• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, August 2, 2017

With Despacito still ruling America’s music charts, it should go without saying that the cultural impact of Hispanic Millennials shows no signs of slowing. But a new study from Viant, a Time Inc.-owned technology company, underscores just how different this group can be from both their Baby Boomer parents, and their non-Hispanic counterparts.

The research takes a closer look at the 23.6 million Hispanic Millennials. They earn less, and are some 27% less likely to earn $125,000 per year or more. And they are far more family focused, with 84% living in households with kids 18 and under, compared with 62% of non-Hispanic Millennials, and two out of five live with their parents. They are more passionate about social media, with about half of Hispanic shoppers reporting that they had discussed a brand online or used its hashtag, compared to 17% of non-Hispanic shoppers. 

And while Spanish-language sites, like the one Amazon launched this year, are one way of winning them over, there’s more to making a connection than simply speaking their language, says Jon Schulz, Viant CMO, particularly when it comes to retail. 

They love to shop in stores. They are 26% more likely to shop at Nordstrom and JCPenney, where they outspend non-Hispanic Millennials by about 10%. They are 21% more apt to shop at Macy’s. While one in five shops at Amazon—making them 39% less likely to do so than non-Hispanic Millennials—they spend less. “Although Amazon does well with this group, they spend a lot on trips to brick-and-mortar stores too,” says Schulz. “Compared to non-Hispanic Millennials, they shop online more broadly—they are heavily digital and they respond very well to coupons and offers.”

The research, conducted in the fourth quarter of last year, also took a close look at political behavior, says Rick Bruner, VP/research and analytics. “Hispanic Millennials are about twice as likely to have not registered with a political party,” he says. When they did register, “they lean left, with Hispanic Millennials 29% more likely to be registered Democrats.” 

And while it’s no surprise that Univision and Telemundo are among the top networks, Disney is a less-expected favorite: They are 10% more likely to watch the Disney channel, well as Disney XD and Disney Junior US.

Schulz says they are 50% more likely to talk about brands on social media, compared to just 20% of non-Hispanic Millennials. “And they are more willing to share with brands,” he tells Marketing Daily, “with a greater sense of ‘I’ll give you something if you give me something,’ such as a coupon or special offer.”

While younger Hispanics are certainly far more integrated into mainstream American culture—only 37% were born outside of the U.S., compared with 65% of Hispanic Baby Boomers–“companies tend to use a broad brush, and try one-size-fits-all approaches,” he says. “But it’s important that marketers get this sense of nuance.”