How To Get Better Outcomes With U.S. Hispanic Tracking Research As the U.S. Hispanic population continues to grow in size and influence, more and more brands are starting to integrate Hispanic sample into their ongoing tracking studies. The usefulness of tracking has been recently debated. And the end of tracking has been speculated. But despite the research community’s qualms with this methodology, tracking is alive and well, especially among Fortune 1000 companies. Tracking is a good barometer for measuring the overall health of a brand. The tracking of Hispanic sample as an exclusive audience, however, is a relatively new phenomenon. Even though the Hispanic consumer has been of importance for almost a decade to most major brands, apprehension of introducing Hispanic sample has persisted for a couple reasons: preconceived notions of the digital divide and the inability to get a representative sample online. Now that Hispanic internet penetration is well beyond 80% , on par with the general market, representative sample online is no longer an issue. Many companies are starting to integrate nationally representative samples of U.S. Hispanics into their tracking studies. As a leader in U.S. Hispanic sample and the introduction of U.S. Hispanic sample into existing tracking studies, ThinkNow Research has decided to write a series of blogs focused on U.S. Hispanic Tracking Research. We will highlight some of the nuances and pitfalls of Hispanic tracking that companies and sample providers need to be aware of if they are to successfully introduce or maintain Hispanic respondents into tracking research. Our upcoming blogs will cover, in depth, the following topics:
Creating a nationally representative sample
Mixed-mode track (online & intercept)
Acculturation impacts on tracking
Country of origin consistency
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Moving offline tracking to online
What is this important? Simple. Hispanic respondents, in general, are highly mobile, have a higher tolerance for longer surveys (good news for tracking studies), but are more difficult to recruit and maintain in panels. Panel quality is paramount when considering what supplier to bring in for your existing tracking study. Since panel is a relatively new concept among the less acculturated and Spanishdominant Hispanic respondent, education is key in engaging these respondents. Newsletters, telephone outreach, and a robust customer service team is needed to successfully integrate Hispanics into your ongoing studies. As we work through the aforementioned blog topics, we hope to empower you with the information you need to make informed decisions regarding Hispanic sample. Should you have any questions regarding the above topics or would like to see us add a topic, please feel free to contact us. About the Author: Mario X. Carrasco
Mario is ThinkNow Research's Managing Partner. He entered the Hispanic arena as Marketing Director at Hispanic Business Magazine, the leading Hispanic business publication. There, he quickly became a leader in Hispanic online marketing. Microsoft took notice in 2006 and he joined the MSN Latino product group where he developed targeted microsites and partner portals. Mario was hired by Garcia Research in 2008 to develop the first representative Hispanic Online Panel with an emphasis on the Spanish-dominant community, CadaCabeza. Mario became Vice President of Online Research at in 2009 and then went on to co-found ThinkNow Research.