So many times we see marketing to minorities go terribly wrong. It is essential for marketers and advertisers to understand the audience with whom they are working. The digital age has both complicated and simplified this process. Minority audiences are innately different from one another and their use of emerging media as a result is different. Therefore, there is no approach to effectively targeting all minority audiences. Each minority group should be segmented in order to effectively target one group.
In this post I will focus on the Hispanic audience. In the 2010 Census, there were 1 million more Hispanics in the U.S than was expected and 50% of the Hispanics counted were under the age of 26. The slideshare Digital Media & Multicultural Marketing: Hispanic African American & Asian American Populations breaks down how multicultural marketing and digital media intersect. The slides cite a 2010 AOL Cyberstudy which found that a larger percentage of the Hispanic market were early adopters online, considered a tech expert by friends and family, and keep up with the latest technology. Additionally 72% of Hispanics trust the opinion of an online stranger through product reviews.
In researching the Hispanic audience one of the most important things to note is acculturation. This can affect the channel, language, and message you use when communicating to these audiences.
After conducting research you will find that the audience is unacculturated, acculturated, or partially acculturated. Forty –six percent of the Hispanic market is unacculturated. They are first generation, Spanish speakers who have lived in the U.S. for an average of 7 years and maintain culture. It is important to note in the chart above, even the partially acculturated and unacculturated groups keep up with the latest technology and are considered tech experts by friends and family.
In addition to considering acculturation marketers should take note of holidays and cultural events as well as language. If you’re marketing to different audiences you might want to consider code-switching, translations, and photography. These things can completely alter the reaction and reception to your multicultural marketing particularly to Hispanics.
Are there any other things you think must be considered when marketing to Hispanic audiences?
Amara Takes on Digital Media 