Did you know there’s an uptick in Latino Americans’ mobile phone usage on Mondays? Or that the largest consumers of Sriracha hot sauce are not Asian Americans? These are few insights that market research firm Think Now Research can bring to companies looking to target ethnic markets in the United States. However, Mario Carrasco, co-founder of Think Now, said the biggest insight he can share is that consumer behavior is often less about ethnicity and more about culture. And that culture can be derived from multiple factors such as one’s income, age and education level, as well as ethnicity. “Ethnicity plays a big role,” said Carrasco. “But at Think Now, we don’t start by saying that Hispanics are different. They can be, but they may be similar to African Americans, Asians and Whites when it comes to specific (product) categories.” Carrasco said it’s important for companies to derive insights from accurate and representative data rather than relying on hypotheses. “What we are about is making sure that minority groups are represented in market research,” he said. For example, when Google Inc. wanted to gain insights on mobile usage of bilingual Hispanic Americans, Think Now asked mobile users to download its proprietary app knowy to track their usage. The research found that compared to non-Hispanic whites, who used their devices consistently through the week, Hispanic Americans saw a dip in mobile usage during the weekend and an uptick on Mondays. Carrasco thinks this may be due to the family-oriented culture of Hispanic Americans who on weekends mostly spend time with extended families. Regardless, this study became an important decision-making point for Google in determining when to run advertising campaigns. In 2008, Carrasco created the first nationally representative online panel on Hispanics at Garcia Research, his previous employer. In 2011, when Garcia Research became a subsidiary of a German company GfK SE, Carrasco and co-founder Roy Kokoyachuk decided to start their own company. With giants like McDonald’s and Campbell Soup Co. as its first clients, Think Now was able to kick off without outside investment. – Iris Lee
