Multicultural Markets
US Hispanic Market Case Study
Allstate is one of the largest American corporations, and with 2018 revenues of $39.8 billion ranked 79th in the Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. Its current advertising campaign, in use since 2004, asks, "Are you in good hands?"
Allstate’s strategic vision is to deliver more value than the competition by reinventing protection to improve customers’ lives.
The Challenge
During the mid-1990s, Allstate formed a team to assess the business potential of a market that was rapidly becoming more diverse. The general market in the insurance industry was maturing, providing a diminishing opportunity for growth. However, the Hispanic market had a growing population that was underserved in the insurance category and looked like a promising competitive niche.
As a result of their initial information gathering and internal meetings, Allstate developed a comprehensive diversity strategy for the Hispanic market. The initiative was led by the Allstate Hispanic Business team. It was slated for implementation by Allstate agents in their direct service areas.
The Solution
In addition to having 2,500 field agents that were “Spanish-able”, an 800 Spanish Line, extensive consumer and agent research and analytical tools and measurement were used to help Allstate develop:
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Customized advertising
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Relationship & event marketing
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Sales support materials
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Accessibility
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Targeting strategies
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Communications
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Infrastructure (e.g., claims, agencies, etc.)
Allstate’s efforts and decisions regarding the Hispanic market were based on the thorough research that the company conducted about what Hispanics need from an insurance provider. It found that while Hispanics placed importance on the same attributes of insurance as mainstream consumers, the relative value they gave to each attribute was very different.
For the general market, the most important attribute of an insurance provider was its financial strength while for Hispanics it was longevity. Using these insights, Allstate positioned itself as an insurance provider that Hispanics could trust, because the company had been around for over 70 years.
The Results
Allstate set the standard in Hispanic marketing and segmentation and had one of the best programs to target Hispanic-Americans of any financial services company.
Their Hispanic market initiative received a four out of four on knowledge, targeting & segmentation, marketing, distribution, structure, and overall.
Allstate also performed well with regard to Data Monitor’s PEEL components, which included product/cultural sensitivity; education & servicing customers; employee recruitment; and length of time within the community.
They also:
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Increased top line net written premium growth of nearly $1B (+68%) from 1996 – 2001, a growth rate 4X that of the total market
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Hispanic household market share grew by three percentage points while the total market share remained stable
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Launched “Mis Manos” branding campaign that focused on the agent as someone Hispanic people could trust and count on
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Doubled advertising recall while total market remained stable
Additional Information
Best Practices in Marketing Financial Services to Ethnic Groups in the US, Data Monitor, 2000
Ethnic Marketing in Financial Services: 2001-2002, Data Monitor
Trends in Marketing Insurance to Hispanics, Korzenny and McGavock, Florida State University, 2006.
Hispanic Marketing, A Cultural Perspective, Felice Korzenny and Betty Ann Korzenny, 2005
"I have had the extreme pleasure of working with Mr. Barraza over the past 20 years. As a member of the Allstate Strategic Research Team, Mr. Barraza led many key research projects. I worked most closely with Mr. Barraza on quantitative and qualitative multicultural marketing research projects. His analytical and conceptual skills are second to none."
Ray Celaya
Vice President, Multicultural Marketing, Supplier Diversity, Allstate (1977-2006)