How Does the U.S. Hispanic Market Look in 2010?
BY DR. NADIA ASHRAFIAN
U.S. Hispanic purchasing power will surge to nearly $1 trillion by 2010–nearly three times the overall national rate over the past decade. In most categories, Hispanics spend more money than the general market. The top areas are groceries, telephone services, furniture, clothing, household products, ingestibles or “wellness” products, fitness products, as well as weight-loss products and automobiles.
The U.S. Hispanic market ranks as the third largest “Latin American economy” behind Brazil and Mexico. According to U.S. Census data, there are more Hispanics living in the United States (50 million) than the entire population of Canada at 32.5 million. We are like a country within a country.
Hispanic advertising by U.S. companies has grown 30 percent in 2009, compared with 8.6 percent for the general market. By mid-century, 25 percent or one out of every four people in the United States will be Hispanic and will represent 25 percent of the total population. An IRS report predicted that one out of every 10 small businesses would be Hispanic by the year 2007. Today, the proportion stands at one in 13.
By mid-century, 25 percent or one out of every four people in the United States will be Hispanic and will represent 25 percent of the total population. |
SEEING THE BIG PICTURE
What does all this mean to U.S. businesses and selling products? Based on our experience of selling products and services to the U.S. Hispanic market for the past eight years, a dubbed show in Spanish can work just as well as an original show. Find a good Spanish call center that can handle all the calls and sell. Include “Español” buttons on websites so a Spanish speaker can click on it and be re-directed to the Spanish version of the site.
Everything you can do on the Internet can also be done in Spanish—from the landing page, affiliate marketing and social media. The increase use of the web in the U.S. Hispanic segment is amazing! Plan a simple media test and grow based on your response. Almost every major company in our industry today has a Hispanic division. You can add to your total media buying by another 30 percent. The U.S. Hispanic market is the sure and safest way of making up sales lost in the general market due to a softer economy.
| Growth in Internet Usage: U.S. Hispanic Internet Population vs. Total U.S. Internet Population February 2009 vs. February 2008 Total U.S. – Home, Work and University Locations Source: comScore Media Metrix |
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| Data on the U.S. Hispanic market and the Internet compared to the general market in the U.S. | Percent Change Feb. 2009 vs. Feb. 2008 |
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| Total U.S. Internet Audience | Total U.S. Hispanic Internet Audience | |
| Total Unique Visitors | 3.9% | 5.8% |
| Total Minutes | 1.4% | 6.9% |
| Average Minutes per Usage Day | 4.4% | 7.7% |
| Total Pages Viewed | 1.3% | 6.0% |
| Total Visits | -1.8% | 5.4% |
| Average Visits per Usage Day | 1.1% | 6.1% |
The number of Spanish speakers in the United States is growing. So for those marketers who are waiting until the U.S. Hispanic market learns English, you are leaving millions of dollars on the table! This is obvious to anyone living anywhere in this country. All Americans encounter Spanish-speaking people in their daily lives—whether shopping, dining at a restaurant, visiting a doctor’s office or simply being at their place of employment. A study recently released by Hispanic USA Inc., called “The Future Use of the Spanish Language in the USA,” reveals that the number of Spanish-dominant and bilingual Hispanics will increase by 45 percent over the next 20 years.
What makes Hispanic media so attractive to the direct response business is the lower cost of media reach per thousand and the lower cost of utilizing call centers due to outsourcing to neighboring countries. Also, this much smaller market allows for more targeted advertising. Lastly, U.S. Hispanics’ strong buying power in retail and their increased usage of credit cards make them an ideal market for our products and services.
Dr. Nadia Ashrafian is CEO of Capital Media Group in San Juan Capistrano, Calif. She can be reached at nadia@capitalmedia.com.
Nadia Ashrafian | 21 Jan 10 | 
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