Hispanic Public Relations Blog

And the answer is….. It’s the WRONG question!  There is much debate today about language in reaching Latinos.  There are many that say Spanish is still very relevant and important.  There are others that say that (given the new Census data showing 50% of US Latinos were born in the US) English is the best way moving forward.  While we understand the importance of language and think there is merit to both sides of the debate, we think focusing on language first is the wrong approach.

There are similar discussions about social media and what tools are the best to reach Latinos.  We get asked what social media services we provide and what can we do for a particular client.  Again, the focus here is backwards.

The first questions shouldn’t be about language or social media tools or tactics.  The first question should look at audience and who the organization is trying to reach.  Who are they?  What is the makeup of the audience?  Where do they discuss the client/brand?  What do they say? What do they want? Who are the influencers?

These are some of the important questions.  Until an organization can answer these questions, it will be difficult – if not impossible – to know whether English, Spanish or both will be most effective.  It will be difficult to understand what communications platforms will be best suited to interact with the audience/client/customer.  And it will be difficult to know what messages will resonate.

Anyone can create a Facebook page, a blog and a Twitter account.  But if you don’t know who you’re talking to or who is influencing the discussion, how can those platforms (or any) be effective?

The next time someone asks you which language, stop the discussion and ask them about the audience they are targeting.  If they can’t answer that question, it’s time to take a step back and help them answer the questions above.