It is amazing to see some big corporations that are still deciding if Hispanics should be part of their marketing efforts this year or not. Some of them are still figuring how they can increase revenues and bolster productivity but the Hispanic market hasn’t rung their bells, yet.
Latinos have grown to an astonishing figure of 52 million strong and their buying power is equivalent in size to the world’s 11th largest economy. Latinos also played an important role during the last presidential elections and they have the power to influence the U.S. economy today, and in the coming years.
As our country is evolving including the development of new technologies and products; so is the demand. Also, the existence of emerging markets is the perfect opportunity to expand your business and attract new customers. Logic does the trick but, surprisingly, it’s not always followed these days.
Based on the Oxford dictionary, Logic is “the course of action suggested by or following as a necessary consequence of”. So, if sales are down due to a slow economy recovery, but, there is a market out there that has been growing at a fast pace over the past decade; how can you still justify investing all your marketing efforts into a flat growth market? How much money are you leaving on the table?
I guess the answer is lack of leadership and willingness to grow. In other words, is being afraid of something new— that it is out of our comfort zone—make us feel we have no control due to culture and language barriers?
Leadership is the process of social influence where you will learn, experience and embrace new things by yourself or with the support of others to accomplish a common task. Leadership means taking action.
McDonald’s has been a vivid example in the multicultural marketing task for the past 30 years. They surrounded themselves with corporate executives, employees and Hispanic marketers that really understand the eccentricity of the Latino community.
Mr. Neil Golden, McDonald’s U.S. chief marketing officer said, “The ethnic consumer tends to set trends. So, they help us set the tone for how we enter the marketplace.”
The problem is that most companies think they can box together Latinos and African-Americans by running general market ads. This is giving your company a kiss of death. However, as the slow economy continues, it will force companies to tighten their purse strings and look for effective ways to reach the Hispanic market. The question is: are you ready to embrace this market trend?