Argentina Media Landscape

It is not enough to offer a great service or product in Argentina, consumers and business customers are increasingly sophisticated audiences and the best PR agencies in Argentina recognise that and the strategic choices made at the outset will dictate the direction your company will take for the long term.

Investing in a sophisticated PR in Argentina campaign that incorporates the nuances of consumers’ media diets and motivations does not need to cost the earth, but smart investment early business cycle can save a fortune in the medium and long term. Whatever vision you have for your product or service, it must be moulded into an ‘Argentinian mindset’ so that it makes sense and is relevant to your customers. A campaign that worked in Australia will not work in Argentina. Local humour, memories, superstitions need to be taken into account.

There are 46 broadcasters in Argentina, serving an audience of around 21 million people, who watch around 8 million TV sets. The main TV groups are Grupo Telife, Grupo Clarin, Grupo Conrica, and Telearte SA. Radio is also hugely popular, with a similar sized audience, connecting with nearly 12 million sets, and over two thousand radio stations.

At the weekend, newspapers and magazines heave with the weight of inserts offering special offers on recognised brands, and established brands continue to invest in this form of direct marketing. Many shops offer permanent discounts on certain items along with rolling advertising in some of the bigger print outlets like La Nacion, Grupo Clarin, Perfil, Ambito Financeiro.

As with many markets, the number of full-time Argentinian journalists has been decreasing over recent years, with many established articles working more with freelancers and online writers taking the place of reporters. The dynamic between the press and PR agencies in Argentina has also changed: beyond the essential editorial disciplines of good and relevant storytelling and news generation, agencies that can provide relevant and multimedia content that more naturally lends itself to online formats are always viewed positively.

Buenos Aires was so full of billboards that a Supreme Court action was undertaken to remove billboards from a highway in Buenos Aires at the turn of the century. The claimant said that images and 3D shapes of dinosaurs on billboards were distracting drivers, and causing road traffic accidents. The action was successful, and advertising must now be at least 160 feet from a highway in Argentina. However, many companies now opt to advertise on the side of buses, cars, etc. As in other Latin American territories, many advertisers choose to insert English words into ad campaigns as “American” goods as often seen as trendy.

The annual spend on TV advertising in Argentina is USD$2.9 billion, while USD$1.7 billion is spent on newspaper advertising. Digital marketing is a growing sector with an annual spend of USD$462 million.