic and political perspective, so brands and ideas need to adapt to volatility as a constant. I think this makes Latin Americans more prepared to work in crisis mode (which is a very helpful skill, given the current global context).

LBB> How does the wider DDB network collaborate and cross-pollinate between the two regions?   

Jorge> DDB is an agency that fosters collaboration between its offices around the world by strategically placing processes that facilitate sharing expertise across regions to create culturally relevant ideas. A prime example of this is the Bullseye System, where ideas can be shared with the most talented planners and creatives from Spain, LATAM and the US (as well as globally) to elevate the quality of our work and create a culture of collaboration between the offices. 

LBB> Your strategies have helped accumulate over 100 awards, including four Grand Effies and over 50 Gold Effies. What is the key to delivering creative effectiveness that succeeds at award shows like the Effies?

Jorge> I couldn't take sole credit for these achievements and narrow this success down to one single answer. I would just say that I have had the privilege to work on agencies and teams where there was a combination of amazing people, incredible clients and the common pursuit of thinking differently and committing (for real) to a single principle: creativity as the most powerful tool in business. 

LBB> How does the approach to creative effectiveness in the LATAM region differ from the approach in the States?

Jorge> It's no secret that in LATAM, you have more budget limitations. You are always expected to be effective with less and, sometimes, with no budget at all. I feel this has transformed how Latin America approaches marketing as a whole, being more resourceful and conscious of the importance of using creativity as the biggest lever to multiply marketing dollars. In the US, you tend to have access to more resources, more data, more time to test and learn and, in general, many more processes in place to do things with more rigour and discipline. 

LBB> What have been some of the standout successes from recent Effies and other creative awards for alma? Tell us a bit about them!

Jorge> In 2022, alma was named Effie Agency of the Year in the US. It’s the first time in Effies’ history that a multicultural agency wins this recognition, which is a testament to the fact that multicultural marketing has become everyone's game and that the traditional concept of the general market is dead. On the other hand, the agency has also kept building its creative reputation. Winning big in 2023 at Cannes, LIA, CLIO, The Drum Awards, El Ojo and FIAP. This proves an outstanding balance of top-class creativity and business effectiveness. We like to believe that we are creative because we are effective and that we are effective because we are creative.