The Mexican market is large, wealthy and has a decent level of digital maturity, making it very attractive to businesses wanting to expand internationally, particularly those with a physical presence in the southernmost US states. This guide will explore how best to approach digital marketing in Mexico. From reading this guide, you will learn the current digital landscape in the country, including internet penetration rates, online trends and behaviours, device usage, and the dominant search engines and social networks. You will also learn about the complexities of language and culture in Mexico and what this means in terms of digital marketing. Finally, you will learn how to approach e-commerce in order to achieve success in Mexico.
Table of contents
- Introduction
- The typical Mexican internet user
- Device usage in Mexico
- Search engine marketing in Mexico
- Social media marketing in Mexico
- The local culture and language in Mexico
- E-commerce in Mexico
- Conclusion
Introduction
Mexico is an attractive prospect to many businesses looking to expand internationally, and there are several reasons why.
The first reason is its size: it is a large country, with a large population, which means there will likely be a market for your product.
The appeal of this market only grows stronger when you realise that, according to the International Monetary Fund, Mexico is the second-largest economy in Latin America in terms of GDP, after Brazil.
Another reason is its strategic geographical location. With its close proximity to the major economy of the US, it is well-placed to do business with brands with a physical presence in the southernmost US states.
It also has a decent level of digital maturity, with some room for continued growth. As of October 2024, Mexico has a population of 129.4 million people. Of these people, around 81% are currently online.
However, it can be challenging to enter a new market. Never fear, this guide is here to shed light on how best to harness the power of digital marketing to succeed in Mexico.
The typical Mexican internet user
Let’s begin by looking at who exactly the typical internet user is in Mexico.
There is an equal gender split, with 81% of males and 81% of females being internet users.
The table below shows internet usage by age group in Mexico. As you can see, there are decent levels of internet usage all the way up to 74, with particularly high levels of usage in the 15 to 24 age group, with usage then dropping off significantly over the age of 75:
Be aware there is an urban-rural digital divide in Mexico, with 84% of people in urban areas being internet users, compared to just 62% in rural areas. The main barriers to internet access in rural Mexico are high costs and poor infrastructure, with more deprived states falling behind the rest of the country. However, these limitations have not stopped companies like Amazon from delivering their products in these less well-connected regions of Mexico – so they should not stop you, either.
The typical Mexican internet user spends 7 hours and 37 minutes online every day. So, what are these people doing online? Research by Meltwater and We Are Social found that the top three reasons Mexican users gave for using the internet were: finding information, researching how to do things, and staying in touch with friends and family.
Let’s briefly turn our attention to some key concerns of Mexican internet users. Online privacy is important to this group. According to recent research, 42% of Mexican internet users worry about how companies might use their online data, 35% decline cookies on websites, 22% use ad blocking tools, and 20% use a VPN to access the internet.
Device usage in Mexico
As of September 2024, 59% of internet traffic in Mexico comes from mobile phones, 39% comes from desktop computers, and 1% comes from tablets.
This means that it is extremely important to have a mobile-friendly website to meet the demands of internet users and provide them with a positive user experience when interacting with your brand and website. Mobile-friendliness is also an increasingly crucial ranking factor for search engines, so not optimising your website for mobile will prove detrimental to your organic traffic.
Given the dominance of mobile, it should come as no surprise that apps are popular in Mexico. During 2023, people in Mexico collectively downloaded around 5.2 billion apps. These app users clocked up an annual spend of around USD 920 million on apps and in-app purchases, up 29% on the previous year. The popularity of apps presents a big opportunity for brands wanting to target the Mexican market. If you create an app, make sure to localise the language, especially if you are B2C. Make sure your app functions correctly and is valuable for users, otherwise your brand might suffer not only from poor return-on-investment but also negative reviews.
Internet speeds are slower than the global average. As of August 2024, Mexico ranks 69th in the world for fixed broadband speed, with a median speed of 79.31 MB per second. It ranks 80th for mobile internet speed, with a median speed of 32.55 MB per second.
Given the relatively slow internet speeds in the country, it is crucial to optimise your website for speed. If your website is too heavy and loads too slowly, this will result in higher bounce rates, meaning you could lose potential customers before they even have a chance to see what you have to offer. Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool is very useful for diagnosing any speed problems with your website and suggesting what you can do to make it faster.
It is important to bear in mind that most of this data refers to the majority of the internet population, who live in the urban areas of Mexico. However, it is important to note that older generations, as well as people living in rural areas, are more reluctant to adopt new technologies, so if you want to reach them effectively, you might have to support your efforts with other (offline) marketing channels.
Search engine marketing in Mexico
As of September 2024, Google is the most popular search engine in Mexico, with a market share of 90%. Bing comes in second place with 8%, followed by Yahoo with 2%.
Google is therefore the search engine that you must focus your SEO and PPC efforts on. If you want more in-depth information on how to succeed at search marketing on Google, we have this guide to on-page optimisation for Google and this guide to search and display advertising on Google.
However, be aware that 22% of Mexican internet users use an ad blocking tool. This means you do not want to rely completely on search advertising. Your organic SEO and content marketing efforts must also be given the attention they deserve in order to reach those internet users who have turned on an ad blocker.
Preparing your website for Mexico
Check that your geotargeting is correctly set up for your Mexican website. This will vary depending on how you structure your domains, but you are likely to need hreflang tags correctly implemented to ensure that your Mexico-targeted pages rank above your other country pages.
You should also check your website speed from within Mexico, and if the loading speed is slow, consider hosting your website on a local server. You do not want to go through all the effort of creating, designing and localising your website, just to have those efforts undone by poor loading speeds and high bounce rates as a result.
If you sell products on your website, make sure to display prices in the local currency, use local weights and measurements, and accept local online payment methods.
And finally, make a point of creating and displaying local content, telling stories that are relatable and relevant to the local audience. This also includes the visuals and photos that accompany your written content.
Social media marketing in Mexico
Social media is very popular in Mexico. Research by Meltwater and We Are Social found that amongst its sample of Mexican internet users, 84% were social media users. The average internet user spends 3 hours and 14 minutes on social media every day and uses an average of 8 social platforms every month. The most common reasons for using social media are keeping in touch with friends and family, reading news stories, and filling spare time.
So, where are Mexican social media users spending their time? As you can see in the graph below, Facebook is the most popular social platform in Mexico, followed by WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, TikTok and X (formerly known as Twitter). All these platforms are used by more than half of all Mexican internet users every month.
With 84% of Mexican internet users being social media users, it is vitally important for brands to have a social media presence when targeting Mexico. Indeed, recent research has found that ads on social media are the number one source of brand discovery in the country, and social networks are the number one main channel for online brand research. You should use social media to communicate and engage with potential customers, and it is also a useful way of understanding and getting to know your target audience. You should aim to create content that triggers emotions in users by offering real value or a real connection with your brand. Although you will obviously need to post localised content on your Mexican social media accounts that caters to your audience in the country, your social media strategy will not differ significantly for Mexico compared to how you do it for other countries. For example:
- Facebook is a great platform to be on if you are a B2C brand. By posting regular, engaging content, you have a huge opportunity to engage with potential clients and drive sales. Not only that, but Facebook’s highly specific targeting capabilities mean that you can use Facebook advertising to reach new users who fit your target audience profile perfectly. We have an in-depth guide to advertising on Facebook, if you want more detailed information about this.
- WhatsApp is a hugely popular messaging platform and could be used by your brand as a way of providing customer service. Depending on your sector, customers may welcome this as a convenient way to communicate with your business and ask you questions.
- Instagram is a great platform for B2C brands to be on, particularly if your products are in a visually-appealing sector such as fashion, design, cosmetics or travel. The way the platform is used in Mexico is very similar to other countries in the world, and the advertising options remain the same – but naturally, you would need to create a localised account that caters to your audience in the country and is relevant to them. We have an in-depth guide to marketing on Instagram, if you want more detailed information about this.
- Facebook Messenger can be used to support your Facebook marketing efforts. You can use it as a communication channel to message your prospective customers. It is also possible to run ads in Facebook Messenger, which will appear in the Chats tab of the user’s Facebook Messenger app. When a user taps on an ad, they are shown a call-to-action of your choosing, which could take them to your website, your app, or start a chat with your company within Facebook Messenger.
- TikTok is particularly good if you are a B2C brand with a product you can show off on video. Popular industries on this short-form video platform include education, sport, fashion, beauty, food and drinks, entertainment, technology and more.
- X (formerly known as Twitter) is suitable for a wider selection of businesses, with many B2C and B2B businesses having a presence on this platform and using it to share their content and communicate with target customers.
Of course, you do not need to be on every social media platform; you only need to be where your audience is. Research your industry and your audience before entering the market, see what platforms they prefer and prioritise them. Bear in mind that your audience will most likely be present on multiple platforms and interact with you across all of them, but they will not want to see the same things from you on all of them. Your content strategy should take into consideration both who your audience is and where they are interacting with you.
The local culture and language in Mexico
Culture
When entering any new market, it is very important to be aware of the local culture and to adapt your marketing collateral appropriately. One way you can examine the Mexican culture is through the lens of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions.
Mexico has a very high score of 81 for power distance. This means that:
- Authority is respected and hierarchies are adhered to.
- When doing B2B marketing, you should focus on targeting the senior decision-makers. There is little point in targeting personas in more junior roles, as they do not have much input into purchasing decisions.
- It is important to highlight your own authority on your website – for example, by prominently featuring your senior management team.
Mexico has a fairly low score of 34 for individualism. This means that:
- Mexico is a collectivist society. In collectivist societies, people tend to see themselves as part of a group, rather than a standalone individual. They are loyal to their group, strive for group harmony, and value the wellbeing of the group.
- Family is very important.
- You should therefore emphasise how your product or service can benefit the group – particularly the family group.
- Celebrity endorsements work well, since celebrities are seen as influential members of the group – and people are quick to copy their behaviours.
- Looking more at B2B, make sure to spend time nurturing a personal relationship with your prospective clients, as interpersonal relationships are seen as very important.
Mexico has a fairly high score of 69 for motivation towards achievement and success. This means that:
- People tend to be driven by a desire to be successful – i.e. to be the best at what they do.
- You should therefore emphasise how your product or service can help the customer become more successful.
Mexico has a very high score of 82 for uncertainty avoidance. This means that:
- People are extremely uncomfortable with uncertainty.
- They are less likely to make impulse purchases. There is usually a lot of research from the user involved beforehand.
- They want to see specific statements about products and services, rather than vague generalisations.
- They want to know in-depth about your product features, and for this reason product demos are popular.
- Explain your offerings in terms of their detailed processes, not their vague potential results.
Mexico has a fairly low score of 23 for long-term orientation. This means that:
- People are more focused on the present and the past than on the future.
- Change is viewed with caution, and traditions are seen as important.
- People and businesses tend to measure success in the short-term.
- You should therefore focus on how your product or service can help them in the short-term.
- Do not focus on long-term benefits, as that is not relatable. Instead, focus on how your product or service can help them get quick, instant results.
Mexico has a very high score of 97 for indulgence. This means that:
- Mexico is an indulgent society.
- Value is placed on leisure time, gratification of one’s desires, and personal enjoyment.
- Do not be afraid to make bold or exciting statements that emphasise how your product or service can help the customer enjoy themselves.
From our experience helping global brands succeed in the Mexican market, we can add that Mexicans are quite open to buying from international brands. Furthermore, brand loyalty is very high, so if you manage to earn the custom of a Mexican consumer, you may have gained a long-term customer. Loyalty programmes work well in this market, so they are well worth adopting when targeting Mexico.
Language
When targeting Mexico, make sure to create content in the local language, rather than trying to target them using English. The EF English Proficiency Index ranks Mexico as having “low” English proficiency, so any attempt to use English to reach Mexicans will not be successful. Furthermore, using English will give the impression that you do not really care about the market, since you cannot be bothered to communicate with them in their language, which would give a poor impression of your brand.
The language you should use when targeting Mexico is Mexican Spanish. Spanish is a Romance language. It uses the Latin alphabet, is written from left to right and has 27 letters (all 26 letters of the English alphabet, plus ñ), with some letters being written with diacritical marks. It has two grammatical genders (masculine and feminine).
The variety of Spanish used in Mexico has some grammar and terminology differences compared to the versions used in Spain and other Latin American countries, so if you have content on your Spain website, for example, you cannot just copy this over to your Mexican website; you must make sure to localise it for Mexico first.
Be aware that there are even differences in terminology within the country. Things as simple as the use of “usted” and “tú” (the formal and informal ways of saying “you” in Spanish), or more specific words like “dompe” (used to indicate a dump truck in the north, different from “camión de volteo” used in the south of Mexico), can make a difference to the success of your business. If you are not using the right terminology for your target area, you will lose opportunities to make sales.
Due to these differences, translation, localisation and copywriting should always be done by a professional native Mexican Spanish speaker. Only a native will have a proper grasp of the local linguistic and cultural nuances and be able to create content that will truly resonate with your local Mexican audience.
Be aware that people in Mexico will think poorly of you if you have mistakes in your written Mexican Spanish content. If your content contains linguistic errors or if a translation does not make sense, your brand image could be damaged, with the poor-quality content gaining you a reputation as an unprofessional company.
You should also be aware that the Spanish language is on average 20% longer than English. This is because, to express the same idea, you often need to use more words in Spanish compared to English. Therefore, be prepared to provide guidance on character limits and the space available for content on your webpage, and be conscious of how this can have an impact on things like your calls-to-action and product descriptions.
Speaking of calls-to-action, do not directly translate your calls-to-action from English, as a direct translation is unlikely to resonate and work well in Mexico. Instead, do some research to find out which calls-to-action are commonly used online in Mexico in your sector.
Another area of digital marketing that is impacted by the Spanish language is dynamic keyword insertion. Spanish does not always take dynamic keyword insertion kindly, due to grammatical gender issues. Dynamic keyword insertion puts you at risk of producing copy that is faulty and off-putting. If you must use dynamic keyword insertion, make sure to use several templates to adapt to as many cases as possible and limit errors.
It is also important to think about your keywords. Keywords should never be translated; instead, you should always conduct local keyword research. This is because a translation will probably not produce keywords that have the most impact in the target market. Only fresh keyword research conducted by a native speaker will reveal the best keywords to target. The video below explains in six minutes why you should never translate keywords:
When it comes to targeting keywords in your PPC campaigns, you might have a bit of doubt when it comes to diacritics, of which Spanish has a few (á, é, í, ñ, ó, ú, ü). Of course, when it comes to your content, you should always use them and make sure they are used correctly. But when deciding which keywords to target in your paid advertising campaigns, you may want to target keywords in their diacritic and non-diacritic forms. Many times, Spanish-speaking users will make their search queries without any diacritics just to save time, so if you do not target these keywords, you might be losing some valuable search volume.
If you are new to the market, always conduct in-depth market research, as it can have a big impact on your campaigns. For example, if you are a B2B company selling mining machinery, you should avoid targeting Mexico as a whole. The likelihood of someone living in one of the non-mining regions searching for your keywords will be low. But if you target people in Sonora (a state in the north of Mexico), where the mining industry is extremely important, your money will be well spent.
E-commerce in Mexico
E-commerce still has plenty of growth ahead of it. 22% of Mexicans have made a purchase using a mobile phone or the internet in the past year. In 2022, online B2C sales were worth USD 26.2 billion annually.
According to a study by Meltwater and We Are Social, the e-commerce categories which saw the highest levels of growth in 2023 compared to 2022 were: furniture with a year-on-year growth rate of 19%; household essentials (spending up 19%); food (up 18%); electronics (up 14%); fashion (up 13%); luxury goods (up 10%); beverages (up 10%); beauty and personal care (up 6%); toys and hobby (up less than 1%); and DIY and hardware (up less than 1%). Spending on tobacco products remained unchanged on the previous year. All other categories saw a decrease in spending. Physical media saw the biggest reduction in spending, with spending falling 9% compared to the previous year, followed by eyewear (spending down 5%), and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals (down 1%).
The main drivers of online purchases are key indicators as to what Mexican users value most when making their online purchasing decisions, giving you an opportunity to understand what is best to highlight in your marketing collateral and calls-to-action, so that you can convert leads into customers. Free delivery is the top driver of online purchasing behaviour in Mexico, with 57% saying this would encourage them to buy. This is followed by next-day delivery with 44% and coupons and discounts with 41%.
Looking at e-commerce payment methods, credit cards are the most popular option, accounting for 33% of online purchases in 2023. Digital wallets come in second place, accounting for 28% of online purchases, followed by debit cards (21%), post-pay (7%) and account-to-account payments (6%). It would therefore be wise to offer multiple payment options when targeting the Mexican market – particularly credit cards, digital wallets and debit cards – since all these payment methods have significant popularity.
Another important thing to remember is to ensure you are selling in the correct currency: Mexican pesos ($ or MXN). This may sound obvious, but you would be surprised how many businesses see poor results simply because they have neglected to localise the currency on their website.
Alternatively, you could sell your products on an e-commerce marketplace. The most popular e-commerce marketplace in Mexico is Mercado Libre. Global giant Amazon only manages second place, followed by Liverpool, Walmart and AliExpress. If you want to sell your items on an online marketplace, Mercado Libre should therefore be your first choice when targeting Mexico. Mercado Libre has a similar setup to Amazon, where brands can create their own online shop and sell items through the platform.
Once you have sold a product, you still need to get it to the customer. The most popular e-commerce delivery method in Mexico is home delivery, so it would be wise to offer this delivery option (if applicable).
Be aware that there are seasonal fluctuations in the Mexican e-commerce calendar, when people are more likely to buy. There are several important events around which online sales increase in Mexico: Christmas, El Buen Fin (an online sales event, taking place in mid-November), Black Friday, Hot Sale (another online sales event, taking place in late May/early June), Cyber Monday and Mother’s Day. Make sure you tap into this seasonality when selling your products and coming up with your marketing materials.
Conclusion
The Mexican market is large and full of promise, being one of the wealthiest markets in Latin America. It is a strong emerging market that is rightfully drawing the attention of an increasing number of global brands. What is more, brand loyalty is big in this country, so if you manage to gain the trust of a Mexican consumer, you may have just gained them for the long term. We hope this guide has given you a good starting point from which to build your Mexican success story. If you localise your strategy effectively, your digital marketing and business expansion efforts in the country have the potential to go far. Good luck!
To learn more about digital marketing in Mexico, click here.