As you may have heard, the Spanish-speaking population in the United States is predicted to grow by leaps and bounds in the next few decades. Even if census figures are a little bit wobbly, the Latino population, today around 12.6 percent of the U.S. population, could expand at the current rate of growth to around 24 percent of all Americans by 2050. Companies should already be priming themselves to serve this fascinating market with products and services.
Latino Boom tries to be only a “first step” in helping companies understand the complexities of this market. The strength of this book lies in its matter-of-fact narration, its abundance of statistical support, and its first-hand knowledge of what might be called the “Hispanic phenomenon.”
What’s unique about this market? According to the author, Chiqui Cartagena, Latino cultures are rich in family values, customs, and traditions from their homelands as well as religious teachings, and these values endure with great vitality in the United States. The age of the American Latinos population as a whole is about nine years younger than that of other Americans, and American Latinos are believed to be brand-loyal big spenders whose buying power may reach as high as $1 trillion in the next ten years.
Cartagena brings twenty years of experience developing and launching successful Spanish-language products, such as TV Guide en Espanol, and consulting to Fortune 500 companies. She sees two big mistakes: the assumption that “Latinos behave in the same way as the general market” and marketers who “simply don’t want to change the way they do business in a specialized market.”
Cartagena devotes most of her book to discussing the population density and growth of Latinos in the United States; their household incomes and education; differences among subgroups as identified by their country of origin, level of acculturation, and language preference; and a review of the growth of the Hispanic consumer market. She also grapples with Hispanic identities, Spanish-language media, the advertisement industry, and the Latino baby boom. Examples and cases used throughout the chapters include AOL Latino, Univision.com, McDonald’s, and Gateway.
The book winds up with a resource guide that provides lists of Hispanic market-related research companies and centers, trade associations, associations, and government offices.
- Poping Lin