Hispanic Americans, African Americans, and Asian Americans make up 18.1%, 13.4%, and 5.8%, respectively, of consumers in the United States, according to PQ Media and ANA AIMM’s U.S. Multicultural Media Forecast 2019. And yet, last year, advertisers only spent 3.59% of their budgets targeting Hispanic Americans, 1.44% for African Americans and 0.14% for Asian Americans. This means that these Americans aren’t getting adequate representation in advertising.

The Future

Although 63% of the U.S. population is non-​multicultural now, PQ points out that the non-​multicultural consumer base is already in decline. Multicultural consumers will likely make up more than half of the U.S. population before long, according to an AC&M study. If advertisers neglect inclusive advertising, they’ll be turning away more potential customers than they realize. Who wants to buy from a brand that overlooks them?

Media

Last year, advertisers spent the most ($7.67 billion) on multicultural TV advertisements. This was followed by relationship marketing ($4.62 billion), promotional marketing ($3.08 billion) and experiential marketing ($2.67 billion).

Even though data has shown that digital is among the most popular forms of advertising, it only generated $2.59 billion in multicultural media company revenue last year. This is a detrimental move for advertisers since multicultural consumers use digital media more than the average U.S. population. This is likely because multicultural Americans tend to be younger and more digitally-​centered, as well as showing higher levels of engagement. 

Advertisers should focus on making the representation in their ads more diverse, especially when digital is concerned. AudienceSCAN on AdMall by SalesFuel has audience reports on dozens of digital-​based audiences, from Digital Magazine Readers to Email Offers Lovers to Online Video Watchers. On these profiles, you’ll be able to find demographic and purchase intent information on each audience. With this information, you can help your clients create ads that are both inclusive of multicultural consumers and appeal to their interests and lifestyles.