Why Your Multicultural Marketing Efforts Need to Be Intersectional
Multicultural marketing is more important than ever in today’s diverse and interconnected world.
As our societies become increasingly multicultural, e.g. the UK is now home to over 14.6 million people from ethnic minorities, businesses must adapt to reach a broader audience and connect with people from different backgrounds.
However, to truly resonate, it’s essential to understand that multicultural marketing efforts must be intersectional. This blog post explores intersectionality and why it’s crucial for successful multicultural marketing.
Defining Intersectionality
Intersectionality is a concept that originated in critical race theory and feminist studies.
It acknowledges that people don’t just live with one identity but possess multiple intersecting identities that shape their experiences and perspectives. These identities can include race, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, disability, socioeconomic status, and more.
Recognising the interplay of these identities is fundamental to understanding people’s experiences in society.
The Changing Landscape of Multicultural Marketing
Effective multicultural marketing goes beyond assumptions or tokenisation. It requires an in-depth understanding of the diverse experiences and identities of the audience you’re trying to reach.
Here are some of the many reasons why your multicultural marketing efforts need to be intersectional:
Relevance and Authenticity
An intersectional approach helps you create marketing campaigns that are relevant and authentic to your specific target audience. By understanding the various identities within a culture, you can tailor your messaging to resonate with the experiences and challenges of different groups.
For example, a campaign tailored towards the ‘South-Asian community’ will likely not see much success as there are many factors to consider, such as sub-cultures, values, generations, religion, sense of belonging, and more.
We recommend focusing on smaller demographics with more tailored messaging. This makes your marketing more relevant and builds trust with your audience.
Avoiding Stereotypes
One of the pitfalls of non-intersectional multicultural marketing is the risk of reinforcing stereotypes.
Failing to recognise the intersections of identity can lead to the portrayal of individuals in a one-dimensional and inaccurate manner. This will only drive ethnic communities away from your brand and potentially offend them, turning them against you.
Your intersectional marketing aims must avoid these stereotypes and present a more complete view of the communities you’re trying to reach.
Niche Targeting
Different intersectional identities often have unique needs, interests, and consumer behaviours.
By taking an intersectional approach, you can segment your audience more effectively and tailor your marketing strategies to specific niche groups within a broader cultural demographic.
This personalised approach can lead to increased engagement and customer loyalty.
Building Inclusivity
Incorporating intersectionality into your marketing efforts and your internal practices shows that your business values inclusivity and recognises the diversity within multicultural communities.
This can help you build a positive reputation and attract a broader customer base while making your audience feel included.
Competitive Advantage
By embracing intersectional multicultural marketing, you’ll tap into the incredible £300bn spending power held by ethnic minorities in the UK.
But it’s not just ethnic individuals who care about inclusivity either. Non-ethnic consumers are becoming more aware of truly inclusive brands, so ensuring your brand is seen as welcoming to all is essential.
In summary, multicultural marketing is more than one-size-fits-all. Embracing an intersectional approach is the key to reaching and engaging diverse audiences authentically.
We understand that creating multicultural marketing communications that align with your brand, consider all the nuances, and resonate with the audience is a complex task, so we’re here to help!
We’ve recently been named a Changemaker agency by the Agency Collective due to our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) throughout all our business practices. From suppliers to processes to our team, inclusivity is at the heart of all we do here at GottaBe!
So, if you’re looking for guidance on reaching out to diverse communities, chat with us by clicking here.
