6 Mistakes to Avoid when doing Diversity Marketing

How to assure your company is on the right path to not commit mistakes when planning a Diversity Marketing strategy?

6 Avoidable Mistakes when doing Multicultural Marketing

While not many years ago the Multicultural Marketing was an option for many companies. Today Diversity Marketing is a reality, and mistakes do occur. 

However, many organizations are still navigating the transition from the Total Marketing approach to the Diversity Marketing approach, where you address the needs and wants of a specific ethnicity.

In times, when “more than half of the nation’s children are expected to be part of a minority race or ethnic group”. Your company needs to make sure it is making the right decisions that will lead your business to success when planning your diversity marketing strategy, and the mistakes to avoid.

Check out "4 Great Multicultural Campaigns" here.

1. Only do diversity marketing on occasional dates is one of the mistakes

It is pretty common for companies to look at the next calendar year to insert some data-appropriate marketing campaigns to reach multicultural and minority audiences. 

Besides the fact that this strategy brings some opportunities for your brand, it also may hurt your company if it is an isolated event and not an ongoing effort to reach that specific diverse target audience. 

The Hispanic Heritage Month, for example, happens every year between September, 15th and October, 15th. During these weeks it is possible to notice so many companies who haven’t engaged before with their Hispanic audience trying to reach them. 

We are not saying that is wrong to engage and take advantage of community-specific events and dates. What we mean is that your marketing efforts should be built throughout your calendar year, not only when is convenient.  

2. Just because everyone else is doing Diversity Marketing is another mistake

2020 was the year where the Black Lives Matter movement took place. Many marketing teams focused on delivering appropriate responses to this event to show their consumers their commitment to guarantee equal opportunity to everyone. 

While some companies had a change of heart, looking into their culture and corporations to see how they could do better and embrace the movement. Some companies took advantage of the BLM buzz to get visibility and customers.

A more DIVERSE MARKETING STRATEGY should be a reflection of your company’s values and beliefs and not a trendy topic. 

3. Not Knowing your Multicultural Audience

Does your company know your target audience or just believe to know them? 

Never assume you know without proper research and a team to support you. 

Knowing who is your diverse audience is key. Having data and researches on hand are an essential part of every good marketing strategy.

Without having clear who is your audience and their cultural specificities is the same as just taking shots in the dark. 

Also, avoid stereotyping. Take time and effort to conduct proper market research. Do your research, speak to people, and avoid making sweeping statements that could alienate segments of the market.

It is not just about to include a diverse picture or actor cast in your campaign is about definitely understanding and connecting with your diverse audience.

4. Not using the appropriate language and messages

Do not rely on a single language. The majority of multicultural audiences are bilingual. Data shows that 21.9 percent of U.S. residents speak a foreign language at home.

Most brands fail to realize this fact and only rely on a single language, which can significantly limit their reach.  

Marketing professionals either don’t use the right language or fail by using an automatic translation message when trying to communicate with non-English speakers. 

While translation tools like Google Translator might be really useful when travelling abroad, they may not be appropriate when crafting the right message for your audience. 

The level of language provided by automatic machines are not customized to your specific business needs. Free softwares will translate word for word, which, in most cases, will lead to inaccurate and often ridiculous output. 

Misunderstandings due to errors in translation could compromise your brand.

5. Not having a competent multicultural team

Different from what you might believe, Diversity Marketing may not be for your brand. A successful multicultural strategy requires a cautious approach and greater consideration than conventional marketing plans.

If your company hasn’t done the homework to understand the current diverse marketing, you shouldn’t implement this strategy. 

Sometimes, in order to save money, organizations bypass the review process of their multicultural marketing campaign, which can often lead to cultural catastrophe. 

Ideally, every single marketing campaign plan should go through multiple evaluations by your internal team and also external sources.

If your company doesn’t have the tools, professionals, or know-how to do so, do not hesitate to hire a third party when designing marketing campaigns targeting minority and multicultural audiences.

6. Losing sight of your brand’s voice, tone, and message

Knowing your target audience is key. However, is also important to make sure your message is in alignment with your company values.

Marketers often focus too much on the audience and lose sight of their brand’s tone, voice, and—most importantly—the meaning of the message it wants to deliver.

It is extremely critical to maintain your tone, voice, and messaging, so the target audience can recognize your brand despite their cultural background.

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