Latin_KNOW: The Latino Marketing Report

Latino Grocery Trend Roundup

A couple of weeks ago I posted on the trend of mainstream grocery stores shifting their focus from the general public to focus on Latino customers. This trend seems to be picking up a lot of momentum, because there is a new story on this topic at least twice a week. The latest story is from rural Arkansas, where a former "Food Town" is transforming itself into "El Ranchito" (read the story here).

In addition to these mainstream supermarket makeovers,we are also seeing a lot of mom and pop Latino-focused grocery stores popping up in once exclusively angloareas where new Latino immigrants are starting to lay down routes. In these areas, this mini market is ripe for picking and competition is non-existent. Here's a story from a distant place I must say I've never even heard of: Lima, Ohio.

And another from Fairmont, Minnesota.
And another from Sarasota, Florida.
And a feature story on the trend in general from the Dallas Morning News.

All of this buzz begs the question: why aren't the major supermarket players in Mexico, like Comercial Mexicana, Gigante or even Wal-Mart-owned Superama getting a piece of this? They know the market better than anyone and are huge enough to snatch up these dying grocery store chains and convert them to their model, plus they have brand recognition that none of these new guys could ever compete with. Maybe it's just a matter of time.

Hire a translator (Part II)

According to a press release featured on HispanicBusiness.com, David's Bridal has launched a new web site in Spanish. From the release:

"David's Bridal recognizes that the Hispanic customer represents an important and rapidly growing segment of the bridal market," said Robert D. Huth, President and CEO of David's Bridal. "These fashion-conscious young women are on the cutting edge of trends and come to us for wedding and bridesmaid dresses, as well as Quinceanera gowns. Our new Spanish language site and other marketing efforts are designed to keep these valued customers and their family members informed about our dresses and accessories for all their special occasion needs."

The new David's Bridal Spanish language web site features: * Bi-lingual registration where brides can elect to receive information in either Spanish or English, as well as a bi-lingual appointment request form * Information on styles popular with Latinas for weddings and other special occasions * Quinceanera dresses and accessories * Store locator by zip code

Future plans include an Estorias de Boda (Wedding Stories) section featuring "real brides" who submit photos and memories of their wedding day.

"Estorias" de boda? That would be "historias". I'm not trying to bully, I'm just saying, spelling the word "story" wrong is a pretty good indication that you are NOT trying very hard. And that's what I hate, this half-baked effort by marketers to short-cut their way into the Hispanic community with shoddy translations and uncreative marketing. Do they think that monolingual Spanish speakers don't mind seeing their language butchered?

With the Sun-Maid flub in mind, I went in to check out the quality of David's Bridal's new Spanish site. Looks good at first, but without even clicking, what do I see? A big old ad on the right side of the page that says BESTIDOS PARA DAMAS DE HONOR. That would be VESTIDOS in real Spanish.

Luckily for David's Bridal, their site depends more on images than on text, so if you are forgiving with the horrible spelling and weird translations (for the benefit of Spanish speakers, here's a good one: "Encuentra tu atuendo ideal de la cabeza a los pies"), then one can probably find what one wants.

But, again, if you are making the effort to showcase your new Spanish-language efforts via a press release, please make sure your site is actually communicating in proper Spanish. It's a small investment, but one that will garner praise rather than rejection from your Spanish-speaking audience.

HispanicBusiness.com             READ THE RELEASE
Technorati tags:

spanish translation

spanish latino marketing

Hire a translator...no, really

La damisela del sol...I mean Sun-Maid...obviously needs some major help with their Googlish Spanish language translations, according to this post at Clemenseando. Translation is pretty cheap. I mean, if you hired someone to tell you you need to announce something in Spanish, you can probably afford a translator. You operate from California, for god's sake, and export to Mexico.

Will they ever learn?

Two stories about t-shirts

Last week I received via James Gross an article about the scandal surrounding the Urban Outfitters t-shirts emblazoned with the slogan "New Mexico: Cleaner than Regular Mexico". Latino groups are up in arms about the t-shirts, and apparently this isn't the first time UO has been in hot water for its ironic humor. According to AP:

Two years ago, it stopped selling a game called "Ghettopoly" after protests by black civil rights leaders. Last year, it halted sales of a T-shirt that read "Everyone Loves A Jewish Girl," surrounded by dollar signs, after the Anti-Defamation League objected.

A "Voting is for Old People" T-shirt angered pro-voting groups.

With all this outrage, one wonders why the theme of race or ethnicity keeps coming up in their t-shirt designs.

One reason could be that certain groups seem to be interested in seeing their cultural identity reflected in fashion. Why is the "CH" Chapulin Colorado (a Mexican television show for children) t-shirt such a big seller both in Mexico and worldwide? Because people of Latino heritage around my age grew up with it. Wearing a "CH" on your chest means you belong to this particular group.

A popular t-shirt among Filipino Americans happens to be one that boasts the phrase "Got adobo?", referencing both the popular "Got Milk?" campaign, and a popular filipino dish. Again, an example of cultural identification via something everyone can relate to, featured on a t-shirt.

But this doesn't explain the UO "New Mexico" t-shirt. While these two previous examples don't conjure up anything negative, the Mexico t-shirt does. But is this always bad?

Take an example sent to me by my friend, retail marketing expert Linda Schumacher. The Washington Post reports that some savvy Mexican marketers are profiting from using the term "naco" on apparel. For the uninitiated, naco is a derogatory term used in Mexico to describe a person lacking class, social grace, etc. It's Mexico's equivalent of "white trash", and having lived in Mexico for many years, I've heard it whispered from the heights of Mexican society by people who believe that their lighter skin color makes them more European (and therefore less naco or "indio") to those of lower social classes who re-purpose a word that is generally used for them to criticize others in even less fortunate circumstances. It's also a common thing to shout out at another driver who has angered you on the highway. Much worse than other insults that would reference only how much of a jerk one is, naco evokes some raw emotion because it conjures up a classic theme in Mexican society: social class.

Some examples of the "naco" stereotype in Mexico: "pesero" (bus) drivers, policemen, taco vendors, taxi drivers. See a theme? The working poor.

Yes, I am giving naco a lot of weight, and yes, I realize that most people don't. But it's a word that, along with indio, cuts deep in Mexico, a country overwrought with racism.

Why then, is this naco fashion business taking off? Because by re-claiming racial stereotypes and slurs, these concepts and words lose some of their power. I'm guessing they were trying to strike that same nerve with the Jewish Girl t-shirt. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I'm still not sure, however, what the target market was for the "New Mexico" t-shirt.

The lesson to be learned here is that to fool around with racial or social stereotypes in marketing is to play with fire. If you know the culture and are somewhat connected to it, like the naco t-shirt guys, it can be a windfall. If you don't, don't even go there.

Technorati Tags:

Mexico Latino Marketing

Boy Scouts Target Latino Youth

Here's a story with a twist. Not only are the Boy Scouts reaching out to the Latino population to up their faltering membership numbers, but according to the following article, they are not having an easy time with recruitment due to and interesting impairment: it seems that Latinos associate the group with "sissies".

Phoenix scouts and leaders say the Boy Scouts have been incorrectly labeled as a club for rich or dorky kids, and it's been hard convincing many Latino kids, especially immigrants, that the group shares their values and works toward the good of boys.

I don't think it's the immigrant children who need convincing, it's their parents. This article talks about a "culture hurdle" being the culprit for such low recruitment rates. This is true. What the Boy Scouts doesn't seem to get is that the overwhelming majority of recent immigrant parents are VERY reluctant to allow their children to participate in activities away from their homes and without their direct supervision. It's just a fact. They are not used to sending their kids off to summer camp, tend to not allow sleepovers and are suspicious of adults that are not part of the family interacting with their children. Throw in the fact that with recent scandals involving children within the Boy Scout organization they have a reason to be more suspicious, and there you have it.

Latino parents' values and habits are different. THIS is the culture hurdle.

In any campaign, be it marketing or recruitment, it's important to look not only at language but the mindset and value system of the group you are looking to target. It's not enough to translate your marketing materials into another language, you must get inside the minds and hearts of the people you are reaching out to. What do they believe? What do they need? Where do you fit in? I know, it doesn't really sound like marketing talk, but it's the truth. Try to take a shortcut and chances are your campaign will fail.

Thanks to Hispanic Tips, a great new Latino news site, for this and many other tips. Hispanic Tips is chock-full of information, so check it out. If it's not there, it probably didn't happen.

Boy Scouts woo Hispanics
Group faces culture hurdle, label of 'sissy'

Betty Reid
The Arizona Republic
Jul. 20, 2005 12:00 AM

Boy Scouts of America is courting the Latino population.

It's a charge that started in 2000 when the Boy Scouts of America National Council discovered they were not reaching out to America's fastest-growing minority population. But Hispanic youngsters are not coming out of the woodwork to join.

Phoenix scouts and leaders say the Boy Scouts have been incorrectly labeled as a club for rich or dorky kids, and it's been hard convincing many Latino kids, especially immigrants, that the group shares their values and works toward the good of boys.

Alex Estrella, for example, is familiar with the barriers. The 16-year-old south Phoenix resident joined the Scouts when he was in first grade and plans to continue with the program through high school.

Alex saw a troop he joined with 16 members fall to four. While recruiting on campuses, some students tell him they are busy with sports, while others taunt the institution.

"We get called 'sissies.' It's sad because they don't know what they are missing," Alex said. "I try to explain, shooting 12 gauges and rifles. If they find that sissy, then honestly, they don't know the definition of sissy."

Arizona Republic                READ MORE

Technorati tags:
Latino Marketing

Boy Scouts

Article: When Words are Unjustly Used

This is one of my favorite themes in Latino marketing news: language flubs. Perhaps Cingular's little Spanish mishap can be blamed on the heated race to the Latino market that cell phone companies are engaged in these days.

No need to comment much on this piece from Marketing y Medios' Mariana King--the message is obvious. Enjoy!

When Words Are Unjustly Used
July 18, 2005
By Mariana C. King

Cingular Wireless is offering an intriguing international calling plan for Spanish-speaking Latinos. According to a bilingual flier, callers must apply "fair use" ("uso justo") to their phones in order to take advantage of cheaper dialing rates.

Who's to decide the fairness, or justness, of our phone calls? Will our conversations be monitored to test how fairly or justly we treat co-workers, friends and even grandma?

Flip the flier to the English side and the copywriter's plight is instantly recognizable. In English, "uso justo" becomes "just use," as in "just use Cingular World Basics." Just and justo, both from the Latin iustus, are "false friends" or "false cognates," words that share the same roots or sound alike but have different or opposite meanings.

In this case, just and justo are better explained as hypocritical friends since they share some meanings such as to describe a fair person (persona justa) or punishment (castigo justo).

But with the tricky, multimeaning word, you could also thank grandma for the new bilingual dictionary she sent you in a more colloquial and expressive way, as in "Just what I needed!" or "¡Justo lo que necesitaba!" Just also means "only," as in, "just call me" (sólo llámame) or, in this case, "just use the phone." To exasperate the problem, justo can also mean "tight," as in something that fits the body, well, tightly.

Unsuspecting readers who have been handed the promotional material may just find a reason to sign up for the plan. The glossy handout also purports an easy way to keep in touch with business associates, friends and family in more than 200 countries around the world (mantenerse en contacto con socios comerciales, amigos y familiares en más de 200 países).

Disregard for a moment that only 191 countries exist — or 193 depending on whether you count Taiwan and the Vatican.

Just another thought.

Marketing y Medios               

Article: Campaign Hillary; Se Habla Español

Looks like Hillary is jumping on the NY politician Mayor Bloomberg/Fernando Ferrer Spanish bandwagon. She's even got her web site in Spanish. Good for Hillary for realizing the importance of her Spanish-speaking constituency. I just got a little confused on the homepage when I read "haga un clic para tocar". Oh, they mean to play a video. Understood.

From The Village Voice (thanks to Hispanic Tips for calling this piece to my attention):

Campaign Hillary: Se Habla Español
Kerry blew it with Latino voters. Senator Clinton is determined not to.
by Kristen Lombardi
July 18th, 2005 10:23 PM

If it’s true the Democratic Party is getting in touch with its Latin side, then Hillary Clinton is lining up to tango.

After the desastroso 2004 presidential election, when the Democratic ticket failed throughout the heavily Hispanic Southwest, New York’s junior senator seems determined to avoid a repeat. She has invited pollsters to speak privately with her staff about the nation’s newest power constituency, laying out the numbers, analyzing what went wrong. And she’s actively courting Latino voters, taking steps not just to retain her Hispanic base, but to expand it.

On Monday, the putative 2008 presidential candidate traveled to Philadelphia to speak at a conference of the National Council of La Raza, the largest Latino civil rights group in the country. There, Clinton shared the dais with President Bush’s education secretary, Margaret Spellings, whose remarks about the administration’s school initiatives received a polite yet lukewarm response. Clinton’s remarks, on the other hand, drew three standing ovations from the 2,000-strong crowd of Hispanic movers and shakers.

She played to her audience well, touching on hot issues for the Latino community. She delivered a 30-minute speech, without notes, that highlighted a “Washington agenda” for education, health care, and an economy where “everyone has a fair shake.” Announcing two new bills that would help deal with the high rates of asthma and lead poisoning among Hispanic children and backing a measure to let illegal immigrants attend college, she provided substance to go with her flash. She commended the audience for “doing your part” but added, “I don’t know if your government is doing its part.” At that, the crowd erupted in applause, and kept on cheering.

The Village Voice            READ MORE

Article: Studios Count on Seeing More Latinos at the Movies

The following article, from the current issue of Marketing y Medios, cites a few examples of how studios are attempting to woo Latino moviegoers out to the theatres this summer. Studios are keen on Latinos because, according to MyM, "A recent Arbitron survey shows that 81 percent of Latinos are more likely to see a movie on opening weekend than the average person."

That's a very compelling statistic. One thing that I found interesting about this piece is that with the exception of a publicity stunt (and what a stunt) for Batman Begins pulled off in East L.A. and the random King Kong promo on Spanish-language television, it seems that only studios that have a Latino "angle" to tout are going after Latino moviegoers. It seems like they feel like you NEED to have a George Lopez or a John Leguizamo in the mix for Latino people to see the film.

What they do not take into account is that there is a large new immigrant population that likes to go to the movies, don't know who these actors are, could care less that they are Latinos, and see movies based on subject matter.  In the case of King Kong, some might say that this would be the type of film a monolingual Spanish speaker would be interested in seeing, as the plot is easier to follow for those who do not speak English, and the story is familiar. If we look at it this way, King Kong promos on Telemundo aren't random -- they make perfect sense.

Studios Count on Seeing More Latinos at the Movies
Marketing plans go full blast with TV exclusives and e-mails, but results still not easy to measure
July 18, 2005
By Janet Alicea

When the first trailer of the highly anticipated King Kong remake aired on June 27, it debuted not only on NBC but on sister networks Telemundo and mun2. The two-and-a-half-minute coming attraction is an early way to drum up excitement about Universal's film, which opens Dec. 14. It also highlights NBC Universal's unique vantage point as a duopoly and underscores studios' attempt to tap Latino moviegoers.

Hispanics increasingly are being courted through diverse marketing strategies, particularly since data supports strong Hispanic attendance at the movies. A recent Arbitron survey shows that 81 percent of Latinos are more likely to see a movie on opening weekend than the average person.

Latin World Entertainment (LWE), a marketing firm with Miami and Los Angeles offices, took a car/Batmobile approach to promote Warner Bros.' Batman Begins by raffling auto makeovers on California radio stations targeting Hispanic youth. Winners netted car makeovers, à la Pimp My Ride style, in East L.A. auto shops.

Marketing y Medios                 READ MORE

News: U.S. Hispanics' Online Use Surges

Lots of news today in the world of Latino marketing. According to AdAge.com, the new AOL/Roper Hispanic Cyberstudy is revealing some extremely compelling trends among Latinos online, and defying what has been said in the past -- that Latinos are significantly behind in terms of being online and engaged. From Laurel Wentz's article today, some intriguing highlights:

"Hispanics are rapidly catching up online with the general market and are surpassing non-Hispanics in areas like listening to and downloading music and instant messaging. And even English-speaking Hispanics take notice of online ads in Spanish."

" Slightly more Hispanics -- 52% -- who use the Internet at home have a broadband connection, compared to 50% of the general online population."

30% of Hispanics surveyed who say they speak English and Spanish equally well agreed with the statement that they “pay more attention to ads when they’re in Spanish than when they’re only in English.”

This data makes a very good case for something I brought up in previous post: search engine marketing aimed at Latinos. Marketers are lagging in this area, and if you believe the data cited here, missing out big time.

AdAge.com                       READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE

Article: US Hispanics Love to Shop

AdAge.com's Laurel Wentz reports today that the HOT (Hispanic Opinion Tracker) survey conducted by People en Espanol, set for release this week, found that 56% of Hispanic respondents said they "love to shop", compared to 39% of non-Latino respondents.

Some of the more interesting, and revealing, highlights of the article:

Hispanics are much more likely to pay cash, the preferred method of payment for about 75% of Hispanics. Only about 15% use credit cards, compared with more than 40% for the general market.

Among the Hispanic sample, just more than half (55%) are classified as Hispanic dominant, meaning they prefer Spanish and have a strong desire to maintain their culture.

About a quarter each are bicultural (23%), comfortable in both languages and worlds but culturally more Hispanic, or U.S. dominant (22%), a group that mirrors general market attitudes but identifies with its Latino heritage.

Another very interesting finding: the article points out that Univision beat out all three major networks and Fox for viewership among young Latinos, which seems to show that you can reach more Latinos by advertising on Spanish language television rather than on mainstream TV. So much for that Vehix experiment. Or perhaps not. Not all Latino consumers watch Spanish language television, and many watch it only half of the time. The best strategy is to get to know your consumers' habits and be how they are, where they are, when they are there, be that in English or in Spanish, on TV or radio, on your web site or wherever else.

STUDY: U.S. HISPANIC CONSUMERS LOVE TO SHOP
Annual HOT Survey Provides New Demographic Insights
By Laurel Wentz, Adage.com

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Fifty-six percent of the U.S. Hispanics polled said "I love to shop" compared with 39% of the general population and are similarly much more likely to pay cash for their purchases, acccording to People en Espanol's fourth annual Hispanic Opinion Tracker (HOT) survey slated for release this week.

HOT, one of the largest Hispanic surveys conducted in the U.S. each year, found that Hispanic consumers are more likely to go shopping and much less likely to use credit cards than their general market counterparts. Survey participants said they spent on average $1,992 on clothing and accessories in the last 12 months, for instance, compared to $1,153 for general market consumers.
'Passionate about shopping'

“We’re much more passionate about shopping,” said Jackie Hernandez Fallous, publisher of People en Espanol. “And Hispanics are much more impacted by advertising and marketing. They buy because of a product’s image or the ads or because something is trendy or new on the market.”

AdAge.com            READ MORE