Social Media Marketing for Hispanic campaigns has seemingly been a buzz ever since the data came out showing that Latinos over-index on social media use. [1] While this is likely due to companies looking to garner their share of the $1.5 trillion US Hispanic buying power, [2] it is also likely due to the brands being unable to adequately identify a marketing strategy that goes beyond selling a product and actively identifying with the Hispanic consumer, [3] and as a result, looking for any route they can to start earning their piece of the Hispanic buying power pie. So that companies can better relate to the Hispanic market, we’ll need to examine the Latino behavior within social media, where they are active, as well as how to not make the same mistakes as in previous campaigns.
The Social Media Accounts of US Hispanics
Looking at a Pew Research Center study, we can see the percentage of Hispanics who are currently using social media. Currently, Facebook is by far and away the most popular platform as 73% of US Hispanics use the social media site, while the next closest platform, Instagram, is used by 34% of US Hispanics and 25% use Twitter, 21%, Pinterest, and 18% for LinkedIn. [4]
While Facebook would be the obvious winner here, as many would surely expect from the social media giant, what also may not be expected is that Hispanics under-index in their use of the site for local shopping as only 61% of Latinos use Facebook for this purpose as opposed to 67% of non-Hispanics. [5] This being said, we’re not looking to deter you from advertising to Hispanics within Facebook, as that 61% is still a greater percentage than the individual totals of Hispanics using the other social media platforms. However, it does present an interesting look into how Hispanics are currently using social media.
Interestingly, it’s also been noted that Pinterest is seeing a large growth from the Hispanic market as their share of presence on the site has increased to 9% of all users, up nearly 6 percentage points since 2014. [6] This also reflects the information that El Clasificado and EC Hispanic Media have seen within their own social media analytics as the Pinterest account for Quinceanera.com is now averaging more than 1,000,000 page views every 30 days compared to a previous average that ranged from around 50,000-80,000 in the past year.[7]
How US Hispanics Use Social Media
As already referenced, US Hispanics are under-indexing in their use of Facebook as a resource for local shopping, which comes shortly after a December 2013 study by Experian Marketing Services that showed Hispanics were more likely to shop online in general. [5] The possible reasoning for this could lie in the fact that US Hispanics utilize social media to stay in touch with family members, which was shown in the Ipsos MediaCT for Facebook study as family members accounted for 48% of US Hispanics Facebook friends. [8] This can furthermore be supported by the language preferences of Hispanics as information meant for family is generally shared in Spanish, while posts for friends are normally written in English . [8]
Again, not to take away from the marketing potential of the platform, what’s also noted is that Hispanic adults are 25% more likely to follow brands [3] and are “twice as likely to share or click on shared content than the general population.” [5] Most importantly, however, Hispanic consumers are twice as likely to purchase the kinds of products they share about, as opposed to the general market which is only 1.3 times as likely.
However, while many Hispanics may be using Facebook to share information, follow brands, and keep in touch with their family members, active Hispanic Pinners over-index in the shopping category as 56% use Pinterest as opposed to shopping online. [6] This likely is based on the image sharing site meeting the needs of Hispanics who will often share pictures of products with their friends or family before making a purchase as a way to solicit shopping advice. [9] Between the two social media sites, active Hispanic pinners spend roughly the same amount of time between the two, while logging into Facebook more frequently. And while they also log onto Instagram more frequently as well, they still are spending more time on Pinterest.[6] Furthermore, 73% of Pinterest users bought a product that they found on the site and furthermore, “67% of users surveyed said they pull up Pins while shopping in-store.” [10]
What this Means for Your Social Media Marketing
So, now that we have this data and understanding of how Hispanics are using social media and which platforms they are choosing, we can look to determine how to best roll out the strategies for your company’s Hispanic Social Media Marketing.
With Facebook, we know that a large amount of Hispanic use of the platform is to keep in touch with family and friends. We also know that they are more likely to follow brands than their non-Hispanic counterparts, but less likely to use the site for local shopping purposes. As a result, brands may want to consider putting an emphasis on the branding portion of their posts while incorporating Spanish into their messaging, whether through their main page, or a primarily Spanish campaign page, as Hispanics on average prefer ads and messaging to incorporate Spanish. [8] To drive ROI beyond just branding, there should still be an element of salesmanship involved as we have already pointed out that items that have been shared are more likely to be purchased. For this to happen, your company will need to sit down and determine how to further have your products shared.
While maybe not allocating as much time as with Facebook, companies also need to find ways to market their products and services through Pinterest as the likelihood for making a purchase from the site is so much higher than with other social network platforms. Assuming that the trend continues and the site’s Hispanic user base continues to grow, this will continue to present marketers with an even greater opportunity for increased revenue among the Hispanic community so long as they too are also recognizing the need for marketing to the buyer in their preferred language by incorporating Spanish into their campaigns.
[1]https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/220037/hispanics-over-index-on-social-media-use.html [2]https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2014/a-fresh-view-of-hispanic-consumers.html
[3]https://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2014/01/06/facebook-to-help-brands-convert-55-million-u-s-hispanics/
[4]https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/02/03/social-media-preferences-vary-by-race-and-ethnicity/
[5]https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/220256/hispanics-lead-stats-in-social-media-usage.html
[6]Ahalogy 2015 Pinterest Media Consumption Study
[7]Pinterest Analytics October, 21,2015
[8]https://www.emarketer.com/Article/Hispanics-Make-Social-Crucial-Part-of-Digital-Lives/1012534
[9]https://www.hunterpr.com/the511/511-September.html
[10]https://www.webmarketingpros.com/blog/study-finds-pinterest-growing-in-popularity-and-usefulness/
