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Targeting Beef to U.S. Hispanics More Effectively
The number of U.S. Hispanics is growing four times faster than any other group in the United States. There are currently over 44 million Hispanics in the United States, up from 35 million in 2000. Roughly three-quarters of U.S. Hispanics emigrated from another country.
Since the vast majority of U.S. Hispanics are foreign-born, food products in their home countries may have influenced their consumption habits, especially certain cuts of beef. Beef is considered a status food in Latin American countries, and many believe that it will make them strong, healthy and smart. U.S. Hispanics on average spend 42% more on beef than general market consumers. In addition, Latinos consume beef 4-5 times per week on average, compared to 2-3 times per week for general-market consumers.
This love of beef doesn’t diminish as years go by living in the U.S. In fact, many Latinos consume more beef in the United States than in their home countries, as their wages may have gone up and the cost of beef is often more affordable. On the downside, most mainstream supermarkets typically don’t carry the cuts they desire. As a result, many Hispanics purchase their meat separately from the rest of their groceries, at independent markets known as carnicerías.
Hispanic Research
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) felt that it was critical to assist mainstream supermarkets with merchandising beef more effectively to Hispanics. NCBA began by conducting several focus groups and interviews with Hispanics in 2007. The results of the studies showed that the most important motivators for Hispanics when selecting a store to purchase beef are:
• Price
• Proximity to home
• Quality of meat
• Freshness of meat and
• Wide selection of cuts that Hispanics prefer
Research also showed that the most important identifier that Hispanics would like to see on a beef package is the bilingual name. Hispanics would also like to see on the package which Latino dishes would be ideal for the cut. Those surveyed were most interested in the following services from supermarkets:
• Provide recipes (52%)
• Provide pre-marinated products (50%)
• Provide samples and their recipes (45%)
• Provide information on which cuts are best for a particular dish (45%)
• Use bilingual labeling (41%)
NCBA’s Response to the Research
In response to this research, NCBA developed a Beef Hispanic Toolkit to assist meat department staff at supermarkets in marketing to Hispanics. The toolkit included the following materials:
• Bilingual Peel-Off Recipe Labels
• A Bilingual Beef Cuts & Dishes Dictionary
• A Bilingual Beef Cuts & Dishes Poster
• Elements for a Mini-Carnicería Case Section
• Labels for the Three Most Popular Mexican Beef Cuts
• A Manual on How to Best Market Beef to Hispanics
   
NCBA worked with 12 stores in California and Nevada and tested these new marketing tactics for a 10-week period in 2007. The results showed a significant increase in the number of beef cuts sold during that period of time. Hispanics responded favorably to the changes in the test stores, and 88% bought beef seven or more times at a test store during the test period vs. 68% at control stores. In addition, 83% of test store respondents said they would recommend this store to others given the changes seen vs. 57% for control stores.
While the respondents responded favorably to all of the changes in the test stores, when asked how they became aware that something was different in the meat department, they stated the following:
• 58% saw new cuts in the test stores vs. 18% in control stores
• 50% saw bilingual signage in the test stores vs. 4% in the control stores.
Overall, NCBA Hispanic Program proved to be highly successful. The customers were pleased, and as a result, beef sales at the test stores significantly increased. Fifty-seven percent of the respondents said that the changes in the meat departments of the test stores were excellent compared to only 25% for the control stores.
Hispanics and Foodservice
Hispanics are not only an important customer base on the retail side, but within foodservice as well. According to the 2008 New American Diner Study, executed by Restaurants & Institutions Magazine, U.S. Hispanics, on average, purchase 4.14 meals away from home every week in comparison to 3.72 meals for all respondents.
Hispanics have different dining habits than non-Hispanic consumers, and typically involve several family members and friends vs. dining with a small group. Restaurant and menu preferences also differ, where Hispanics prefer family-friendly restaurants (usually independent vs. chain) and also appreciate menu variety and family-style meals. Hispanics also have more children than all other U.S. households, averaging 1.1 children under the age of 18 vs. 0.6 children, respectively. The higher number of children leads to more meals in general, whether in home or away from home.
In Summary
As Hispanics are the fastest-growing group in the U.S., it is critical for restaurant managers and retailers to take the time to understand this segment. This will allow them to market to this group appropriately, which would result in more satisfied customers as well as benefit both industries.
For more information, contact Jim Henger, Executive Director of Retail Marketing, at jhenger@beef.org.
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