• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, July 5, 2007

Advertising in Spanish-language media is booming -- and consumer magazines are some of the biggest winners, according to research and analysis firm TNS.

Magazines targeting Hispanics experienced 14.3% growth in revenue in the first quarter of 2007, compared to the same period last year. Moreover, publishers -- and marketers -- are rolling out new Spanish-language and bilingual products at a steady pace.

The popularity of magazines is understandable in light of the results of a recent study by the Magazine Publishers of America. The MPA study found that 85% of Hispanics read magazines, 47% trust information in magazines and 43% trust magazine advertising. Thus, magazines have a substantial advantage over TV ads -- which are trusted by 38% -- and Internet ads, trusted by just 25%.

Big advertisers also upped their spending on Spanish-language advertising across an array of media in the first quarter, with Procter & Gamble's budget growing 8.3%, to $39.8 million, Sears up 29.2%, to $16.9 million and Walt Disney up 13.2% to $17.7 million. By way of comparison, in 2006, the total market rose 14.4% in 2006, to $5.9 billion.

Some marketers are going right to the consumer with their own custom publications in the Spanish-language market. For example, General Mills recently launched a free new custom magazine, Que Rica Vida, covering culinary matters and related lifestyle issues - -with, of course, some space set aside for recipes from Betty Crocker. Que Rica Vida, which translates as "What a Rich Life!" or "What a Delicious Life!" is published in cooperation with Editorial Televisa, the world's largest Spanish-language magazine publishing house, based in Miami.