I’m very excited to share with you a new venture that I’ve been working on for months, but that just launched late last night! Ella Media is my marketing and consulting business, through which I’ll be connecting businesses with today’s digital Latina. Ella Media also provides digital marketing and consulting services for large brands, small businesses, and social media savvy women.

If you’re a digital Latina (Latina blogger, social media Latina, etc.) seeking fun campaigns that also value your time, then sign up to be considered for upcoming campaigns!

While you’re at it, how about also connecting with Ella Media?

• follow on twitter
• like on facebook

Why is this a need? You may remember that more and more Brands are Leveraging the Reach of Social Media Latinas. The Latinas in Social Media BlogHer 2010 panel also proved that brands and the PR agencies representing them are interested in marketing to Latinas and many times look to our community for help in doing so. It’s also evident that as bloggers we wish to be compensated for blogging and social media work, so why not work together to bring brands and Latina bloggers together?

I hope you’ll visit Ella Media and sign up. I’m really looking forward to growing my blogging community and expanding it to bring great opportunities your way.

A little over a week ago, I attended the BlogHer 2010 conference in New York City. It was wonderful for a variety of reasons: the husband and baby girl went with me, I was part of a group of seven Latina bloggers sponsored by Vme TV, and there was an amazing vibe present amongst the bloggers attending.

On a personal level, I was able to connect and hang out with many people, both from the brand/PR side, as well as fellow bloggers. Many hugs, laughs, and conversations were exchanged. The bond between a group of women who “talk” on a regular basis online, was deeply strengthened.

This year’s BlogHer also afforded me some fabulous professional opportunities. From co-hosting the first-ever Latino BlogHer community party, Social Fiesta, and speaking on a panel, to being interviewed for the first time ever…then proceeding to two additional video interviews. All of this in just three short days.

Photo courtesy of TODAY Moms crew

The panel I spoke on, titled Latinas in Social Media, was very successful. As both a speaker and moderator of the panel, I am extremely pleased with the outcome and have received really positive feedback from those in the audience. Both bloggers and brand/PR representatives enjoyed learning about the Latina social media community and hearing first-hand from Latina bloggers. A dialogue ensued between the panel and attendees that could have lasted for many more hours, but unfortunately had to be cut short due to time limitations. However, it was a wonderful start to what I envision will lead to many more conversations via blogs and other social media outlets.

I’d like to create such an outlet here by sharing some highlights from the panel for those who couldn’t attend, and continue the dialogue so that both bloggers and brands can learn from each other.

First, the panelists that spoke at the BlogHer 2010 Latinas in Social Media session were:

• Lexi Esparza – La Primera Blog – @laprimera
• Monica Vila – The Online Mom – @theonlinemom
• Jeannette Kaplun – Todobebé – @jeannettekaplun
• Silvia Martinez – Mamá Latina Tips – @mamalatina
• Melanie Edwards – ModernMami.com – @modernmami

Some key facts we introduced at the beginning of the panel:

• Latinas have been blogging for an average of 4 years, some much longer
• Latina-owned blogs are written in English, Spanish, or a combination: 72% English, 69% Spanish, 8% Spanglish
• 37% of Latina blogs focus mostly on being Latina; 18% have never mentioned they’re Latina
• While all panel members are moms, many Latina bloggers are not and some are single and have never been married
• Variety of topics/niches amongst Latina blogging community: politics, food, coupons/frugal, culture, green living, etc.

*Source: Latina Bloguera Survey, July 2010 (over 900 Latina bloggers were surveyed)

Each panelist shared what inspires her to write and how being a Latina influences her writing, if it does at all. A consensus amongst the panelists was that being Latina does influence our writing, much in the same way it influences our daily lives. We all embrace our Latino culture and bring a variety of cultural values and traditions to our blogs. While none of the panelists particularly focus on Latino culture on their blogs, they all agreed with my statement that “I may not often write about being a Latina or my culture, but I share a Latina point of view on similar topics others write about.”

In addition to sharing our personal stories, the panel asked questions of the audience, since we were also interested in learning from them. Some questions we asked attendees included:

• Do you feel you need to announce that you’re Latina on your blog? Should we have to?
• For the PR and brand representatives: What do you look for when marketing to Latinas or reaching out to Latina bloggers? What about when seeking bloggers in general to join your campaigns?
• What is the value in collecting together as Latinas and working together?

From the comments shared, I learned that whether or not a blogger specifies she is Latina on her blog will depend greatly on the person and the content of the blog. For example, one blogger pointed out that when writing about political issues, announcing yourself can lead to privacy and safety issues – she herself had even received death threats via her blog. Others have no issues announcing their heritage and find it to bring about many more connections. I myself shared that when I began ModernMami.com in 2006, I did not specify I was a Latina. Those that knew Spanish or were familiar with the term, recognized the “mami” part of the blog name and would ask if I was Latina. However, about two years later, an online friend suggested that I incorporate being Latina more into my writing, and I proceeded to share that I am Latina on my about page. The change in how I was approached was evident almost immediately.

The PR and brand representatives that spoke up during the panel shared that mostly they don’t specifically look for Latina bloggers, but more so great content. They shared that when seeking bloggers to partner with on campaigns, they look at several factors:

1. Numbers do matter. While they’d love to say it’s not important, many of their PR clients and brands do ask for numbers.
2. Content matters more. They love to see personality in the content you write and prefer that as bloggers we incorporate personal stories into our blog posts rather than just copy and paste a press release.
3. Be professional. Above all, act professionally when working with brands and PR companies. After a good experience with a blogger on a campaign, it’s more likely they’ll reach out to you again for future campaigns.

As I mentioned, I’d like to continue the conversation held during the BlogHer panel. Whether you’re a blogger, PR or brand representative, and whether or not you attended the session during BlogHer ’10, please share your thoughts on the information and questions discussed. I think many from both sides can learn from each other.

Some more information concerning Latina bloggers that came about during or after BlogHer 2010 (video interviews found below):

• Bloguera Power!
• The Explosion of the Latina Blogger
• Latina bloggers on the rise – TODAY Moms interview Ana Lilian Flores, Carrie Ferguson Weir, and Melanie Edwards
• Women, The 5G Network via PepsiCo interviews Melanie Edwards

Videos:

TODAY Moms Interview

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

PepsiCo Interview

I’ve been asked a difficult question.

I was asked to write about what it means to me to be a Latina.

To be honest, I had never really given it much thought until now.

I mean, do people normally go around thinking, “What does it mean to me to be a woman?” Or a man? Or do Americans think to themselves, “What does it mean to me to be American?”

It’s just who you are. It’s you. To me, it’s much the same.

Being Latina is a large part of my identity. To be specific, being Puerto Rican is really a major influence in who I am.

I was born in Puerto Rico, but we moved to Florida when I was 8 years old. Although I’ve spent many more years in Florida than I did in Puerto Rico, my parents made sure to maintain our culture in our house. I was raised pretty much the same way I would have had we stayed in Puerto Rico. (Ok, like 90% since obviously there are outside influences from school, friends, etc.) But, my parents spoke Spanish in the house (and still do), we listened to Spanish music, we ate Puerto Rican food, and I was taught values and traditions that are important to our culture.

All of those things helped to make me who I am. However, being Latina is not just a matter of “I listen to Spanish music,” or “I eat rice and beans.” That is not what makes me Latina.

To me, it’s more about the overall culture, values, traditions, and beliefs. It’s about understanding why family is so important to us. Or understanding why my parents believed that as the youngest sibling and the only girl, I couldn’t do some of the same things my brothers did. And, how about the fact that now that I’m older and my parents are aging, I must understand why my father prefers to speak with my brother (who lives in Milwaukee) about his health issues than with me who lives 10 minutes away?

These may seem like trivial points, but if you understand the way our culture operates and the overall mentality, it’s easier to understand why these things happen the way they do.

So, what does it mean to me to be Latina? It means a rich culture, deep values, traditions, pride, and an overall appreciation for yourself and your family.

What does it mean to you?