GREAT 125 IDEA: Tap the Growing Hispanic Market

The U.S. Hispanic community is growing stronger every day. “Best of all,” says George Herrera, former president and CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, “it's a young population, which means it's a population of consumers who will be here for a long time. We are offering corporate America a very young and very long-term consumer base.”

By 2011, Hispanic purchasing power will be at $1 trillion, with 71 million children under 18 years living in households.

A young and growing population represents an increasingly significant economic force, Herrera says. Corporations on the ball already are moving to serve this market. Others will follow. One way to test sales in the Hispanic market is to partner with a Hispanic-owned or -managed company.

Another way is to repackage your products to appeal to Hispanic tastes. But this takes an investment and careful planning.

Savvy business owners wanting to expand sales into the Hispanic market should always rely on a competent translator. One Los Angeles bank had egg on its face a few years ago when a loan campaign aimed at Spanish-speaking clients went awry. When translated into Spanish, the ad copy said something like: “Remember when your mom used to steal money from you? Think of us as your mom.”

A mortified bank representative blamed the advertising salesperson for the bad translation. So never trust an amateur to translate your copy. Hire someone familiar with the local dialects and who knows the cultural nuances of the specific Latin consumers. Mexicans speak a different style of Spanish and have a far different culture than Salvadoreans or Panamanians.

Many ad agencies now specialize in ethnic marketing, so find a good one and try test-marketing one product or service at a time.