LHHM is here: Tips for brand activations on social media

Dos:

1. Do Your Research: Understand the history, significance, and diverse cultures within the Hispanic and Latin American communities. This will help ensure your content is respectful and accurate.

2. Be Authentic: This month is an opportunity to amplify Hispanic and Latin American creators, employees, and influencers. This is not a sales moment, this is about engaging and strengthening your brand’s bond with the celebrated community.

3. Celebrate Diversity: The Hispanic and Latin American communities are not monolithic. Showcase and consider these communities' wide variety of cultures, traditions, and histories.

Don'ts:

1. Avoid Stereotyping: Avoid clichés and generalizations. Misrepresenting cultures can lead to backlash and damage to your brand's reputation.

2. Don't Use It as a Sales Gimmick: Consumers can quickly identify when brands use cultural events to push sales. Ensure that your engagement is genuine and not just a marketing tactic.

3. Tokenism: Including a token representation to appear inclusive is transparent and can be harmful. Meaningful engagement requires deeper commitment and understanding.

Although the term Latinx is considered gender inclusive, there is little consensus among the Hispanic/Latino community on its utilization, and many members are unfamiliar with it. A large portion of the Hispanic and Latin American community criticizes the use of Latinx as a sign of cultural appropriation, accusing English speakers of trying to fix a language that’s not theirs.

On the other hand, defenders of the term Latinx claim it doesn’t encompass those who don’t identify with either female or male.

In the middle of this, there’s your brand. If you use Latinx, you’ll get significant negativity from part of the Latin American community; if you use Latino, you’ll probably see criticism in your channels from users feeling your brand is not inclusive.

There are a few “play-it-safe” options for your brand:

• Resort to “Latin American.” While “Latin” alone has been also rejected as it can refer to people of Latin descent who have little in common with Latin America, the Caribbean, or Spain, the term “Latin American” solves this issue. This term is neutral, including males, females, and non-binary audiences.

• Using the term “Latine.” According to Melissa K. Ochoa, Assistant Professor of Women's and Gender Studies at Saint Louis University, “There is a much better gender-inclusive alternative, one that’s been largely overlooked by the U.S. academic community and is already being used in Spanish-speaking parts of Latin America, especially among young social activists in those countries. It’s “Latine” – pronounced “lah-teen-eh” – and it’s far more adaptable to the Spanish language.”

B2B and B2C brands have been able to create relevant LHHM campaigns by showing up meaningfully and authentically. Success during LHHM is about stepping back and letting the Latin American community take the spotlight while tying your campaign to your business mission, goals, and service or product.

Siete Family Foods - Pass the mic to the community!

Siete Family Foods collaborated with day-to-day people so that they could tell their stories and who inspired them the most. These stories were related to Hispanic/Latin American foods, which also made the content relevant to the brand.

Google - Latino Cultures in the U.S.

In 2017, Google Arts & Culture launched "Latino Cultures in the U.S.," a digital collection celebrating the contributions of Latino communities to American culture. This online archive includes exhibits, artwork, and stories from Latino history, featuring over 4,000 items from 50 institutions. The campaign wasn’t just a temporary celebration but a long-term commitment to preserving and sharing Latino heritage. Google leveraged its platform to provide access to rich cultural content, aligning with its brand values of information accessibility and inclusivity.