Panelists at the Multicultural Studies session look at trends in the Hispanic and African American populations.

You don't need to leave the U.S. to find an emerging market. Right here at home, the Hispanic and African American markets are building as a major purchasing force. Yet marketers have yet to take advantage of these segments.

To build the case for driving ad spend to Hispanics and African Americans, representatives from Iconoculture, MarketTools and eMarketer took the stage at ad:tech.

Reaching African Americans
Donna Daniels, Ph.D. VP, Consumer Strategist Iconoculture started the session with a slide proclaiming, "The Digital Divide is Dead!" In the following moments, Daniels went on to explain that the internet, supported by emerging platforms like cell phones, was finally reaching parts of the African American population that previously missed out. In the past, the barrier of entry was the cost of a computer and internet connection. Now, it's just a cell phone and a cell phone service plan.

"The mobile phone is absolutely king," said Daniels.

Despite this shift, some marketers still act as though the Digital Divide lives on, and they're missing a rich opportunity.

But it's not just youth culture that marketers stand to gain by reaching deeper into the African American community. According to Daniels, "the zero to 28 age group is influencing the purchasing behavior of their boomer and Xer parents." For marketers that understand this relationship, there are cross-generational marketing plans to be taken advantage of. 

But before advertisers move into the African American space, they need to understand some subtleties about the segment. Like other demographics, African Americans demand control. According to Daniels, "there's an expectation that [African Americans] should be able to put their own unique mark on their technology experience." Also, as best practices dictate across other online efforts, give African Americans the chance to control their exposure to messaging. "They are open to marketing messages via text, alerts and downloads, but give the opportunity to opt out," said Daniels

Video games are also a major opportunity for marketers trying to reach African Americans. It's not that there aren't enough advergames or gaming sponsorships, it's that marketers have yet to get it right for African Americans. According to Daniels, "African Americans are avid gamers… [and though] African American athletes, music and locales are integral to games, African American gamers are overlooked and underserved." One example is avatars. As Daniels explained, many videogame and portal avatars are Caucasian in appearance.

The Hispanic market
According to eMarketer's Senior Analyst, Debra Aho Williamson, "33 million hispanic and African Americans are online this year." She also pointed out that, like the African American market, youth rules in the Hispanic segment.

According to the latest figures, 56 percent of the Hispanic population is under the age of 30, and 34.5 percent growth is expected in the teen market between 2000 and 2010. What makes the youth market so valuable for marketers is their willingness to experiment, especially with brands and styles.

As it turns out, marketing to Hispanics doesn't require marketers to reinvent the wheel. The fact is, they behave like a lot of other groups online. For example, Williamson explained that Hispanics spend most of their time online doing email, IMing and checking out the news and weather-- just like everybody else. Also, just like most of the online population, they're visiting sites in English.

According to Williamson, "38 percent of 18-24 year olds say they go online for 20 hours or more per week to English-language sites." The key to reaching Hispanics as they visit English speaking sites is relevance. Williamson suggests marketers seek "youth market hot buttons like music, social networking and online video." Also, consider that many Hispanics, 67 percent, want to "maintain a link to their culture." For messaging to be relevant, it needs to respect such desires. 

One of the reasons that marketers have not previously reached out to the Hispanic population is measurement. As Heidi Dickert, VP New Products & Business Development, MarketTools, Inc explains, the Hispanic market is fragmented into multiple subcultures and acculturation levels. (Acculturation is another way of describing the degree to which a new population integrates with a native culture.) Because of this fragmentation, it's difficult for marketers to find magnetic north for their efforts in this population. 

For marketers interested in reaching Hispanics, MarketTools is working on solutions. For example, the research company suggests measuring audience by acculturation level. One of MarketTools Hispanic market models, demonstrated by Dickert, is segmented into unacculturated (strongest ties to native culture), acculturated (most integrated), partially acculturated and partially unacculturated. By using a breakdown like this, marketers have a better shot at mapping effective campaigns and measuring results.

It's clear that, while many similarities remain for reaching one target demo or the next, a certain level of nuance will always apply.

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