Smart marketers are looking for ways to get their products, services, and experiences into the hands of as many of their ideal customers as possible.
Netflix has paying customers in 190 countries around the world, and its content is available in 62 languages. The driving force behind this massive reach is that it makes business sense. The more people who can access and enjoy content relevant to them on the platform, the more subscriptions will be sold and the more money Netflix will make.
When Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, decided to implement daily sensory-friendly hours in all of its stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, they did so because their ideal customers, including people with sensory processing disorders, Because it makes you feel more at home. . It also allows more customers to spend more time in the store, which often leads to increased sales.
Google takes a “build for everyone” approach to the products it creates. The company recognizes that the people who use its products vary in race, location, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and ability. As a result, Google builds products with different identities in mind to help brands reach as many people as possible with the problems they solve.
Rihanna’s ultra-inclusive brands Fenty Beauty, Savage X Fenty and Fenty Skin are also designed to reach as many people as possible who identify with the brand’s ethos. As such, both the product lines and marketing of these brands focus on the differences between people, ensuring that everyone involved with the brand feels like they belong. As a result, each of these brands continues to gain market share in a highly competitive market.
When they realized that the craft beer market had become saturated with the narrow customer group they had traditionally focused on: young, white men, they strengthened their brand and targeted women, African Americans, and Latinos. , decided to market to Native Americans. As a result, industry-wide sales increased.
These are all examples of brands and industries that are committed to inclusive marketing.
Why so many brands reject inclusive marketing
Inclusive marketing is seeing increased use and adoption by more brands. This is a new term and is meant to encompass a broader range of consumers with a variety of differences, not just in terms of racial and ethnic diversity.
In the past, the terms multicultural marketing, diversity marketing, and even ethnic marketing have been used.
The premise behind designating this form of marketing comes from the desire to give it the focus and attention it deserves because it is unique in itself. This was necessary because consumers with identities outside of what is considered “mainstream” often remain underrepresented and underserved.
The challenge we have found with inclusive marketing is that there is a common idea that it is “extra” or unnecessary. Also, when a marketer or business leader hears the word “inclusive,” personal biases regarding his or her ideas about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging instantly flare up, leading to a lack of inclusive marketing. You may not be able to think in perspective.
As a result, inclusive marketing doesn’t really get the attention and attention it deserves. And unfortunately, because of this, too many consumers remain undervalued and underserved.
Inclusive marketing is just that: marketing. Inclusive marketing is just good marketing.
Marketing with people’s differences in mind isn’t just about serving more customers. It’s also about keeping options relevant and viable for what you have.
For example, one co-worker said that when trying to plan a company business trip, she looked for venues whose menu options were considerate for people who follow a vegan diet. When vegan options are limited or non-existent, hotels not only lose vegan consumers, but an entire group of people, over 90% of whom are non-vegan.
Marketing that takes into account the differences between people also means that brands are more likely to be successful with their customers.
The more successful customers you have, the more they will buy from you. The more successful customers you have, the more likely they are to tell their friends about it. The more successful customers you have, the less refunds you will receive. When customers succeed, everyone wins.
But often, customers with identities from underrepresented and underserved communities don’t succeed at the same rate as customers from dominant groups.
Good marketers strive to ensure that the customers they serve have a positive post-purchase experience. A client I worked with had data showing that African American clients were not achieving success at the same rate as other clients. As we took a closer look at their marketing and the overall experience they were providing, we were able to identify why and provide a plan for how to close the performance gap.
The word marketers love is business results. And comprehensive marketing drives sales, increases the number of customers who buy, increases customer retention, and increases customer success. That’s why Netflix, Google, Walmart, and many other companies do this.
Marketing without a comprehensive lens is frankly bad for business.
So if more marketers and business leaders need to change their language to fully embrace marketing to people in underrepresented and underserved communities, so be it. .
Inclusive marketing is just good marketing. Marketers who embrace inclusion in their work and strive to seize every opportunity to make everyone, their ideal customer, feel like they belong will achieve better business outcomes.
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