In the spotlight: Rodrigo Cordón and AAG Guatemala

Rodrigo Cordón Gándara, President of Advertisers Association of Guatemala (AAG), shared what the association has been up to at WFA's LATAM regional meeting in Cartagena, Colombia. This and other interviews with WFA members from the meeting can be found here (in Spanish).

What are the association's main lines of work?

AAG celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2016 and over time the focus of our work priorities has evolved. During a turbulent political period in Guatemala, AAG served as an important link between business and government. Recently, our priorities geared towards our working committees which support AAG members in their advertising activities.

The committees we currently have are:

• Media Committee, which promotes the development of the advertising industry by improving the quality and quantity of information in the media and informs members about industry events relevant to their daily work.


• Academic Committee, whose main objective is to build a strong relationship between academic institutions and advertisers in promoting a better alignment of the academic curricula with the needs of the industry and facilitating internships and employment for students who are interested in taking up careers related to marketing.


• Legal and Self-Regulatory Committee, which aims to keep advertisers informed about the new regulations that can impact the industry and handles issues around self-regulation.


• Public Relations and Events Committee, whose objective is to promote a better communication between AAG's member companies, other industry players and the society, as well as organise events that cater to our members' needs.

AAG is also part of CEP (Advertising Business Council), which brings together advertisers, agencies and the media. Through CEP, we run campaigns of national impact that advocate for improving public education in the country under the slogan "Guatemala, Te Quiero Educada". We have been leading this initiative for more than 15 years now.

Among the association's achievements, what do you think had the greatest impact on the industry in your country?

Shaping AAG as a platform to get advertisers, agencies and the media to work together within a unified ethical framework is an important achievement for us. There are still some challenges, but we are moving in the right direction.

Where do you see opportunities to generate synergies that contribute to the development of the industry in LATAM?

The exchange of knowledge and experiences during our national associations' meetings and other WFA events is highly valuable, as you have some associations that come from more mature markets and with more experience than us. This exchange can be very beneficial to LATAM advertisers not only to keep up with new trends, technologies and perspectives, but also to help them adapt to the new digital environment. Although digital is a timid reality in our market, this is where we have to focus our efforts on.

Where do you see the association's biggest challenges in the next five years?

The biggest challenge for us is reinventing ourselves. The world of advertising has changed significantly in the past few years and we as an association must be at the forefront of best practices and knowledge and develop initiatives that trigger industry change and benefit our members.

What are the main regulatory and business trends impacting advertisers in LATAM?

Ongoing regulatory developments in LATAM seek to limit the freedom of commercial expression. There is an emerging trend among regulators to restrict or limit the marketing of food and beverages by pointing the finger at marketing as being a major factor to increasing obesity rates.

For more information on AAG's activities, contact Maria Ofelia.