On D&I, brands are pushing at an open door

Most UK consumers are on board with brands’ efforts to recognise the importance of diversity and inclusion (D&I), according to research from Integral Ad Science. 

Why it matters

Some parts of the media and political establishment accuse businesses of attempting to force their viewpoint on customers and employees and of indulging in “corporate culture wars”. The Policy Exchange think tank, for example, recently suggested that a growing number of companies are “adrift” from the wider public. 

But a study about why the future of marketing must be inclusive (based on a survey of 618 UK online consumers) suggests that’s far from the case when it comes to diversity and inclusion: almost three-quarters of consumers believe that diversity is the future of the country and two-thirds think their own actions have a significant impact on supporting D&I efforts. 

Takeaways 

• Consumers care about D&I: 88% consider D&I to be important; 34% say they have changed their shopping or purchase habits to help support D&I efforts.
• Brands and advertisers should actively advocate for D&I: 78% of consumers believe that it’s important for brands to promote D&I; 46% would be likely to boycott a brand that doesn’t take D&I seriously. 
• Brands need to promote D&I in their advertising and in media placements online: 88% think brands should make an effort to place ads around content that promotes diversity; 63% hold advertisers most responsible for the type of content that appears near ads.
• Consumers link the advertised brand with the surrounding content, impacting ad performance and brand perception: 54% would be likely to purchase a product/service from an ad that appears alongside content that promotes D&I efforts; 45% would be unlikely to purchase products from ads placed alongside content that opposes D&I.

Sourced from Integral Ad Science, Telegraph