impreMedia Impressions: Attn CMO's: Are You Ready for the Census Results? - Mary Zerafa - MediaBizBloggers

At the end of the year the US Census will begin releasing data from the 2010 Census. The answer s to ten questions will have a profound impact on how we see ourselves as a nation. Across the nation you can expect to see headlines like: "Hispanic Population Grows 42%; Non Hispanic Only Grows 5%". The coverage will be on every news outlet. In your inbox you can expect an email from your CEO with a link to one of these articles with the question, "What is our strategy?" Not "What is our Hispanic strategy?" The census will show we've moved beyond that. Marketing to Hispanics will now be an integral part of every marketing strategy.

Previously, there was a lot of talk about the future along with a lot of projections, such as "In ten years the Hispanic population be this" or "In twenty years Hispanic purchasing power is projected to be that." The census will show that we are not talking about the future. We are talking about now.

Hispanics dominate the marketing sweet spot

According to Ad Age's white paper "2010 Hispanic America" in the age group 25-44 Hispanics grew 34% while non Hispanics in the same age group grew 0%. Yes, you read that correctly: zero percent growth for non Hispanics ages 25-44. But let's look at the growth in age groups further:

Alma DDB released a yellow paper, "The New State of America". They looked at variety of sources including American Community Survey (ACS), Center for Disease Control (CDC) for birth rates and the Department of Homeland Security for immigration data. Their findings also confirmed that Hispanics are in the marketing sweet spot, "Already in 2000, an overwhelming majority of Hispanics were under the age of 35 versus only half of the total population. Only 5% of Hispanics were over 65 versus 12% of the US." According to Ad Age's white paper, " The media age of Hispanics is just under 28, which means that 75% of adult Hispanics are age 18-49, compared to 56% of non Hispanics."

Not convinced yet? Let's look at the money

Unfortunately there are many myths surrounding the Latino market. One is that they have lower incomes. What many do not know is that Hispanic married couples have the highest income of any household type, with an average of $63,000 (2008), according to "2010 Hispanic America".This is primarily most Hispanic families that have at least two wage earners.

But that's not all. Hispanic households, with their average age of 43.3 are approaching their peak earning years. This is in contrast to non Hispanic households whose average age is 50 plus. They are actually past their peak earning years. This is another piece of data that points to the importance of the Hispanic market to businesses today.

Marketing to Hispanics means reaching out to a growing population rather than a graying population. A population that is in the marketing sweet spot and whose peak earning years are now. Where do you think revenue growth for your company will come from for the next quarter?

Some clarification about the census data

There is some confusion around what the census will tell us. For this census everyone received the same ten question survey. The questions were basic such as name, age, sex, number of people living in the home. As in census survey of 2000, the 2010 survey first asks people if they are Hispanic, Latino, Spanish origin and the subsequent question asks about race. Instructions tell people to respond to both questions.

Previously, a percentage of the population received what was known as the 'long form' which asked much more extensive questions. That data is still being collected through the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS). It is conducted on an annual basis and gathers information such as education, housing, income, etc.

The differences between the 2010 Census and the ACS, as explained by Robert M. Groves, Census Bureau Director are time, geographical detail, and population count vs. population characteristics

· Time: The data from the census is from 2010. The data from ACS is from 2009 and earlier.

· Level of geographical detail: The census demographic analysis is at the national level. The census counts are state level. ACS goes down to small levels of geographic detail.

· Population count vs. population characteristics: The census is a population count. It asks only 10 questions and will provide population counts at a state level. The ACS is 48 questions and provides more in depth data about the characteristics about the nation.

But we already know what the census will tell us. America is a multicultural nation and Hispanics are driving the growth. Hispanics are in their peak earning years while non Hispanics are past their peak earning years. We are not talking about tomorrow. It is now, the future is now. The question is –is your company going to be a part of it?

Mary Zerafa is VP of Strategy and Integrated Marketing for impreMedia. Mary can be reached at Mary.Zerafa@impremedia.com. She also blogs at www.hispanicmarketinfo.com where you can learn more about the US Hispanic market.

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