Maybe you know the Hispanic community in your area is pretty sizeable, but you don’t have anyone on staff who can speak Spanish. Perhaps, in the back of your mind, you’ve always known that there is more your organization could be doing to reach Spanish speakers, but you aren’t quite sure about how to go about it—or what it will cost.

If your organization is thinking about doing more to reach Spanish speakers, but you’re not sure if it’s the right thing to prioritize, ask yourself the following three questions.

Is your mission relevant to the Hispanic community?

The interests, needs and motivations of Hispanics are not all that different from any other group of people. Hispanics care about the environment, they are passionate about human rights, occasionally experience hardship and need assistance, and fundamentally want to help other people. There really isn’t an organization that doesn’t have a mission that would be of interest to Hispanics, or any other community. The next step is to start talking to this community, in a way that’s culturally and linguistically relevant to them.

What are the demographics of your area?

This might be the most important question to ask yourself. The size and makeup of the Hispanic, Spanish-speaking community in your area directly affect your return on investment, the size and scope of your Spanish communications and what messages are the most important to deliver to this audience. A good strategic partner can help you in this market research if it isn’t something you already have readily accessible. If you’re in an area with a large and/or growing community of Hispanics, then you should probably be thinking about how to communicate with this important group.

Can a Spanish-language communications strategy fit into your budget?

The answer is a resounding yes. First, you can easily scale the amount content and scope of communication to fit any budget while still being effective. One brochure or two webpages might be enough to communicate the most important messages. Also, nonprofit organizations can often find private funding for Spanish-language outreach initiatives from companies strategically focused on the Hispanic community.

The conclusion

With around 40 million Spanish speakers in the United States, it’s safe to say that pretty much every organization should be thinking about how they reach and interact in Spanish. Your organization’s Spanish content strategy is influenced by your mission, objectives, your community and your budget. But we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves. Let’s start with some good content. Contact Press 2 to get started.