Latino customer relations & loyalty

Cultural Values: Working with Latinos

When we talked about agreeableness in the medical setting, we saw how the “cultural taboo against expressing negative feelings directly” translated into misunderstandings and ultimately, patient non-compliance. From a marketing standpoint, however, this same taboo can mean that it’s tough to know how your clients and customers really feel about what they’re receiving.

This was illustrated in a recent study by Savitz Research, which showed that Latinos give higher ratings than non-Latinos in product surveys. As Jeffry Savitz, President of Savitz Research, explained, “Hispanics are taught from an early age that it is in poor taste or inappropriate to openly criticize or berate when asked their opinions.” Some might find it surprising that a form of agreeableness even carries over to a survey designed to gather candid opinions. Such is the power of culture.

Given that many Latinos don’t want to express negative feelings to others – even confidentially – in a survey about products, it’s not surprising that they are likely to expect to get a positive feeling about the brands and stores they patronize. In fact, research conducted by Ipsos that compared “Hispanic and non-Hispanic” opinions about customer service and word of mouth had these dramatic findings:

• Hispanics are 50% more likely to report having stopped shopping at a store because they felt they were treated rudely.
• Hispanics are 34% more likely to admit they’d stopped using a particular brand because they were not “delighted” by the brand.
• Hispanics were 40% more likely to report they’d told a friend not to shop at a store where they felt they were treated rudely.

Both studies illustrate important aspects of personalismo, the element of Latino culture that places great importance on personal relationships. We’ve seen these cultural values come into play time and again in a medical setting and with our own personal acquaintances, but we want to know; how have you experienced the cultural tendencies mentioned above with your Latino clients?