FH Hispania Plaza

Latino Arts

The arts are an important part of any culture, and the U.S. Hispanic arts scene is incredibly vibrant and thriving.  New shows, books, and music are being introduced everyday and other big offerings are planned for 2008.

That Hispanics have begun to carve out their own artistic identity in this country is nothing new.  The New York arts movement of the 50s and 60s, that led to the creation of El Museo del Barrio and later saw the birth of the Nuyorican Poets Café in the 70s, and the Chicano movement of the 60s and 70s, all spawned great poets, musicians and writers.

But what seems new to me is the rise in the number of Latino arts organizations such as comedy troupes, theaters, and film festivals, and the opportunities they present for influencing popular culture and reaching U.S. Hispanics.

From the Refried Fridays Latino comedy nights at the Hollywood Improv to Chicago’s all-Latina Teatro Luna to the Teatro Stage Fest in New York, examples of strong, emerging Latino arts organizations abound.

Some of these names may not seem familiar to you, but chances are that one day they will.  Latino comedians such as George Lopez and Carlos Mencia, pioneers of Latino-themed TV shows, got their start on stages like the Hollywood Improv and are proof that Latino artists, with Latino themes, can make it to the big time and make a stamp on popular culture.

2008 is already proving to be a strong year for Latino artists.  In the first few weeks alone we’ve seen Nilo Cruz's Pulitzer-winning Anna in the Tropics staged in Spanish in Miami, Chilean Ariel Dorfman’s Widows premiered in New York for a short run, and the musical Celia (in honor of Celia Cruz) going strong on Broadway.

For marketers who wish to reach U.S. Hispanics, sponsorship and support of Latino productions and arts organizations are great ways to connect to the community.  Artists are always looking for funding and visibility, and helping them reach for the stars makes good business sense.  Because there’s no telling how high Latino artists will soar.

Seasons Greetings in Spanish

As I whittled down the pile of family Christmas cards we are sending to family and friends this year, I started to think about the tradition of sending holiday greeting cards and how Spanish and bilingual greeting cards have become increasingly popular.

According to Hallmark* estimates, greeting cards are a $6.6 billion dollar industry with more than six billion cards purchased annually.

Hallmark and American Greetings, the two biggest players, both have lines of Hispanic-themed greeting cards and e-cards and the latter’s Blue Mountain site has a Spanish-language section (though according to Hispanic Market Weekly, Hallmark is the only greeting card company that advertises to Hispanics). 

There are also several smaller companies that create and market Spanish-language and bilingual cards and related products, such as YoSoy Expressions and Lantigua Designs.

On the cyber side, “greeting cards (tarjetas)” was among the 2007 Top 10 Social Networking Search Terms on Yahoo! Telemundo.  Clearly, the appetite for culturally relevant greeting cards is out there. 

So now the next time you want to send a greeting, you can send it in Spanish, via e-mail or snail mail.  And as Maribel pointed out, with so many custom greeting card services available, you can create your very own in Spanish too.  Happy Mailing!

* = Hallmark is a Fleishman-Hillard client.

The Bilingual Household

Language is an expression of identity and its how we connect to each other and to our world. While many may never have to question their relationship with language, the majority of Hispanic households face the challenges, contrasts and opportunities of navigating between two languages on a daily basis.

The Pew Hispanic Center today came out with a new report, based on several studies, that shows how generations living on the same households widely differ in their usage and relationship with language. In summary, more than 80% of U.S. born adult children of immigrants speak English fluidly and very well, in contrast to just over 20% of their parents. And when it comes to third generations, more than 90% speak English very well.

It is not a surprise that children or second generations pick up English at a very fast pace: they are exposed to the language at earlier ages, more frequently and their social surroundings mostly operate in the language (i.e., school, friends) and even the media and culture they are exposed to are mostly in English. Their parents, on the other hand, are often becoming more exposed to English later in life, and still have some extremely strong connections to Spanish through family, work and even the media they consume.

Acculturation and language are recurring topics when it comes to developing strategies on behalf of our clients and something we also personally face. What will always be interesting is that a large portion of Hispanic households can't be defined solely on language; many may better be described as bilingual households. And reaching the members living under that roof requires multiple approaches based on the desired target audience.

Welcome to the Suburbs

Last week I attended a discussion of a new report on Latinos in the Chicago suburbs and in particular, the challenges municipalities are facing in successfully integrating Latino immigrants into suburban communities.  The report was jointly released by the Institute for Latino Studies at the University of Notre Dame and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus.

It was an eye-opening event.  Currently, more than half of Chicago Latinos live in the suburbs, and that number is steadily growing, due mostly to birth rates and not immigration patterns.

For many municipalities, this is uncharted territory.  On the one hand, many (though not all) recognize that they should provide culturally-relevant services to their newest residents.  On the other hand, others are being pressured by some long-time, non-Hispanic residents, afraid that their home values will dip and angry about having to “press 1 for English,” to not make any changes.  As a caveat, there are many who see the value immigrants bring to their community.

The discussion was frank and often-times heated, but as the moderator noted, absolutely necessary because the only way to solve tough issues is to address them head-on.

It’s true that savvy marketers – and the media – have begun to recognize that Hispanics are no longer concentrated in urban centers.  In Chicago, Reflejos, one of our largest bilingual newspapers, only covers the suburbs, and earlier this year, Hoy beefed up its suburban coverage.

It used to be said that reaching Hispanics was extremely efficient because they lived in only a few areas of the country.  As previously discussed at FH Hispania Plaza, this has not been true for some time.

Two-way Communications

I listen to Spanish-language radio every morning on my way into work, usually the AM news-talk station.  Because such stations typically serve a dual role as community advocates, the one I listen to often features guests from various non-profit organizations offering tips and advice on everything from immigration law to buying a home, to health and nutrition.

More often that not, each guest provides a phone number people can call for help and more information.  I know these numbers are used, because it’s not unusual for listeners to call in requesting the phone number of a guest they heard earlier that day or even in previous days.  This got me thinking about two basic, yet critical best practices for Hispanic market communications:

1.  Keep the conversation going.  It’s shocking how many companies send out Spanish language press releases or have a Spanish-speaking spokesperson conduct an interview, without having a place to send people to for more information. If you want to be successful in reaching Spanish-speaking customers you need to invest in the infrastructure, which means providing access to Spanish-speaking telephone representatives or a Spanish-language micro site to tell your story, offer assistance or close a sale.  If you are not providing that support, your efforts in Spanish-language media will have limited, if any impact.

2.  Know your audience.  Even in this high-tech age of WAP sites, social networking and virtual worlds, some members of your target audience will always prefer the human interaction of a phone call – particularly when it comes to buying something or sharing personal information.  If you’re trying to reach Hispanics who may not be online (often less acculturated), make sure to have a phone number they can call or a bricks-and mortar place to send them to for more information.  This will only increase your chances of making a meaningful connection.

On Spanish as an Official Second Language

On Sunday night, Hispanic TV had a glorious moment with the historical democratic Spanish-language debate.  More to come about our impressions on tomorrow's blog, but for now, let's turn our attention to one of the questions of the night: the candidate's take on Spanish-language becoming 'official'.  And this is a topic close to my heart.  According to the Census, 31 million Hispanics in the U.S. speak Spanish at home-- a number very close to the total population of Venezuela or more than the populations of El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico combined. 

Spanish is currency, blood and rhythm for many communities in the United States.  In Miami, where I live, it is safe to assume you can initiate a conversation in Spanish with any individual in most places.  In Dallas, my second home city, you hear Spanish more frequently spoken than 10 years ago.  And so is the case in many cities across the United States.  The challenge, in my view, is how Hispanics who have the language skill can pass it on to the new generations who will become acculturated faster than the flip of a channel.  I think the question is worth its salt while we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month -- after all, many of that heritage has been passed along in Spanish.  In a recent proprietary survey conduct by FH Hispania (more soon), language came out as a very important cultural aspect and one respondents strongly want to preserve-- regardless of how much they speak it at home.

Last night the language debate shifted from making English the official language of the U.S. to making Spanish an official second language. While that might not happen, and in fact there was no clear position from most candidates, the importance of being bilingual cannot be lost. In fact, many Hispanics already know this as they already speak or want to learn English and according to the Census most speak English very well. While language does not define us -- well maybe a little-- I know I for one will try to do what I can to preserve the language for my young son.

Hungry for Latino Cuisine

At FH Hispania Plaza, we recently covered the exploding popularity of chipotle peppers.  As we noted back then, Americans are hungry for Latino cuisine.

So hungry, that Packaged Facts predicts the U.S. Hispanic food and beverage market - which includes “authentic Hispanic,” mainstream Mexican” and “nuevo Latino” categories – will grow by 11.3 percent this year to $6.3 billion.

And now mainstream media is picking up on the trend.  Gourmet, the upscale epicurean magazine, has devoted its entire September issue to Latino cuisine in the U.S., and Everyday with Rachael Ray, the perky talk show host’s magazine, has added chef Daisy Martinez, host of her own PBS cooking show, as a monthly columnist.

On the broadcast side, chef’s Daisy’s show is going strong, and the Food Network has ordered more episodes of Simply Delicioso, hosted by Latina lifestyle goddess Ingrid Hoffman.  (By the way, Ingrid also has a show on Galavision/Univision, making her the first TV host to have two shows in two languages on two networks – you go girl!)

What’s interesting about all this is that food and beverage marketers now have even more media vehicles for promoting their products – and a hungry marketplace willing to give them a try.  Watch for more Latino chefs and media titles making it to the big time, and more Latino-inspired foods and beverages hitting the grocery store aisles very soon.

Silly Music, in any Language

Online magazine Satélite Musical recently released a list of the top ten songs “mas tontas” (silly).  Here in Chicago, La Tremenda counted down the songs on air and I am embarrassed to admit that the silliest song on the list is one I absolutely love:  Macarena.

As I listened to the tunes, jammin’ and reminiscin’ (I’ll never forget the night I learned the Macarena at the Cabo Wabo nightclub), I was struck by how many of these silly Spanish language songs had received significant airplay on English language stations.  Apparently, silly has no language barrier.

One of the songs, Gasolina, was so popular that it can arguably be credited with spreading reggaeaton from the streets of el barrio to the suburbs of America, and fueling the popularity of the Hurban radio format, one of the fastest growing in the nation.

Besides the music, what makes Hurban stations unique is their use of Spanglish, a mix of Spanish and English spoken by many of today’s Latino youth.  Hurban DJs and personalities, and the songs they play, fluidly move back and forth between the two languages, just like their listeners.

And now it appears the worlds of Spanish and English language radio are getting even closer.

What's in a word?

The following blog post was written by Ivette Lopez, member of FH Hispania and FH Out Front, an FH practice group focused on the LGBT community, and was originally featured on the FH Out Front blog:

In recent months, national Hispanic media personalities have been suspended and fired from the air for their use of words that have had a negative impact on the LGBT community. Before coming to a conclusion on who should be held responsible, whether the individuals or the networks,  let’s consider dialects, the ever-changing meaning of words, and FCC leniency with Spanish-language radio.

Luis Jimenez, host of a nationally syndicated Univision radio show has been known for “gay bashing” during his show and using offensive language to make derogatory remarks towards the community. On May 1 of this year, he was suspended from the airwaves due to several such derogatory remarks.

On the other end of the spectrum, Luisa Fernanda from Telemundo’s “Cotorreando” has an outstanding reputation of supporting equality and the LGBT community. She misused a Spanish word during one occasion and has been permanently fired from her six year position with the celebrity gossip show. Was the network being genuine, or were they simply jumping on the bandwagon and aiming to outdo the competitor by making a louder statement?

The Staffing Challenge

As is often the case, FH Hispania is looking to fill an account staff position in one of our offices. So I took the opportunity to browse through the job postings on Monster.com and LatPro.com and came across no less than fifteen job openings for PR account persons at various advertising and public relations agencies across the country, let alone several other postings for corporate positions with Hispanic communications responsibilities.

If my experience is any indication, unfortunately, those jobs are going to take a while to fill. One of the biggest challenges facing the growth of our industry could be the availability of qualified PR professionals who have superior skills communicating in both English and Spanish, especially when it comes to writing. We often come across professionals who grew up overseas and have great Spanish-language skills, but who lack the facility in English to develop presentation documents and interact with clients that sometimes have limited Spanish knowledge. Even more common are young professionals who moved to the U.S. at an early age or are second generation Hispanics who understand the culture and learned Spanish at home, but don’t have the rigorous academic background in Spanish that we demand of public relations professionals.

On a typical week, you will find upwards of thirty or forty Spanish press releases posted on Hispanic PR Wire, the leading news distribution service aimed at U.S. Hispanic media. Manny Ruiz, the company’s president, tells me that number has grown steadily since the service kicked off several years ago. All indications are that this growth trend should continue, but to meet the greater demand for high quality Hispanic communications services, as an industry, we are faced with the challenge of exploring innovative ways of identifying and nurturing individuals from a cross-section of disciplines who have the potential to display both the language and functional PR skills that our clients expect of our general market counterparts, only bilingually.