Inclusive Marketing Is Here To Stay
These days, inclusion is the word on everyone’s lips and like all hot buzz words, plenty of brands are jumping on the bandwagon, while others are waiting on the sidelines believing it to be a passing trend. Many brands simply don’t get it.
It’s simple. Imagine you're walking through a mall and every single shop is using the same window dressing - same neutral colours, same wording, same kind of mannequins, none of which looks like it's directed at you. Sure, you'll glance but nothing will grab your attention. You keep strolling past. Then you come to the one store that has a different display. The mannequin kinda looks like you, the messaging sounds like something you would say. At the very least, you'll push the door and step inside. Representation. Inclusion.
It's how Fenty Beauty became a £2.2 billion brand in just over two years from launch. By building its products and its image on inclusion, the brand triggered intense emotional responses and brand loyalty in its customer base. Fenty Beauty was able to leapfrog beauty behemoths who are still trying to "bolt on" some diversity to their existing public profile. If you don't make inclusion the beating heart of your digital marketing, scores of potential customers will just keep scrolling.
Inclusive marketing is here to stay. It’s not a passing fancy like Pantone’s Colour of the Year. The reality is that it can make or break a brand. A significant segment of your audience is rightfully demanding more representation from the companies and brands that want their attention, their engagement and their dollars.
What we mean when we use the “I” word
If your digital marketing inclusion strategy begins and ends with liberally sprinkling Martin Luther King quotes in your Twitter feed during Black History Month then you have misread the memo.
Ethnicity, gender, gender expression, sexuality, ability, religion, neurodiversity, socio-economic status, age, accents and more – there is a full spectrum of differences we see in the world and most people embody more than one. These characteristics overlap and intersect. Yes, there are Black, disabled women and yes, working-class, gay, Muslim men exist. Diversify your personas and your use cases in line with your marketing goals.
Far from being a tedious box-ticking exercise, rooting your business and marketing strategy in inclusivity marks your brand as creative, curious and forward-thinking. And make no mistake, customers can tell whether your efforts are coming from an authentic place so you should aim to tap into diverse talent - whether in-house or outsourced.
Inclusive marketing’s bottom line
There should be no question that inclusion is the right thing to do, but some brands still question its necessity for their bottom line. We’re here to tell you that the bottom line is this - if you’re serious about growth, you need to get serious about inclusive digital marketing.
That all-important Millennial market? 77% of them favour brands that value inclusivity.
The LGBTQIA market? £6 billion a year and a willingness to switch to brands that are more representative
Consumers from ethnically diverse communities in the UK have £300 billion a year to spend and rising. (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) The New Britain 2014)
Is your brand global? Multicultural consumers in the US have a combined buying power of $3.9 Trillion. African consumers? $2.5 trillion by 2030
Disabled consumers are some of the most underserved. Inaccessible websites alone cause businesses to miss out on £17.1 billion
Over 65’s? They’re embracing technology and wielding household spending power of £320 billion
Data is driving digital marketing to new levels of specificity. There's no excuse. It’s time to embrace your customers in all their complex glory. Give them a warm welcome, show them you understand their specific contexts and deliver a full experience of your brand. Let inclusive digital marketing (soon to be simply "marketing") drive your brand to a prosperous future.