Marketing to U.S. Hispanic population requires analysis of cultures

Given the current demographics of the US, insurance companies can deliberately opt to disregard the Hispanic consumer - and justify their choice to do so - or develop and implement strategies to reap the benefits of this burgeoning market. According to data from the Census Bureau for the year 2000, 32.8 million Hispanics (12% of the total US population) reside in the US. This does not include the 3.6 million who reside in Puerto Rico. The mosaic of this population embraces residents of Mexican (66.1%), Central and South American (14.5%), Puerto Rican (9%) and Cuban (4%) descent, as well as descendants from other Spanish-speaking countries (6.4%). Even though insurance companies might turn to advertising agencies to target this fast-growing market, it is imperative to recognize that any marketing strategy must take into account the language used in the marketing pieces and the conduits and interventions used for promoting the product.