Just a great line - I just saw this awesome ad. And I love it.  It's a big spray can that has "Por Si Las Moscas" on it.  I did a double take when I saw it. 

Wow, I haven't heard that since I was a little girl.

What a great way to take a saying my grandma used to use, and bring it into the new age in a fantastic advertisement. Way to go advertising agency

Great way to take into consideration Latin culture (hip, cool, nostalgic, tradition, fun, listen), rather than sraight up translate (blah, boring, pander, snooze, ignore...).

Just in case any flies y'all!!!  Bring it! I want it!

-La Marketer

I si twitter: follow me...browse me...check me out...drop by and say hola...don't be a stranger...

You get my drift.

Look for "La Marketer" cause you know we have some "habla-ing" to do. 

Click me....me...yo. (That's yo as in "I'" not as in "yo, how you doin' ")

When did twitter become a verb btw?

Anyways...I digress! Search for: La Marketer

 -La Marketer

 Should you speak-e Engleeeesh, or Espanol?
I recently received the following question from a reader:

Hi,

I've been working on automotive consumer websites and have debated for many years against the ROI for duplicating a consumer website in Spanish.
Your opinion would be awesome:
1.  The development spend to fully duplicate the English version of the site is about 20%.  How many hispanic are spanish only... of the 45M in the U.S., maybe 10M?  That's 20% spend for 3% audience?  Am I right?  It's not worth it.
2.  If my website is national (i.e. covering the U.S.) what Spanish should I write my pages in?  Columbian, Mexican, Spanish, other?

 
Why I'm So Feliz You Asked:
1) Yes...to fully duplicate the English version of the site...20% cost...bien, ok that works.
Sure...Maybe 10M Hispanics in the U.S. speak Spanish only (count the illegal immigrants though and that number gets mucho mas grande). 

However
Think about it...yes...10 million Hispanics is about 3% of the U.S. audience...but OF the U.S. Hispanic population...it is about 22-23%.  That's significant - and think about the amount of future Hispanics online - say in 5-10 years...(Whooo-wee, muchos hispanos more in futuro) and then think about Latin Americans who come to the U.S. to shop for cars (Lots of them do...I personally go way back with tons...really! No joke) - they could browse your product pre-travel.  So if your company is making a general significant spend on Hispanic advertising...22-23% potential just U.S. audience Hispanic hit would be well worth it. (Just do it...)

ADDITIONALLY
and this is key...think about brand extensions for your English line. (who isn't trying to make more dinero?)

I recently met with a major flower retailer. Think one of the major national chains. Sales in the millions.

They recently launched a Spanish language version of their website in '08.  Guess what?  Sure...it was a bit slow in the beginning, and sales were...eh...snooze...siesta...zzzz

However
Get this: after a few months, they saw their advertising coupon codes from Spanish language media...were actually being used on their English site - their flagship.  Thus winning brand recognition for them, and appreciation from customers who were bilingual, used Spanish media, however were comfortable doing business in English...and so still bringing the Spanish language codes with them. (BING BING BING, we have a winner.)

Neat huh?

Depending
On your automotive product - it could be worth the spend.
(of course...there are many more questions to be asked on this question including...your target market, current Hispanic consumers for the product, potential consumers, those online, those who eat tacos...er.. well tacos has nothing to do with it, but they sure are good! etc.)
But my initial reaction with no more information - would be spend.

 IF
#2) Your website is national - focused in the U.S.  I'd avoid Spain Spanish and focus on Mexican or Central American Spanish (they are pretty similar) and as mentioned you will probably get overflow consumers from those areas. 

And there you have it folks.

-La Marketer

3/17/09-  Ay, where has my health care gone? 

Hispanics, of many walks of life are seeing health care that is M.I.A. (that's "Missing In Acción" for those of y'all who need it spelled out).  And while formerly lowpaying health care services were available for low income Hispanics and other immigrants from around the globe...now lots of those services are being cut due to recessionary pressures. 

I'm full of good news eh?... I know between that and tortillas I burnt last night..ah well that's another story..

Additionally, so many Hispanics work as small business owners, or individual contractors... many of whom have bought their own health insurance.  Well, times ain't so flush anymore y'all... And when it comes to paying bills, health care premiums, feeding family etc...eventually something's gotta give. (And believe you me...it's a-givin'.)

Ahora, let's go health care!
I think health care companies and health care providers need to figure out some recessionary emergency plan (ideally government subsidized) to cover the gap in case of emergency health needs.

Si se puede!
A Hispanic couple I know in San Antonio just signed on with a hospital that developed a great plan.  It's a university system hospital.  They can see any doctor at the university hospital.  The monthly fee will be based on their income.

Me gusta!
I like. Affordable insurance for everyone...  Now if I could just find some good pan de huevo nearby I'd be set...

There's many other affordable insurance options which can be implemented. And now would be a great time to do it, when so many Hispanos and other immigrants are struggling.

Yo Quiero Health Care! BRING IT!

-La Marketer

Que piensan? (Translated: Whatcha'll thinkin?)

I know you know that I know that you know that I think about alot of things...but I've just spent some time researching this and it's a toss up.  Everybody's cutting back right now.  So I could say...no...it's not recession-proof.  However, there is a bonus when it comes to Hispanics, in that most of them engage in cash-only transactions, meaning the credit crisis has a less significant impact to them.  (Yen, dollars, euros, it's all good...none of that devaluing money stuff though thank you very much.)  Will that take a foothold in Hispanic's attitudes toward spending? Recent studies are inconclusive. (I.E. experts dunno) 

US is Tight? Go to Latin America

So the U.S. market recession is getting pretty tight.  (Who would have thought we'd see the day when companies like Goldman Sachs, Google, Citigroup etc. were laying people off like last year's lunch...ok even yesterday's lunch ain't that hot we gotta admit)  But there is a whole new world in Latin America.  Now could be a time to bone up on your plans to expand or gain more consumers based in Latin America.  (You know you wan'em.)

 How to do it?

 Here are a few thoughts in no particular order. (Being flow that way today...as my brother would say.)

-Be sure and target los grandes major metropolitan areas and vacation areas especially if you are just starting to penetrate the Latin American market.  (I mean after all do you really wanna spend a million dollars to target a big country field and some trees 500 miles from the nearest phone?...Yeah, I no think so.)

-Understand your target group - Ideally use market research to understand your target group's interests, tastes, purchasing habits, shopping areas etc.  Latin American consumers can come in many shapes and sizes.  Dependent on your product and services, knowing your target is muy importante! (Ye-es, have coffee, bring a gift...ok that may be a little much...but you get my drift.)

-Transform this market information into useable and active action for your Latin American target market penetration.  (Do it - get movin'.)

 -Additionally, you'll want to promote your product or service, monitor your market concentration increase, and fine-tune your results to obtain optimal goals for your product or service. (Ooooh, measure measure measure, sooo importante.)

And So the US is Tight? So What?

Maybe your old advertising dollars used to trend towards certain markets in the US, which may now be seeing spending hemorrhaging.  Why not take some of those dollars and invest in Hispanic marketing (or my 401K... just let me know, I'll send you a deposit slip).  With Hispanic marketing, it's not an instant return (Ay-eeee, patience mijitos).  It takes time and effort to build a Hispanic market for your product.  And work started today, could begin to see fruit about on par when the market starts taking a turn around....(Or it could go upside down, sideways...do the boogie...)

Many brand leaders who started out with small Hispanic marketing budgets years ago are now well-recognized in the Hispanic marketplace and reaping the benefits of their early efforts.

Thoughts for today.  We'll all survive this. (With the help of a few margaritas of course)

Si muchachas (ok y ustedes tambien muchachos...:)

So what's the deal?  Well the great news is that it's to stamp out domestic violence.  According to http://www.clicktoempower.com/about.aspx  1 in 4 women has experienced domestic violence. (Wow, I didn't know that!...)

And a great new program...Tell a Gal P.A.L.  is doing lovely (literally lovely) stuff.  It's helping domestic violence survivors get back into the workforce by encouraging you, me, and everybody to donate new...or nearly new purses/professional bags. New purses enable these wonderful survivors to get back on their feet, and get back into the workforce.

So how can you too win?  Well...you can!  In fact you can win Ana Ortiz's purse designed by Onna Ehrlich (check out the purse on the link....it's cute!)

1) Visit the below link

2) Fill in the form

3) Send it off...ta-da...you're registered!  And the best part is you've spread the word about stopping domestic violence

Here's The Link To Win Ana Ortiz's Purse!

Even if you don't need a purse....just visit the site and click the appropriate link on the right hand side.  For every click (yes every click!) the Allstate Foundation is giving $1 to the Education and Job Training Assistance Fund.  So visit hoy y'all!

-La Marketer

9/16/08- Free tickets! Yes! And a DVD!  Read on....

Soooo today we are going to take a walk con los grandes...a large walk with those dinosaurs currently taking over L.A.

The show Walking With Dinosaurs The Live Experience is on tour in North America and is hitting L.A. September 25th thru 28th.  Take a peek at the website, Walking With Dinosaurs, its is chock full of dynamic dino species, a video gallery of behind the scenes footage, along with a picture gallery full of vivid assortments of dinosaurs. 

So how do you get free tickets to the L.A. show?  The 15th person to email me at lamarketer@hispanic.com gets 2 tickets.  The 16th person gets the DVD.  Drop me a line with your address. 

Upcoming Walking With Dinosaurs Shows are ongoing in September and will continue till the end of this year all over the United States.
 
The show is based on a award-winning BBC Television Series and brought to you by The Creature Production Company.  The show is already sold out in Australia.  What will you see at the show?  15 loud and scary dinosaurs will shock and amaze you appearing just like they did millions of years ago. 

Tickets run from $25-88.50 and can be purchased from Ticketmaster, the STAPLES Center box office, or charged by phone at (213) 480-3232. 

Check it out y'all, and email me for the free ticket giveaway!

-La Marketer 

Right, so I'm about to walk over to Safeway to buy some groceries...A lot of us are used to just heading over to the nearest supermarket....but what about the nearest Hispanic market?  Well it seems many Hispanic markets are going upstream these days, and growing into full-fledged chains.  Complete with soy milk, watercress, and specialty cheeses.

What is our world coming to?
 

Hispanic stores are convenient, right around the corner, family friendly (where everybody knows your name), and just plain easy.

And with the "recession" hitting, stocking more general population friendly foods is helping attract and keep customers of all ethnic backgrounds.

So here's the lesson - know your customer and grow with them.
-La Marketer 

Toughened immigration laws, a slowing job market, and

border wall issues...it all makes for many Latin Americans   who   are returning to their native homes in Latin America.  So  does this mean that the need for Hispanic Marketing is slowing?

No.

There are still an estimated 44 million Hispanics in the U.S., and it's a baby boom here.  Hispanics represent the largest proportion of the population under 26.  Statistics show they have a much greater disposable income than their parents' generation, and are striving to become more educated and affluent than their parents.

Is time to take money out of the Hispanic Marketing budget?  No, in fact, now may be a great time to put money into Hispanic Marketing.  The slowing economy may mean it is time for companies to break out of their traditional molds and try new avenues of making money, and this includes targeting Hispanics.

So stop Hispanic Marketing?  Not yet, in fact andale...put some cash in that budget.  It's never too early to start putting money to start that brand awareness.

-La Marketer 

6/08/08- I grew up with the memory of Willie Velasquez who founded the Southwest Voter Registration Project.  He was an amazing force, who lived and breathed to see the Hispanic vote counted, and to be honest...must've had a crystal ball...forseeing the growth of Hispanics in the U.S. (Willie died in 1988 at the young age of 44). 

He was a very close friend of the family, and started the Southwest Voter Registration Project with a dream to see the Hispanic vote matter, and for Hispanic voters to have a say in government at all levels.

Now, 20 years after the death of this Hispanic leader...we see Obama Barack as the Democratic nominee...moving to court Hispanic voters.  Something as we all know...he didn't do in the primaries.

How to win Hispanics ...and influence people?  Yeah...not easy...especially when your opponent did such a great job of tapping into Hispanic voters.

Well, here's a few thoughts...doing freeform today.

Superstar Venues
Obama typically has worked in superevent....superstar status where thousands of people go to megastadiums/venues to listen to him politicking.  It's worked thus far....however...

Eh, this tactic ain't gonna work so well among Hispanics.

Small & Intimate
Here's a culture where traditions, sayings, belongings, cultural habits and norms are taught and passed on by family and close friends.  Where recommendations of a friend or family member hold much greater weight than a multi-million dollar ad campaign splashed across every billboard or Spanish language novela.

Keep it small, keep it close, a big superstar over the top presentation...will likely do more to turn off than attract Hispanic voters.

Influencers
Hispanics listen to other Hispanics....and well...Obama and McCain for that matter needs to identify significant influencers in the Hispanic community who will start talking about his ideas, and laying the groundwork as to why Hispanics should vote for either candidate.

Obama reached out this past week to Joe Baca, chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to garner his support...Now remember...Baca, had pledged his support to Hillary.  Baca is rallying, and has come out in the press that he will be rallying to support Obama.

This is a good first move...but as the saying goes...there's still much work to be done.

Target
See this is something Hillary was just good at.  Targeting Hispanics.  She assembled a powerhouse of staff behind her who had the expertise at developing Hispanic voter connections at a variety of levels.  Obama and McCain are way behind here.  They both need to develop a concerted effort to step up to the plate, and talk about issues that matter to Hispanics, and develop appropriate strategies to do so.

Explain
Okay to me this is a key one,  both candidates...be in McCain or Obama need to explain to Hispanic voters several things. 

1) McCain: Immigration
For a time there, he was supporting the immigration issue...but why has it seemed he has turned his back on his once supportive immigration stance.  What happened?  Where'd you go?

2) Obama: Where've you been?
It's almost as if Obama gave up on Hispanic voters during the race with Hillary- as if the problem would just go away.  Well, news flash....it won't Hispanics are here to stay.  Where have your efforts been? 

A few thoughts...

-La Marketer 

5/14/08-  Yup, we know, you've heard, your neighbors have heard, everybody knows, Hispanics are the big new demographic.  But did you know they are the 2nd biggest users of cellphones...in terms of voice usage..(they come just after African-Americans).

Well, this shouldn't be a complete shock.  I know my family regularly when I was a kid used to bill $100s of dollars a month in phone calls to my mom's country in Central America.  So this is no real change of phone usage...just now...todos are mobile (which makes sense).

So what does this mean for you?

Well, mobile, mobile, mobile.  Research shows Hispanics tend to use more of the features (text, speed dialing, messaging etc.) on their phones, and use more customization (i.e. ringtones...cellphone holders, gadgets etc.) 

Remember...Hispanics are generally a disconnected community, with family members straddling countries and spread all over the U.S.  Anything that can keep them together, i.e. a cell phone, talking to their friends and family, messaging etc. will be of big benefit if you are trying to target los Hispanos.

BTW: An interesting piece of research...Hispanics are the most likely of any ethnic group to have just a cellphone & no landline these days.

-La Marketer

5/07/08-  Almost 20% of the U.S. population is made up of Hispanic youth....hard to believe!  It's stunning to think!  And get this...22% of the U.S. population is Hispanic and under 5 years old.  Yes, Hispanics are set to become a major powerhouse of the U.S. population.  And along with this increasing growth, means health care, health care, medical costs, health care, and guess what...yeah more health care.

So it's a burgeoning population, and Hispanic health care needs are set to be growing at an astonishing pace over the next decades. 

So what's the secret when it comes to selling health care to Hispanics?  Ah...the million dollar question. 

Well my biggest piece of advice to you is: get involved.  That's right, get involved in the community.  Hispanics are a tribal culture who value the advice of others in their community, most often weighting that more heavily than any expensive piece of advertising or marketing.  So here's a few thoughts from a Hispana marketer on targeting the market.

Churches- Places of worship.  Hispanics who come to the U.S. are far from their roots, far from where they grew up, and far from their families.  Thus churches for many Hispanics tend to become a focal point for development of a comfort area/community as Hispanics move to the U.S. and start new lives.  Targeting churches or becoming involved in church communities is a good way for companies to get involved with the Hispanic market.

Credit Cards- Many Hispanics don't have credit cards (or checks for that matter)- especially those who have grown up in Latin America, so if you're planning to sell something to them....plan ahead and don't require a credit card number...i.e....have a way to get around that...for example can pay by credit card number or money order, or payment in person is allowed, debit from bank account etc.  Only the very very wealthy in Latin America have credit cards.  Those who are coming to the U.S. for work, are likely not yet used to the idea of paying for things by credit/debit.

Schools- Yes, schools are a great place to start.  Get involved and get name recognition among this burgeoning young population.  Book covers, pencils, erasers...you could even pass these out at church events as mentioned above. 

Free clinics- Sponsor some!  Find a Hispanic neighborhood or festival and offer health tips, blood pressure screenings etc.  Visit construction sites during lunch, pass out freebies or information.  Great way to gain some name recognition among hispanics.

Latino Supermarkets- We all need to eat right?  And Latino supermarkets are springing up all over.  It's a guaranteed mainly Latino audience.  Why not set up a booth during a busy shopping evening and promote your health care product?    

Fleamarkets- When I was a kid, I worked weekends at my family's store at a Houston fleamarket on weekends.  Our customers?  100% Hispanic.  Find your nearest Latino fleamarket...get involved. 

Internet-  Don't forget, while you may be wired and online, alot of Hispanics are not yet online.  Telling Hispanics to apply "online" may just lose a large, valuable customer base.  A friend of mine works at a bakery, and she's commented to me, that when they tell Hispanics to apply on line for a job....well, they just don't apply.  Why?  Low-income Hispanics generally don't have readily available Internet.   Try something else...perhaps apply by phone... 

Segmentation- No one size fits all marketing and sales campaign will work with all Hispanics.  I wrote an earlier post on the different strata of Hispanics in the U.S.  So determine what strata you will be targeting (market data, studies, etc.), and develop a campaign for your product that suits their individual market, needs, and backgrounds.

Okay, so I could keep going...but I'll keep some ideas close to the vest for next time.  Remember...get involved!

 -La Marketer

4/24/08- So today I was reading a book by a famed Harvard professor today…and I had 1 of those slap myself on the forehead…“Why didn’t I think of that?” moments…

 

The crux of this professor’s theory, was that to grow your business, increase your sales, and increase customer's purchasing of your products you need to grow DEMAND.

 

Okay – any marketer knows that- however…we’ll put it in really sophisticating marketing language…”audience research shows”, “the model says”, “analysis results reveal”…snore..blah…no.

 

The crux of the matter is---it really is that simple….as simple as “DEMAND”. You want to sell your product to Hispanics?  Fine!  Well, make them want it! Create DEMAND.

 

It’s easy to push your product on the Hispanic population…anybody and everybody can do it.  Spend a little cash, create a marketing budget- and voila- you’re pushing a product.  But you really won’t start seeing serious upward, steady sales…until you create a DEMAND, a need, a desire, a want, etc. for your product.

 

How do you do that you ask…ah…great question, and I’ll talk about that in an upcoming column, but for now…remember..it’s DEMAND that’ll make you money…& sell your product, especially among Hispanics. Do it.

 

-La Marketer

 

 

 

Quote:

Article from World Press:

“In the period between 1980 and 1990, and in the period between 1990 and 2000, the census department said that Hispanics were growing five times faster than the overall population. But when the overall census data came out, both times it turned out that it was actually growing eight times faster. So if you’re a betting man, it’s always better...betting."

 

A Nielsen expert was quoted in this great article I just read. Huh, I was shocked, just because I wasn't aware that Hispanic numbers actually overshot census estimate in the past couple censuses.

 

Now would be an excellent time for you and your company to get in on Hispanic marketing, considering that Hispanics make up an estimated 15% of the US population - and are gonna hit 25% within the next few decades.

 

Another Hispanic marketer, this time from Univision, was quoted saying "every dollar spent against them is a dollar spent on growth, not on defending sales against those non-Hispanic segments of the population whose numbers are declining as a percentage of the whole and whose buying power represents less than it did in the past.”

 

Wow.  That's a powerful statement.

 

Don't tell me I didn't warn you…

 

...Let the betting begin.

 

12/2/07-This week I read with interest how in San Francisco, Spanish language news trounced in the English newscasts at 6 p.m. in the recent Nielsen ratings.  It's the first time Spanish-language news has won out in that market- yet certainly not the first time it's happened around the country.  We've seen it in places like New York, Miami, Houston, etc. 

Why is this happening?

Well..

English

It seems English-language viewers are now fragmenting of into getting their news elsewhere... especially from the Internet.  English-language viewers often have access to the Internet at work.

 

Spanish

Spanish viewers, as a whole are generally not as technically advanced as English-language viewers.   Think about the audience.  Many Spanish-language viewers do not have as much familiarity with the Internet, nor as much access at jobs they might perform (in general).

 

So while English newscasts may be seeing declining viewership, not so much for Spanish- same goes to show for programming as well.  At least for now, Spanish that which viewers will always have their novelas on TV.  English viewers on the other hand, tend to have more fragmented viewership now splits between TV and Internet options.

 

It's a divided world, and somehow marketers need to decide where to spend their advertising dollars.  Not an easy decision as we can see these days.

 

-La Marketer