Five examples of multicultural marketing done right!

Multicultural marketing can be tricky to get right, but with the right tools and knowledge, your campaigns can significantly impact multicultural audiences. As multicultural marketing specialists, we work with our clients to help them reach ethnic audiences effectively. Within this blog, we will be looking at brands who got their multicultural marketing right and how they did it!

Nike 

Nike is a leader in diverse advertising with their Nike Pro Hijab for Muslim female athletes, adaptive activewear for people with disabilities, and athletic wear in plus sizes. Whilst there are many multicultural marketing campaigns to choose from, ‘One day we won’t need this day’ stood out to us. The campaign was launched in support of International Women’s Day and looked at the idea that we will not need to celebrate the day anymore when there is full acceptance, and the playing field is even. 

The powerful 1-minute video looks at the many women in sport and the impact they continue to have across the globe. Nike uses models and sports stars of various ethnicities that represent all. Whilst the campaign’s focus is on International Women’s Day, all featured in the ad are kitted out in Nike’s clothing. The campaign builds on brand purpose whilst showing consumers they support them, and with their products, nothing is impossible. 

Nikes’ consistent approach to diversity and inclusion is what makes this ad so powerful. Unlike other commercial brands, Nike does not deliver ads to tick boxes. They do not choose when to be inclusive, it is a part of their branding and who they are. Their campaigns are authentic because they have spent time ensuring their brand purpose matches their values, which is portrayed well in all their campaigns. 

Their messaging can be seen consistently across their stores, campaigns, and online site. We hope you will agree that Nike delivers excellent multicultural marketing campaigns!

Fenty beauty for all

Singer Rhianna launched her inclusive beauty brand in 2017, and it quickly shot up to the number one choice for consumers from across the world. With an impressive 40 shades of foundation from launch, the beauty mogul knew there was a gap in the market that needed to be filled. Since launching, she has extended the shade range, now with over 50 shades, Fenty is ranked highly as one of the top inclusive makeup brands and time magazine named it one of 2017’s 25 Inventions of the Year.

Just like Nike, Fenty’s brand purpose has a multicultural heart. Their ‘Beauty for All’ campaign delivered a new spin to the beauty market that should have been adopted years ago. Sandy Saputo, Chief Marketing Officer at Kendo Brands, discusses this in an interview following the launch of the campaign “It was the first time under-represented, under-served women and cultures were featured in a global prestige beauty campaign.”  

Fenty used the launch of their brand to deliver ‘Beauty for All’ to break down walls within the traditional beauty industry. From the beginning, the brand ensured that no one was left behind. This even included the timing of the campaign launch, which saw the products go live in 17 countries on the same day at the same hour (regardless of time zones) with an omnichannel marketing strategy. They also ensured they were ready to deliver directly to the countries they couldn’t directly launch in. 

The campaign saw hundreds of people sharing photographs of themselves wearing Fenty Beauty on social media: their first repost was of a woman wearing a hijab. Fenty reportedly made £72 million in the first 40 days. 

Fenty does not advertise itself as inclusive they just are, and by showing consumers that they cater for all, they have managed to engage consumers from all demographics. Since the campaign’s launch, their marketing team has been sharing consumer images across social media to ensure the hype around the brand continues. Using consumer images ensures the brand has plenty of content representative of all. Fenty’s vital brand purpose is ingrained in all its campaigns which is why they are so successful in the multicultural market. 

Etsy – gift like you mean it, Shiori 

Etsy targeted ethnic audiences through various videos for their ‘gift like you mean it’ campaign, but one stood out to us. The campaign follows the life of a young girl called Shiori as she unsuccessfully buys personalised products in stores, is called the wrong name, and her name is mispronounced. The video ends with her mother gifting her a personalised necklace with her name correctly spelt. Etsy delivers the young girl’s emotions brilliantly in a highly relatable way, showing consumers they can gift meaningfully to their loved ones without any limitations through Etsy. 

Whilst Etsy does not produce the products sold on the site directly; they are a space for small businesses to sell. By creating a multicultural marketing campaign, Etsy expanded its reach to new audiences. By choosing to include products they knew would be wanted by consumers in the ad, they managed to create a relatable campaign that was representative of consumer needs proving themselves to be the solution to a problem. 

Etsy’s ad connects with consumers of all ethnicities, and ‘gift like you mean it: Shiori’ is a part of a series of campaigns that all have a different focus. An excellent portrayal of real emotions felt by all helped the brand connect with consumers emotionally, positioning themselves as the place to shop for presents. 

Adidas 

Adidas’ ‘impossible is nothing’ campaign saw the launch of 20 films following the authentic stories of some of sports biggest successes from around the globe. The campaign looks to empower consumers and show them that no matter where they are from, with determination and optimism, the ‘impossible is nothing’. Consumers are drawn into the ad which chooses to share old clips of the sports stars and portray them in a home movie manner. This gives them a sense of relatability and nostalgia as the stars videos feel like something they have seen before. 

Adidas’ ‘impossible is nothing’ campaign pulls at consumers heartstrings connecting them emotionally. Looking at the many things that shaped the lives of the world’s most prominent athletes, Adidas inspires all and, most importantly, showcases the opportunities for ethnic audiences. Adidas reaches new audiences through this campaign by showing ethnic sports stars from different cultures. 

Brian Grevy, Executive Board Member, Global Brands at Adidas, said of the campaign: “Impossible is Nothing is more than a campaign – it’s our attitude.  Seeing possibilities with optimism is key to achieving our purpose of changing lives through the power of sport. This attitude is what inspires us every day and is pushing us to build the future. Seeing possibilities is for everyone who wants to create a better tomorrow for all people.” 

Adidas has multicultural marketing down and knows adopting authenticity is key to an excellent campaign. Authenticity should be adopted throughout the brand and not just through one campaign to ensure the best return. 

Amazon, the show must go on.

Back in 2020, during the pandemic, brands rushed to create campaigns that connected with consumers. Amazon’s ‘The Show Must Go On’ campaign focused on a young girl who landed the main part in her Ballet. The story follows her as she practices for the show in her neighbourhood, but in the video, we see the introduction of facemasks and strict restrictions, which see the show cancelled altogether. 

The community rallies together with the help of the online retailer’s fast delivery service to provide the young ballerina with a stage, to perform her dance outside with residents overlooking their balcony’s. 

It was important for Amazon to ensure that the campaign was inclusive, and they ensured this by enlisting a fully inclusive crew and cast. As well as ensuring the campaign was created by an entire inclusive crew, the production team worked with Amazon to include trainees offering fair opportunities. The campaign was well thought through to ensure they reached ethnic audiences by representing them through the cast. 

Taïs Vinolo, ballerina and star of the Amazon Christmas 2020 advert, said:

“When I was growing up in the French countryside, there were no young black girls studying ballet with hair like mine, or even on TV, meaning I had no one to identify myself with. Being on this shoot helped so much with this, enabling me to own who I really am, who I want to be and what I represent. I am so proud to have been part of this project since the message of it means a lot to me and even more so in this very difficult time that the world is going through.”

Amazon ‘the show must go on’ campaign hit the multicultural marketing spot for several reasons. First, it connected with people emotionally in a time of need which allowed them to engage with consumers at a deeper level. Secondary, the campaign cast a young black ballerina as the main character, representing a new audience in a typically white industry. 

Amazon delivered a moving video that engaged all audiences whilst representing an ethnic minority. The ad connected with audiences, building brand awareness, purpose, and recall in a time of uncertainty.

Want to get your multicultural marketing right?

GottaBe! Ethnic is proud to raise awareness of the power of ethnic consumers and know that brands who get their multicultural marketing right will reap the benefits of the £300bn spending power of ethnic minorities in the UK alone! Our team of multicultural marketing experts are on hand to steer your marketing in the right direction and can provide you with the right tools to ensure you create effective campaigns. with over 4500 community ambassadors across the UK GottaBe! Ethnic have inside knowledge in the ‘hard to reach’ communities. We can connect you with models, creatives and whatever you need to ensure your brand creates an effective multicultural marketing campaign. Contact the team today to get started!