Inclusion and Marketing
Sonia Thompson
Attract, convert, and retain a bigger, more diverse, and fiercely loyal customer base with inclusive marketing strategies that fuel business growth. Inclusion & Marketing is hosted by Sonia Thompson — inclusive marketing strategist, consultant, and columnist for Forbes, Inc., and HubSpot — and gives you practical strategies to infuse inclusion into every stage of your customer journey, from customer acquisition and conversion to customer loyalty and customer success. Through solo deep dives, expert interviews, and behind-the-scenes case studies with top brands, you’ll learn how to create customer experiences that resonate with underrepresented and underserved communities — and drive business growth. Part of the HubSpot Podcast Network.What you’ll hear:
How to build internal systems that support inclusive marketing — so your campaigns are authentic from the inside out.
How to deliver marketing campaigns, communications, and customer experiences that win more customers — including people from underrepresented and underserved communities.
What’s working (and what isn’t) for brands today as they try to effectively engage today’s consumer.
If you’re asking these questions, you’re in the right place:
How do I deliver authentic marketing that actually converts more customers?
How can I grow my customer base in today’s diverse marketplace?
How do I effectively engage underrepresented and underserved customer groups?
How do I connect inclusive marketing directly to business growth and results?
How to build internal systems that support inclusive marketing — so your campaigns are authentic from the inside out.
How to deliver marketing campaigns, communications, and customer experiences that win more customers — including people from underrepresented and underserved communities.
What’s working (and what isn’t) for brands today as they try to effectively engage today’s consumer.
If you’re asking these questions, you’re in the right place:
How do I deliver authentic marketing that actually converts more customers?
How can I grow my customer base in today’s diverse marketplace?
How do I effectively engage underrepresented and underserved customer groups?
How do I connect inclusive marketing directly to business growth and results?
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jun 27, 2024 • 14min
117. Power dynamics in brand imagery
Brands hold a lot of power. The imagery brands choose to use communicates in ways that influence consumers more than they realize. Brand imagery not only plays a role in how people view others but also in how they view themselves. Multiple factors play into the subconscious messages brand imagery communicates to consumers, including power dynamics.This episode highlights for marketers the vital role they have in choosing visual imagery for their brand, and gives critical guidelines for how to represent people in a manner that produces positive outcomes.Get the Inclusion & Marketing Newsletter: www.inclusionandmarketing.com/newsletterVisuals mentioned in the episodeUnderstanding PhotojournalismWork With Me:Inclusive Marketing Brand Audits: https://inclusionandmarketing.com/assessments/ Consulting & Custom Training: https://inclusionandmarketing.com/consulting/
Jun 20, 2024 • 40min
116. How to authentically engage Hispanic consumers with Federico Gagliardone
When you look at the ethnic group that is the largest in the U.S., by far, it is the Hispanic population. As of the 2020 Census, 18% of the population was of Hispanic/Latino descent. And this number is growing.Another analysis from the U.S. Census showed that 1 in 4 children in the U.S. are Latino.As a brand, particularly if you are marketing to consumers in the U.S., know that having a sound understanding of how to market to the Latino population is increasingly becoming more important.To help you navigate how to market to this growing customer base, I sat down with Federico Gagliardone, COO at MECENAS, a minority-owned publishing and full-stack media company that connects brands with U.S. Hispanic and multicultural communities. And if you’re not in the U.S. or not marketing to consumers in the U.S., this episode is still totally worth the listen, because many of the principles are applicable to underrepresented and underserved communities.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterMECENASWeAreCocina.comStarPicks
Jun 13, 2024 • 28min
115. How to create a brand customers love with Lydia Michael
I spend a lot of time talking about belonging and how important it is for you as a brand to ensure you’re making the people you serve feel like they belong with you.But how do you go about doing that exactly?My guest today, Lydia Michael, author of Brand Love, has ideas for you. Lydia has created a framework for you that will not only help more people love your brand, but feel like they belong with you in the process.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterLydia's book - Brand LoveLydia's consulting agency - Blended Collective
Jun 6, 2024 • 22min
114. What is "normal" anyway?
People from underrepresented and underserved communities are often viewed as not being "normal" or very different from everyone else -- which is why the don't get the attention and support they should.But what does it mean to be "normal"? Who gets to decide what "normal" is? And is "normal" even a real thing, or is it a construct we should all reject?I cover all these important questions, and ways to think about it for your brand in today's episode.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterThe Canary Code bookUnilever ditches the world "normal"Inclusive marketing ethicsInclusive marketing spectrum
May 30, 2024 • 23min
113. How Lysol drives brand growth with inclusive marketing with CMO Gary Osifchin
Recently, rankings for the Most Culturally Inclusive Brands were announced. The rankings come from the Association for National Advertisers’ (ANA) Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM), in partnership with the Cultural Inclusion Accelerator (CIA). For the second year in a row, the Lysol brand has been awarded “Best in Ad Effectiveness” by more than 80,000 consumers with a broad diversity of identities. I wanted to find more about Lysol's approach to inclusive marketing, and how they've gone about becoming so effective in their efforts. So I sat down with Gary Osifchin, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and General Manager at Reckitt U.S. Hygiene, the makers of Lysol. Gary had a TON to share, and there's a lot to learn from he and the team's approach. Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterLysol
May 23, 2024 • 36min
112. How to make your email marketing inclusive with Samar Owais
Most business engage in email marketing to some degree. And because email marketing is such a commonly used tool that reaches a broad diversity of consumers, it is important to understand how to ensure the emails you send are inclusive, and make the people you serve feel like they belong with you, rather than pushing them away from you.So in this episode, I sat down with email conversion strategist Samar Owais, founder of Emails Done Right, to chat through the ins and outs of inclusive email marketing.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterSamar Owais
May 16, 2024 • 33min
111. How to deliver inclusive brand messaging with Diane Wiredu
Brand messaging is a critical component of the marketing strategy for any brand. And when it comes to ensuring that your brand messaging speaks to all the people you want to serve, including those from underrepresented and underserved communities, it takes intentional effort to ensure your brand messaging will resonate. In today's episode, I sat down with Diane Wiredu, a brand messaging strategist and founder of Lion Words, to talk about how you can ensure you're delivering brand messaging that will clearly show the people you serve that you see them, get them, and that they belong with you.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterLion Words Diane Wiredu on LinkedIn
May 9, 2024 • 25min
110. Essential Lessons from Nike's WNBA Signature Shoe Controversy
It's reported that Nike will be signing a signature shoe deal with Caitlin Clark. While excitement for, viewership, and support of women's sports, including the WNBA are on the rise, there are some major disparities happening from a representation standpoint.Nike's shoe deal with Caitlin Clark amplifies the problem. In this episode, I walk you through what's happening, dive deeper into the root cause of the issue, and cover how all of this impacts your brand.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterLinkedIn post that inspired this episode Episode 45: Factors that influence your customers's success that you should be aware of
May 2, 2024 • 36min
109. Cultural intelligence for marketers with Dr. Anastasia Kārkliņa Gabriel
Cultural intelligence is essential for any brand that wants to be effective with their inclusive marketing efforts. It is the foundation for helping you engage in an authentic way to make people from underrepresented and underserved communities feel seen and like they belong with you.In this episode, I sat down with an expert who actually wrote a book on cultural intelligence for marketers -- to talk about that very topic.Dr. Anastasia Kārkliņa Gabriel is a cultural theorist, writer, social critic, and strategist specializing in inclusivity within marketing, media, and tech. She's currently a senior insights lead at Reddit, and has consulted for brands inclusing Nike, Samsung, Disney, Ulta Beauty, and Amex.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterDr. Anastasia Gabriel on LinkedInCultural Intelligence for Marketers book
Apr 25, 2024 • 36min
108. A framework for inclusive communications with Dr. Suzanne Wertheim
Communication is a core part of marketing. And yet it feels like so many brands struggle with communicating in a manner that is both inclusive and authentic. As a result, a lot of times brands struggle with communicating in a manner that doesn't turn people off or push people away that they would prefer to draw closer.In today's episode, I sat down with Dr. Suzanne Wertheim, a linguist, inclusive language expert, and author of The Inclusive Language Field Guide. During our chat, we cover a framework for using inclusive language that gives you the confidence you need to design your communications in a way that makes more people feel like they belong with you.Get the Inclusion & Marketing NewsletterThe Inclusive Language Field GuideDr. Suzanne WertheimEpisode 15: Getting started with inclusive language with Nailah King
