Ad Age is marking Hispanic Heritage Month 2023 with our Honoring Creative Excellence package, in which members of the Hispanic community revisit some of their favorite creative projects. (Read the introduction here.) Today, guest editor Angela Rodriguez turns the spotlight to Javier Martin, Intuit’s global brand development director, who writes about the inspiration for the QuickBooks “Think Ote” campaign.

With more than 15 years of marketing experience, I have had the privilege of leading teams and driving marketing strategies for some of the world’s most prominent brands. From my early days with Unilever, working on brands such as Lipton tea and Magnum ice cream, to my current role in the fintech sector with Intuit, where I focus on QuickBooks, my career has been marked by a commitment to brand marketing and improving people’s lives.

At Intuit, I took on the challenge of developing an integrated campaign to show Hispanic small business owners (SBOs) how QuickBooks could help them level up their businesses. The hurdle was substantial, as many Hispanic SBOs believed that investing in technology such as QuickBooks was unnecessary. They felt overwhelmed by work and financial burdens, often sought external financial advice and aspired to achieve higher social status and recognition.

The “logical” approach would have been to demonstrate how QuickBooks lightened the burden of business ownership. However, we decided to delve deeper. We discovered a profound issue: Hispanic SBOs lacked confidence, suffering from an inferiority complex they weren’t even aware of. This manifested in the names they chose for their businesses, often using diminutives that reflected a “think small” mindset.

We wanted to provoke change. The central proposition became clear: “QuickBooks empowers me with business tools to gain credibility and achieve success.” Thus, the “Think Ote” campaign was born, challenging Hispanic business owners to rethink their self-perception. We aimed to convey that just because a business was called a negocito (little business) didn’t mean it couldn’t be powered like a negociote (big business).

The results were astounding. The “Think Ote” campaign exceeded benchmarks across various metrics. Hispanic assets on social media platforms outperformed engagement benchmarks, influencers generated more than 100 million organic and paid impressions and the campaign achieved a remarkable 100% net-positive sentiment rate.

To highlight the campaign’s success further, it’s worth noting that “Think Ote” won both gold and silver Effie awards, underscoring its significant impact on marketing effectiveness.

The “Think Ote” campaign demonstrates to me the power of understanding the cultural and psychological nuances that influence consumer behavior. By addressing the deeper issue of confidence and self-perception among Hispanic SBOs, the campaign not only achieved remarkable engagement but also drove substantial growth for QuickBooks.