Why a Spanish Website
By James M. Allred, Language Solutions Consultant, Globalization Group, Inc

The Latino population is now the largest minority in the U.S. and many professionals are trying to tap into this growing market segment. Latino print media and television have traditionally been primary advertising vehicles. However, with the advent of Internet marketing, companies trying to capitalize on this market must have a Spanish web site. Here are a few reasons why:

1. 14 million Latinos in the U.S. are online. (AOL/Roper ASW study March 2004)
2. Many Latinos speak English fluently, but at least half prefer to read content in their native language. They are more at ease with information they read in Spanish and pay more attention to Spanish-language advertising. (comScore Media Metrix report 2003)
3. Latinos online spend 9.2 hours a week on the Internet vs. 8.5 hours for the general online population. (AOL/Roper U.S. Latino Cyber study 2005)
4. The more Latinos connect online, the less time they spend with other Spanish media, such as print or television. (Univision Communications report 2003)
5. Half of online Latinos go online over high-speed connections at home. (AOL/Roper U.S. Latino Cyber study 2005)
6. 70% of Latinos online now view the Internet as the best source for comparing prices. (AOL/Roper U.S. Latino Cyber study 2005)

Still not sure if a multilingual web site is worth it? Consider that 69.4% of worldwide Internet users prefer to view the web in their native language; not English. That number has grown at a rate of 182% over the past five years, while the English-speaking growth rate is 126.9% during the same time period. (http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats7.htm)