How to be Inclusive in your Marketing While Staying True to your Values

As business owners, navigating the stark partisan divide while staying aligned with our values and prioritizing inclusivity throughout our brand can feel overwhelming, confusing, and like we have to ‘get on board’ with every ideology currently trending.

Today, brands are being held accountable for not only the quality of their products and services but also for their stance on the political and social issues surfacing that embrace a diverse and inclusive marketing strategy.

But what if you, as a founder or a marketer, don’t agree with the ideology or trend being promoted? Should you feel obligated to support it even if it goes against your values?

Absolutely not.

Then how can you be inclusive and diverse in your marketing without compromising your core values? Navigating multicultural or inclusive marketing can be confusing and sort of feel like the wild, wild West.

I’ll break down the essentials here, but it basically involves doing your research, being firm on what your values are (don’t be shy, even publicly stating them is better than not), engaging with diverse customer segments, and leading with love.

You won’t be for everyone, but at least you’ll know who you are for.

And if you don’t know what multicultural marketing is, read this first!

Define your Values

Before trying to carry out any marketing strategy, your number one priority should be to define your core values. Clearly articulate what your business stands for and the principles it upholds as well as where your brand draws the line.

This helps with clarity, takes the guesswork out for consumers, and serves as a guiding compass throughout your marketing efforts.

Once you’ve found your values, lead with them everywhere.

And I mean everywhere- in every action, word, thought, with every PR opportunity and marketing collateral, with your employees, your customers, and suppliers.

Let your values be your north star and when you don’t know if what you’re supporting goes against your conscience, always go back to your values and use them as your litmus test.

Rylee + Cru Collective is an example of a clothing brand that not only does a great job of aesthetically showing what they stand for - true femininity, traditional family principles, and pro-life values, but they ALSO do an incredible job at embracing the beauty of a rich multicultural community in their marketing by showcasing various ethnicities as their clothing models and supporting various multicultural charities.

All over their website and social media, you can clearly see who and what they support. They even go above and beyond by sharing their sustainability and ethical production standards as well as Giving Back transparency showing their customers exactly how much they’ve donated to their partner charities supporting women and children in need every year.

2. Target your Messaging

Craft your messaging in unique ways to resonate with diverse audiences while still staying true to your values.

If you’re trying to target US Hispanics as your customers, then use their language, translate your marketing materials, and HIRE a US Hispanic to help guide your brand in what that messaging looks like.

Embrace the heritage you’re targeting and make them feel at home when they experience your brand. Diversity and cultural backgrounds are not weaknesses but instead, strengths that set us all apart and make us who we are with our unique talents.

Qualfon is an example of a business we really admire that does an astounding job of practicing inclusivity in its messaging and branding with each one of its offices worldwide. As a global business process outsourcing company, they were first founded in Mexico and now have offices in the US, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guyana, and the Philippines. It’s clear throughout all of their marketing materials how they emphasize the rich diversity and talents of their workforce while staying committed to their Catholic-rooted values.

Not only are they lifting people out of poverty in Mexico through their mission work called Plan 2040, but they also create dedicated programs in each one of their offices around the world to transform and change the lives of their people and the countries where they serve.

In the Philippines, Qualfon will soon launch Qualfon Care Center for all Dumaguete employees to have access to a certified life coach, nurse, and tools to create their personal and family life plans. In Costa Rica, Qualfon offers volunteer days to plant trees in partnership with governmental and local organizations to improve their community and employee well-being. Qualfon is a prime example of a business leading the way in inclusive marketing while staying aligned with its values.

3. Lead with Love

You can respect and love those who disagree with you while still holding strong to your values. We’ve lost the ability to civilly and logically debate and communicate with others who hold opposing values and beliefs.

In our opinion, it’s much more attractive when a brand takes a solid stance on a certain topic leading with love, courage, and boldness. Have conviction behind what you believe. Don’t just be in business to offer a ‘good’ customer experience while riding the same wave that the culture tells you you need to be on.

Instead, use your authority and your voice as a business owner to stand up for what you believe. For those that will challenge you and try to silence or stereotype you, remember to lead with love and keep moving forward.

Here’s an example of a brand leading with BOLD love in their messaging and with a beautiful mission:

Seven Weeks Coffee is a coffee brand in business to protect every beating heart. Putting people way before profits, they donate 10% of every sale to pregnancy care centers across the US. Their coffee is organically and ethically farmed and sourced from Dara, Sidama in Ethiopia and while they could do a better job at promoting the rich diversity of where their coffee comes from and the cultural traditions of their Ethiopian farmers, they clearly keep their pro-life and pro-environment values front and center.

4. Collaborate with Like-Minded and Values-Oriented Partners

Partner with organizations and influencers that share your values. This helps amplify your message, grows your network, and guarantees both parties always, always, always win.

When you start consistently partnering with others that hold your same values, you’ll notice how quickly you’ll start to grow a rich ecosystem of creators, innovators, entrepreneurs, artists, and more that will be your community for LIFE.

Here’s an example of a brand doing an incredible job of partnering and building a values-centered international community:

Bridging Tables is a community-building platform that unlocks market access for coffee farmers by creating more efficient and transparent supply chain solutions for businesses. They’re boldly creating spaces for coffee roasters and growers across Latin America, Africa, and the US to connect in one marketplace grounded in Catholic Social Teaching and seeking to live out the virtues of gratitude, humility, and stewardship.

Bridging Tables is a beautiful example of a brand embracing the diversity and craftsmanship of their people, fostering connection and opportunities but also strengthening community through life-centered values. Their why for being in business is simply to give people a seat at the table.

“Like many other emerging economies, the lens of the developed world often associates those countries and peoples solely as the focus of charity and aid – of NGOs, and nonprofits. Yet, these countries are filled with vigor and beauty. They are filled with incredibly resourceful and talented people who often simply lack opportunity and access to the international market – a seat at the table.”

Mainstream culture today would have us believe that diversity and inclusion are simply reduced to respect and tolerance.

We would like to challenge that definition. A faith-based perspective, particularly Christian, recognizes that true diversity and inclusion go beyond tolerance.

It involves caring for and suffering with one another, serving, giving honor to, protecting individuals, and lifting them up to be the best that they can be.

All businesses whether they’re inspired by faith principles or not can infuse these values into their multicultural marketing strategies, promoting a sense of unity, love, and genuine care for diverse communities while still upholding a culture of life and traditional family values.

Now that you’ve seen how some of our favorite brands are blazing the way on values-centered multicultural marketing, you too can start to master the art of being diverse in your marketing without compromising your life values.

The key to being inclusive in your marketing while staying true to your values lies in finding common ground and making a commitment to lifting each other up and leaving each other better than you found the other while still honoring and celebrating what makes each of us different, unique, and who God made us to be.

If you need some help with your multicultural marketing while staying true to your values, reach out. I’d be happy to work with you on building a rich business culture of life and change!