Multicultural marketing strategies will become increasingly important to brands looking to engage in a more culturally relevant and personalized manner. A recent study by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council, “Activating the New American Mainstream,” found that half of the 150 North America-based senior marketing executives it surveyed feel there is some level of support for multicultural engagement strategies from senior levels of the organizations they represent.
The survey, conducted in conjunction with multicultural business intelligence provider Geoscape, also found that CEO and board support for multicultural marketing actually falls short. While 67 percent of those polled say that the CMO has a high level of buy-in and support for multicultural efforts, 55 percent admit that the CEO does not share that opinion, failing to fully support initiatives.
“Multicultural marketing strategies must move away from the niche campaign mindset and become an engrained part of any personalized customer experience strategy,” says Liz Miller, senior vice president of marketing with the CMO Council. “This is no longer a scenario of replacing images or localizing content into a different language. This is about truly understanding the nuances of the customer, including any culturally distinct behaviors and buying patterns that can and must alter the way our brands reach and engage.”
César M. Melgoza, founder and CEO of Geoscape, says, “By understanding cultural nuances and marketing in a proactive and data-driven manner, marketers are positioned to grow ROI … however, none of this happens overnight. Targeting consumers without understanding their unique cultural behaviors and preferences risks growth optimization among the consumer groups that quarterly and annual budgets and success can hinge upon.”
Click here to download the CMO Council’s full white paper.
