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What is the reason diversity and inclusion in marketing matters

Jun 30, 2022

You've heard the old phrase, "With great power comes the responsibility." The phrase dates to the early century BC and continues to be relevant today, even in business.

The power of having an audience -- customers, employees, those who are social media users -- can be very powerful. We say that With an audience comes responsibility.

A broad and inclusive approach to marketing has bottom-line benefits, including:

  • 83 percent of Millennials prefer to shop at companies that align with their ideals and beliefs.
  • 71% will spend more on an item if they are aware that some proceeds will go to charities.
  • 61 of consumers think diversity is important. of consumers think the importance of diversity in marketing
  • 38% are more likely to be awed by businesses that "effectively incorporate diversity into their marketing"

In 2016, Johnnie Walker released an ad in two languages titled "This Land" -- "Esta Tierra Es Mia" in Spanish -- to celebrate America's diversity of culture.

According to ANA, "viewer sentiment for the advertisement was overwhelming favorable (90%) and helped spur large digital interactions in relation to the brand's spending. It drove two-thirds the company's overall earned digital interactions during the last 5 years."

Customers are spending more to help businesses and brands that are inclusive. While increased revenue shouldn't be the sole reason to look at diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) when you're marketing, it certainly demonstrates that customers are eager to put their money into brands that celebrate their diversity..

Diverse and inclusive marketing can help drive creativity and innovation as well as build trust and generate more impact for businesses. This article will discuss the benefits of diverse, fair, and inclusive marketing as well as the reasons it is important today.

In this article

What is diversity, equity and inclusion in marketing?

Diversity, equity and integration (DEI) is an initiative which ensures that every person impacted by an organization -- including employees and customers are treated fairly and with respect.

DEI isn't just about equality; it's about enriching customers and employees by respecting different individuals, communities, and backgrounds and how they bring us together.

DEI Marketing is about being able to accurately represent your target audience in your marketing and advertising. It is about thoughtfully considering and acknowledging the diversity of your audience and presenting diverse audiences of different races, genders, ages gender, sexual orientations, as well as handicaps. This also includes ensuring that everyone has equal access to opportunities, resources, and experiences.

"Diversity is asked to join take part in the celebration to dance; inclusion is the topic being requested to get up and dance." -- Verna Myers, Inclusion Strategist.

Gillette's #MyBestSelf campaign demonstrates the extent to which inclusive marketing can be accessed and resonates with a variety of razor-using customers as well as highlighting significant moments that other brands don't include in their marketing.

In the commercial, Gillette concentrates on the journey of a father teaching his transgender son how to shave his head for his first time. Gillette goes beyond the boundaries of the typical razor commercialby informing its audience of transgenders that they're celebrated and acknowledged.

The survey found that almost 80% of respondents were pleased with the advertisement, 77% said it made them hopeful regarding the future. Nearly 60% of respondents said that they will recall the advertisement after three or four months and 34% said it made them want to purchase Gillette items.

What can be done to create an inclusive and equitable framework for marketing?

Equity, diversity and inclusion are in the minds of many marketing professionals. 70 percent of customers believe that brands must adopt a position on the social and political issues and one of the ways they could do so is through their marketing.

We spoke with Candace Williams, Head of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at to better understand how marketers should think about strategies that incorporate inclusiveness, equity and diversity in the forefront. She explained four main tenets all marketing teams should keep in their minds.

1. Partnerships are important

The values of your organization go beyond your marketing and advertising -- it's also communicated through your company affiliations and the people you associate with.

"Partnerships are crucial," confirmed Candace. "If I'm not able to see the values or intersections with which I align [in the marketing of an organization,] I look to who they are partnering with. Do they support certain non-profit organizations?"

Companies are likely to partner with or support organisations who share their values. "So it's important be able to look past the products and find out who they're aligned with," Candace said.

Companies can lose focus on their target audience. When they focus only a specific group of people or groups of people, it's easy to lose traction in the midst of everyone around -- different generational groups can be able to be tempted to think, "that's not my type of audience.'

"Even the marketing they employ doesn't reach every kind of consumer, brands can convey their beliefs through their partnerships and affiliations," says Candace. "Moreover businesses must be confident. If you're involved in charitable organizations or offer fantastic employee resource groups Don't allow the effort be hidden. It should be public as part of your marketing strategy. It generates revenue. it's great to have a celebration in public as well."

2. Consider your audience as real people Not faceless character models

It's easy for people to forget that a target audience is comprised of real people not faceless personas. Marketers have had an abundance of audience research , and may have limited buyers to one-line demographics and generic descriptions.

While building personas is helpful for building the foundation of your product and marketing plan, it's crucial to remember the unique elements and characteristics of your customer base -- and highlight them in your advertising.

Your responsibility is to comprehend these distinctions in order to foster diversifying marketing strategies and meet diverse consumer needs. One way to do this is to diversify the marketing teams you work with.

3. Diversify your marketing team

Your marketing strategy is born by your marketing team. And a more multi-cultural and inclusive team can strengthen your strategy with greater perspectives and personality.

"When I consider marketing teams, it's nearly impossible to build an all-inclusive product that is innovative and includes all kinds of intersections if you don't possess a marketing staff that's to reflect that," shares Candace.

If you're working to restructure the marketing staff there's no need to be alone. "When you're building something, you're likely to be drawn to people who are like you and are similar to you -- then you think, 'Oh, you know, I didn't take into consideration the various elements of what we may need.'"

It's never too late to broaden the range of voices which influence your marketing strategies. Alongside the hiring of new managers and gaining data from Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). "There are so many ERGs as well as external group of insight for teams in marketing that want to know more," Candace says. Candace. "Consider you're asking yourself, "What would the members of my LGBTQIA group think of our marketing? What do they think of what do we think of our BIPOC Group?'"

Candace also warns of dangers if companies don't consider diversity when growing their teams, "when you don't [check into your diverse diversities dimensionsand dimensions], you'll miss some crucial information or the possibility of innovation."

Also, you can work with a diverse range of freelancers and contractors. There is a temptation to stick with a select few reliable folks. However, the more diversity in your freelance roster more diverse perspectives you've included in the marketing material.

"Where business groups go wrong is considering themselves the owners of their customer experience. Therefore, they must know all there is to be aware of," shares Candace. "Companies must be deliberate in gathering insights and diversifying their viewpoints, in the absence of this, they're developing a product on a one-dimensional perspective of your marketing staff."

4. Make sure you follow through by taking the correct

Marketing is the promise you make to provide your service or product to your customers. If businesses don't deliver the promises they make in their marketing, their customers will likely be disappointed and have a negative opinion about the brand.

The same is true for diversity and inclusion in your marketing "There's a difference in making a statement and acting on it," says Candace. "Some firms will claim"Oh, we've made a statement, so we're fine. But what do you think is the significance of the actions behind the declaration?"

If you're selling to customers or employees, it's important to keep the promise of your marketing message. Candace advises marketers to remain in touch with their colleagues on the product and HR teams. By removing silos and championing the idea of open communication, marketers are able to understand the customer and employee experience each team provides and be sure to market the experiences in a way that is appropriate.

It also promotes DEI across the organization as well. "It all comes back to the essential elements for diversity, equity inclusion, in order to ensure that the most qualified persons are on the table," confirms Candace.

Different and equitable views from fantastic advertising campaigns for brands

Over the past five to ten years more brands have featured the perspectives of a variety and fairness within their advertising campaigns. They create beautiful narratives and tackle important issues with video.

Let's look at some illustrations.

"Equality" from Nike

Nike's "Equality" commercial showcases some of Nike's most famous athletes including Serena Williams, LeBron James as well as Kevin Durant. Its message is clear: "Worth should outshine color." The idea is to encourage people to be themselves, play fair, and take action against prejudice.

In the commercial the singer Michael B. Jordan narrates an enthralling poem about equality that concludes with "If there is a way to be equal here, we can be equally matched everywhere." Singer Alicia Keys performs a new version of "A Change Is Gonna Come" written by Sam Cooke.

"Belong Anywhere" by Airbnb

This year's "Belong Anywhere" advertisement by Airbnb highlights the diversity of cultures across the globe by highlighting a variety of guest, food options and cities.

Airbnb's purpose is to create an environment where everyone has a place to call home. Through this campaign, the company is proving that everyone is a part of the world, no matter the place they come from or what they look like.

Notice that besides the diverse and broad appeal of marketing, these campaigns share something in common: they utilize the power of video marketing to share their message and connect with their audiences.There's a reason that 86 percent of marketers utilize videos to promote their business. Aside from getting higher levels of engagement as well as a higher return on investment video content is easy to recycle and possess a long shelf life. Additionally, they're an effective storytelling tool, especially for communicating emotionally powerful messages.

3 ways in which video could help your diversity and inclusion marketing strategies

Training online for employees

Video is more enjoyable and efficient for sharing feelings and conveying an important message, such as the experience of unconscious bias.

Quarterly reports on progress

If you offer ERGs for your employees, you can encourage them to share video updates in which they share the work they've done or progress they've made across the company. These can include diversity training sessions and other initiatives which ensure equity and diversity across the teams you work with.

Additionally, think about including the groups mentioned above in your company's branding materials or your product marketing collateral.

Behind-the-scenes videos

The customers love looking into the shadows to discover how businesses operate in the background. Through sharing video clips from corporate retreats, monthly gatherings or other fun activities in the office, customers are able to understand the company's principles and why your business helps to support DEI initiatives.

Utilize video to tell a story about an employee who has overcome obstacles or reached a point of excellence, or even to highlight the contributions each person makes for your company. In addition, you can record clips of conversations with individuals from different backgrounds, showcasing individual experiences as well as what they can bring at workplace.

Why diverse and inclusive marketing matters?

A diverse and inclusive approach to marketing builds confidence and goodwill with the people you serve. It can also lead to more sales, higher quality offerings and services, as well as an improved culture within the company.

If it's about marketing, DEI isn't just the right thing to do; it's a good business decision.

"It's about constantly leaning towards diverse communities, developing these insights and knowing the motivations of your target audience," says Candace. "I enjoy logging onto the [] platform and see people that have the same characteristics as me, like females at my intersection--and Black--another intersection--and being able to see it without being able to find it. I love being able to look at something in a marketing campaign and look at faces that are like our faces, of many backgrounds and with diverse talents."

When you're done with the day, featuring a variety of people, stories and cultural perspectives in your advertising gives you chances to engage with the public and let them know the benefits of your solutions, products, and brand can do.