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Couple Use Music, Media To Aid Businesses

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By LAURA FRAZIER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 9, 2008

BRANDON - BRANDON - Real estate investment firm sales manager Janice Powell was taken aback in October when someone suggested the best place to sell condominiums in Brandon might be at a trade show in Puerto Rico.

Now, nearly seven months after participating in the real estate expo, Powell said she still gets calls from people who live in Puerto Rico and want to inquire about Park Lake at Parsons, an apartment complex that was converted to condos in 2005.

She said marketing specialist Neysa Rodriguez-Battistini approached her with research to support the strategy and set it in motion. Powell said Rodriguez-Battistini walked her through the process, from placing ads in Puerto Rican magazines to setting up booths and handing out business cards at the expo.

"I just wouldn't think about going into a market like that without having someone like Neysa who knows the language and the customs and knows how to communicate with the people," Powell said.

Rodriguez-Battistini and her husband, Lannie Battistini, built their two-pronged business, Hands In Motion, around their heritage. Rodriguez-Battistini runs the advertising and marketing division of the enterprise, which specializes in helping businesses target Hispanic consumers.

Lannie Battistini, a pianist who played on a Grammy-winning album in 1999 with Latin pop singer Olga Tanon, orchestrates the enterprise's music production arm.
Battistini composes, arranges and records CDs for independent artists. He has produced jazz, salsa, Christian-gospel, pop and other music genres. He also produces commercial jingles for radio and television. With his band, the Hands In Motion Jazz Quartet, he's in the process of recording a self-titled Latin Jazz CD featuring eight original tracks.

The couple relocated from Puerto Rico and moved to Brandon in 2005. Their Internet-based music production business moved with them, and they eventually added marketing and advertising to the mix. They estimate more than 85 percent of their business is conducted online.

Their goal is to grow both parts of the business locally, with special attention given to reaching the Hispanic market.

"There are more than 450,000 Hispanic people in the Tampa Bay area alone, with $7 million of buying power," Rodriguez-Battistini said. "We are a big consumer force."

Her affinity for market research is put to good use on the marketing advisory board for The Plaza Hispanic Village, a new section of the Florida State Fair devoted to Hispanic food, shows and music.

"Based on our research, we will recommend different types of entertainment like mariachi, salsa, mambo and Latin jazz," she said.

Research is an important tool for business owners who want to reach the diverse Hispanic community, she said.

"In the Hispanic culture, there are more than 20 dialects. One word, one expression can mean something very different in another dialect, even something offensive."

She recalled an ad campaign launched a few years ago by a major airline to announce upgrades to coach seating.

"Their ad said 'fly in leather seats,' but the way it was translated, most Hispanics understood it as 'fly naked.'"

Powell said Rodriguez-Battistini's help with the language barrier was critical to making the campaign a success.

"Aside from that, her follow through is unbeatable," Powell said. "She really gives you customer service."

For information, call (813) 500-0866 or go to www.hands inmotionmusic.com.

Reporter Laura Frazier can be reached at (813) 657-4523 or lfrazier@tampatrib.com.

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