by Elizabeth Guevara, Copywriting Intern & Gabriela Sosa, Social Media Coordinator
When you have a large group of women that co-exist in multiple cultures, how do you even begin to attempt to capture their attention? We’re talking about millennial Latinas and the vast diversity that exists within this growing consumer base.
Understanding Latinas as consumers is critical. Latinas boast an estimated annual buying power of $1.2 trillion. According to Nielsen, 86% of Latinas are now the primary decision makers in their home, making buying decisions on everything from groceries to electronics. Additionally, 81% are making these purchases online.
While many marketers still attempt to classify Latinas in a bicultural model – as either more American or more Latina – it’s important to understand these women do not exist solely in these two worlds. The clichéd storylines of both negative and positive representations are old, and Latinas today want to be represented as far more than either side of that coin. One thing is certain…not all millennial Latinas are cut from the same cloth.
We believe every Latina breaks the mold that mainstream media has for them and here are a few of our very own at Dieste:
Andrea Barreto
Birthplace: Caracas, Venezuela
Ethnicity: I have no idea. My dad’s family is from Portugal and my mom’s distant relatives are from Spain so technically I’m white? Or because I was born in Venezuela I guess I’m Latino/Hispanic?
Favorite food: Italian
Favorite clothing brand: Zara
Do you watch sports? Some soccer
What’s your favorite sport? To play, volleyball
Who is your favorite sports team? La Vinotinto (the Venezuelan national team) & Portugal
What’s your favorite social media app? Instagram
What kind of people do you follow? Friends? Fashion bloggers? Influencers? Musicians? Friends, musicians, @itsdougthepug, design, advertising related, @cnne, local news & places, @dallassocial
Elsa Gonzalez
Birthplace: Monclova, Mexico
Ethnicity: Hispanic/Latina
Favorite Food: Anything Asian, ideally spicy. I also love Mexican fusion food.
What’s your favorite clothing brand? Uniqlo, in my mind I’m the best brand ambassador in Texas.
Do you watch sports? Yes, a lot. I have 3 brothers and sports were a must.
What’s your favorite sport? Love soccer, like basketball, highly dislike football and golf
Who is your favorite sports team? Tigres (MX team); following them allows me to bond with my dad and brothers and keeps a connection with the town in Mexico where I was raised.
What’s your favorite social media app? Instagram, but I find myself on Facebook a lot
What kind of people do you follow? Friends? Fashion bloggers? Influencers? Musicians? Friends, pets and food/drinks/interior design influencers
Izzi Gonzalez
Birthplace: Columbus, Ohio
Ethnicity: White and Hispanic
Favorite Food: I absolutely love sushi and all Asian food in general.
Favorite music genre: R&B
Favorite artist/band: Bryson Tiller
What’s your favorite clothing brand: Forever 21
Do you watch sports? Nope
What’s your favorite sport? If I had to choose, it would be soccer.
Who is your favorite sports team? Texas A&M I guess!
What’s your favorite social media app? I love Instagram.
What kind of people do you follow? Friends? Fashion bloggers? Influencers? Musicians? I only follow friends, but use the explore page to keep up with fashion or makeup trends.
Monica Gonzalez- Padilla
Birthplace: Monterrey, Mexico
Ethnicity: Hispanic
What’s your favorite food? Burgers, sopa de tortilla
Favorite music genre? Alternative rock/classic rock
Favorite artist/band? Queen, Coldplay
What’s your favorite clothing brand? The Gap, Anthropologie
Do you watch sports? Not really
What’s your favorite sport? Soccer (if I’m actually watching a sport)
Who is your favorite sports team? Boston Red Sox
What’s your favorite social media app? Instagram
What kind of people do you follow? Friends? Fashion bloggers? Influencers? Musicians? Friends, fitness bloggers, fashion bloggers, stores that I like, random photographers I find.
Gabriela Sosa
Birthplace: Dallas, Texas
Ethnicity: Salvadoran-Mexican-American?
Favorite Food: Tacos de tripa and potstickers
Favorite music genre: Hip-hop mostly but I like classic rock, modernish folk and that sad indie stuff too
Favorite artist/band? Beyoncé for sure and Iron & Wine
What’s your favorite clothing brand? I don’t have one
Do you watch sports? Yes
What’s your favorite sport? No favorite, just as long as I’m not at a sports bar
Who is your favorite sports team? Triple D native here- I have to go with the Mavs and Cowboys and I’m half Mexican (whatever that means) but there’s no love for El Tri here.
What’s your favorite social media app? It depends what I’m looking for- good dialogue and updates: Twitter. Selfies of my friends: Snapchat. Food, hair and makeup tutorial: Instagram.
What kind of people do you follow? Friends? Fashion bloggers? Influencers? Musicians? I follow a lot of friends but on Twitter and Instagram specifically, I follow a lot of activists and artists (and any combination thereof). I follow a lot of makeup artists, too. Snapchat gives me FOMO.
Often, the media (whether advertising or entertainment) falls ridiculously flat, just like their portrayals of millennial Latinas. However, there are few who are getting it right…
Jane the Virgin
Jane the Virgin tackles a myriad of issues, all while showcasing a Latina lead and Latinos in supporting roles. Jane, her family and everyone else along for the 42 minute ride every week help break stereotypes about what Latinos in the workforce, religion and just every-day life are like. Her culture is never exotic and it’s interwoven, not tacked on to the storyline. Jane, like many Latinas in real life, cannot be pinned down by one single aspect of her identity.np
Target
Target wanted to celebrate the diversity of Latinas by making a beauty campaign that “wasn’t just about foundation, lipstick and mascara, but about bold self-expression and self-love.” Target, in their Lúcete A Tu Manera campaign featured Latina vloggers, actresses, bodybuilders, differently abled and transgender models across their markets.
Latinas are so much more dynamic than the bicultural marketing model. They don’t see the need to choose between only two cultures and brands shouldn’t offer the same “this or that” choice either. Campaigns that engage are those that portray (and therefore understand) millennial Latinas as the multidimensional, diverse group they are.
WE CAN’T HELP BUT WONDER…
Since Latinas encompass such a vast group of diverse people, would it be best for brands to encourage conversations? Should ads be open to conversation rather than just closing it with a simple brand message?
Interested in sparking a conversation with millennial Latinas? Contact our CMO, Carla Eboli, to get started.
For more on understanding millennial Latinas and moving beyond biculturalism, be sure to visit Dieste.com and subscribe to our newsletter for a weekly dose of relevant advertising trends impacting the multicultural market.
Special thanks to Damian Balderrama for his photography.
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