Multicultural Special Report: Tune in to Espanol

How to handle Hispanic DRTV response

May 2006 By Chris Purdy

multipage

If you decide to outsource the handling of your DRTV response, a Spanish-language call center usually is preferable to a bilingual call center. While bilingual agents often are well-spoken in a second language, they may not have mastery of the language—and that can affect sales. In addition, we’ve found that, on average, 99.3 percent of respondents to a Spanish-language TV ad aired during Spanish-language programming will prefer to speak Spanish.



Getting Paid

Now that you’ve answered the call and closed the sale, it’s time to take care of the final transaction: payment.

Credit and debit card payments are the standard form of payment for products or services sold via DRTV ads. While this also is true in the Hispanic market, credit card penetration has not yet reached the universal usage that exists in the general market. As a result, a company using DRTV to reach Hispanics should consider alternative forms of payment such as cash on delivery (COD).

Of the 2 million calls Global Telesourcing fielded last year from the Hispanic market, approximately 30 percent of callers didn’t have credit or debit cards, or didn’t want to pay for purchases using credit or debit cards. Given the option, 50 percent of customers that do not pay by credit card choose COD.

The power of the U.S. Hispanic market can’t be underestimated and shouldn’t be ignored. When you reach out to Hispanic audiences, make sure you have all the tools to effectively handle response. Only then can you tap the full potential of the market.

Chris Purdy is executive vice president at Global Telesourcing, an Alexandria, Va.-based company offering comprehensive Spanish-language customer care and sales solutions. Purdy can be reached via e-mail at cpurdy@globaltelesourcing.com.