If almost everyone in the Hispanic marketing industry agrees that the composition of the U.S. Hispanic market has undergone significant changes, why is there still so much talk on language segmentation?
A Changing Landscape
As discussed in last month’s issue, the U.S. Hispanic market is really comprised of segments. 40% of the Hispanic population is foreign-born and predominantly Spanish-speaking, while 60% is second- and third-generation and largely bilingual and English speaking only (Suro and Passel, 2003). As a result, the U.S. Hispanic demographic today is quite diverse and much different than it was in the past.
There was a study done by Pew Hispanic Center (Suro, 2004) which examined the language in which U.S. Hispanics watched the news. Surprisingly, this study showed that U.S. Hispanics did not inherently prefer their news in Spanish. In fact, among foreign-born Hispanics, 50% consumed the news in English and Spanish, with 38% watching it in Spanish only and 11% in English. Among second-generation Hispanics, 43% watched the news in both languages, with 53% watching it in English and 3% in Spanish. Among third-generation Hispanics, 25% watched the news in both languages, with the overwhelming majority (73%) watching the news in English and 2% in Spanish.
Even when tracking media preferences among foreign-born Hispanics, the shifts in language were significant. Among Hispanics who lived in the U.S. 12-years or less, almost half of Hispanics surveyed (49%) watched the news in both languages, while 46% watched the news in Spanish and 4% in English. However, among the foreign-born Hispanics who were characterized by a longer stay in the country (12-24 years), 56% of them watched the news in Spanish and English, while 31% watched the news in Spanish only and 11% in English.
This tells us that targeting the U.S. Hispanic population only in Spanish needs to be reconsidered. Based on the above data, acculturation seems to be a factor even among the foreign-born or first generation Hispanic. What’s more surprising is that even in one of the most coveted dayparts—News—not all Hispanics watched the news in their so-called language of preference, Spanish. In fact, many Hispanics, regardless of their generational status, watched the news in two languages. Research showed that among third-generation Hispanics, the overwhelming majority of Hispanics (73%) had a preference to receive their news in English.
What does all of this say about the U.S. Hispanic market in the 21st century? First, Spanish-language may not be the defining language for the U.S. Hispanic population, but examining which language (Spanish, English or both) may be the more appropriate step in understanding the full reality of this changing demographic. Secondly, the fact that this segment is characterized by the adoption of two cultures, it is going to be imperative that Hispanic marketing professionals become more effective in measuring the cultural and linguistic duality of U.S. Hispanics.
Changes in Media Measurement
Nielsen Media Research recently announced major changes that will begin to take effect, September of this year. Hispanic television audience estimates will be produced via the National People Meter sample (NPM) instead of having them reported on a separate panel, National Hispanic People Meter (NHPM), as done for the last 15-years.
Aside from folding the Hispanic sample into the National sample, the number of respondents will increase from 1,100 to 1,500. In addition, all Spanish-language broadcast and cable networks will be reported against the base of Hispanic households and people within the NPM sample. Furthermore, the number of English-language networks reported within Hispanic homes will be expanded to include more broadcast and cable networks, a reflection of the Hispanic segment’s consumption of English-language television and the fragmentation of the English-language television industry.
Most significantly, however, language will be reported at the individual level; with the current NHPM panel, language measures were only available at the household level. This provides marketers with the unique insight on whom within the Hispanic household is influencing or shaping media consumption decisions. The language strata will be reported by three clusters: Spanish-Dominant, Spanish / English Equal and English-Dominant; these language clusters will be available on the Hispanic and English television audience data tapes.
Its Significance
The convergence of Nielsen Media Research reporting is significant. As most of us in the industry know, Hispanic media cannot be examined without considering the delivery of the General Market media effort on the Hispanic demographic. The decision to centralize reporting across two segments (Anglos and Hispanics) reinforces the trend of media convergence across language.
This trend is not short-lived. It is a trend that will define Hispanic marketing in the future. Growth of the U.S. Hispanic population will be fueled by the second-generation Hispanics, who have been projected to grow 41% from 2010 to 2020, the fastest of any Hispanic segment in the country. What’s more interesting is that 47% of second-generation Hispanics consider themselves bilingual, while 46% consider themselves English-dominant (Suro and Passel, 2003).
Fifteen years ago, Nielsen Media helped validate the Hispanic market and legitimize Hispanic marketing as a trade. Nielsen was used to show what television programs Hispanics were watching. In the end, this type of ammunition helped Hispanic media professionals rationalize the need for dedicated budgets, which was an essential factor in establishing the Hispanic marketing effort with corporate America.
But times have changes. Significantly. Today, the Hispanic market is characterized by demographic and psychographic nuances that have major implications on media consumption. The market is no longer defined by Spanish-speaking immigrants; instead, the Hispanic market is comprised of segments; segments that share a cultural and linguistic duality reflecting two cultures, while the immigrant and third-generation Hispanic segments may be more deeply rooted in one.
So, the binary approach, as suggested by the title of this issue – language segmentation or language integration? – sounds provoking, to say the least. In actuality, it may not even be the right question to ask. For one, the reality of most U.S. Hispanics is in constant flux and it does not reside in the extremes. In my view, determining the optimal approach in targeting U.S. Hispanics may be contingent on which segment of the Hispanic population we are talking about.
In closing, language segmentation will continue to be an important measure in Hispanic marketing, since targeting the Hispanic population in the future will continue to be done in multiple languages. Because bilingual Hispanics can be reached in two languages, the opportunity lies in the ability to measure the integration of the English-language and Spanish-language creative efforts. Lastly, for the English-dominant Hispanic segment, English may be the preferred language, but identifying their hot buttons (cultural, values, etc.) will only help increase the effectiveness of future marketing efforts.
Hispanic Market Research 
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What you say here is very important, although the machinery is moving slowly and I don´t know if it is moving in the right direction. I see ackward approaches to the new Spanish/English combo. As a journalist who works in Spanish media in the US it worries me.