Marketing to the Latino community has been one of the hottest topics among marketers and brands this year, especially after the 2010 Census reported that once all numbers are released, Hispanics will represent $1 trillion of the U.S. purchasing power.
The Hispanic population has also been reported to be one of the most active in the social space, especially in mobile. All of this information has stirred up quite the frenzy with marketers and companies, and they are finally realizing that excluding one of the largest demographics in the U.S. may not be a wise decision, after all.
Everyone wants a piece of the Latino market, and everyone is using the Census information to try to implement successful campaigns to target this group. But will the Census data offer enough to create for a successful Hispanic marketing campaign?
According to the social media survey released in early 2011 by the Hispanic marketing agency Telenoticias, social media marketing budgets are expected to increase in the next fiscal year by 60%. Therefore, advertising, PR and marketing agencies are competing to come up with the best social media marketing campaigns for their corporate clients. Sure, the Census can provide companies with numbers and statistics; however, marketers should spend less time analyzing and applying the numbers to marketing plans.
They should spend more time learning who embodies the Hispanic community. Not all Latinos are the same, and this is a known fact. What may work for the first-generation Mexicans may not for the second or third, and just because a slogan is translated to Spanish doesn’t necessarily mean all Latinos will all get it. The Argentineans are very different from the Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Peruvians, and so forth, but what they do have in common is language and certain cultural commonalities. Via social networks we can learn, engage, and get to know them.
Latinos all over the world, not just in the U.S., are catching up to the social media trend. Latin artists, brands and companies are using social media platforms to connect with their people, as well.
Based on the study released by Hispanic marketing agency BIG Research, Latinos have taken up Facebook faster than non-Latinos, and 54.2 percent of Hispanics that are online regularly use Facebook, just above the percentage of non-Latino blacks at 47.7 and non-Latino whites at 43 percent. Facebook is also recognizing this trend, and hosted its first Spanish live stream this year with one of the biggest Latin stars, Colombian singer Juanes, to promote his recent P.A.R.C.E. tour around the U.S. and the release of his new CD.
Latinos are also one of the largest mobile users and are quickly catching up on other platforms like Twitter, Foursquare, Miso, YouTube and GetGlue. Why is this? Because Latinos are social! They love to share their passion, their voice and their culture. It’s impossible to ignore this market.
"Latinos and social media are made for each other. Culturally, Latinos tend be very social people, we have "familia" beyond blood and like to keep updated on other people's lives. Social media quenches that thirst for us, enabling you to be in a ton of different places at one time” said Lance Rios, founder of Being Latino.
Therefore, rather than focusing on numbers, marketers must get to know who they are talking to and understand their cultures in order for the numbers to be effective when applied to a strategic marketing campaign. If you don’t know and understand the culture, how do you expect it to relate to your brand? Social is the way to go!