This year more than ever--with consumer pocketbooks empty and confidence at an all-time low--it is important to take note of the everlasting importance of traditional direct mail marketing and its overall effect on the Hispanic market segment.

At last week's National Retail Federation Conference & Expo in New York City, Carl Steidtmann, chief economist of consumer business at Deloitte Research, made a powerful and somber presentation on the state of the U.S. consumer, which drives much of the advertising industry. Steidtmann's thesis was simple -- consumers are being deleveraged of their purchasing power in transformational ways.

Where will many Hispanics and other Spanish-speakers around the world first experience the Internet? Interestingly, because they lag behind the general population for Internet access, many will first go online via their cell phones. In fact, they significantly over-index when consuming mobile content.

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.