"The fastest and most economical way to learn Spanish is to be completely immersed in the language and the culture."

WHY AREN'T YOU MARKETING TO HISPANIC AMERICANS?
 

Scenario:  Two businessmen with the same product, same skills, looks and manner, approach a English speaking Latin client, one extends his hand and says the only three Spanish words he knows, "Mucho gusto señor", the other says, "Er...Hello, pleased to meet you".   Who do you think is going to make the sale?  Of course, the business person who took a personal interest in his client.  Granted, most Hispanics in the US do speak English, but by accepting a culture and making an effort to embrace it, you've taken a huge step towards endearing a Latin customer.

Many US businesses forget the meaning of the acronym WWW and read it as if it were just a name, the World Wide Web.  As they approach the Web as a marketing tool, they treat it as the (English)WW.  A few main stream media have been cashing in on the purchasing power of the so called "new found Hispanic market".  Taco Bell with their absolutely refreshing Spanish language commercials "Quiero Taco Bell" using the cute Chihuahua, and Burger King playing Flamenco music "Bamboleo" by the Gypsy Kings.  I wonder if McDonalds is feeling the heat? This newly discovered market has been not been tapped on the internet yet.  Americans are slowly coming around to the fact that we aren't on this planet alone, and not everyone speaks English either.

According to Selig Center for Economic Growth, Percentage Changes and Compound Annual Rates of Growth in Hispanic Buying Power for U.S. and the States, 1990-1997 was 65.5 % and expected growth will be 7.5% (1)

Growth in Hispanic-owned businesses, 1987-1992, according to the U.S. Census Bureau data:  The rise in Hispanic-owned businesses has been phenomenal - 83% for the five-year period from 1987 to 1992 (from 422,373 in 1987 to 771,706 in 1992).  Compare that to the overall average growth rate of 26%, and we can see this is a sector on the move.

The rise in receipts for these Hispanic-owned businesses has been even more amazing.  For that same five-year period, receipts grew a startling 295%, from $24.7 billion to nearly $72.8 billion. The average Hispanic-owned firm generated $94,000 in receipts. These are very positive trends.  That is a lot, but it is not nearly as great as the $3.3 trillion in total sales in the whole economy. That tells us that we have lots of opportunity for growth.

In today's world of a global economy, more and more smart businessmen are realizing that Spanish is a vital language in our hemisphere and in the US.  It is predicted that by the year 2030 30% of the US population will speak Spanish.  More people speak Spanish in our hemisphere than any other language, an it would be an excellent idea to include at least the US Hispanic population your marketing strategy.

Things are changing, and to be at the cutting edge of marketing, you must include, at least, the US Hispanic market.   Having a lead-in web page in Spanish, or just your keywords, title and description in Spanish could mean the difference between you and the competition.