Hispanics Online
The Straight Facts About the U.S. Hispanic
Market Online
NOTE: Hispanics reside worldwide and the beauty of the Internet
is that even if you create a website targeting Hispanics in one
country, it will most likely reach Hispanics in other countries,
too. The facts below are about the U.S. Hispanic market simply because
they are the largest group of Hispanics online. At an estimated
15 million users, the U.S. Hispanic internet population is 11% larger
than the Internet population of Spain and 4% larger than than the
total online populations of Mexico, Argentina and Colombia combined.1
Quick Links:
• U.S. Hispanic Population Offline and Online
• Hispanic Purchasing Power
• The Power of Spanish Online
• Corporate Websites Targeting U.S. Hispanics
The U.S. Hispanic population is the
fastest-growing offline and online:
Between 1990 and 2003, the Hispanic population grew by 61%, making
it the fastest-growing group in America according to the U.S. Census
Bureau. Meanwhile, the total U.S. population increased by only 13.2%.
Already the largest minority in the United States, it is projected
that this rapid growth will cause the Hispanic population to triple
in size by 2050, causing its share of the U.S. population to increase
from 12.5% to 24% in that time.
It is estimated that one-third of the U.S. Hispanic population
is online, which translates into 15 million U.S. Hispanic internet
users. This number is increasing by 20% each year as more Hispanic
households buy computers and embrace the Internet.
Currently, 41% of all U.S. Hispanic households and 80% of U.S.-born
Hispanic households own a computer. However, a Consumer Electronics
Association study among Hispanics who didn't own computers found
that 58% of 25 to 35 year olds and 46% of 18 to 24 year olds were
planning to buy a computer in the next two years.
Hispanics are embracing the internet quickly with 78% going online
3-5 times per week. According to the first annual U.S. Hispanic
Cyberstudy, Hispanics spend 43% more time online at work (13.5 hours)
and 13% more time online at home (9.5 hours) than the overall online
population.
Hispanic buying power and influence
is increasing just as rapidly:
Hispanic buying power is increasing faster than any other minority
group, rising from $223 billion in 1990 to an estimated $675 billion
in 2003. According to the Selig Center, if the current growth continues,
Hispanics will become the most economically powerful minority by
2005 with a buying power of $1.2 trillion by 2010.
The two million Hispanic-owned businesses in the U.S. generate
about $300 billion in sales every year, a number which is predicted
to double in five years, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Online, Hispanic shoppers spend 7% more than the average non-Hispanic
online shopper.
Hispanics share a common language:
88% of U.S. Hispanics learn Spanish before they learn English and
continue using Spanish in the home, at school and at work. As a
result, advertising to Hispanics in Spanish is 69% more effective
than advertising in English, according to the 2002 Hispanic Monitor
report.
Most Hispanic adults would prefer to use the Internet in Spanish
if they had the choice. However, many U.S. Latinos report that they
do not find information in Spanish that is relevant.
An interesting side affect of the current lack of quality Hispanic
websites in Spanish is that it has brought the U.S. Hispanic population
online together. According to comScore, the top ten Spanish language
properties reach more than 91% of Hispanic internet users that prefer
to surf in Spanish each month.
U.S. Corporations are beginning to
create Hispanic websites:
Major U.S. corporations are beginning to realize the potential
of the U.S. Hispanic market and are responding by creating websites
targeting Hispanics online. However, there is no standard way to
indicate the Spanish version of a particular website and many of
these sites are not optimized for the Hispanic search engines. To
reach most of these sites, Hispanics must type in the English version
and search for the "en Español" text link, which
is far from ideal.
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