Running a business is a challenge. However, doing it in a country with a diverse population is an even bigger challenge.
It took me three years to understand this. Just three years ago, I started my small business in the USA, but unlike most business owners, I was ready to deal with such a diverse population.
America’s population is truly the melting pot of cultures and ethnicities. While diversity makes living in a country more fun, it can truly challenge businesses trying to market their products.
For most marketers, the main issue is to choose the right audience. Within the US, the majority of the brands target the white middle-class population. However, the issue is that when everyone is making a product for the same audience, the rest feel left out.
On the contrary, when these brands try to appeal to every kind of audience, their marketing campaign falls short.
So, what is the magic technique?
Keep reading as we discuss some of the best marketing strategies that can help a business to diversify for bilingual audiences from different ethnicities.
Provide Bilingual Customer Service
While most brands focus on direct marketing for bilinguals, the majority fail to realize that customer service is a great tool for marketing as well. Creating good customer service helps the clients feel loved and heard, which creates a better consumer experience, and helps with marketing.
For instance, Xfinity is an internet service provider in the USA. The brand offers reliable yet affordable packages and has a great reputation nationwide.
Since Hispanics are the biggest minority in the US, the brand has a dedicated número de Xfinity for their Latino customers. This strategy has helped them earn a solid reputation among the Latino population and has boosted their sales as well.
Create Dedicated Language Channels
Communication sits at the core of any business, be it within the team or with clients. In this digital world, it is mostly carried out via social media.
Networking platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), and YouTube are commonly used by companies to market their products, and guide their audience. While catering to a wider bilingual audience, brands should create dedicated channels for different languages.
For instance, Lexus is a global car brand. While the origin of this car brand can be traced back to Japan, the brand has a wider international audience.
To communicate with their customers, Lexus has created multiple pages, accounts, and channels on each social media platform. The goal of these channels and pages is to help market the product in different languages.
Where other brands use the same page and post in different languages, Lexus has multiple pages i.e. Lexus Arabia, Lexus Italy, Lexus English, etc.
Focus on Cultural References
While designing marketing campaigns, cultural references play a very important role. This is especially important in the digital world where cultural sensitivity and political correctness are more important for branding.
Most of the stable, international brands are already using cultural references for marketing their products as it helps them relate to the customers.
For example, Coca-Cola has mastered this strategy as they have event-based marketing for each ethnicity and country. They aim to celebrate events based on ethnicity, religion, social values, culture, and festivals. Celebrating these events with their audience helps them place their product at the center of each celebration, which eventually helps create an association with happiness, and helps boost sales.
Use Trending Topics and Tunes
Trending topics and events are a great way to reach a much wider audience. While most of the companies stick to their company themes, smaller brands that are now aggressively working on awareness campaigns are trying to use trending topics and music to get the attention of their audience.
An excellent example of this strategy is Ryan Air. As an airline company, the brand has established itself as a Gen Z company that focuses on fun travel experiences. The company maintains a very colorful, fun, and humorous approach to marketing. They post reels, music videos, and memes on their social media that help them stand out from the other airlines.
Collaborate With Others
In the digital marketing world, one who holds attention, holds the power. This is the reason famous brands seek influencers with a good number of viewers and followers. By collaborating with these influencers, the brand gets to market its product to the audience, whereas the celebrity gets the money.
Apart from collaborating with celebrities, brands can also get together and collaborate through their marketing efforts.
For instance, Kylie Cosmetics is a brand owned by Kylie Jenner. While she has a significant reach and a large following, her brand openly collaborates with other celebrities as well. This helps the brand stay relevant with the younger population, helping them boost sales and raise awareness.
While the above-mentioned strategies are ideal for diverse and bilingual audiences, it’s important to keep in mind that niche plays a very important role. If you have a brand that offers B2B services or have a product that does not sell commercially, it is better to customize your strategy accordingly.
