According to studies, the fastest-growing segment of the US consumer base is multicultural consumers that come from different ethnic backgrounds.
Companies that would like to start utilizing multicultural PR or marketing campaigns to their advantage, as that’s the best way to target this growing consumer base should learn the best practices when creating those types of campaigns.
Multicultural promotional campaigns are the future of brand awareness and recognition, which means companies have to figure out the best way they can tap into various cultural markets at the same time.
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All-Inclusive strategies
Today’s consumers demand to see diversity from the brands they do business with, especially in the way that those brands represent their services and products.
That means companies should be developing a multicultural and all-inclusive marketing or PR strategy to be able to authentically connect with those consumers.
To strike a more emotional note with the target audience, companies should create campaigns that are going to appeal to these diverse consumers and identify with their core values.
Buyer persona
The best way for companies to determine what their target audiences want or need is by creating buyer personas.
With the help of social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or Twitter, companies can analyze the performance of every one of their campaigns and learn more about the behavior of their consumers in real-time.
In fact, companies can even align their multicultural campaigns to focus on specific details about the consumers’ demographics, such as their gender, age, race, habits, cultural background, and more.
Social platforms
The best way for companies to find multicultural members of their target audiences is through social media platforms. If a business hasn’t explored those channels yet, it’s time to develop a social media presence to begin creating foundational relationships with those consumers.
However, the key to using social channels is to determine which platform is going to work best for a business. The choice of a social channel tends to vary according to the demographics of the target audience of a business. For instance, if a company provides apparel to younger generations of consumers, then the best social media options for them would be TikTok or Instagram.
On the other hand, if a company is in the business of providing its consumers with retirement plans and options, the best social media platform options would be Facebook, or even LinkedIn since those are the two platforms where companies can find working professionals across many age groups.
Top Multicultural Promotional Examples
The world is becoming more multicultural, and companies have to keep up with that change. If a business doesn’t include the various and unique cultures, communications styles, languages, media consumption habits, and values of its consumers, then it won’t be as successful as intended.
However, just because a company understands the importance of a multicultural promotional strategy, it doesn’t mean that it’s incredibly easy to create such a campaign and have that campaign be successful at the end of the day.
Fortunately, there are several companies that have created their own multicultural campaigns that have resonated with consumers, that many businesses can learn from.
Diversity promotion
Any promotional strategy that recognizes the difference within the segments of a target market, ranging from age, religion, gender, ethnicity, disability, to sexual identity, is referred to as a diversity promotional strategy.
More specifically, multicultural PR and marketing refer to strategies and campaigns that recognize the different ethnicities and cultures of a company’s target market.
The most successful and inclusive promotional campaigns are aimed at breaking down the norms and boundaries between the various audience segments by highlighting groups of people, or individuals that are misrepresented or underrepresented.
Through accurate representation, companies can have their consumers feel heard, seen, and understood, which helps in developing a more trusting relationship between a business and its consumers.
Coca Cola
Back in 2014, the popular carbonated beverage brand Coca Cola created a multicultural advertising campaign for the Superbowl, which is an excellent example of how companies can successfully utilize diversity in the promotion.
The Coca Cola campaign featured an ad with racially and culturally diverse cast members, singing “America the Beautiful” in different languages, in an effort to represent the changing face of the US.
The ad opened with scenes that depicted various locations around the country which created a nostalgic tone as the company highlighted numerous diverse communities that reside in those locations.
After the launch of the ad, it became a trending topic on Facebook and turned into a great example of a successful multicultural campaign.
Fenty Beauty
In 2017, Rihanna’s cosmetics brand Fenty Beauty launched 40 different shades of foundation, and the number has since expanded even more. The core idea behind the brand is inclusivity, and the company is constantly trying to highlight the idea that everyone is beautiful and deserves to feel included.
Even Rihanna herself has stated how important it is for her that every woman starts feeling included in her brand, and constantly works to that effect.
That’s why Rihanna, and her brand, are always striving to create multicultural campaigns and products that cater to many different people and communities. In fact, the sheer number of colors for the foundation was a great way to show the company standing behind its values.
Once the company launched the promotional campaign for the foundation, it snowballed into a movement called “The Fenty Effect”, where consumers all over the world started calling out brands to change the advertising status quo and begin creating more inclusive and diverse advertising campaigns.
Examples of Multicultural Campaigns
With the youngest generation of consumers, Gen Z, being so diverse, companies have to start utilizing multicultural marketing and PR campaigns.
Today’s consumers belong to a wide array of values, cultures, languages, and communications styles and companies have to adapt to that to be able to target all those diverse consumers.
Bumble
There’s no need for a company to develop a very specific story or narrative to be able to create a multicultural marketing or PR campaign. There are certain times when all that a company needs to do is show off its real-life consumers, who already represent different ages, demographics, genders, nationalities, ethnicities, and more.
This is precisely what the online dating app Bumble decided to do for its “Find Me on Bumble” promotional campaign. Instead of creating a promotional narrative, the company decided to highlight and celebrate its diverse users located in the New York City area.
The advertising campaign started with a video ad which opened with statements on how anyone can meet a person that’s different than them, that can impact their lives, and how those people should be celebrated.
The statement is followed by various clips of users that are talking about their stories, and those users include an opera singer, an entrepreneur, a political operative, as well as a model. This campaign is a great example of how a company can promote its existing diversity as a great asset, instead of creating potentially inventive narratives with models or stock images.
Adobe
The computer software company Adobe has always prided itself on being one of the most popular tools for creators all over the world, which is why it created an advertising campaign that centered on the next generation of Black creators, and the way that those creators see themselves.
The company highlighted twelve different Black creators, and Adobe had everyone respond or elaborate on the title of the campaign – “When I see Black…?” while featuring works done by those creators. The entire video ends with a very powerful conclusion for the viewers, which is that Black creativity is complex and beautiful.
The company successfully managed to celebrate the wide spectrum of creativity that’s all over the world by highlighting the work of those creators.
Adidas
One of the largest sports apparel companies in the world, Adidas, created a social media campaign a few years ago, titled “Here to Create” with the goal of encouraging different forms of creativity in its consumers. The campaign encouraged every type of creator to join the brand in changing the world into a better one, by making something new.
When the brand first started its campaign, the ad showcased several female athletes that showed how they were able to add their own take on creativity to their sports.
The next iterations of the same campaign in the following years also featured well-known diverse celebrities and sports figures who talked about the ways in which diversity, sports, and creativity intersect together.
By continuing the same promotional campaign over a number of years, Adidas was able to expand its multicultural promotional efforts, reach more consumers, and produce a multicultural promotional success with its campaign.
Matthew Caiola serves as Co-CEO at 5W Public Relations, managing the overall growth, direction and day-to-day business of the Corporate & Technology Communications Divisions and Digital Marketing.
With more than 17 years of PR experience, Matthew leads teams in launching and building high-growth tech companies, disrupting industries, building global brand resonance through thought leadership, C-Suite profiling, and speakers’ programs, as well as crisis communications across a variety of industries.
