Leading full-service marketing communications agency Wing, in partnership with Experian Simmons, released a groundbreaking study that is the first ever to quantify the influence Hispanics have on mainstream culture, which until now was only anecdotally observed.
The Latino Influence Project measured over 25,000 respondents across 60,000 variables including language gender, age, household income and political outlook. The findings show that Hispanics are influencing non-Hispanics who live in Hispanic-dense areas in their brand choices, behaviors and attitudes.
“Hispanic influence on mainstream U.S. culture has been evident but solely anecdotal for years; look no further than products like Häagen-Dazs’ ‘Dulce de Leche’ becoming the top-selling flavor of ice cream, or the popularity of Latino actors and musicians like Sofia Vergara,” said Andrew Speyer, Managing Director of Wing. “This study is the first to offer statistically significant proof that Hispanic attitudes and behaviors are permeating the broader culture.”
According to “The Latino Influence Project,” when compared to non-Hispanics who live in areas with a low density of Hispanics, non-Hispanics living among Hispanics:
· Are interested in other cultures and traveling abroad
· They are 3 times as likely to be interested in other cultures and love the idea of traveling abroad
· Lead the way in technology
· They are twice as likely to use their cell phones and the internet for information and entertainment
· Consume more Hispanic products including food, music and sports
· They are 5.5 times more likely to eat jalapeños
· They are 6 times as likely to listen to and enjoy salsa and merengue
· Eat less processed food
· They are twice as likely to look for organic and natural when shopping for food
· Enjoy standing out in the crowd and being fashionable
· They are twice as likely to say they like to stand out from the crowd and 70% more likely to experiment with new clothing styles
· Are environmentally conscious
· They are twice as likely to buy recycled products
· Have a holistic view of health
· They are twice as likely to use homeopathic medicine and prefer alternative medicine to standard medical practices
· Are more receptive to ad messages
· They are almost 2.5 times as likely to pay attention to the commercials in the movie theaters
“How Latinos are already eating, travelling and shopping is having a big impact on mainstream culture,” said Holly McGavock, Planning Director of Wing. “As the Latino population grows more and more Non-Hispanics interact on a daily basis with Hispanics, understanding Latino attitudes and behavior today is a window into how Americans in general will think, feel, and act in the future.”
The research compared the average Hispanic densities among non-Hispanics who responded in agreement with Hispanics on a given variable to the average Hispanic densities among non-Hispanics who responded in non-agreement with Hispanics on a given variable. The methodology utilized three sets of regression analyses using statistical software and Generalized Linear Model (GLM) logistic regressions on the subset of non-Hispanic residents. Within each regression the coefficient of the mean Hispanic density was tested for significance. The study ruled out the effect of additional variables that may lead to influence such as age, geography, income and presence of children at home.
“In partnering with Wing on the Latino Influence Project, we were able to leverage our expertise as a trusted and responsible provider of insights into the mindset of the Hispanic consumer. We did this by tapping into our vast permission-based survey data that provides a complete view of Hispanic and non-Hispanic consumers alike,” said Ken Wollenberg, president/general manager, Experian Simmons. “Examining these behaviors from a qualitative and quantitative point of view resulted in a clear understanding of just how widespread Hispanic influence is.”
