Juan Tornoe

Is Harley-Davidson Capitalizing on the Latino Opportunity?

Where are the HispaHOGs?

By Juan Tornoe

According to the experts Harley-Davidson, company-wise, is “one of the most ethnically diverse organizations.”

Unfortunately at the consumer level they are not a mirror of the diverse composition of this Nation. In 2004 the company sold 375,000 bikes, an estimated 3.4 percent, or roughly 12,700 units, where bought by Latinos. A percentage way below the actual size of the Hispanic market in the U.S. According to a company press release from July 17, 2008 it is estimated that they will ship anywhere between 303,500 and 307,500 Harleys this year. If the percentages remained the same (which I certainly hope not) there will be approximately 10,400 units bought by Latinos. To keep up with the country’s demographic composition, Latinos should be buying some 45,750 bikes, or 15% of the grand total, give or take a couple percentage points.

So why aren’t more Latinos becoming Harley enthusiasts?

Even though at the dealer level Hispanic buyers have been described as younger (in their mid-20s to early 30’s), affluent, bilingual, successful in whatever line of work they have pursued, and that they “trick out” their bikes more than white bikers do, corporately Harley-Davidson apparently has not capitalized on these insights. These new HOGs, might be vital to the company’s endurance and an optimal replacement to the long-established White-Anglo-Saxon Baby Boomers who, let’s face it, are not getting any younger.

Although historically Harley has “tended to regard ethnicity as irrelevant” and viewed their customers as a demographic in their own right, I believe it is perfect time to redefine or actualize their point of view, which can be done without stepping too far away from the current aura that surrounds the ultimate American bike.

By their initiatives highlighted on the media, it seems they are trying to appeal to the Latino equivalent of their current buyer. But according to the previous description, there are evident differences between these two groups. Do they want to attract Hispanic Boomers or are they ready to reach out to a younger, vibrant, upwardly mobile, bilingual (or English dominant), 2nd or 3rd generation Latino? If they want the fastest growing segment of the Hispanic community to embrace them, they need to consciously begin to understand their culture, values, and way of life, as well as the overall new general market, which is more and more influenced by Latinos. There has to be some elements intertwined within their messaging that directly capture the attention and imagination of their new customers… From their National advertising campaign both conceptually as well as in media choices, to the events they sponsor and how they reach out at the local level. I consider that many of the things they are doing right now, like the recent sponsorship of the Latin American Motorcycle Association’s - LAMA - National Rally (association with 22 chapters and more than 2,500 members in the U.S.) are good short term actions, but there needs to be a well-structured long term strategic plan to capture the hearts and minds of those Hispanics who are yet to realize that a Harley-Davidson is the perfect extension and expression of their lifestyle.

Kaleidoscope: A Panel @ PSFK's 2007 Los Angeles Conference

Last year I had the privilege to share the stage with Jennifer Woodard-Medrazo and David Morse on a panel about Latinos and their diversity. Hope you enjoy it.

Tales of a Recent Immigrant

By Juan Tornoe

Note: This article was originally published on the February 2005 edition of Marketing y Medios.

I'm a 30-something-year-old guy born and raised in Guatemala, transplanted to the United States just a couple of years ago. I was lucky enough to begin learning English during preschool. I've been watching American programming on cable TV since my early teens, have listened to music in English for all my life, and even though I love and crave traditional Guatemalan food, I've been going to McDonald's ever since I can remember.

Many foreign-born Hispanics are very well acquainted with many aspects of American culture, especially those portrayed in the media, and selectively choose to adopt them.

Still, the early "American" experience of many first-generation Latinos catches them off guard and takes an emotional and physical toll, affecting not only them but their loved ones. It is hard to leave everything behind just to find out that not everything is peaches and cream. Don't get me wrong. I truly believe this is the land of opportunity, and that it offers many wonderful things, but there is definitely a price to pay.

Many things that for Americans seem like no big deal, for new immigrants are certainly overwhelming and can wear on your patience and composure.

Did you have good or bad credit back home? It's irrelevant for credit card companies, banks, car dealers and Realtors. You must start from scratch. Simple things like getting the basic utilities can be nightmarish experiences, not to mention health care (a real shocker), insurance, school system, taxes, Social Security, Medicare and so many other things.

Even if you have a decent knowledge of the English language, you find yourself desperately "fishing" for the correct terms to use while engaging in everyday conversations. Then you must deal with a lack of warmness, a "touchy-feelyness," if I may, from the new culture that surrounds you. It's not good or bad, it is just different. Within Latin American cultures, you basically go a couple layers deeper in intimacy, familiarity and appreciation at every level of human interaction. It doesn't take long before you begin longing for all this, which you may have previously taken for granted. Besides the nostalgia, there is a new sense of pride that arises from within. It did not take me too long after moving to the United States, and being away from all that was familiar, to develop more pride than I had ever had for my Latin American heritage.

There are countless new situations one faces after establishing a new life in America: new people, new realities. Many are great, others a challenge. It takes time to get acquainted with them, but it's quite an interesting experience.

My “Immigrant” T-Shirt

By Juan Tornoe

A couple years ago the folk from Klaus Industries came out with an “Immigrant” T-shirt and kindly sent me a sample.

I’ve been having some fun with it at my gym, which as one of my Latino friends who came to check out their installations said, “Is filled with Blanquitos”. There is certainly an overwhelming majority of White Anglo-Saxon-looking person there.

It cracks me up to see people’s expressions after they decipher the not-so-in- your-face word on my chest. They are a mixture of double takes, looking for something in the ceiling, and a few condescending looks.  The T-shirt is yet to start a conversation (or discussion).

It’s funny to see how, within one or two generations the most, people forget where they came from. Every single one of these persons who feel uncomfortable about the fact that I am an immigrant and am letting the “whole gym” know about it, have parents, grandparents or someone else up their family tree that came from elsewhere to settle in this great nation.

Are you reacting in a similar manner? Could it be affecting your business?

The Hispanic Insight of a Pepperoni Pizza

By Juan Tornoe

If a Latino advertising agency or consultant begins to address the Hispanic insight of a pepperoni pizza (a bar of soap, toothpaste, shampoo, a hamburger, a Phillips screwdriver, a pencil sharpener… you get the picture), RUN away from them as fast as you can.

There are certainly some products or services for which you will need to fully understand how these interact, relate, fit, with the reality or frame of mind of the Latino consumer and your success in reaching out to them will heavily depend on it. Exhaustive, primary and secondary research will prove invaluable to reach your goals.

Now, let’s go back to the pizza. If your ad agency begins to build an intricate dissertation on how the dough reminds Hispanics of the fresh flour tortillas they ate back in Mexico, how the tomato sauce brings back memories of the days working the farm and picking fresh produce to make some salsa, how the cheese is such a bastion of their ethnic cuisine, and how the sliced pepperoni looks exactly like the chorizo they enjoy so much eating; all leading to the climactic conclusion that Latinos will love pizza because it reminds them of their home and their culture… you are most certainly dealing with the wrong group of people. It is very likely they will love it because it tastes good; they get a good value for their buck, it’s convenient, the kids will eat it without complaining, etc…

Please do take into consideration that if you are the client demanding a Hispanic insight for a Pepperoni Pizza from your agency, you are doing a BIG disservice to yourself, paying good money to (potentially) talented advertising people so they just put a good dog and pony show to present you some nonsense that delivers your so awaited insight. Please keep in mind that such insight will probably come from the agency squeezing numbers as hard as possible in order to make them say what they believed you wanted to listen, or simply using their imagination to make it sound believable.

Might as well save the money you are paying them and do the advertising yourself. It won’t be effective anyway.

My point is that for certain products, such as Pepperoni Pizza, and others similar to the ones mentioned above, you don’t need a Latino insight. You do need to keep in mind certain aspects or idiosyncrasies of the Hispanic Culture in all your ads (General Market as well as Latino – Remember they are now the largest minority in America) AND create persuasive, relevant, attention-grabbing ads in English as well Spanish with the general insight and knowledge you and your agency (or agencies) have gathered.

Many Hispanic ad agencies hire creatives from all parts of Latin America. They are not hired because they understand the Hispanic Market which, as I maintain, is different from the Latin American Market (where by the way, each country is a market all by itself). They come to the U.S. because they are great creatives who have been generating kick-ass ads in Spanish! No mysterious Latino insight, just raw advertising talent that happens to be most comfortable writing in Spanish, their mother tongue! They are master wordsmiths in their language.

Remember that when we are talking about Hispanic Advertising we are NOT exclusively talking about Spanish Advertising. Yes, there will always be a need to reach a percentage of the Latino Market in Spanish, but also a big chunk of it will be reached with your General Market budget. Here is where really understanding the Latino Market begins to pay off… more to come.

Stay tuned.

Latino or Hispanic?

By Juan Tornoe

I was born and raised in Guatemala, "transplanted" into the United States some years ago; and personally I have no problem with people calling me Central American, Latin American, Hispanic or Latino.

I am fully aware of the "battle" between the name we should give to those living in the U.S. that somewhere in their past have roots south of the Rio Grande or the Spanish-speaking Caribbean. The debate has almost reached Pro-Choice vs. Pro-Life intensity. For me it is just a name and I use Latino and Hispanic interchangeably. Now there are also "Chicanos"; those who specifically can trace their roots back to Mexico... that is a whole different story; but since the majority of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States come from Mexican descent, it is most certainly a third variable to consider, at least for that specific segment of the population.

We could go ahead and call each group by its name: Mexicans (Chilangos, if they are from Mexico City), Guatemalans (Chapines), Salvadoran (Guanacos), Hondurans (Catrachos), Nicaraguans (Nicas), Costa Ricans (Ticos), Puerto Ricans (Boricuas), Chilean, Argentinean, Colombian, Venezuelan, Ecuadorian, etc... Or even be a bit more formal: Mexican-Americans, Guatemalan-Americans, Salvadoran-Americans, Honduran-Americans... you get the picture.

Now we run into another "controversy", found both North and South of the border: We are ALL Americans; it is the name of the entire Continent (yes, there is North, South, and Central, although the latter is not fully recognized by some), so what gives the citizens of the United States of America the right to be the only ones called "Americans"? Instead shouldn’t they be called something along the lines of U.S.-Americans or American-Americans?

It's easy to go on and on over this and never land on something concrete... there are very logical and objective arguments that fully justify the use of either term. There are also equally strong, although emotional reasons why someone would chose the term Hispanic or Latino.

One of my strongest beliefs and pet peeves is that "whites" (or should I say Non-Hispanic/Latino Whites…) think of Hispanics/Latinos/etc. as an all encompassing group, while there is SO much diversity among them, not only from country to country, but between the different regions in each country… Then after they have moved to the U.S., the region in which they settle as well as their level of acculturation, bring out a whole new set of variables to consider.

For practical reasons I am comfortable going with the Hispanic/Latino name. Some actually feel strongly against my decision, and I fully respect that, but it would be otherwise too complicated to refer to these persons by each according to their own country of origin…

This is a Catch 22 situation: such a diverse group of people, all gathered under one word, for whatever reason it may be (practicality in my case), and still we insist on  why "Anglos" don’t  recognize the diversity among us.

We also need to consider Spaniards living in the U.S. ... are they Hispanic, Latin, Latino, European, Ibero-Americans? The name Hispanic could be traced to those "descendants" from people from the Iberian or Hispanic Peninsula (comprised by Spain and Portugal) or to the use of the most common language (Spanish) spoken in this Peninsula (let's not even go there right now). Then the word Latino, is a variation of “Latin” which refers to individuals coming from a country where Latin (the language) was once spoken... So the Italians, French, Hungarians, Albanians, Portuguese, and all other persons that descent from Latin countries, who do not have Spanish as their primary language, and are living in the United States could argue that they should be called Latinos or Latin-Americans... Wait, but aren’t Latin Americans the ones that come from Central & South American as well as the Caribbean?

As far as the term "Anglo" is concerned, it is funny but I have noticed that Hispanics/Latinos do not have a problem calling any white Anglo-Saxon American citizen an "Anglo". Shouldn't they call them English-Americans, German-Americans, Danish-Americans, Austrian-Americans, Irish-Americans, Scottish-Americans, Polish-Americans, etc...?

What about African-Americans? We should call them by their country of origin as well: Algerian-Americans, Egyptian-Americans, Tanzanian-Americans… Same situation applies for Asian-Americans, wouldn’t you agree? And how about those originally from the land down under… Australian-Americans?

I believe this certainly has been and will continue to be a hot topic, but eventually will get resolved and we’ll have a term to use when referring to Latinos/Hispanics.
For now I will continue using both terms, Hispanic and Latino, indistinctively and for practical reasons to describe persons living in the United States who came from or can trace their heritage to:

1) Any Latin American country that at some point in time was conquered by Spain;
2) Spain;
3) And even Brazil, because even if we don’t share the same mother tongue, culturally we share as much with them as with the rest of us.

Bottom line, being Latino or Hispanic, is much more than a name; it is even much more than the language we speak, it is about the culture that we have in common… Or paraphrasing, James Carville, “It’s the Culture, Stupid!”

Revised and updated version from my June 2004 post on HispanicTrending.net

The Cost of Leaving Hispanics Lost in Translation

By Juan Tornoe

Talking about Latinos — especially Latinos online — is quite trendy these days. We’re online, alright, but the numbers aren’t as impressive as one might think. Currently, one in ten U.S. internet users are Latino. Meanwhile, the conservative estimate is that 18.8 million of the 44.3 million Hispanics living in the United States today are online.

But that’s changing — fast.

You’re probably aware that Latinos are the fastest growing minority in the U.S., yet most businesses don’t realize that by 2050, Latinos will be 29% of the entire American population.

On top of that, their buying power is growing at even a faster pace. This combination of factors has to add up for businesses, especially online merchants.

But in the words of countless political pundits — who, if you turn on your TV right now, are analyzing our voting patterns — “the Hispanic population is not monolithic.” In fact, there are quite a few factors that, combined, illustrate completely different types of people, living different realities, yet all part of the Latino community. (Without getting too deep, these factors include: country of origin; heritage; generation; place of residence; socio-economic status; acculturation; assimilation; and language preference.)

Varias Personas
Consider the differences between these two individuals:

Alejandro Ramirez — 19 years old. Mexican-American. Bilingual (speaks both languages but reads and writes better in English). 2nd generation (born in the US from immigrant parents). Lives in Petaluma, CA, with his parents, who come from lower-middle class families in Torreon, Cuahuila. His family’s annual household income is $80,000. Although he was born and raised in the U.S. and is quite familiar with the cultural landscape, his parents have nurtured a strong love for Mexico and have ensured that he understands his family’s roots.

Fernando Zachniuk — 43 years old. Argentinean. Moved to the U.S. 10 years ago to start a business. He’s bilingual, but more comfortable in Spanish. He rents a condo in Boca Ratón. He comes from an upper-middle class Russian-Jewish family from Buenos Aires. He’s dating a Cuban-American divorcée who has a 10 year old son. Their annual household income is in the low $20o,000’s. He enjoys the amenities and comfort America has to offer, but he will always be an Argentinean at heart.

You wouldn’t market to them the same way, would you?

Exactly.

I could go on, referring to each single difference that defines Hispanic subgroups, but let’s focus on Language preference for the time being.

En Español, Por Favor
Since many Latinos, especially those of us online, are either English-dominant or fully bilingual, it’s easy for a company to say they’re already reaching out to Hispanics. After all, if they’re online and able to read the content, isn’t that enough?

At first glance, that logic makes sense. But the reality is this: Even if the Latino who comes to your website is fully bilingual and looking for exactly what you sell, they may prefer to read about your offering in Spanish.

Example: If I’m reading about marketing, I have no problem — and may even prefer — reading a website’s content in English. But when the same bald guy (me) is suddenly presented with a desire or need for medical or financial investment information, you can bet the farm (la granja) that I would prefer reading it in Spanish!

The situation that bilingual and Spanish-dominant Hispanics encounter in many cases is that there isn’t enough online content that speaks to them. They either can’t find it, or — more often — it’ so bad that they go back to the site’s English version.

It seems most organizations aren’t taking their outreach to Spanish-dominant Latinos seriously. Instead, they choose to feel safe in the knowledge that there is a translation of their site — no matter how awful. Others pay some attention to the fact that a translated version should actually make sense, but such translations are often way too literal and don’t account for cultural nuance.

“Getting all your ducks in row,” a common phrase in America, is used to describe the action of being fully organized prior to starting a new course of action, but there is no literal translation of it that wouldn’t make a Spanish speaker break out in laughter! Same goes for “Barking up the wrong tree,” “Two peas in a pod,” “The whole nine yards,” and so on.

Translate Concepts, Not Sentences
If you’re serious about reaching out to the entire Latino community, your site should be bilingual. And when it comes to bilingual sites, “transcreation” is what separates the men from the boys. (Hey, it’s just a figure of speech!)

To paraphrase Lingo24’s definition, transcreation is a form of translation, closer to copywriting, resulting in a text linguistically and culturally adapted for its intended audience. Transcreated material is supposed to have the same impact on the target audience as the original source text.

Transcreation is like taking the scenic route instead of the direct highway, so it requires a greater investment to fuel it. Still, the rewards for businesses — especially considering what the numbers tell us about current and future supply and demand — are plenty to justify the expense. It will most certainly take more time, money, and effort to end up with a transcreated site, but my advice to anyone marketing in the U.S. is that they shouldn’t risk not having one.

Back to Alejandro and Fernando for a moment, since this could be the crucial element that either converts them into clients or sends them elsewhere looking for what they need.

Let’s assume they visit your site today. How will you speak to them? Will you give them the choice to experience your content in their preferred language? Will the Spanish section of your site be a straightforward translation or a transcreation? If they navigate your site in Spanish, would they actually care if the language were stiff, confusing, or (worse) boring?

I assure you, they will care.

Originally published February 14, 2008 on Grokdotcom

As Starbucks Closes Stores, Biggby Coffee Opens New Ones

July 23, 2008
By Juan Tornoe

As Fourbucks closes 19% of its stores, Lansing, Michigan-based Biggby Coffee, formerly known as Beaner’s, yes Beaner’s, is celebrating the opening of their 100th store, or 30% increase since January 31st, 2008.

Back in January Biggby got tons of press because of their name change … Some criticized them for caving into pressure from the “politically correct” crowd; I said it was a smart move:

Juan Tornoe, an Austin, Texas-based Hispanic marketing consultant, said it’s clear to him and should be to anyone that Beaner’s name is about coffee, not contempt.

But the name change could be a smart move for a company with national aspirations: By 2050, nearly a quarter of the U.S. population will be of Hispanic heritage.

The company stuck to its core values and customers stuck with them… Hell, they could have named it whatever they wanted (I’m quite fond of “Tornoe’s Coffee”, but maybe it’s just me), yet they wisely chose a name that helped preserve an iconic element (the “big B”, get it) related to its former self.

As reported on July 21st issue of The Lansing State Journal:

Another recent change for Biggby was the conversion to a new company name. Biggby officials changed the name in January when they realized the former name - Beaner's Coffee - could be considered a derogatory term used against Hispanics.

And so far, the transition has gone smoothly, Fish said.

"We haven't missed a beat," he said. "For a lot of people, it just took seeing the change" because customers realized everything else, even the logo, remained the same.

No picketing outside, no hate mail, just a wise – and gutsy – strategic decision made at the right time.

Congratulations (former) Beaner’s!

Guess who's speaking at the Chicago Latino Network's 2008 Awards Gala?

Yep... I'm honored to be sharing the stage with radio talk show host and author Maria Marin.

Thank you so much to Jaime Viteri for the invitation.

I look forward to seeing you in Chicago.

Read more details at the event's web page.

Concepts for developing Spanish language web pages

By Juan Tornoe

It makes good marketing & PR sense to give your customers the OPTION of getting the information they need from you in the language they prefer; be it because they don't know any other language, they feel like it at that particular moment, or for that specific subject they are more acquainted with your "industry's" lingo in English OR Spanish. It just shows both your current and future customers that you care enough and that you want their business enough to go the extra mile. Be it on a website, telephone answering service, brochures, signage, etc... If you are interested in serving a specific "group" whose native language isn't English, providing your company's information in their mother tongue is the way to go. When all is said and done it will be their decision, but you will have given them the OPTION; that's what's important.

You have to start somewhere… A simple couple of pages with the basics will do it at the beginning, as long as you let people know you are working on it and you keep adding more pages at a constant pace (independently of the speed) making sure to make a big fuss every time you add more pages (on your home page, newsletters, invoices, email campaign, the media, etc).

Be straightforward about the fact that the translated information is still a work in progress, if that is the case, and encourage your customers to give you feedback on how to make the information better. Always, but specially during this period, clearly provide a phone number, mailing address, and email address to which people could direct their questions and comments in Spanish; never assume that they can find this information elsewhere, it should be available on every “Spanish” page they visit.

The beauty of the web is that you don’t need to get it right the first time; you are ALWAYS able to tweak and edit your site in order to make it better.

One big mistake done by many companies on the “Spanish” part of their website is that hyperlinks in Spanish lead to pages only available in English. This is OK only if it is a temporary situation and if you clearly and openly inform readers that this is the case.

Embrace yourself to have people offended on both sides; one group will say, "If you live in this Country, learn its language!"; while others will say, "Just because I'm from [Country of Origin] you immediately assume I can't fully understand English?". It's impossible to make everybody happy; still, the majority of people will appreciate your efforts.

Be sure you have an accurate translation; pay the extra investment... it is definitely worth it. It is not a simple translation job; you have to make sure you are addressing Spanish-speaking Hispanics with the correct words, phrases, sentences, but most importantly, the correct industry terms they utilize; the ones they are already acquainted from.

It is not only having a couple of pages translated into Spanish… Is eventually having your entire website (at least the most critical parts of your website), forms, customer service, terms of service, glossary of terms, search, FAQs, and other contact information available in both languages.

In most situations I recommend utilizing neutral and formal (Usted) Spanish. Even if it is proven that a high percentage of the Hispanic Population is from a specific country of origin this type of Spanish speaks clearly and directly to all.

There is as much, if not more, diversity among Hispanics as there is among Non-Hispanic Whites. In fact, Latinos are present in every segment of society. So always present the information as clear as possible, but not in a manner that may be interpreted as condescending by a more knowledgeable customer. Give options, through Hyperlinks to get more specific and technical/financial information, whenever needed.

It is not only offering a glossary of industry terms, but offering it in Spanish and offering a link that provides a translation of each term (both English-Spanish & Spanish-English).

Each customer must be able to have as much as a unique experience surfing your site as unique the necessities for which they visited in the first place. This can be accomplished by the use of two techniques: Developing of personas and the accurate use of hyperlinks. (My friends Jeffrey and Bryan Eisenberg from Future Now Inc. are a great resource of information on this matter).

Even if you make an outstanding job with your online presence, it is not worth much if at the brick and mortar level, as well as over the phone you can’t walk the walk you talk about in your website.

As far as Icons and colors are concerned, do try to keep the same overall appearance of the English pages while succinctly incorporating warmer hues of the colors utilized as well as including, if appropriate, faces of both your actual employees and REAL Latino clients instead of models.

Have your multicultural staff (I am assuming you have one; if not… what are you waiting for) participate in the development of the Spanish pages, and have them take ownership of it.

Latinos are jumping in the internet bandwagon in high numbers and at a fast pace. This is being catalyzed  by aggressive initiatives like the one from AOL Latino, offering bilingual computer systems along with 1-year’s worth of dial-up internet service, for a total cost of less than the price of a comparably equipped PC elsewhere. On top of connecting Latinos AOL is rapidly establishing strategic alliances in order to provide relevant products, information and services to their new clients in their mother tongue. There are also several other portals fighting for the Hispanic market: Univision.com, Yahoo! en Español, Terra.com, and MundoTeq.com in Spanish. On top of that several Bilingual and/or English language sites catering to Latinos are now available: Searchlatino.com and QuePasa.com to name a few. These facts help reinforce the fact that a Spanish language website is of primary importance in order to sustain and increase our presence among the growing Hispanic population.

Originally published on Hispanic Trending on February 9, 2005