MIAMI: Richard Edelman urged the Hispanic community to come together to make the most of its economic buying power in his keynote address Monday at the Hispanicize CMO Summit.
The Hispanic market makes up about 17% of the U.S. population and has about $1.3 trillion in buying power. However, because Hispanic people can hail from any of 26 countries, they are often separated by country, he noted.
Edelman likened it to parts of the Jewish population coming together in the U.S. despite coming from different countries in Europe in the 20th century, as well as the economic power of the African-American community.
"I think the Hispanic population can learn [from] that and become much more of a force," Edelman said. "The average income of a Hispanic [person] is $42,000, that’s a significant amount of money. General Motors, Wells Fargo, and Prudential are all here at this conference for a reason, they’re here because they want this market."
Edelman also referenced the level of trust the Hispanic community has in business, which is low according to the Edelman Trust Barometer, and urged businesses to get to work.
"For the Edelman Trust Barometer, we did a supplemental on the U.S. Hispanic market and, in fact, trust imploded for the Hispanic community after the election," he said. "It’s time for business to step up and, in particular, focus on this community."
Listen to the full interview with PRWeek editor-in-chief Steve Barrett and Edelman on-site at Hispanicize above.
