The Hispanic population is the fastest-growing ethnic demographic in the United States. In the last 10 years, they have accounted for more than half of the overall population increase. And in the next five years, they will account for at least 60% of that increase. Hispanics are more inclined to build trustworthy relationships with people and companies that take the time to understand who they are and what they represent morally, ethically, and culturally. Essentially Hispanics prefer brands that speak their language and embrace their cultural heritage. A Nielsen study found that if U.S. Hispanics were a stand-alone country, their market buying power would be one of the top twenty economies in the world. They are highly likely to accumulate wealth and have significant buying power. Have I've got your attention? Our guest on this episode is marketing specialist Rey Hernandez. (http://www.reyhernandezmarketing.com) He explains the nuances of the Hispanic customer base. He shares secrets for creating culturally relevant marketing plans that will become increasingly critical as the population becomes more diverse and the buying power of U.S. Hispanics becomes even more significant. I share some information from a couple of great internet articles on the topic too. The Nielsen company recently released a report called the "State of the Hispanic Consumer: The Hispanic Market Imperative (http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/consumer/consumer/young-mobile-and-growing-the-state-of-us-hispanic-consumers/)." Forbes magazine also ran a recent article on the topic entitled "Don't Sell to Me! Hispanics Buy Brands that Empower Their Cultural Relevancy. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2012/05/14/dont-sell-to-me-hispanics-buy-brands-that-empower-their-cultural-relevancy/)" Both are excellent resources on the topic. You should check them out. Visit our website at www.businessengaged.com to listen to our past episodes. You can connect with us on Twitter at @businessengaged and Facebook (just search for "Business Engaged"). We love it when you tell others about the show so take a minute and post this link for your Facebook friends or Twitter followers.