Commentary
Avoid Subtle Stereotypes To Maintain Campaign Effectiveness
- by Patricia Graham , Jannet Torres , January 8, 2009
This means that, when marketers talk about "U.S. Latinos," they cannot simply fall back on images of first-generation, Spanish-speaking immigrants. The Hispanic population in the U.S. is assimilating and transforming much faster than the speed of stereotypes, acquiring complexity as it blends old and new.
But assumptions still have a habit of rearing their ugly heads when marketers and researchers are planning their Hispanic work, from strategy to surveys to advertising execution. Even subtle stereotypes can undermine the effectiveness of your efforts, and create a negative reputation for your company in this all-important community.
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During this time of economic contraction, firms that can see beyond stereotypes have a chance to identify anew who and where the profitable Hispanic customers are -- and prioritize the most effective marketing efforts for reaching them. To make sure you do not fall prey to the assumption trap, you need to start with an understanding of the full spectrum of the Latino market. In short, your market research needs to be sound -- and that is harder to achieve than it might appear to be.
The Pew Hispanic Center and the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that 56% of Spanish-speakers are not on the Internet and do not receive even occasional emails. This means that more than half of this important population is missing from essentially all Internet surveys; that is potentially a big "miss" for marketers trying to figure out how to make launch effective marketing campaigns targeting U.S. Latinos.
The problem, Pew found, was more lack of access than lack of interest. To provide an alternative, Knowledge Networks began giving laptops and Internet access to all Spanish- and English-speaking Latinos who were selected for our new online panel.
A recent survey of 2,970 members of KnowledgePanel Latino panel -- from across the spectrum of acculturation, income, and English/Spanish dominance -- provided some striking views on assimilation and culture. From these results, we can derive important lessons on how to market to Hispanics with sensitivity and efficiency:
- Hispanics are committed to assimilating: While the majority (75%) of foreign-born U.S. Hispanics feel that their real homeland is their country of origin, most are in the U.S. to stay, with 82% aspiring to become citizens. Most Hispanics feel it is important to maintain their culture (72%); but 62% also feel that they need to "change to blend into the larger society" and 85% say that anyone who comes to the U.S. to stay needs to learn English. Lesson: Latino marketing needs to incorporate their new, U.S. identities, not just their loyalty to homeland.
- Tastes in food are transformed by time in the U.S.: Sixty percent indicate that their favorite foods are from their country of origin -- but the results vary greatly from those who are least assimilated (73%) versus most (33%). Lesson: Hispanic taste buds will be allured by much more than salsa and habanero.
- Advertising in Spanish may not be a deal breaker: Less than one-third (29%) of all U.S. Latinos prefer brands that advertise in Spanish. We see here, as well, a similarly high variation in results by assimilation level -- 48% among those with a low assimilation level, versus 4% among the most assimilated. Lesson: Spanish is not the catch-all for speaking effectively to Latino consumers.
- Family and friends trump many other priorities: While many seem willing to make sacrifices in order to live a successful life in the U.S., only 38% of all U.S. Latinos said they would give up time with family and friends to be successful. Lesson: Advertising and marketing that highlights group dynamics -- from social TV viewing to family-centered promotions -- has a strong advantage.
- Spanish-language TV is still a commonality: Nearly all Hispanics (91%) report having access to Spanish-language television stations at home, and even highly assimilated Latinos (46%) say they watch Spanish-language programming. But for English-language media, time spent each week varies greatly by assimilation -- 9 hours among the less assimilated, versus 22 hours for the more assimilated. Lesson: Spanish-language TV offers an opportunity to reach across the assimilation spectrum.
With a respect for nuance and access to the right resources -- representative, accurate research being one of the essentials -- making wise bets in the Hispanic marketplace can offer a source of growth and profitability in difficult times. But failing to see this diverse community clearly, in all its variations, could be inviting disappointment for marketers and researchers alike.
Even within this article, which is very balanced, there still niches within the hispanic community in the U.S. that should be treated separately. I think the mass market appeal to hispanics is often easy, but among non-hispanics we have seen the deteriorization of mass marketing. Going at this with a post mass market approach would be more sustainable in the short and long run.
Thank you
As someone who has conducted multicultural research studies for the past 30 years, I want to share a few thoughts. First, you provde key insights that challenge conventional thinking about segmenting Hispanics -- which has placed too much emphasis in the past on linguistic segmentation in lieu of more relevant lifestye or product segmentation. Second, the term "assimilation" does not accurately describe the process that Hispanics are experiencing in the U.S. since it suggests that fully assimilated Hispanics have abandoned their cultural identity and behavior. "Acculturation" is a more accurate term since our research shows that even highly acculturated Hispanics are maintaining many aspects of their culture while "adding" elements of other cultures in the U.S. Acculturated Hispanics may communicate more often in English, but this does not mean they are culturally sterile or "assimilated." Lastly, Internet access rates from the Pew Internet Life Project include only English-speaking Hispanics and thus, misleading. Better to use the rates reported by the Pew Hispanic Center which includes both English and Spanish-speaking Hispanics in their Study.
The data from PEW has become the cornerstone for so many arguments favoring the emerging potential of Hispanic markets. ...but when I asked PEW's chief researcher just how the $1 trillion purchasing power number was calculated, he shrugged his shoulders and pointed to an intensely computational outfit out of math gurus based out of Georgia. Right or wrong, I still feel an enormous lack of checks and balances with the many already accepted expectations for this market.
About this article:
The findings from an online panel of 2,970 Hispanics highlighted in this article seem somewhat unbelievable. On the one hand, 56% of Spanish-speakers are not online and yet the author highlights various bullet-point conclusions as though they apply to all Hispanics. Similar to PEW's claims, the acid test of what conclusions are right or wrong leaves much to be desired.
Please don't get me wrong. The effort from both PEW and Patricia Graham are noteworthy and essential. I am only expressing my own personal frustration as another columnist in this space. Eventually this market will leave viable footprints that can help verify predictive claims.
I personally have worked in US Hispanic media for over 15 years now, witnessing firsthand the expansion and evolution of media properties over the years, and the frustration on everyone's part for a lack of quality data on this market segment.
In fact, I am part of the media as I have represented various national Spanish-language magazines over the years - and continue to do so, adding website/digital advertising to my portfolio (inclusing the Walt Disney Company and Kraft Foods Corp).
I take special note to the reference to acculturation and this important concept of "Bi-Cultural" latinos in the US - those who maintain their connection to their heritage, while assimilating into US mainstream - I suppose it's best described as acculturation...
One media property I decided to represent for 2008 and beyond is LATINO FUTURE, as I believe it does reflect this part of the emerging US Hispanic (Latino) population. If interested, you can get a sense for the this pioneering company and their media products viewing their media kit online: http://www.hispanicmediareps.com/LFM/LFM2009MediaKit.pdf
Thank you Patricia for raising the awareness of the changes in the US Hispanic market, and for the insightful data - at the very least it creates dialog around these important issues for marketers. I maintain that corporate leaders must continue to make significant investments (higher %) in doing business with US Latinos if they want to grow market share, and at the same time capture what has traditionally been a very loyal consumer; it's simply in their best interest short term, and long term.
I personally have worked in US Hispanic media for over 15 years now, witnessing firsthand the expansion and evolution of media properties over the years, and the frustration on everyone's part for a lack of quality data on this market segment.
In fact, I am part of the media as I have represented various national Spanish-language magazines over the years - and continue to do so, adding website/digital advertising to my portfolio (including the Walt Disney Company and Kraft Foods Corp).
I take special note to the reference to acculturation and this important concept of "Bi-Cultural" Latinos in the US - those who maintain their connection to their heritage, while assimilating into US mainstream - I suppose it's best described as acculturation...
One media property I decided to represent for 2008 and beyond is LATINO FUTURE, as I believe it does reflect this part of the emerging US Hispanic (Latino) population. If interested, you can get a sense for the this pioneering company and their media products viewing their media kit online: http://www.hispanicmediareps.com/LFM/LFM2009MediaKit.pdf
Thank you Patricia for raising the awareness of the changes in the US Hispanic market, and for the insightful data - at the very least it creates dialog around these important issues for marketers. I maintain that corporate leaders must continue to make significant investments (higher %) in doing business with US Latinos if they want to grow market share, and at the same time capture what has traditionally been a very loyal consumer; it's simply in their best interest short term, and long term.
Wanted to clarify the data set used in this article based upon a comment from Tom Kadala. His comment about 56% of the Hispanic population not being online is spot on. Thanks for bringing this up. One should not generalize to the total Hispanic population if those who are "offline' are not included in the sample. My bullet points however do include data from both Hispanic groups -- those who were online and offline. Tom, to be specfic the data cited from our Knowledge Networks (KN) includes those Hispanics who did not have Internet access or an ISP provider prior to joing our online survey panel. KN provdes a laptop and internet connection to those Hispanics who were "offline" when we RDD recruitment called them to join the panel, Once they gree to join our panel and fulfill certain survey taking requirements we give them the equipment to take surveys. The data used here therefore covers the digital divde and therefore the 'all Hispanic' conclusions are valid. Hoep this clarifies things and thanks again Tom for a vlaid point.
Wanted to clarify the data set used in this article based upon a comment from Tom Kadala. His comment about 56% of the Hispanic population not being online is spot on. Thanks for bringing this up. One should not generalize to the total Hispanic population if those who are "offline' are not included in the sample. My bullet points however do include data from both Hispanic groups -- those who were online and offline. Tom, to be specfic the data cited from our Knowledge Networks (KN)panel does include those Hispanics who did not have Internet access or an ISP provider prior to joing our online survey panel. KN provdes a laptop and internet connection to those Hispanics who were "offline" when we RDD recruitment called them to join the panel, Once they agree to join our panel and fulfill certain survey taking requirements we give them the equipment to take surveys. The data used here therefore covers the digital divde and therefore the 'all Hispanic' conclusions are valid. Hope this clarifies things and thanks again Tom for a valid point that the KN data does indeed cover.
Patricia,
Thanks for the clarification regarding the methodology used to reduce the digital divide bias in your study.
Being Hispanic and having lived in most Latin American countries, I sincerely have a hard time visualizing the process used to entice a non-Internet Hispanic user to participate in this type of program. Surely the younger brass jumped on the band wagon quickly, but the older types... I'm not as confident. What concerns me most are the number of individuals who said 'no thanks' and were passed up for someone else. What were their opinions? ...and did you have a way to collect that data in a reliable manner? Other issues such the comfort level non-Internet Hispanic respondents had in participating in this program concern me. Hispanics are notorious for telling you what you want to hear rather than what they truly think. I would wager from my personal experience that the non-Internet user Hispanics went with the flow to get whatever incentive was at the other end of the project. I could almost imagine what they probably said under their breath, in Spanish, to a family member or friend about the study. If these non-Internet users represented 10%, maybe it would not be such an issue, but 56%! That's another matter.
Again please take my thoughts constructively. These issues are real ones that we grapple with daily at ResearchPAYS. If you can share some thoughts, clarity, reservations, comments, experiences on viable ways to harness 30+ cultures within a digital divide singular equation, let me know.
We've made some interesting inroads in this regard but still feel there's much more to learn.
Thanks again for your response,
Tom Kadala
www.researchpays.net
I enjoyed this article given the discussion it generated. It is absolutely true that relying on stereotypes to effectively reach the U.S. Hispanic population is going to get corporations in trouble. Companies who have invested greatly in their Hispanic marketing programs know this and rightfully rely on their Hispanic marketing partners to develop strategies that are today (by consensus) effective and stereotype-free.
So, what value is there to discuss stereotypes in Hispanic marketing in 2009 when many companies know that this is no longer acceptable?
It is my theory that those companies which still use stereotypes to target the Hispanic market (at any level) are doing it to help reduce (and manage) the complexity that exists in their heads about the segment; it is their way to simplify the complex. In other words, by creating ‘simple’ rules or adhering to stereotypical beliefs, which may seem valid and culturally oriented, companies are in a sense creating knowledge that they can use to make sense of the complex. These clients, I argue, tend to be less experienced at Hispanic marketing, and many of them would have a difficult time determining if something was "stereotypical" or not, on their own.
What's ironic is that these stereotypes, which today are said to be ineffective in targeting Hispanics, were popular and frequently used by the industry years ago. What changed? The market or the approach of the industry? The industry changed it’s way of targeting … there was a resurgence not too long ago to deliver better creative, better strategy and better results. It was part of the industry’s evolutionary progress, in my view.
As we enter the New Year, the pressing issue in 2009 and 2010 is not the impact of stereotypes on the strategic process in Hispanic marketing. Moving into the future, the industry must re-define what constitutes the Hispanic market in a manner that captures the true diversity of this ethnic group, even if the diversity itself paints a different face on the population.
This may be upsetting to some since the diversity underlying this ethnic group may chip away at the edges of what I call the Hispanic Marketing Paradigm, the business model on which the Hispanic marketing industry has used to build a multi-billion dollar industry over the last 30+ years. Simply asking how PEW calculated "Hispanic purchasing power" for the Hispanic segment, as Tom Kadala has noted earlier in this thread, is the right question to ask, but not receiving a clear and direct answer feeds distrust and skepticism.
We must have a model that everyone can understand. The model must be scientific, validated, and debated. Until then, discussing Hispanic marketing effectiveness will continue to be largely rhetorical, and most certainly, political.
Jake Beniflah, Integrados