Case Study
Understanding an Untapped Hispanic Audience in the Financial Sector
overview
How can a financial services organization reach and inspire a segment of Hispanic consumers who’ve historically struggled with financial health and haven’t always trusted financial institutions?
A financial services organization approached C+R about conducting foundational research with this cohort. The client wanted to uncover financial attitudes and behaviors and develop strategies for better serving this consumer segment.
THE PROBLEM
Getting to Know a Historically Underserved Consumer Segment
Even though our client had previously conducted research about the needs and challenges of their Hispanic consumers, they wanted to better understand a sub-population that had historically been deemed undesirable and unreachable – those with lower financial health.
The client had a lot of questions…
Was this segment truly an undesirable and unreachable target? Could the company develop strategies and communication plans to help this niche group of consumers? What was this group’s true potential?
Given the target audience, the research had to balance being narrow enough to incorporate a specific niche market (Hispanics with lower financial health) with being broad enough to compare the target with other segments (non-Hispanics and Hispanics with a broad spectrum of financial health).
OUR APPROACH
Developing a (Multi-)Culturally-Appropriate Survey Instrument
C+R conducted a comprehensive quantitative online survey to collect findings among several target groups, including non-Hispanic and Hispanic consumers across a variety of socioeconomic status.
Because of the sensitive nature of the topic, the team developed a survey instrument that fostered trust and anonymity. Hispanic consumers were asked whether they’d like to complete the survey in English or Spanish. And, in-house multicultural researchers developed Spanish-language translations to fit with a variety of nationalities, backgrounds, and demographics. Qualified respondents were invited to take an in-depth 20-minute survey.
The result
Ditching Misconceptions and Improving Services
C+R’s research findings helped the client deeply understand this niche Hispanic audience. With our insights, the company was able to develop critical industry publications to further position themselves as thought leaders.
The research also shed light on several misconceptions about the target audience, which helped our client develop strategies to better serve the Hispanic financial market. One key insight that helped the client develop resonant communication strategies: Hispanics are optimistic and confident about their financial future.
Overall, the findings not only helped develop appropriate communication strategies but also informed development of new product offerings for this historically underserved consumer segment.
The research approach resulted in the development of several publications to help educate financial institutions on the relationship between Hispanics and finances, including Hispanics with lower financial health.
proven experience
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