How Do You Appeal to a $4.1 Trillion Audience? Speak Their Language

In the not-too-distant future, the most important, most targeted, most discussed consumers will be Spanish-speakers that watch anime.

We’ve discussed anime before, but the equation isn’t complete without considering the ever-growing audience of some of its most dedicated consumers. In terms of purchasing power, over the last 6 years, the GDP growth of Spanish-speakers in the United States has surpassed China, India, and even the United States itself.

Despite this cohort being an economic powerhouse of historic proportions, they benefit from just 4% of ad targeting.

As an industry we need to do better. There are customers to serve and subsequent dollars to go around to the brands that authentically engage with this cohort.

But first: we need to address a few blockers.

Off-Site Media: Small Slice, Outsized Potential

The $4.1 stat may be a little misleading, but not intentionally. Grouping this cohort under wide-ranging labels like “Hispanic” and “Latino” (terms made official ~45-50 years ago) can help segment audiences. But those audiences represent 21 countries across 6,500 miles, with the only obvious unifying characteristic being a common language. This is like using identical strategies to message consumers in Vancouver, Canada and Auckland, New Zealand just because they both speak English.

Trying to find unifying cultures, pain points, relevant messaging, and accurate personas to serve these communities is a tall order. Likely an impossible one. Going by that same logic, we shouldn’t assume that consumers from northern Mexico have a whole lot in common with those of southern Chile.

Look to the Universals

No matter the differences between any cohorts, there are universals that tie us all together. We get hungry and obsess over pictures of food. We want more for less. We don’t just want safety in the form of shelter – we want the nicest, most luxurious shelters we can buy. These are traits of the human species and surefire topics of common understanding. Regarding this cohort, the other universal we can rely on is their proficiency in Spanish.

At Infillion, our solution for creating broad appeal across Spanish-speaking nations: offer a language toggle.

Our language toggle allows users to seamlessly change from one language to another at any time during an ad experience. This doesn’t just refer to copy and imagery. If assets are available, we can change language on brand videos too. All it takes is a click of the mouse or a tap of the finger.

In this screen, you’ll see an unobtrusive switch in the upper-left. This empowers users to switch between English and Spanish at their leisure – even in the middle of the video.

Creating a Seat at the Table

Offering a language toggle within our ad experiences has yielded impressive results. We’re seeing a 22% increase in Awareness and a 16% increase in Familiarity, meaning this strategy is a powerful driver of mid-funnel activity.

Our Engagement product already guarantees brands 30 seconds of user attention. Advertisements with a Spanish-language toggle yield an average of 51 seconds of attention. Combined with 2.6% CTR and 3.3 average interactions (which puts it among our top performers), we’ve created an open door for people to navigate their ad experience.

Why it Works

Interestingly, our numbers suggest that, even after toggling the Spanish version of the experience, many consumers will revert to English. At first blush, this might suggest that users aren’t interested in the functionality. On the contrary, it sends a clear message: users have agency over their ad experience.

We all skip ads. (There’s another universal trait.) But being the recipient of ad targeting is, unexpectedly, a sign of respect. It says: We value your support, and we’re going out of our way to create room to give you a more personalized experience. If you want to read in a language that is more comfortable to you, you can. That is 100% up to the consumer.

This strategy creates a lot of subtle benefits. For many, English is the workplace language and Spanish is the comfort language, the one used at home and at family gatherings. Flexible ad experiences give users the freedom to select which they feel is most appropriate at any given time.

Additionally, it creates another layer of consumer comfort. Allowing for a real-time comparison between English and Spanish ads shows that every consumer is getting a fair deal. Specifically, the same deal. Even if users aren’t engaging with the Spanish side of the ad, they’re getting transparency and consumer equity.

Next Steps

The strategies and trends outlined in this post are specifically about Spanish-speaking consumers. However, our language toggle function can be used for any second language of interest. As the United States continues to see upticks of other languages – for instance, Mandarin and Vietnamese have both been showing upward trends – we can create room for multiple consumers.

From there, the logic is easy: more doorways into your brand story means additional business, repeat customers, evangelists, and more.

It all starts with speaking your consumer’s language.