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HISPANIC MARKET OVERVIEW, presented by López Negrete 2016 Edition
INTRODUCTION
Several years ago, perhaps at a Speed Dating event or a networking Happy Hour somewhere in Los Angeles, guests were presented with a series of ice-breaker questions to help start the conversation. The question posed to me was, “What’s the one thing you own that you’ll never, ever get rid of?”
Without hesitation, I responded, “My record collection.”
My LPs and 45 RPM singles are some of my cherished possessions. For years, friends and colleagues couldn’t understand why I had transported—at significant cost—my collection across the country each of the three times I’ve relocated in the last 25 years. Furthermore, how could I possibly be investing in additions to a collection that was perhaps outmoded and arcane, given the rise of the compact disc and, following that, digital downloads and streaming services?
My answer is simple: The iPod and my iPhone are great for hearing music, but the record player is the best device for listening to music.
There’s a difference between hearing and listening. It’s time to demonstrate that difference to marketers, brand managers and C-suite executives. Much has been said and shared about the rapidly evolving Hispanic market. But, have the decision-makers been listening to what has been said, and are they making choices based on efficiencies, rather than conclusions derived from the largest amount of data ever made available to marketers about today’s U.S. Hispanic consumer?
In September 2015, a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data showed the immigrant share among each of the U.S.’s Hispanic origin groups in decline, affirming reports that immigration from Latin America—in particular, Mexico—is slowing.
The Hispanic Market Overview annual report has stated for the last several years that the U.S. Hispanic population is now being driven by births, rather than those who are foreign-born. Additionally, it should be emphasized that immigration is slowing but has not stopped. Far from it: the U.S. Hispanic population in 2000 was comprised of 14.1 million immigrants. By 2013, that number grew to 19 million.
A market of 19 million consumers should be an opportunity for brands who wish to establish themselves as a top choice when it comes time to make purchasing decisions. Remember, everyone shops. The recent Latino immigrant needs food, packaged goods, clothing, transportation, and health care information regardless of their financial status. The upscale Latino and Latino Baby Boomer are equally important.
Yet, marketers seem fixated on a Hispanic plan of action focused squarely on bilingual Latino millennials who can be targeted through the English-language media they consume.
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