What the industry needs to focus on is a deeper understanding of Latine consumers as people, not just as Spanish speakers or descendants, but what moves and drives them, in all their dimensionality.

Advancing cultural understanding

The industry has tried to brand things differently, from translating to transcreation (the process of adapting a message from one language to another while maintaining the original messaging), and from representative and inclusive to authentic. It’s tried to reinvigorate the integrated agency teams process to allow for insight sharing and collaboration.

In my personal experience, all agencies have been willing to learn, grow and adapt. All brand managers have been interested and positive about these changes, yet using Spanish continues to be the mainstay and is used in lieu of a deeper understanding of Latines, their culture and what makes them tick.

Meanwhile, marketing efforts fall back on rudimentary insights like “family is important to Hispanics,” and we justify these tactics to check boxes and obtain budget approval. It’s important to note that Latine, Latinx, Latino/a and Hispanic are used interchangeably today for a segment of people who live in the U.S., but that segment is not homogeneous.

More culturally resonant marketing requires advancement in the tactics and insights driving these efforts. It starts with understanding that there are nuances between Latine audience segments and identifying where your brand opportunity lies within the vast spectrum of Latinidad.

Deepen your understanding of who this audience segment is and what they need from your brand to deploy your message in its most effective manner. The first thing you need to do is talk to a vast array of Latines across the socioeconomic spectrum and across generations and backgrounds. Understand the people behind the labels, and then you can understand how to activate your brand’s opportunity within the audience.

As a marketer, immerse yourself in the culture. Listen to the music, eat the food, follow the sports and the athletes that identify as Latine in its many forms. Read books about and written by Latines. Approach the world as one you want to understand rather than one you want to sell your brand to. Understand what they love, and you will understand them as well.

In order to understand us, you need to dive into the culture and appreciate all of it, if you truly want your message to resonate in any language.