Marketing to Hispanics: How We Got It Right With Sit ‘n Sleep

With home improvement spending on the upswing, it’s never been more important to advertise to the country’s largest ethnic minority: Hispanics. Unfortunately, many businesses fail on this front because they assume they can’t get it right. Well, we’re here to tell you: It’s lot easier than you think. Read on to learn how we helped our client, Sit ‘n Sleep, overcome this perceived obstacle and come out on top.

Why Hispanics, Why Now?

Sit ‘n Sleep came to us wanting a bigger piece of the Hispanic market, and with good reason. Not only do Hispanics account for 11.3 percent of the country’s purchasing power, but they top the charts in terms of discretionary funding among major races and ethnicities. And they’re amping up to spend in one particular area: DIY and discretionary home improvement projects.

In fact, according to “Emerging Trends in the Remodeling Market,” a report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, minorities — led by Hispanics — not only increased their share as homeowners in recent years, but are also more likely to spend money on DIY and discretionary home improvement projects than white homeowners.

Talking the Talk

While Sit ‘n Sleep recognized that they needed to woo the Hispanic market, they didn’t understand how to go about doing it. Not only that, but they were a bit skeptical of our recommendations. Let’s back up a bit to explain why.

At Wingman, we’ve had great luck engaging Hispanics with Spanish language ads for two primary reasons. Not only do they acknowledge Hispanic language speaking constituents, but they also demonstrate effort on a business’s part to connect in a meaningful way. (Unlike English-language messages which — even if understood — ultimately do little to authentically connect Hispanic audience members with your brand.)

Now here’s the really interesting part — especially if you, like our friends at Sit ‘n Sleep, are automatically dismissing this approach because you think your business lacks the infrastructure to back up the ads throughout the comprehensive consumer experience. As it turns out, following up Spanish language ads with things like an English-speaking sales team and English language signage actually does nothing to diminish a consumer’s impression of your business.

In other words, while you might assume — as Sit ‘n Sleep did — that building on these relationships necessitates the ongoing use of Spanish language across every consumer touchpoint — from website to store floor — our extensive experience tells a very different story.

Reaping the Returns

It took some convincing, but we managed to get Sit ‘n Sleep to come around to our way of thinking. Which may leave you wondering how that worked out for them. Well, the numbers speak for themselves.