Hispanic Creativity Grows in the US
By Sandra Villamizar - Editor, P&C

Alongside the growth of the Latino population of the United States goes the growth of the Hispanic advertising industry towards this market. A community of more than 40 million does not go without notice from the grecorporations that value this segment of the US market, one with an approximate buying power of US$ 630.000 at million.

The best thing about it is that the growth of Hispanic advertising is not measured only in monetary terms, but also in quality. A lot of the old commercials with the typical Latin family have been turned into spots with simple ideas that go along with diluted Latino cultural tones, achieving excellent results for their clients.

This great dose of creativity that Latino advertising is experiencing is starting to be felt at the international advertising festivals which have embraced Hispanic advertising as a new Latin country in the Americas, one of the most attractive regarding size and income. Until recently its participation was taken little seriously because its ads were considered of low quality, but now it is starting to compete with the big agencies of the region and its work is followed with great attention. For a long time being a creative partner of a Hispanic agency in the United States was not a very attractive job, but now it is a pursued position. Not only in order to have the opportunity of being part of the transformation that the industry is going through but also for the chance of living in a country of opportunities.

However, there is still a long way to go. In a study presented by the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies of the United States (AHAA) titled “The Right Spend”, the conclusion was that Americans corporations are not investing an appropriate percentage of its budget forthe Hispanic market in comparison to the growth that this ethnic minority has had in terms of population and buying power. The average advertising investment recommended is of 8% and presently the majority of companies invest only around 3.2% of its budget to this area. The increment of the investment towards Hispanic advertising is one of the primordial goals of the AHAA currently.

Multicultural advertising is another element that has burst out in the industry, an element that seeks to unify in one agency the advertising management of a company directed towards the different minority ethnic groups of the US: Hispanics, Afro-Americans and Asians. This is a strategy that has generated clashing positions within the heads of the different Hispanic advertising agencies. It is also one that has turned into a real fact used by various corporations, and one that implies a competition with agencies specialized in other markets.

Along with this there is also a controversy about the content of the diverse mass media outlets that carry the advertising message. A better quality of its content is the petition being made in order to elevate its level, an improvement that would result in not only a better optiofor the viewing public but also a better media for the advertising directed towards this marketn of new proposals.

Of the 56 advertising agencies that are members of the AHAA, each day more are the ones that present a better creative result. Nevertheless there are still obstacles to over come and goals to be accomplished so that the United States’ Hispanic market advertising consolidates. The good news is that the advancement has been notorious and everything indicates that there is a desire to continue on a road of excellence.

Sandra Villamizar is Editor of P&C, a Miami-based magazine that covers the Hispanic advertising industry. For more information you can call 305-256-6774, or visit www.izarra.com