• by Katrina Lerman , September 25, 2008

Marketers are realizing that what works in engaging one ethnic group won't necessarily work for another, and ignoring the nuances of Hispanic behavior online could hinder marketers' ability to effectively engage this massive audience.

While marketers understand this intuitively, questions still remain: How can brands successfully use this platform to build long-term, authentic relationships with Hispanics of all backgrounds? How can marketers effectively engage them beyond a moment-in-time, click-once relationship? What does it take to win the investment of this audience so Hispanics can become future brand loyalists or, even better, brand advocates? And what exactly are the cultural and language barriers?

A recent study by Communispace Corporation set out to find the answers. Looking at more than 1,000 Hispanic members in two private, online communities, the study revealed several trends that not only validate the effectiveness of using online media such as communities and social networks to reach Hispanic audiences, but also offer strategic guidance for doing so more effectively. Following these cues could help marketers more successfully engage Hispanics online-not just once, but in a longitudinal, iterative way. What most marketers don't know is:

Hispanics of all backgrounds will and do participate in online communities "My past experience in marketing indicated that Hispanics, particularly the first-generation segments, did not typically participate in online forums and were not technologically savvy," said Maria Vasallo, a Spanish-speaking Communispace facilitator. However, the recent study suggests that Hispanics, regardless of age, income, primary language, gender or generation, will indeed give willingly of their time and ideas in a private, online forum. On average, 21% of the communities in this study participated each week (making at least one contribution), and about 40% participated each month.

Even more surprising: their rate of nearly six contributions per week indicates an above-average level of engagement compared to similar English-language communities. Contrary to her prior experiences, Vasallo discovered the following in a community for a hospitality company: "Not only did a group of primarily first-generation, Spanish-dominant Hispanics participate in online research studies, they became a virtual family ... developing a fierce loyalty to the brand because the brand allowed their voices to make a difference."

More acculturated Hispanics may be less active in an all-Spanish environment Second-generation Hispanics demonstrated lower participation rates than their less acculturated, first-generation counterparts, indicating that they may not prefer a Spanish-only forum. In one community, first-generation members had a monthly participation rate of 43% versus 31% for second-generation. Additionally, among first-generation Hispanics, participation decreased as time living in the U.S. increased.

These findings suggest that more "Americanized" Hispanics - those who were born here or have lived here for a long time - may feel less comfortable in a completely Spanish environment. "I am fluent in Spanish," one second-generation member posted. "I can read, write and speak it. However, there are a lot of words I am not familiar with. I learned my Spanish from my grandparents. I am just more comfortable in English." This common story shows that marketers would be wise to communicate bilingually with acculturated Hispanics, so as to more closely match their offline lives.

It's important to let the community form around natural social glue Providing an intimate environment in which participants feel a sense of belonging is critical to gathering authentic and unfiltered customer insight. That's why members respond positively to online forums that enable them to initiate their own discussions on any topic, not just on those of interest to the sponsoring company. While all members in the Communispace study took part in company-sponsored surveys and dialogues, those conversing in their dominant language (here, Spanish) were much more likely to start their own discussions.

For example, in one community, Spanish-dominant members represented only 52% of the community, but started 73% of the member-generated activities. These members took "ownership" of the community and saw it as a place where they felt comfortable discussing with other Spanish speakers the unique issues that are important to them. "I think it is very interesting to find a site exclusively for Latin women that live in the U.S.," said one member. "We have a lot in common; this is the reason we share so much with each other. Everybody is open to dialogue."

There is no question that marketers need to adjust their approach to targeting Hispanics. While the potential to learn is limitless, savvy marketers should keep these key trends from Communispace's study in mind when striving to engage Hispanics online.