About
Co-headquartered in New York and Miami, Hispanicize is the complete resource for Hispanic social media marketers and Latino bloggers.
Hispanicize regularly features in-depth industry news, webinar trainings, technology guides, online forums and a comprehensive directory and networking service for brands and Latina/o bloggers. In addition to its content platform, Hispanicize also features an array of consulting and Latino social media strategy services.
The management team of Hispanicize are also the co-founders of Hispanic PR Wire, Hispanic Digital Network, the annual Hispanicize conference, the Hispanic PR Blog among other ventures
Manny Ruiz (@Papiblogger) Co-Founder and Chairman
Manny is chairman of Hispanicize and co-founder of the Latina Mom Bloggers network as well as Hispanicize 2012, the largest annual event gathering marketers, bloggers and social media influencers. A media trailblazer and award-winning PR professional, Manny is also the co-founder of the Hispanic PR Blog, the leading marketing trade journal focused on Hispanic public relations and the “daddy-in-chief” of the bilingual parenting web site PapiBlogger.com.
Prior to launching these properties, Manny was President of Multicultural Markets and Hispanic PR Wire for PR Newswire. Prior to PR Newswire’s acquisition of Hispanic PR Wire, Hispanic Digital Network and LatinClips in 2008, companies he founded, Ruiz was Chairman and CEO of HispaniMark, the parent company of these three businesses.
Cristy Clavijo-Kish (@Latinomarketing) Chief Executive Officer and Partner
Cristy guides the company’s expanding management team as it introduces new services and opportunities for social media marketers and bloggers, a research division and an enhanced editorial product for Hispanicize.com. She works closely with Piera Jolly & Eva Smith- principals of Latina Mom Bloggers- to further enhance and develop that platform and its digital services.Until this June, Clavijo-Kish led PR Newswire’s Multicultural Markets division as senior vice president, a role she was appointed to following the 2008 PR Newswire acquisition of Hispanic PR Wire, LatinClips and Hispanic Digital Network- all companies that she co-founded and spearheaded.
A marketing, media and communications practitioner with 15+ years experience, she helped found the Hispanic marketing practice at Porter Novelli and managed Latin America-focused and general market programs at two Miami-based agencies. Currently she serves on the PRSA Miami Board as co-chair of the Hispanic committee and will be a panelist at the 2011 PRSA International Conference in Orlando, Florida. Clavijo-Kish is a Girl Scout Troop leader and volunteers with other community organizations.
Katherine Johnson (@Katjohn) Senior Project Manager
Katherine assists in the planning, execution and delivery of client projects for Hispanicize, and is also an organizer of the annual Hispanic PR and Social Media Conference.
Prior to joining Hispanicize, she held positions with Fleishman-Hillard as an account executive, and at Newlink Group as a producer for the PBS show, Nightly Business Report. Katherine’s passion for community building, storytelling and the Latino culture drives her innovative approach to social networking both on and offline.
Katherine graduated from Florida Atlantic University with a BA in Multimedia Journalism.
Lexi Terrero (@Lxterrero) Finance Director and Partner
Lexi oversees finance, legal, and operations for Hispanicize and its subsidiaries. She works closely with the management team to identify company investment opportunities. Lexi is also an organizer of the annual Hispanic PR and Social Media Conference.Prior to partnering with Hispanicize, Lexi worked in the investor relations industry focusing on international companies in the public and private sector to implement corporate growth strategies through management advisory, strategic planning, corporate finance, and mergers and acquisitions. During this time she facilitated the 2007 acquisition of HispaniMark, LLC, the holding company of Hispanic PR Wire and Hispanic Digital Network, by United Business Media for $5.5 million.
Lexi holds a BS in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from St. Johns University. She is a member of the National Association of Hispanic MBAs and a member of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Bill Gato (@BillGato) Editorial Director
A passionate marketer, journalist and Hispanic digital media entrepreneur, Bill is responsible for editorial direction at Hispanicize.com. His mission is to help marketers understand how to effectively engage U.S. Hispanics through social and digital media by showcasing the latest thought leadership, research and case studies.Prior to Hispanicize, Bill was president and co-founder of Hispanic Digital Network (HDN), the nation’s largest Internet advertising and hosting network of U.S. Hispanic newspapers, magazines, radio stations and portals. PR Newswire acquired HDN and its parent, Hispanic PR Wire, in 2008.
Bill began his career as a writer and radio columnist for The Miami Herald between 1990 and 1994. He then shifted to marketing as Creative Director and Advertising Copywriter for Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS), which owned South Florida’s highest-rated Hispanic music stations. Bill has a Bachelor’s in English from Florida International University and an Associate’s in Journalism from Miami-Dade College.