3 Ways to Market to Hispanic Consumers This Holiday Season
My article was first published in Entrepreneur Magazine.
The holiday season is here, and shopping is in full swing. Despite the current state of the economy, shoppers are finding ways to keep the holiday spirit alive by bargain hunting and shifting expenses to allocate more for gifts. According to a study done by Deloitte, "Household finances may be at the weakest level in a decade, but spending stays steady as consumers cut non-essentials to give gifts and socialize." In addition, after reducing spending efforts in 2021, low-income shoppers plan to spend 25% more this year. Although Americans are adjusting their spending strategies due to inflation, companies need to understand the growing consumer segments and champion them by creating genuine, authentic marketing campaigns that make them feel welcome.
For the 2022 holiday season, brands should place a greater emphasis on their Hispanic holiday marketing efforts. Why? The Hispanic community is the second-fastest growing minority market in the U.S., rising by 212% or $500 billion since 2000. There are over 60 million Hispanics in the United States, and in 2019, they accounted for over $1.5 trillion in spending power.
So, here are three ways to properly market to the Hispanic community while potentially creating lifelong customer loyalty:
1. Display your understanding
It's important to stress that the Hispanic community is not a monolith, and this community takes great pride in its American culture and the culture of its countries of origin. According to the Pew Research Center, "Black and Hispanic adults were more likely than White adults to say their origins are central to their identity and feel a strong connection to their family's cultural roots." Therefore, an organization's marketing efforts will come across as more genuine if they exhibit an understanding and appreciation for the Hispanic culture.
While some may think that this holiday season consists only of La Navidad, there are many more days of celebration and reflection besides that, including La Inmaculada Concepción de María, Las Posadas, Nochebuena, Día de los Inocentes, La Noche de Fin de Año, and Día de Los Reyes Magos. Marketers should fully understand what these special days entail so they can better position themselves when advertising to this community.
A great example of a business that exhibited understanding is Publix. On their website, they posted traditional Latin American holiday recipes and included a link to the ingredients that customers could find in the store.
2. Incorporate Spanish
Incorporating Spanish into an organization's marketing efforts will further solidify the bond between the consumer and the brand. According to the Kantar 2021 U.S. Monitor report, "88% of U.S. Hispanics say they appreciate businesses that speak to them in Spanish, and 87% feel businesses that make a sincere effort to be part of or invest in their communities deserve their loyalty." With 71% of all Hispanics speaking Spanish at home, either primarily or in combination with English, leveraging Spanish as part of a company's holiday marketing efforts will allow the organization to forge a deeper connection with its target market.
A great example of this is Disney Animation Studios. The organization incorporated Spanish words into its holiday message and utilized designs from its award-winning movie, Encanto.
3. Focus on building a community
While marketers may try to push catchy advertisements during this time, the main goal they should strive to achieve is creating a community of lifelong, supportive customers. Building a lifelong relationship takes having a deep understanding of the community, standing with the community in times of crisis and creating opportunities for the community to flourish. A company that has done a fantastic job at this is Target. In their most recent diversity report, Target shared that nearly 30% of their entire team, more than a fifth of their managers, and 10% of their officers are Hispanic/Latino. Target also has a longstanding partnership with the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, offers more than 60 Latino-owned and founded brands and invested more than $1.1 billion in Latino-owned suppliers, media, localization efforts and community organizations.
Regarding their marketing efforts, Target launched a multicultural holiday series called "Welcome To," where they celebrate various holidays throughout the year by featuring Target customers from those communities. Additionally, in 2021, Target featured Día de Reyes and highlighted how one of its customers celebrated this day with their family.
Like other communities, the holiday season is a time when the Hispanic community comes together with family and friends, has large spreads/dinners and spends time reflecting on the year ahead. If brands truly want to reach the Hispanic consumer, they need to serve as a partner by supporting the community, celebrating with the community and providing opportunities for the community. Finally, when conducting Hispanic marketing, it's important to incorporate elements of the Spanish language and overall culture into the campaigns.