Inclusive Marketing Strategy: When Opportunity Is a Necessity For Brands?
Did you know the fastest growing generation in India is of young millennials and Generation Z?. India is on track to become the youngest country in the world by 2022 with a median age of 29. The country has more than 450 million millennials-those born after 1982 and account for a third of India’s population and 46% of its workforce. They are contributing to 70% of total household income, in fact the Generation Z will surpass the Generation X by 2023 and this wave of youth will unsurprisingly bring an economic transformation in the country.
Adapting to the changes in the marketplace and aligning the company’s vision, mission and objectives with those changes is key to survival in any competitive environment. One of the major changes that has occurred in last decade is in consumer buying behavior. From last two years the companies are experiencing a great cultural identity migration. Gender roles are merging, and races are being shed. The words like trans, bi and poly-ambi-omni have started dominating the consumer market. Gender Fluidity’ has become the most important reflection of this generation and the self is a place for them to experiment, test, and change This segment of consumers like things that are unisex and do not like those companies and brands that split everything into ‘male’ and ‘female’. After all they believe in genderless and in this respect, the marketers can call them ‘Identity Nomads’. This new and diverse customer demand requires businesses to re-evaluate how to position their brands in the marketplace from all aspects. Companies recognize the opportunity that exists in the growth of this young consumer base is critical factor in the long-term business success. Companies must create an aggressive inclusive strategic plan to tap into this segment of the market.
What is Inclusive Marketing?
Inclusive marketing is marketing to specific demographics without relying on stereotypes through thoughtful and respectful marketing strategies. It aims to speak to a larger audience of potential buyers from all backgrounds by mitigating cultural bias and looking beyond preconceived notions of race, ethnicity, gender, age, color, religion, income, and other societal labels in regard to the products/services being sold. It targets consumers from all walks of life, by seeking commonalities outside of these social labels so that they can truly connect with brands and can develop trust.
Why Inclusive Marketing?
According to a J. Walter Thompson Intelligence report 81% of Generation Z consumers strongly believe that gender does not define a person as much as it did in the past. They are also embracing the idea of gender nonconformity, with nearly 60% reporting that they believe they include selection options besides "man" or "woman." Another research from the American Psychological Association (APA) finds that a person's gender has little to no bearing on their personality, cognition, and leadership abilities. The consumer might identify as a woman, but she might also be interested in sports or perhaps enjoy hiking or camping. She can manage a large group of people at her job or makes major financial decisions. A man may be interested in cars, but he also might do all the grocery shopping for his children. The effectiveness of gendered marketing is changing as modern consumers—particularly those of younger generations—are seeking brand experiences that are inclusive toward people of all gender identities and they do not judge their preferences based on stereotypes.
So, the question marketers need to ask themselves is how they can market to diverse audience?
The successful marketers know the best way to engage with target audiences is by understanding who they are? which type of brands they prefer? and why they purchase those brands? So, what sets Great Marketing apart from Good Marketing is tapping into the experiences of the target segment and to create campaigns and strategy for diverse groups by being more inclusive for those groups.
Mintel’s Global Trends 2018 report reveals that consumers will demand personalized beauty defined on their individual terms, and brands will embrace inclusivity by looking beyond age, gender, sexuality, and body type. So, companies started highlighting rising innovations in the beauty care industry as brands embrace inclusivity and consumers demand personalized beauty. The companies have pictures discussed for product launches in response to complexion matching trend, role of technology in inclusivity, changes to spokespeople and models of brands to reinforce inclusive messages, campaigns that communicate inclusive messages, and influence of inclusivity in the reshaping of the hair care sector to cater to the needs of multicultural consumers. Rihanna launched Fenty Beauty- a cosmetics brand popular for its broad inclusivity across skin tones and gender, especially its Pro Filt'R foundation initially launched in 40 shades and expanded to 50 shades, offering a wide variety to all skin types. The intent behind having so many shades to offer is to differentiate from other makeup companies that do not cater to a broad market and Rihanna created the largest inclusive beauty industry forever.
How Brands can Embrace Inclusive Marketing?
1 Inclusive Marketing Create Lifestyle Brands:
Marketers need to be aware that Indian society is changing and young generation account for approximately 34% of the total Indian population. Companies need to develop a better understanding of lifestyle nuances and the differences between current generations and earlier generations in Indian market. Marketers need opinion formers to choose and to promote the brand for creating new trends in the society, rather than the other way around. So Non-traditional marketing solutions by developing content and generating positive word of mouth are essential for engaging this segment of consumers. Brands should make creative use of non-traditional channels such as festivals, salons, community centers, local shops, and different social media platforms to create trends with the younger generation of consumers.
Reebok has changed its logo from red Delta symbol to Vector symbol and has “dropped-R” that previously has been reserved for Reebok's Classics and lifestyle-focused products. Reebok president said that the brand lives at the intersection of fitness and fashion and is now a reflection of that connection. According to him, to differentiate the brand, it needs to blur the lines between the entire portfolio of performance and lifestyle products even more so to give one unified presence and voice and unifying the brand allows to better reflect the young consumers’ reality today - for them, the line between fitness and fashion are blurred.
2 Inclusive Marketing drives Brand Authenticity & Genuineness:
Consumers are most likely to buy products if they can identify with the people in the ad. So, showing real consumers from diverse communities in the brand message; be it content marketing or product positioning, helps the companies to break the stereotypes and supports inclusion. Generation Z trust those brands that represent diversity in the ads. Authenticity and genuineness in brand message resonate and creates positive brand associations towards the brand.
In a 2017 Havas Group survey of parents across the world found that 61% of women and 46% of men believe children should be raised in a gender-neutral environments as possible to guard them from stereotypes. Such insights have important implications for the marketers that parents are seeking consumer experiences that recognize their children as multi-faceted, in the same way they do in the products they select for themselves. And consumers are beginning to hold brands accountable for the ways in which they fail to be gender inclusive.
3. Inclusive Marketing develops Brand Trust:
Inclusive marketing helps to build trust among target consumers. This fosters a sense of community for consumers and connects them deeply with the brand. Brands that deliver inclusive ads are genuine, trustworthy, and market pioneers in driving inclusion. Additionally, it also increases the likelihood of consumers recommending the brand and stand out with growing perceptions for something larger than product.
Microsoft Advertising Study in 2019 discovered that 85% of people said that they will only consider a brand if they trust the brand and 59% trust more that brands which represent them. The study also found that 63% of people said brands that represent diversity in their ads are more authentic and trustworthy. So, knowing the purpose of existence of brand is the litmus test for companies to target younger generation and we expect that this inclusive concept will emerge with stronger importance in how brands build trusting relationships with their target audience in coming years.
4. Inclusive Marketing Builds Brand Loyalty:
When companies know their target customers at a deep level, they become equipped with the knowledge needed to know when something is appropriate, and when it will offend the customers. Consumer intimacy takes time, commitment, and resources but the rewards include greater degrees of trust, loyalty, and impact. It also results in committing less mistakes and waste of resources on ads and campaigns that fall flat or need to be pulled back due to swift backlash. Once trust is established as the baseline, a brand can begin to build loyalty. Inclusion was found to be a key brand attribute that creates loyalty and brands must go the extra mile to make someone feel understood through inclusion.
Nielsen community marketing Inc. study revealed that nearly half, (47%) of millennials say they would choose an inclusive brand over a competitor who offers a similar product.
5. Inclusive Marketing Builds Brand Sustainability:
Generation Z consumers care about brands that are sustainable waste, and eco-friendly leading to a rise in many eco-friendly products, like the use of plant-based plastics as one example.
Almost 90% of millennials and Generation Z prefer more sustainably produced products which convince businesses and governments to alter their existing practices. According to the Nielsen report, sales of products with certain sustainability claims grew faster than the overall product category they belonged to. The NYU Stern Centre for Sustainable Business research into U.S. consumers’ actual purchasing of consumer packaged goods (CPG) found that 50% of CPG growth from 2013 to 2018 came from sustainability-marketed products.
According to Unilever, half of their business growth five years ago was from three of their brands (Dove, Hellmann’s, and Ben & Jerry’s) that had integrated sustainability into both their purpose and products. Collectively, those brands were cited as growing 30% faster than the rest of their business. The study also suggests that the trend for purpose-led purchasing is greater among consumers in emerging economies than in developed markets. While 53% of shoppers in the UK and 78% in the US said that they feel better when they buy products that are sustainably produced, that number rises to 88% in India and 85% in both Brazil and Turkey.
In fact, it has become an imperative to succeed globally, and especially in emerging economies across Asia, Africa and Latin America, brands should go beyond traditional focus areas like product performance and affordability, and they must act quickly to prove their social and environmental credentials and show young consumers in these countries that they can be trusted with the future of the planet and people, as well as their own bottom lines.
From a business perspective- about bottom line, inclusive marketing allows brands to expand reach and potentially find new consumers. For existing customers, it is a chance to connect on a deeper level to build brand loyalty. As people and societies start to be re-shaped by the rapid pace of change in the world, adaptive inclusive marketing is a means of preparing for the future. There are number of case studies that show the present and future of brands is diversity, which means the inclusive marketing will drive the marketing strategies for untapped treasure brands that will set apart the good brands from cultural and community staples. Inclusivity marketing will be the new norm for the next decade which will bring the needed change to some narrow views that still exist today.
