Multicultural marketing is more than a buzzword — it’s an increasingly important space that big-name brands including Coca Cola, Unilever, General Mills and more began exploring at the end of the 20th century. To remain relevant in 2020 and beyond, businesses need to start rethinking how their brand strategy appeals to hard-to-reach demographics that they haven’t been able to engage consistently. Hiring a multicultural agency is a great first step to making that happen. But what does that mean for your team and your goals?
Traditional Agencies vs. Multicultural Agencies
Think of the differences between a saw and a scalpel. A saw will make progress fast, however, it can’t make the precise cuts that a scalpel can.
Full-service marketing agencies are like a saw for your marketing needs. They serve as one-stop shops — from research to execution — to reach a wide audience. If you want to get your brand out to as many eyeballs as possible, a traditional agency will likely be the route for you.
A multicultural agency, meanwhile, is more like a scalpel. They specialize in tapping into one or more specific demographics. Hiring a multicultural agency means having highly focused research, individualized campaigns, and thoughtful strategies. These agencies have a tight-knit relationship with and comprehension of the multicultural target audience. This allows the agency to provide deeper knowledge and more nuanced strategies to their clients.
In summary, businesses can use traditional marketing agencies for far-reach and more generalized campaigns. Multicultural agencies such as Nativa, however, will dive deeper into a target audience and create much greater engagement, in comparison to a one-size-fits-all approach.
Why Can’t We Have Both?
As a wise young girl once said, why can’t we have both? Traditional marketing agencies and multicultural agencies, that is.
We don’t see why not. Even a traditional agency can benefit from a multicultural firm’s insights depending on the campaign and the target audience. After all, a broad approach should still account for 38% of the US population (or about 120 million people) that comes from a multicultural background.
Hiring a multicultural agency with expertise can also save you and your go-to marketing partner from public embarrassments that will cost you more money and goodwill in the long run.
Today’s Key Multicultural Tactics
Tailored Market Research
Did you know that Latinos outpace the non-Hispanic population in using social media, including on apps targeting Gen Z such as Tik Tok and Snap? Insights like these are where multicultural agencies step in. They know how to conduct user interviews and gather data-driven research with audiences that may not share your business’s native language or cultural values.
Multicultural Influencers
Celebrity endorsements are still a strong tactic for winning new customers. In the age of the influencer, celebrity is more widespread than ever, and that’s where the influencer steps in.
We, at Nativa, have worked with over 10,000 multicultural micro- and macro-influencers. These collaborations have given us experience in this area. As a result, we are skilled in knowing how best to tailor a brand’s product to an influencer’s style and audience. We’ve learned to not assume what content works best for any influencer, and we’ve discovered many optimizations such as the power of an eye-contact photo for connecting with viewers.
Professional Translation
Assigning your Hispanic marketing efforts to internal employees who happen to speak Spanish frequently ends in disaster, or at the very least, public embarrassment. While professional translation may sound costly, different tiers of translation exist at varying prices, depending on the services offered. If you want to bring your content to a non-English speaking market as fluently and seamless as possible, machine translation is not going to get the same results as a professional translation company.
Understand Multicultural Marketing Value
Multicultural marketing is only becoming more and more important as our society becomes ever more diverse. Having a mindful strategy will ensure your business’s future. It helps create brand loyalty– saving you time and money in the long run. At the very least, you don’t want to miss out on a fast-growing population with significant spending power.
At Nativa, an 8a certified Minority Business Enterprise, we have real, grounded experience in providing expert insights into our clients’ audiences. We’ve turned those into top-notch solutions for government agencies, multinational conglomerates, and nonprofit campaigns.
We’re proud to be recognized as a top PPC management company according to B2B research firm Clutch’s unique algorithm that measures our service offerings and client satisfaction. You can also find us among the leading direct marketing agencies on The Manifest, a company blog resource, and Visual Objects, a portfolio-sharing platform. Visual Objects offers an in-depth user experience for buyers looking for B2B services from top firms.
If you’re ready to learn more about your growing multicultural audience, reach out to our team today.
