By Stephanie Lodie
When you want to reach wider, racially and ethnically diverse audiences it makes sense to have someone on your marketing decision tree that is racially and ethnically diverse.
Remember H&M’s ‘Coolest Money’ sweat shirt? Any culturally sensitive person should have been able to point out that the shirt was clearly not the best idea.
But that shirt went through ideation, production and advertising because they didn’t empower anyone to tell them it was insensitive. When it went to the public and wasn’t well-received a Black woman social media manager could have helped to manage the damage. It would have shown the public that maybe this was a forgivable accident and not an ongoing pattern of exclusion.
She could have quickly issued a statement that was sensitive to what happened and then help develop a social media plan to repair the business’ reputation.
The time to hire Black people for your business is not when you have a public relations fiasco or when the world suddenly starts to see inequality. Your commitment to diversity has to be ingrained into your business from the start for it to be seen as authentic. Otherwise, a sudden commitment to be inclusive comes off as fake and in-the-moment.
Hiring and maintaining a diverse pool of employees is essential to the health of your business. When people from different backgrounds work together it challenges the status quo and produces real innovation that has positive results for your business.
In fact, companies that are more diverse outperform other companies in their same field. While purposefully challenging our social and cultural norms make us uncomfortable it creates better teams, better products for your consumers and better bottom lines for your business.
What you’ll get are premium clients that are loyal and love to work with you instead of clients that see you as a replaceable service provider.
All this being said, diversity is not a marketing ploy, it’s a business value. It’s a series of intentional events that creates inclusive businesses that everyone can love. If you treat diversity like a trending hashtag your target audience will know and reject you for it.
If you’ve shared posts about standing in solidarity with the Black community it’s time to put action behind those posts. There’s no better way to show ‘we stand with you’ then having a diverse leadership team and putting Black people in positions of influence within your organization.
It’s not just putting them there for visibility. It means that you put Black people in leadership roles in your company that not only have that role but are also empowered to speak without fear of losing that role.
If you want to reach a diverse audience, it’s time to hire a Black social media manager to craft your social media marketing strategy.
If you’re having trouble finding qualified Black social media managers or digital marketers, we’ve curated a hand-picked list of women that are leaders in their industry:
Makeda Smith
Makeda helps clients with social media strategy, organic content marketing, branding and positioning. Her agency also helps course creators, authors and coaches launch digital products like courses, memberships and coaching.
Website: Savvychicksinrealestate.com
Regis Butler
Regis Butler is the Content Marketing Strategist of Digital Brand Culture, where she helps entrepreneurs package their expertise, and leverage social media to convert their following into paid customers. Throughout the years, Regis has helped many business owners get clarity about how they will help others, design their brands, and develop content that promotes brand awareness, social media follower growth, and increased revenue. You can reach Regis Butler at: www.digitalbrandculture.com
Krista Saloman
Empowering purpose-driven small biz & local orgs to THRIVE on digital!
Led by Krista Salomon, KS&Co. is a co-creative cohort of graphic designers, web developers, social media managers, copywriters, photographers, videographers.
Digital Marketing Management & Consulting services include social media marketing, branding and website design. Learn more here: www.kristasalomon.com
Sierra Mechelle
Sierra is the CEO of a branding and digital marketing agency called the Elevation Studio. She helps female lead companies with brand positioning and social media marketing.
Coin and Copy is a creative digital marketing agency ran by Stephanie Lodie. She helps small business owners with copywriting and content strategy as well.
