4 Ways to Reach Ethnic Minorities Through Product Sampling

Why should you product samples to ethnic groups?

9.3 million people in the UK are from an ethnic minority, but only 1 in 5 brands reach out to them. The Consumer Equality Equation explores the relationship between ethnicity, the consumer experience in the UK, and potential business growth opportunities.

Demographics in the UK are changing: the number of people from ethnic minority groups will double to almost a third of the adult population by 2061. Despite their rise in population, the limited amount of data and insight previously available for brands into these consumer groups has resulted in unequal consumer experiences.

Brands stand to miss out on a cumulative disposable income of up to £727 billion by the end of 2023 unless they invest in ways to connect meaningfully with consumers from groups of ethnic minorities.

Product sampling is an excellent approach to connecting with ethnic minority groups. Product sampling provides goods or services to your target audience in exchange for greater brand exposure, brand loyalty, reviews, and feedback. If you’ve never entered the ethnic minority market, customised a product to these individuals, or tried to understand them deeper, product sampling is a great place to start. It generates virtually instant feedback, which you can then use to improve your product/marketing methods and create a better brand experience for ethnic minority consumers.

Actions that brands can take now will generate loyalty that can last generations. Faced with a cost-of-living crisis and an increasingly crowded marketplace, brands who better understand the diverse needs of their consumers can engage new customers, differentiate themselves as people demand more from their products and services, and futureproof their business.

How to reach ethnic minorities with product sampling.

Diversify your brand ambassadors in product sampling campaigns. 

Include people from groups of ethnic minorities within your brand ambassador marketing team; usually, these are the people on the front line who come into contact with your target market during a product sampling campaign. People from groups of ethnic minorities are more likely to feel an authentic connection with your brand when they recognise themselves in your company. Having multiracial brand ambassadors will not only help your audience feel connected to your brand, but they can also give insight into the cultural differences within your company. You don’t want your well-intentioned efforts to come across as insincere, insensitive, or pandering in nature, so be careful to avoid any appearance of tokenism or appropriation.

Language.

Include copy on your product sampling marketing promotion that is translated into the language of your target market, or better yet, employ bilingual brand ambassadors. We have touched on the importance of translated materials in previous posts; it is one of the most important factors your brand must consider. While most ethnic communities in the UK understand English, delivering materials in a native language will result in a higher level of engagement. GottaBe!’s survey of ethnic individuals found that 16% say they would be receptive to brand messages in ethnic media, with 53% more persuaded to buy a product if a brand communicated in their native language.

Communication is crucial in marketing, as how your brand is perceived will determine the difference between conversions. You only get one shot at making a first impression during a product sampling campaign, so it must be well received on the first try and have the desired impact. To effectively reach ethnic audiences and show them that your brand values them as consumers, offering your product sampling materials in their native language will increase engagement and conversion rates.

Location of activation 

To reach consumers from ethnic minority groups, base your sampling efforts on places they trust. These places could range from ethnic stores to temples. Researching your audience and understanding the locations most relevant to them will create a sense of reassurance and trust within your brand.

Create a localised strategy based on the ethnic minority you intend to reach.

Recent UK National Identity Census data (2023) reveals that ethnic minority groups in the UK immigrate mostly as a collective across different locations in the country; for example, most Polish people in the UK live in Ealing, while the majority of Indian people live in Leicester. This information provides an opportunity for brands to create localised strategies for the different groups of ethnic minorities. Instead of broad campaigns, think about developing localised campaigns by conducting market research on the ethnic groups you want to target. By understanding their cultural differences, wants, and needs, you can ensure that your product sampling campaign is culturally appropriate and tailored to your target audience’s needs. You can then operate separate product sampling campaigns in different areas of the United Kingdom, tailored to each group of ethnic minorities’ needs.

GottaBe! Ethnic are specialists in multicultural marketing and have helped many brands market their mainstream products to the ethnic communities in the UK. We have a range of solutions that can be tailored to help your brand effectively market your products or services. Contact the team today to discover the possibilities available to you!

As award-winning field and experiential marketing experts, our team can help you reach your target audience through product sampling. We are also experts in multicultural marketing and have helped many brands market their mainstream products to the ethnic communities in the UK. With over 4,500 experienced brand ambassadors across the UK, we have the right people for your brand. As well as our excellent brand ambassadors, we also have a pool of community champions who speak over 45 languages and give us insight into the ethnic communities in the UK. GottaBe! really can take your brand to any audience. To discover our sampling services, chat with the team today to see how we can create effective campaigns together.