With the explosion in ethnic media in the last 20 years -- ranging from radio stations specifically geared to blacks to Spanish-language TV channels Univision and Telemundo --
PR and marketing execs have had a tough time figuring how to reach their audiences.
Sergio Bendixen, a Coral Gables, Fla.-based pollster, says companies may be forgiven for thinking that targeting ethnic media "may seem like 'Mission: Impossible.'" However, if
demographic trends continue -- with the U.S. expected to have more nonwhites than whites by the year 2050 -- marketers may ultimately be sorry if they fail to recognize how
minority groups are starting to morph into the mainstream.
"The old model of the American melting pot was one in which immigrants were absorbed into the culture," Bendixen says. "But with globalization and a revolution in
communications, America is starting to look more like a salad. There are lots of different ingredients, but they each retain their own texture, their own flavor and their own
identity. Ethnic markets are not monolithic and [marketers] need to be knowledgeable and sensitive to numerous groups."
Bendixen just completed a comprehensive study on multicultural media on behalf of New California Media (San Francisco), a nonprofit organization that tracks ethnic media, as
well as The Center for American Progress and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, both of which are based in Washington, D.C.
The multilingual poll, which was released earlier this month, is the first national effort to quantify both the use of ethnic media as well as the tremendous reach among
ethnic-media consumers. It surveyed 1,895 African American, Hispanic, Asian American, Arab American and Native American adults in the United States, representing some 64 million
ethnics overall. Bendixen refers to ethnic media as a "giant hidden in plain sight." (See tables.)
Indeed, the study shows the huge impact ethnic media have in the United States: 45% of all of the aforementioned groups prefer ethnic television, radio or newspapers to their
mainstream counterparts. This means that 29 million adults (45% of the 64 million ethnic adults studied), or 13% of the entire adult U.S. population, prefer ethnic media to
mainstream media.
The shift in communications is shaping up to have a profound impact on PR execs' ability to reach the masses. "Based on demographics, multicultural marketing is no longer a
question of 'if' but 'when,'" says Saul Gitlin, executive vp for strategic services Kang & Lee Advertising, a full-service marcom firm based in New York City that was recently
ranked the No. 1 Asian-American agency by Advertising Age. "Companies that engage ethnic media now and start to build relationships have the best chance of thriving in the
marketplace five, ten or fifteen years from now."
Gitlin rattled off several statistics that should make PR execs' heads spin at the prospects of reaching ethnic media: African-Americans, Asian-Americans, and Hispanic-
Americans together have an annual buying power of $1.5 trillion, but less than 5% of total annual media expenditures are devoted to multicultural media channels; the three groups
make up half of the population in California, the country's biggest market, and are the population majorities in the nation's top 10 urban markets as well as 50 of the fastest-
growing urban areas.
"What's wrong with this picture?" Gitlin says, pointing to what he calls an "enormous gap" between opportunities in ethnic media and the efforts that are currently being made
throughout corporate America to embrace multiculturalism.
Part of the problem is the inherent resistance to something new (even though ethnic media has been gaining ground for the last several years). What's more, considering all the
subsets of ethnic media -- the potpourri of Asians, for example, such as Thai, Vietnamese, Filipino -- the multicultural landscape may look just as fragmented as mainstream media
and marketers opt to go with what they know. But for PR execs who are responsible for cultivating new audiences, industry observers say it would be folly to ignore ethnic
media.
"We're not suggesting throwing money at ethnic markets. Campaigns must be measured and driven by a business case, otherwise they're not worth it," Gitlin adds. "It's basically
Marketing 101, which is understanding consumer behavior as it relates to your category and brand."
Bank of America (Charlotte, N.C.), for one, is investing millions of dollars in multicultural media. "In some markets, New York, L.A., ethnic media is already the mainstream as
far as Bank of America is concerned," says Marcos Rosenberg, senior VP multicultural marketing and strategy for the bank giant, adding that cultivating multicultural markets is a
"key component" of the bank's growth strategy and an integral part of the planning process, "not an afterthought."
He cautions, however, that companies not just buy new media pipes to target multicultural populations. "It's not just about dollars but making sure you're communicating the
right message and it is relevant. For different customers you have to make adjustments."
There are numerous ways to incorporate ethnic media into a PR plan that go beyond issuing press releases in multiple languages, save Sanskrit. Lisa Skriloff, president of
Multicultural Marketing Resources (New York City), which publishes Multicultural Marketing News (10,000 e-mail subscribers), says PR execs need to add to the main message
"layers" that can lure ethnic media.
These layers, Skriloff adds, could be, say, details about the complexion of the neighborhood in which a new store is opening; information about groups that may be more
susceptible to a disease in which a new drug is being developed to combat; or some rich, family background about a minority executive who was just promoted. "You need to include
information, or even a phrase, that appeals to ethnic groups' sense of community."
CONTACTS: Sergio Bendixen, 305.529.9916, [email protected]; Saul Gitlin, 212.375.8111, [email protected]; Marcos Rosenberg, 704.387.4007, [email protected]; Lisa Skriloff, 212.242.3351, [email protected]