In this piece, Fran Romero, CEO of TL1, a Portada partner, explains how his company differentiates itself from other data providers. By combining precise technology with deep cultural understanding, TL1 helps marketers effectively connect with the nuances of the U.S. Hispanic audience.
Every data provider is asked the same question: “Why should we choose you?â€
If you work in advertising, how many times have you been asked that? Personally, I've heard it millions of times.
Usually, any other data provider will tell you about their “special technology,†their global footprint, their unique datasets, and the millions of dollars they've invested to become the best. All of that matters, but what lies beneath? Do they actually know their potential clients?
We are none of that. We combine technology, identity data, and cultural understanding to help advertisers reach U.S. Hispanic audiences in programmatic campaigns with more relevance across digital channels. With 90% coverage of the U.S. Hispanic market and 45,000+ segments we help marketers target real audiences.
Data is audiences, and audiences are people. If you don't understand people's culture, how can you sell to someone you don't know or whose likes and dislikes you don't understand?
For example, did you know that a fragrance doesn't have the same acceptance across different countries? In Brazil, consumers prefer it with touches of Maracuyá (passion fruit). In Mexico, the male audience looks for Sandalwood and Cedarwood—and it must be long-lasting, otherwise, it's useless. Culture is the ultimate connector. Take the latest generation of Hispanics in the US: many don't speak Spanish like their mothers or grandmothers, yet they deeply identify as Hispanic because of their culture.
At TL1, we apply culture with meticulous detail and purpose to everything we do, from head to toe—from our logo to the final product, which is creating segments and audiences ready for advertising deployment.
Everything must make sense from the very beginning. Take our logo, for instance. If you didn't have this philosophy of care and craftsmanship, you would start a company, ask a designer for a catchy name and logo loosely related to what you sell, and just start selling. Nothing more.
Our name and logo hold the essence and meaning of who we are—a story we have never shared until now. It begins nearly 700 years ago.
The 14th-Century Customer Journey
Back in the 14th century, Spain was home to an Arabic kingdom in Andalusia, specifically in the Granada region, known as the Nasrid Kingdom. At that time, around 1385—when the Alhambra had just been built—most inhabitants lived in the arrabales (the suburbs of Granada).
From these suburbs, several paths led directly to the market in the city center. Because the market was inside the city walls, buying products there was more expensive due to taxes. Consequently, farmers, livestock breeders, and merchants of all kinds would roam these paths at the exact times they knew people would pass by to offer them their goods.
Not all paths were the same, nor did the people walking them have the same needs. Merchants around Granada understood something modern marketers still pursue: the value of knowing who was passing by, where they were going, and what they needed – to give everyone exactly what they required. The customer journey existed long before adtech.
One of the most important suburbs in Granada had a highly trafficked path leading to the market. Today, that exact route is a public transit line called Line 1 (LÃnea 1). That is where our name comes from: TL1.
Mathematics, Art, and Technology: The Nasrid Bird
But what good is knowledge if you can't apply technology to automate it? In our case, that means managing 30 billion IDs across 153 countries, and 45,000 audience segments specifically for the US Hispanic market.
This is where the meaning of our logo comes in: The Nasrid Bird (Technology).
This bird represents technology in its purest essence. Back then, arithmetic was already at an astonishing level. If you look closely at our logo, it features a bird—the Nasrid Bird—which you can actually see today if you visit the Alhambra in Granada. This little bird is anatomically built using three overlapping triangles. By drawing circles using their vertices, the shape of the Nasrid Bird emerges. It is a true masterpiece of engineering and mathematics applied to design.
Why We Are Different
This is what TL1 is: technology, culture, data, and knowledge applied Omnichannel across any advertising platform—whether it is Social, Mobile, Desktop, Connected TV (CTV), Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH), Geolocation, or Audio.
This is why we stand out from other data providers. Today, 7,000 monthly clients trust us across major platforms including:
- The Trade Desk
- LiveRamp
- Yahoo
- PubMatic
- Equativ
- Nexxen
- Nielsen
- Magnite
- Microsoft
I'll be attending Portada to meet with brands, agencies, and media leaders who want to better understand and activate U.S. Hispanic audiences. If you are rethinking your Hispanic strategy, CTV activation, or audience data approach, just drop us a line at [email protected] and we'll take care of the rest.
Related Content: From the “Click Era†to a Dream Realized: The True Omnichannel
