Nearly one-third of businesses surveyed say they invest only 1-10% of their budgets on Spanish-language advertising.

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Over one-half (51%) of those surveyed don't market to Latino consumers in Spanish, and 82% have no plans to begin or increase existing efforts aimed at Hispanics in the next 12 months.

Although most US businesses recognize the growing influence of Hispanic consumers, over one-half (51%) of those surveyed don't market to Latino consumers in Spanish, and 82% have no plans to begin or increase existing efforts aimed at Hispanics in the next 12 months, according to a survey from Orci.

Nearly one-third (32%) of businesses surveyed say they invest only 1-10% of their budgets on Spanish-language advertising, while 11% say they invest 11-20% of their budgets.

The Hispanic population comprises more than 15% of the US population and is expected to reach 50 million at the time of the 2010 Census, up 42% since the last Census in 2000.

In addition, the Hispanic population is expected to account for $1 trillion dollars of spending in 2010.*

Below, other findings from the 2010 Hispanic Marketing Trends Survey, which polled 125 senior marketing executives on their views about the Hispanic market.

Hispanic Social Media Use

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Nearly 80% of Latinos engage in some type of social media.

Nearly 80% of Latinos engage in some type of social media; among ethnic groups in the US, Hispanics are the heaviest users of the Web via their cell phones, according to Orci.

Still, most companies are not taking advantage of the business opportunity: Over three-quarters (78%) of US businesses don't use social media to engage Hispanics:

Of those companies that use social media to engage Hispanics, 18% use Facebook, 15% use Twitter, and 15% use MySpace.

Still, nearly three-quarters (74%) of companies say they do not know whether social media is a viable way to reach the Hispanic market; 21% say social media is viable.

Lack of ROI Cited

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The primary reason cited for not marketing to Hispanics is return on investment.

The primary reason cited for not marketing to Hispanics is return on investment: 38% of businesses say investments in marketing to Hispanics would not be justified, while 21% cite inadequate budget resources.

Impact of Hispanics on American Culture

Over one quarter (27%) of businesses say Hispanic consumers will have a major or significant impact on communications and technology trends in the next five years; 58% say they Hispanics will somewhat influence trends.

Similarly, over one-third (34%) of businesses say Hispanic consumers will influence fashion and beauty trends in the next five years; 56% say Hispanics will somewhat influence those trends.

* US Hispanic purchasing power is projected to reach as much as $1 trillion by 2010, according to estimates by HispanTelligence analysis of data from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis.

About the data: Findings are from the 2010 Hispanic Marketing Trends Survey conducted by Los Angeles-based Hispanic advertising agency Orci, which polled 125 senior marketing and advertising executives of B2B and consumer Fortune 1000 businesses in the US. The survey was conducted in February 2010.