Sergio Moreno’s job duties have included traveling to Puerto Rico and attending the Latin Grammy Awards.

What a rough gig.

When you’re editorial director for Hallmark Sinceramente, a Spanish-language line of greeting cards, rubbing elbows with Ricky Martin is market research.

“I spend a lot of time learning what’s popular in Hispanic culture,” said the 32-year-old Mexico City native, who has worked with the department for two of its seven years.

Since the introduction of the line, it has grown to offer more than 2,500 cards for everyday occasions. Each features an English translation so multi-lingual families can share sentiments.

The division is made up of “a small but mighty group” that includes another full-timer and a summer intern, Moreno said. The staff often relies on help from writers in other departments.

Recently, Moreno held a workshop with fellow Hallmarkers to brainstorm card ideas for Sinceramente’s No. 1 season, Mother’s Day.

“We spent a day talking about Mother’s Day and what it means to us,” he said. “We do a lot of introspective work and sharing.”

Expressing the same sentiments in different ways can be challenging. If Moreno has learned one thing, it’s that you can never say too much.

“We started planning cards with shorter, less effusive messages, but we saw that they weren’t performing as well,” he said. “This is a consumer who likes to say a lot. We’re a very expressive bunch.”

Moreno said staying creative and upbeat, especially on a rough day, is challenging, but he always considers the sender and recipient of each card he creates.

“We always think about what they need to say or hear during a difficult time,” he said. “We’re all going through it, but this is a very optimistic demographic.”

---

infobox-hr-separator /> Translated, this controversial card reads: “How about something hot to start off your birthday?”

Inside, the illustration reveals not a nude woman, as the front of the card suggests, but a hand dipping a finger into a cup of coffee. Some stores have banned the card, Moreno said.

“Some of our ideas are risque,” Moreno said. “But we have been cautious because we don’t want to offend anyone.”

---

infobox-hr-separator /> “One of the biggest occasions in Hispanic culture is the quinceañera, which is a coming of age for young Latinas,” Moreno said.