Marketers can transform the world by improving diversity (here's why)

[shammis606]

Marketers can play a huge role in transforming the world by educating the market, sharing the right message, and also helping organizations create an inclusive mindset and integrate it into their inclusive behavior, while sending messages with representativeness and authenticity.

Today, we live in a world where most people show no brand loyalty engineer database at all. More than 80% of McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility respondents said they were willing to switch brands if another represented them better.

However, the survey also indicated that African-American consumers are willing to pay up to 20% more for the right products and services that meet their needs.

As market data shows, companies that take it seriously and with a real focus are more likely to have above-average profitability, attract and retain customers and employees, and at the same time help build a better world.

Let’s look at how you can bring this thinking to your brand with responsibility and action (and not just marketing), with some good real-world examples of companies that are already doing it.

Brand diversity
The first thing brands should consider when including diversity in their guidelines is that a brand represents what the company is in terms of beliefs, behaviors, vision and characteristics, such as a person's personality and life story.

So, just like a person, if you try to advertise something you are not or do not believe in, you are headed for failure.

Before you build diversity into your brand, start building it into your business , into employee conversations, into training, and understand diversity within your culture.

Only then can you take the next step and build diversity into your brand and marketing — which is amazing — and, don’t get me wrong, I’m here to encourage you to do just that.

Implementing diversity into your brand and business will be great for your employee experience, business revenue, and of course, building a better world.

According to McKinsey analysis , companies that have cultural and ethnic minorities on their teams are 36% more likely to be the most profitable in their industries.

Get inspired by diversity initiatives in the advertising world
Recently, Publicis Media announced the launch of a marketplace to increase representation , providing its clients with the opportunity to access a vetted inventory of publishers serving underrepresented communities, focused on increasing reach to diverse audiences.

Called the 'Diverse and Inclusive Media Exchange' (DIME) , the exclusive marketplace for Publicis clients is intended to offer more inclusive content, according to Publicis Media UK chief executive Sue Frogley.

Taking inspiration from one of the most expensive advertising slots, Super Bowl ads have delighted audiences in recent years with diverse casts and real-life narratives.

According to Jon Evans, CMO at System1, they found three main ways to employ diversity as a strategy, though it’s important to understand that using each has many implications and points of analysis, which will differ from brand to brand and from campaign to campaign:

multiple scenes with a variety of people;
the exposure of a problem affecting a minority;
use casts that represent diversity — even when it is not required — in a less explicit way.
Marketing and content agencies, like Rock Content, have even greater potential for impact.

Because they handle communications and strategy for multiple clients, they have the power to bring diversity to life in campaigns and educate multiple clients across various industries on the topic and how people want to feel represented by the media.

Every client represents an opportunity for education and how essential diversity is for any business. Next time, I hope it is the client who asks you that in the brief and not the other way around.

How to get started with diversity?
Start with a plan, that's what I always say. Also, start with what you can do today. It may not be much, but it's something, and something is better than nothing. Don't go for the complex or the bold, remember that you just want to start doing things:

Share the idea with a small group of people, brainstorm on the topic;
keep the leadership of the team with you;
Conduct a short survey to understand how your company is doing with diversity so far and what your target audience would like you to do – what are the opportunities for improvement?
use both to create a vision of success for this project;
List some of the first steps to get there, share with the same group, review and start
Conclusion: This is the smartest and right thing to do.
Marketers can benefit from learning how to develop a diversity and inclusion strategy. It improves the state of the world, while also improving tangible business outcomes for companies.

But remember:

Start by looking internally, make a real commitment to include it in your values ​​and company culture, as this is crucial to have consistent communication when shared outside the company;
Then, expand that to products and services, and ensure they are accessible to all and with diverse representation, especially when we talk about the influence and scalable impact that agencies and marketing companies have in shaping messages.
The key, in essence, is to start by doing things and enjoy this path full of learning and development.

You can learn more about Rock Content's commitment to diversity and global impact here .

Take advantage of the opportunity and subscribe to our newsletter, so you can receive the main Marketing and Business trends in your inbox every Friday!