Ameriquest, Latino Marketing, Luis Miguel, Presence Marketing, Sponsorship

Looking at a chance to hit a growing demographic, Ameriquest Mortgage Co. has tapped into the Latino market as the presenting sponsor of the U.S. leg of Latin singer Luis Miguel’s Mexico en la Piel Tour, which kicked off Sept. 13 in Fresno, CA.

This is not Ameriquest’s first attempt at Latino marketing – the lender has launched Latino campaigns in both English and Spanish languages as well as bilingual mortgage specialists. However, the company said it sees major growth in Latino homeowners on the horizon, and wants to use the sponsorship as a way to build name recognition among Latino consumers.

“Everything we do we hope generates a loan for us,” Ameriquest Senior VP-Marketing Barbara Palmer said about the Latino marketing effort. “Branding with a star as big in the Latino community as Miguel is the big opportunity for us, and its why we divided our effort into brand building and lead generation efforts.”

Molded after the mortgage lender’s current sponsorship of The Rolling Stones On Stage Tour, Ameriquest will not solicit information from consumers at the concerts. Instead, the company will insert bilingual brochures will be inserted in merchandise bags, and Ameriquest signage will hang over the stage until the curtain rises.

Ameriquest will however use an online sweepstakes, which it will promote in the brochures, to build leads. Consumers clicking on a contest button at Ameriquest.com are asked if they are in the market for a new mortgage, a refinance or other services, and the website sends that that information is sent in real-time to the Orange, CA-based company mortgage lender for follow-up.

The sweepstakes dangles an all-expense trip for two to see Miguel during a concert outside the U.S. in January, when he hits the international portion of the tour as the grand prize. The company will also award 50 first-prize winners with a boxed set that includes all 4 CDs from Miguel’s “Romance” series.

“Luis Miguel is as big as The Rolling Stones in the Latino community, which is why we wanted to tie into the Mexico en la Piel Tour,” Palmer said. “We are hoping that by tying into the biggest Latino act of the year, Latino consumers will seek us out first when looking for a mortgage lender.”

The tour and the sweepstakes run through Nov. 6.