When and Why is Cultural Relevancy Important in Marketing?
In recent years, much talk has been about how important it is for companies to be culturally relevant. Some people believe that companies must be culturally appropriate to be successful. However, others believe cultural relevance is less important than other aspects of marketing. It is because being culturally relevant is challenging to define and subjective based on the person and the culture. Nevertheless, being culturally relevant is still essential because it attracts customers, improves customer relationships, and improves workplace diversity.
Being culturally relevant is crucial because it allows a company to connect with a more diverse group of customers. For example, a Mexican restaurant would appeal more to customers who like Mexican food. It is essential because it allows companies to penetrate markets they wouldn't have been able to before. Culturally relevant companies are more likely to attract customers from various backgrounds. This leads to increased sales and a higher profile in the public eye.
Being culturally relevant is also important because it allows companies to better connect with their customers. For example, if a company is targeting customers who are Asian, it should use Asian actors in its commercials. This makes the commercials relatable to the customers and increases sales. In addition, it also makes the customers feel like they are being listened to and respected. This leads to positive relationships with the customers and higher sales.
Being culturally relevant is also important because it allows companies to correct misalignments with their customers. For example, if a company has a diverse staff but uses only white actors in its commercials, it is misaligned with its customers. Correcting this misalignment can boost sales and improve the company's image. In addition, it also shows the customers that the company cares about them and wants to align itself with their values.
Being culturally relevant is crucial because it increases workplace diversity. For example, if a company focuses on only one type of culture in its products or marketing, it will attract only people from that culture. This means there will be little diversity in the workplace and limited perspectives on improving the outcomes. Increasing cultural relevance within a company increases workplace diversity and improves products.
On the other hand, being culturally relevant is only sometimes necessary because some companies have been successful without being culturally relevant. For example, many companies already have diverse and culturally relevant employees but have yet to be successful. This shows that being culturally relevant is one of many factors in success. Instead, other factors such as quality of product or service, pricing, and marketing are also important.
Being culturally relevant is only sometimes necessary because it is difficult and expensive to connect with every single customer. For example, no matter how culturally relevant a company is, it can only connect with some customers. Instead, it must focus on the more likely groups to buy its product. This narrows the company's focus and prevents it from connecting with every customer.
Far from making companies more successful, attempting to be culturally relevant can backfire and hurt sales instead. This can occur if the company is misaligned with its customers or has an offensive approach to cultural relevance. For example, changing a company's culture can be seen as abusive and may even cause sales to drop further instead of increasing them.
Introducing cultural relevance into a company can also backfire by decreasing workplace diversity instead of increasing it. This can occur if hiring new employees reduces the number of qualified applicants instead of improving them. In addition, it can also happen if new employees are less skilled than current employees. Instead of increasing workplace diversity, this approach decreases it and makes it worse than before.
Introducing cultural relevance into a company can also backfire by decreasing workplace diversity instead of increasing it. This can occur if hiring new employees reduces the number of qualified applicants instead of improving them. In addition, it can also happen if new employees are less skilled than current employees. Instead of increasing workplace diversity, this approach decreases it and makes it worse than before.
Overall, companies need to be culturally relevant because it attracts customers, improves customer relationships, and increases workplace diversity. However, it's important to remember that being culturally relevant is only sometimes necessary and could even hurt sales instead. Companies should focus on other areas before attempting to be culturally relevant to be more successful overall.