Target was looking for a “Big Idea” to demonstrate credibility and relevance with the Latine community and highlight Latine heritage and culture, ultimately inspiring guests to consider Target and to feel welcome in Target spaces. More than speaking to identity from a content or media perspective, Target had a desire to connect in a meaningful and active way rather than seeing merely as a sponsor or paid advertising. Target’s objective was to evoke a sense of belonging for Latine audiences and give Target a deeper community connection. Beyond solely focusing on traditional media support to drive awareness and consideration of Latine-owned products at Target, there was an opportunity to leverage media to support the marketing and community initiatives the brands were passionate about. The media insight focused on creating content benefiting the brands first, and leveraging this content to create a media campaign to amplify these initiatives supported by Target.

Latine-owned companies are the fastest-growing segment of small businesses, with a 34% increase over the last ten years, but about half of all small businesses don’t have time or budgets to invest in marketing efforts. This is also true for Latine-owned brands at Target who are led by emerging entrepreneurs who do not have dedicated teams to help them reach the mainstream.

This program supports Latine-owned businesses at Target with creative agency services and marketing materials. Giving them material to expand their brand initiatives and scale their social, community and cultural footprint. Through the program Target invited 4 Latine-owned brands to receive access to award-winning agency creative services to develop and produce customized marketing content and community actions directly for them. Through this partnership Target became the first retailer to launch an initiative dedicated to elevate and support the marketing and community impact of the Latine owned-brands it distributes.
This culture-first media program looked to engage US ambicultural Latines 18-54. Additional to creating the custom content for the 4 brands in the program to use for their own marketing channels, the created content was editorialized and amplified on the the largest minority-owned Latine publisher in the US. The result was a three month media program that leveraged the publisher’s voice in culture through their .com and social channels to amplify the program to Latine audiences. The program included a blend of editorial videos, articles and engaging social tactics that drove reach, awareness and consideration amongst ambicultural Latines.

The program was launched in multiple phases. Starting off at Hispanic Heritage Month, with a focus of highlighting the importance of supporting Latine-owned businesses. Next, each brand was highlighted by sharing the content and social actions created. The program wrapped up during Holiday Season with highlights from the program.