  Originally appeared on RetailWire.com March 06,2006 Commentary by Terry J. Soto, President & CEO, About Marketing Solutions, Inc. (www.aboutmarketingsolutions.com) When it comes to Hispanic marketing, many companies struggle to answer the question of how to measure their Hispanic initiatives. It is typically regarded and treated differently than measuring performance for the rest of the organization. Too often, Hispanic metrics focus on limited communication results, such as ad awareness or imagery. I argue that a Hispanic initiative, if recognized as a growth pillar, intended to increase short and long term shareholder value, should conform to the same corporate-wide performance expectations as others within the organization. A Hispanic initiative should be truly integrated across the organization, and would thereby necessarily tap company resources and be supported across every business line and operational function. It would, therefore, follow that the Hispanic initiative's objectives, strategies and metrics should be directly linked to and work in support of each business area's performance. These might include measures of operational efficiencies, sales, distribution, supply chain and, yes, ad awareness and imagery. It would also follow that the folks in charge of delivering results in these areas are accountable for ensuring results for all market segments: white, Asian, Hispanic, youth, affluent or any segment or segments on which the company depends for its revenue. Moderator's Comment: Are most companies operating and measuring their Hispanic initiatives with a "silo" mentality? You simply can't measure a Hispanic initiative's ROI, have expectations on its timing or the required investment, unless you know how a Hispanic strategy will impact the entire organization. To do otherwise is an exercise in futility because you will never know what you are measuring. The essential question is not what metrics to use for measuring your Hispanic initiative, but how it impacts your organization and when you can expect it to perform at the same pace as the rest of the company. That is what management cares about and, unless you know the answer to this question, Hispanic metrics are meaningless. - Terry J. Soto - Moderator Read Terry Soto's new book, Marketing to Hispanics: A Strategic Approach to Assessing and Planning Your Initiative (Kaplan Publishing, 2006),
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