Marketing leaders rarely lose the Hispanic-market argument on principle. They lose it in the budget meeting, when a CFO asks how the investment will be measured. That is a fair question, and the good news is that the demographic and economic evidence is now specific enough to build a defensible case — and to define the metrics you will report afterward.
Below is what recent, citable research actually says, followed by our recommendations for turning it into a measurement plan. We have kept the two clearly separated: the findings belong to the researchers, the framework is ours.
What the research shows about market size and momentum
The U.S. Hispanic population reached 70.1 million in 2025, according to Pew Research Center’s analysis of Vintage 2025 Census Bureau estimates. In 2024, Hispanics made up 20% of the U.S. population and accounted for 56% of total U.S. population growth since 2000, with a median age of 31.2 — younger than the national median.
On the economic side, the 2026 LDC U.S. Latino Economic Impact Report – Part One, produced by the Latino Donor Collaborative with the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, reports that the U.S. Latino economy reached $4.4 trillion in 2024 and grew at an annualized 5.4% between 2019 and 2024, compared with 2.4% for the U.S. overall. The same report attributes 28.2% of all U.S. economic growth in 2024 to Latinos and puts Latino household consumption at $2.8 trillion, with the Texas Latino economy at $820 billion.
What this means for planning: growth rate, not just population share, is the number that tends to move executives. A segment growing faster than the total market changes forecasts, not just media plans.
Where investment still lags attention
Nielsen’s 2025 Diverse Intelligence Series report on Hispanic audiences documents a concrete gap in one measurable slice of the market. Using Nielsen Ad Intel data for the first quarter of 2025, the report found that online retailers spent roughly $363.42 million advertising on English-language websites versus about $3.38 million on Spanish-language websites — 0.92% of that category’s digital budget. Nearly 96% of the Spanish-language portion went to YouTube.
Two caveats matter. Ad Intel measures gross spend at published rate-card values, and this comparison covers one category in one quarter. It is not a total-market figure for Hispanic advertising. Read narrowly, it still tells you something useful: in at least one large, data-rich category, in-language digital investment was a rounding error and highly concentrated in a single platform.
Language is a mix, not a switch
The most common planning error we see is treating language as binary. Pew reports that in 2024, 71% of Latinos ages 5 and older — 44.8 million people — spoke English proficiently, up from 59% in 2000, while the share speaking Spanish at home declined from 78% to 68% over the same period. Those two facts coexist: English proficiency is rising and Spanish use at home remains widespread.
Nielsen’s report adds a channel dimension. Radio reached 93% of Hispanics monthly in Q1 2025, and radio plus podcasts accounted for 79% of daily ad-supported audio time; Hispanic podcast listeners were 62% more likely than the general population to call a number from a podcast ad. On engagement, 52% of Hispanics said they wish they saw more representation in social ads, compared with 42% of the total U.S. population, with higher shares among Spanish-speaking respondents. Nielsen also found that 43% have clicked a link in a social ad and 26% have scanned a QR code from a TV or physical display.
Our recommended measurement framework
The following is 11/11 Media’s recommendation, not a research finding. It is designed so that results can be evaluated honestly, including when a test does not work.
1. Establish a baseline before you spend
- Pull current revenue, leads, and average order value for the ZIP codes or DMAs you plan to target.
- Record share of Spanish-language sessions, calls, and form fills today, even if the number is near zero.
- Write down the decision rule in advance: what result would justify scaling, and what result would end the test.
2. Measure in-language and in-culture as separate variables
Spanish-language creative and culturally specific English creative are different interventions. If both run inside one campaign, neither can be evaluated. Split them and report them separately.
3. Let measured behavior pick the channels
The audio and video figures above are audience-level, not proof that a channel will perform for your brand. Treat them as hypotheses to test — audio for reach and response, in-language digital video where competitors are visibly underinvested — and let your own results decide.
4. Report outcomes, with an honest attribution note
A useful executive report tends to fit on one page: spend by segment, reach or impressions, qualified leads or transactions, cost per outcome, and revenue where it can be tied. Include a short caveat describing what the model cannot see. Credibility earned in the first report is what funds the second one.
The local picture for Houston businesses
National averages should not drive local decisions. Census QuickFacts puts the Hispanic or Latino share at 46.1% in Harris County and 44.2% in the City of Houston (2025 estimates), with 47.1% of Houston residents age 5 and older speaking a language other than English at home (2020–2024 American Community Survey). Pew reports Texas is home to 12.6 million Hispanics, 40% of the state’s population.
Our recommendation is to build the plan on your own trade area: the demographic composition of your service ZIP codes, the language mix of inbound calls, and what your customer records already show. Hispanic communities are not interchangeable across metros or across generations within one household, and origin, language use, and media habits vary widely.
What the data cannot tell you
None of the research above predicts your outcome. It establishes that the audience is large, growing faster than the total market, measurably underserved in at least one advertising category, and mixed in language use. Whether a specific campaign performs depends on your offer, category, competitors, and execution — which is exactly why the baseline and decision rules in step one matter more than any national statistic.
Let’s build your business case
If you are preparing a Hispanic marketing recommendation for your leadership team, we can help you assemble the baseline, define the metrics, and structure a test that produces a defensible answer either way. Learn more about 11/11 Media or contact our Houston team to start the conversation.