Messaging and Positioning in Hispanic Marketing

As the deadline for open enrollment in the Affordable Care Act approaches, the effort at the Federal and State level to enroll U.S. Hispanics in health coverage is stronger than ever. Nonetheless, as a recent article in NPR reports, this mission has proven to be truly challenging.

In the State of California, for example, Spanish-language television campaigns were aired, emphasizing the fact that under the new law, pre-existing conditions will not keep someone from getting health coverage. The problem is that for Hispanics that really isn’t the main concern. Many Hispanics have never been covered by health insurance and as a result are more concerned with understanding basic concepts like what is included in the various health plans, how their privacy is protected, and where they can go to get more information.

Clearly, not taking into consideration what is important for Hispanics when it comes to learning about health insurance and coverage benefits ended up hindering the efforts to reach them effectively.

What you need to know: Marketing to U.S. Hispanics requires more than simply translating materials. Understanding the needs and concerns of Hispanic customers as they relate to your services and products is one of the first steps needed to create marketing messages that resonate with this audience.

For the complete NPR article, please click here.