• by Roberto Siewczynski , Columnist, October 16, 2014

"Points of inflection" are the shopper marketer discoveries — nuggets of data — which reveal if we are missing untapped opportunities with Hispanic shoppers. Where and how are Hispanic shoppers different from general market shoppers? Which tactics give us a better ROI on our Hispanic shopper budgets? When does a broader strategy makes sense for this demographic? 

Inflection points are the intersection of time and place where there is a substantial enough change in a behavior to warrant something new or different. That inflection varies primarily on two things:

1. The degree of difference between the general market and the Hispanic market of a specific behavior or dynamic; and

2. The magnitude of the behavior or dynamic itself.

Let's say Hispanics shoppers “under-index” in pre-store planning behaviors (e.g., checking the pantry, making a list, asking other household members about needed items), yet “over-index” on in-store behaviors (e.g., sampling, special packaging). Given this information, you might have a reflexive reaction to shift Hispanic shopper marketing funds from pre-store tactics to in-store tactics. That decision would seem reasonable because, after all, your goal is to identify a pattern of specific behaviors that you can act on. 

The pitfall in this line of thinking is that it does not factor in the magnitude of the behavior — in other words, to what degree and in which situations it is more prevalent than among general market shoppers. Piecing together the full matrix requires not just good data, but astute interpretation of those data. What I mean is that, in the preceding example, Hispanics may over-index on in-store behaviors (vs. the general market). But if we look at the percentage of Hispanic shoppers participating in a pre-store shopping behavior (e.g., clipping a coupon) vs. the percentage of those participating in an in-store behavior (e.g., participating in an in-store sweepstakes), the number of "coupon clippers" is higher than that of "sweepstakes lovers." Consequently, regardless of how these behaviors index to the general market, executing the pre-store tactic actually may be the better bet.

Our research, i.e., the new quantitative study that I referred to in my column last month, dove deeply into these behaviors. We analyzed more than 30 in-store and pre-store behaviors, while, at the same time, benchmarking them to the general market. From this study we were able to identify some standout differences between general market and Hispanic shoppers. There were validations of some truisms we have always known (e.g., Hispanics under-index on coupon usage). But to my other point on magnitude, coupon usage is still significantly high when, for instance, it is compared to participation in parking lot events. 

Our research also showed that Hispanic shoppers over-index on in-store-driven behaviors. But in many cases the pre-store behaviors are at least as important, or even more so, from the standpoint of magnitude.

Hispanic shoppers are not an island. They are frequently reached by general market shopper vehicles. Surprisingly, large national retailers are not always receptive to conducting distinctively different shopper programs for the general market and the Hispanic market. Programs that comprise more of the basic blocking and tackling of general market shopper tactics, such as FSIs and circulars, frequently do not discriminate in either their reach and or in isolating on Hispanic shoppers.

A smart tactical Hispanic shopper plan needs to recognize the opportunity — the inflection point. So, if you know you already have Hispanic coverage at a pre-store level with general market pre-store vehicles, you may want to invest your Hispanic shopper dollars in-store. The luggage may not match, but there's nothing wrong with a little mix-and-match if it at the end of the day it gets you to your goals for sell-in and sell-through.