This is part of what Alejandra Soto, Director of Latino Communications at Planned Parenthood, shared with Mario Carrasco in the latest episode of The New Mainstream Podcast: understanding Latino audiences requires much morethan speaking their language.

“Latino consumers” may seem like a clearly defined audience. In reality, it includes people with very different identities, experiences, generations, languages, and cultural contexts.

And that difference matters.

A recent immigrant who is predominantly Spanish-speaking, a second-generation bilingual consumer, and a fourth-generation Latino who primarily speaks English may allidentify as Latino—but they can consume media, respond to messaging, and engage with brands in completely different ways.

Speaking Spanish Doesn't Mean Understanding Latinos

For brands, reaching Latino audiences requires much more than translating an existing campaign.

It means understanding who the audience is, what cultural context shapes their behavior, where they get information, and what makes a message feel authentic.

In her conversation with Mario Carrasco, Alejandra Soto explains how research, listening, and the ability to adapt strategies are essential to building more relevant multicultural communications.

Authenticity Can't Be Manufactured

Cultural relevance also isn't about adding recognizable cultural symbols to an advertisement.

A campaign can use the right language, imagery, or cultural references and still fail to connect with its audience.

The difference lies in whether those elements reflect a genuine understanding of the community or simply reproduce stereotypes.

For brands looking to Understand, Reach, and Engage multicultural audiences, that distinction can be decisive.

AI and Why Human Curiosity Still Wins

Artificial intelligence is transforming the market research industry at an unprecedented pace. From survey analysis to synthetic data and predictive modeling, AI is making research faster, more scalable, and increasingly accessible.

If AI can analyze data, what becomes the role of the researcher?

In the latest episode of The New Mainstream Podcast, Mario Carrasco sits down with Vera Chien, a research and strategy leader with extensive experience in entertainment and consumer insights, to discuss how AI is reshaping the futureof research and why human curiosity is becoming more valuable than ever.

In an increasingly polarized environment, brands are facing growing pressure to define what they stand for culturally and how they position themselves on social, political, and environmental issues. At the same time, consumer behavior has changed significantly, along with expectations toward the brands people support.

This was the central topic of a recent episode of The New Mainstream Podcast, hosted by Mario Carrasco, featuring Neil Callanan, founder of LooseGrip, an agency focused on purpose driven brands, advocacy, and cultural transformation.

The Problem with Performative Activism

According to Neil Callanan, the issue is not that brands participate in cultural or social conversations. The problem arises when they do so without a genuineconnection to their corporate identity.

Today, many companies publish messages about diversity, inclusion, sustainability, or representation during moments such as Pride Month, Black History Month, or corporate responsibility campaigns. However, when these messages are not backed by real actions, consumers often perceive them as opportunistic branding efforts.

If a company claims to support a specific community or cause, it must be able to clearly explain how it does so, what resources it invests, what policies it implements, and what measurable impact those actions create.

Purpose as a Competitive Advantage

Brands that build a strong identity around clear values often develop deeper relationships with consumers. This translates into stronger loyalty, differentiation, and emotional connection, all of which are especially valuable in highly saturated industries.

Examples discussed during the episode include Patagonia, Ben & Jerry's, and Lush, companies that have integrated social and environmental causes into the core structure of their brand identity rather than treating them as temporarycampaigns.

In these cases, purpose is not simply a communication tactic. It is reflected in organizational culture, product development, talent acquisition, customer experience, and long term business decisions.

How Purpose Impacts Marketing Performance

Even when a values based campaign does not generate an immediate sale, it can still create measurable indirect benefits for a brand, including:

• Stronger consumer trust
• Higher brand recall
• Increased purchase intent
• greater social media engagement
• improved email open rates
• stronger emotional affinity with the company

In other words, purpose strengthens brand equity. In a market where products and services are becoming increasingly interchangeable, cultural relevance and identity have become powerful strategic assets.

The Relationship between Purpose and Talent

The conversation also explores a less discussed aspect of purpose driven marketing: its impact on attracting and retaining talent.

According to Neil, companies with clearly defined values tend to attract more engaged and motivated employees. This can directly influence factors such as:

• creativity
• innovation
• quality of service
• organizational culture
• employee retention

In highly competitive industries, purpose has also become an important employer branding tool.

The Future of Branding in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

Technology can optimize processes and reduce barriers to entry, but a brand’s cultural identity remains far more difficult to replicate. Elements such as trust, community, authenticity, and emotional connection continue to be deeply humancompetitive advantages