Pew Hispanic Center released a report that Hispanics are now 1 in 5 public school students nationwide. Between 1990 and 2006 they were 60% o the total enrollment growth, and now total 10 million.

By 2050, there will be more school-age Hispanic children than school-age non-Hispanic white children.

The report, "One-in-Five and Growing Fast: A Profile of Hispanic Public School Students," also stated that:
-- The vast majority of Hispanic public school students (84%) were born in the U.S.
-- 70% speak a language other than English at home.
-- 18% of all Hispanic students speak English with difficulty.
-- 57% live in households with both of their parents compared with 69% of non-Hispanic white students and 30% of non-Hispanic black students.
-- More than 70% U.S. born Hispanic students of immigrant parents live with both parents.
-- More than a quarter of Hispanic students (28%) live in poverty, compared with 16% of non-Hispanic students. ...

For my first blog post I wanted to focus on the area where Hispanic marketers, and other ethnic marketers, are often battling for credibility and respect: Educating general market organizations that marketing to ethnic groups is less about communicating in a native language like Spanish as it is about communicating in a culturally-relevant manner.

Like other ethnic groups, celebrations and festivities are an ingrained part of Hispanic culture. This doesn’t necessarily change for young Latinos who are English dominant as they too are getting back in touch with their “roots” at a fast pace. It’s cool to be Latino these days. Restaurants are featuring our flavors, shows are talking “Spanglish,” and actors like Charlie Sheen are no longer changing their names to get work in Hollywood. The fact is, connecting and staying connected to our culture is customary not just enjoyable, which brings me back to my point. Perhaps you’ve also faced a client or prospect who has don’t ...

As published in the book Hispanic Marketer’s Guide to Cable 2008, available soon from the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau.

An abundance of information has been garnered in the past few years on how to win the hearts and minds of Hispanic females. Major CPG, healthcare, media, and HBA businesses have conducted research about what it entails to be a Latina, the meaning of beauty, what makes them feel special and appreciated, the importance of family, etc. And in many ways this information has led to newer and better products for her, new publications that cater specifically to her, new TV content and channels, as well as better offerings at the supermarket and other places where she shops.

However, as the market has evolved (due to shifts in levels of acculturation, immigration policy, and the positive proliferation of media options to name a few) sooo ...

A recent article in Ad Age, “Consumer Chasm: Distance widening between consumer types,” put forth an interesting notion regarding the growing importance of consumer segmentation in the corporate organizational structure:

“The emergence of the title of chief marketing officer elevated the marketing function to a level of importance equal to that of finance and the chief financial officer. Within the C-suite, we may see the creation of a new position under the CMO: consumer-segments communicator.

That person will be the one who keeps everyone in the firm up to speed on the different and fast-changing channels through which each segment of consumers can be most efficiently reached, queried and persuaded.”


Why is this particularly of interest to multicultural marketers? Because it is the encapsulation of the debate on whether separate infrastructures (strategies, departments, and agencies) are required to effectively reach the two lnd ...