Media and marketers have noticed the impressive trillion-dollar-plus buying power of the Latino American community. And advertisers are doggedly brainstorming how they can best influence the overall Latino community and best reach the U.S. Spanish-speaking community. Many companies have found little success, particularly when simply translating English-language campaigns to Spanish. It's fair to say that the creation of Latino-geared media that has little or no understanding of the community proves to be futile and is bound to fail.

However, researchers have discovered the often-ignored keys to marketer success, which includes understanding the plight of legal residents as well as unprotected and undocumented immigrants and refugees, and offering extraordinary customer experiences that home in on the exact needs of the community being served.

That means answering phones in Spanish, and avoiding English-language and Spanish language automated answering services, as they are off-putting. It means providing immediate security and confidence by means of quality services and products. And it means remembering that this demographic happily relays info based on positive product and service experience (word-of-mouth and social media), but they also communicate poor customer experiences as well.

By making an effort to humanize Latinos, success becomes a matter of when. Campaigns should identify and celebrate festivals, holidays and other aspect of U.S. Latino heritage and culture as well as the culture and the heritage of their native countries. They should also respect family values and tack a family-centered approach onto their effort so that they can better cater to each individual member of a family.

Younger members of Hispanic households are tech-savvy, and tablets and phones are prime sources for Internet access, rather than desktops or laptops. With the adoption of mobile technology and smartphones, Hispanic youth and Millennials use technology with more regularity than their elders. Their continual access to the web promises a mounting presence on social media networks and their continual use of online videos and their purchasing of merchandise.

Latinos are likely to stay loyal to brands that understand the nuances of their culture. And, they're likely to stay true to those who always present value and maintain quality. Also, Spanish-language dialogue that's culturally relevant should be presented in advertisements, when first generation Latinos are concerned, as Spanish is likely their first language. English suddenly being inserted into their online experience creates disconnect with the material, the advertisement, and also the company.

Success within the Hispanic market simply demands that small businesses and large corporations provide first-rate service. There are few underhanded tricks to sway the growing community. U.S. born Latinos, as well as those who've recently entered the country under dire circumstances, must be treated with respect, something that many marketers are still struggling to understand.

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