Although the Latino market in the United States continues to grow exponentially, many marketers have yet to effectively learn how to tap into this key demographic. With Hispanic spending power approaching the $1 trillion mark, it’s hard to believe that retailers aren’t working more aggressively to capture the attention of this influential segment; however, the truth is that many businesses have yet to wake up to the importance of marketing to the Latino community.
A recent survey of marketers conducted by Orcí – a leading Hispanic advertising and marketing firm – revealed that only 50% of marketers direct their advertising specifically at the Latino segment. While “the majority of respondents believe Hispanics will have a significant impact on a variety of aspects of American culture” [1] including food, fashion and beauty, and technology, the vast majority of marketers don’t plan to specifically target the Latino demographic in the upcoming year.
According to the Orcí survey, nearly 40% of marketers question the return on investment that a Latino marketing campaign would bring, while approximately 30% feel that their company’s current marketing strategy is effective for the Latino segment.
In addition to the lack of attention paid to Hispanics in the traditional realms of advertising such as TV, radio and print, marketers have also neglected to reach out to this segment through trends such as social media (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace).
In a separate study conducted by AOL, findings revealed that most companies that have attempted to reach out to their Hispanic customers online are going about it in the wrong way. Spanish sites are often poorly translated, resulting in a mere shadow of the English version of the company’s online presence. Even when retailers do get it right and hire a translator to create a top-notch, professional translation, the message frequently fails to connect with readers because it hasn’t been specifically tailored to Hispanics.
“Hispanics are tech savvy, young trend setters with incredible spending power,” Orcí said. “Companies that recognize the potential of the market by effectively engaging them will see a return on their investment.” [2]
[1] Orcí 2010 Hispanic Marketing Trends Survey
[2] BizReport, Hispanic-specific marketing found lacking
