DMA Premieres First-of-its-Kind 'Hispanic Direct Marketing: Techniques & Best Practices' Report

January 16, 2009 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) premieres the “Hispanic Direct Marketing: Techniques and Best Practices” report.

This first-ever report presents the business side of marketing to Hispanics. It complements earlier DMA research that focused on the Hispanic market from the consumer vantage point by showcasing the marketer perspective on reaching this audience. The report has two main objectives: to provide current benchmarks on the use of direct marketing methods in order to reach the Hispanic audience, and to convey best practices.

“The survey results reveal that Hispanic marketers find certain media channels and segmentation tools are more effective in increasing response rates among Hispanic consumers, and so offer greater opportunity for growth,” said Anne B. Frankel, DMA senior research manager and author of the report. “Therefore, marketing to Hispanics involves a different cache of tools than marketing to a general audience. It is crucial that direct marketers understand the nuances of how to best address this group.”

DMA partnered with PSA and Zubi Advertising, as well as DMA’s Directo Council on this project. PSA is a leading Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company specializing in integrated multichannel, multi-cultural marketing solutions. iZubi is the Integrated Marketing division of Zubi Advertising, one of the largest independent Hispanic advertising agencies in the United States. Both companies provided extensive commentary based on their knowledge of the nuances of marketing to the Hispanic audience.

“The combination of findings derived from the research conducted by DMA, coupled with the insight provided by PSA and Zubi Advertising will help direct marketers more efficiently target this increasingly important demographic,” continued Frankel.

Additionally, the report revealed:

· One out of two marketers (48.1 percent) who promote to Hispanics report that the majority of their Hispanic-specific promotions are written or spoken in both Spanish and English. One in five say that most of their promotions are in English only (20.8 percent) or that they have separate English and Spanish language versions (19.5 percent).

· 77 percent of the companies that market to Hispanics tailor their non-catalog direct mail messaging to this audience.

· The majority of respondents (84.4 percent) who market to Hispanics say that they do not create different versions of their promotions based on dialect and colloquialism.

· Two out of three Hispanic marketers (64.9 percent) do not create different versions of their promotions for different US locations.

· Nearly all companies that market to Hispanics use non-catalog direct mail (91.8 percent) and over half use telephone marketing (52.1 percent).

· Three out of four Hispanic marketers collect language preference/proficiency, age, and gender information (77.3 percent, 75.8 percent, and 74.2 percent, respectively).

· Of the online and new media channel options, the most prevalent among companies that market to Hispanics is non-email Internet marketing (58 percent).

· 53.7 percent of respondents say that non-catalog direct mail effectively boosts their response rates for Hispanic consumers.

· Of those marketers who segment by the level of acculturation or by the number of generations that a family has been in the US, at least half say that the segmentation technique effectively increases response.

DMA conducted this survey in November and December of 2008 through an email invitation sent to marketers, agencies, past attendees of any of the DMA’s Directo conferences, Directo Council members, as well as to PSA and Zubi Advertising clients. When the survey was closed, 77 responses from Hispanic marketers were included for tabulation.

The report is available for download on DMA’s online bookstore. The cost is $135 for DMA members and $240 for non-members. To purchase, please click here.

About DMA’s Directo Council

The focus of DMA’s Directo Council is to educate direct marketers about the Hispanic market, provide support in targeting this segment, as well as to promote career and business opportunities for members of the direct marketing professional community interested in Hispanic marketing. DMA’s Directo Council provides opportunities to network with colleagues, obtain the latest information on the Hispanic-American marketplace, and learn how to effectively tap into this vital segment.

About Direct Marketing Association (DMA)

The Direct Marketing Association (www.the-dma.org) is the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit organizations using and supporting multichannel direct marketing tools and techniques. DMA advocates standards for responsible marketing, promotes relevance as the key to reaching consumers with desirable offers, and provides cutting-edge research, education, and networking opportunities to improve results throughout the end-to-end direct marketing process. Founded in 1917, DMA today represents more than 3,400 companies from dozens of vertical industries in the US and 48 other nations, including half of the Fortune 100 companies, as well as nonprofit organizations.

# # #