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Writer's pictureAustin Stanfel

4 Lessons We’ve Learned, Sometimes the Hard Way, About Inclusive Marketing

Updated: Jan 2, 2020


The art of marketing has been refined in many ways over the years, and as a result, many strategies have also been developed. Inclusive marketing is one such marketing strategy that has been buzzing around recently, one whose intents may seem a touch nobler than other marketing techniques.


Inclusive marketing strives to create a cultural utopia by incorporating many racial and ethnic lifestyles in their marketing. It is different from cultural diversity which nowadays has lost its impact, and instead, the driving force behind the inclusivity is the viewpoint of multiple perspectives. Inclusive marketers strive to appeal to many specific demographics without relying on old fashioned stereotypes, providing a breath of fresh air for those in the corporate sector and social justice circle. To celebrate this, we look at four valuable lessons learned about general marketing.


Diversity at the workplace

One of the first steps one should take is to assess the diversity issue in your team, particularly the ones calling the shots. Research indicates that advertising teams are predominantly white people in the US. The controversy behind this which some people support is that hiring personnel based on race and ethnicity rather than merit is a biased decision.


The reality is that having a diverse creative advertisement team results in multiple perspectives that allow a more accurate depiction to content that must appeal to multiple demographics. It need not require immediate implementation as it is better to wait for qualified individuals that are worth it. Diversity is not only related to race and ethnicity, but age also contributes.


Impact of advertisements

It is crucial as an inclusive marketer to understand the impact of your advertisements on the target audience. As a result, it becomes vital for the face of the company that your advertisements are not misinterpreted in any shape or form to be deemed offensive to a specific demographic. Intent does not matter in the same sense accidentally hurting someone does not take away their pain. Therefore your intent behind a particular advertisement is not what counts, but the way the people react to it. Being extra careful about sure Do’s and Don’ts will help keep a positive reception towards your ads.


Avoid Stereotypes at all costs

To honestly communicate with your target demographic, you need to be able to relate and emphasize with them. The one way to do the exact opposite is to use stereotypical examples and jokes. This only helps to distance your relation with the people watching your ads who will not take lightly to them.


Track your progress

As in all forms of marketing strategies, we can only truly succeed when we track our progress. Using modern technology at your disposal, such as machine learning to check statistics of your team composition. You might learn that your team might be skewed towards a particular demographic a bit too much, so you can make necessary corrections to it.


Author: Austin Stanfel

Stanfel Media


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