Lessons from the Marketing Campaign Trail: Using Social Media to Engage Multicultural Communities

Our approach •  What is culture? –  how do we talk about it in this era of emerging technologies? –  social media as a culture •  Engaging users across dimensions of identity •  Establishing next-level connection points •  Common pitfalls and how to avoid them •  Going to market: testing your concept and site •  Getting ready for the future Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Lesson #1: Understand Culture + Social Media

Culture Talk •  Different ways we talk about culture –  From the Latin cultura, “to cultivate” –  Refinement, the arts, things congruent with the notion of being civilized –  Mental programming or “software of the mind” •  Muddled lexicon –  Sociology, anthropology, business, diversity, race Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

What is Culture? “Collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from others.” Source: Geert Hofstede and Gert Jan Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, 2005 Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Mental Programming Specific to Inherited individual and learned PERSONALITY Specific to group Learned or category CULTURE Universal Inherited HUMAN NATURE Source: Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, 2005

Culture Revealed: Symbols, Heroes, Rituals, Values •  Symbols –  Shared meaning in language, power, attire within the group –  May shift between groups •  Heroes –  People whose attributes are valued and respected by the group (e.g., Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, Ernesto (Che) Guevara, Confucius) –  May be shared by different groups •  Rituals –  Important group activities with deeper, hidden meanings (e.g., religious ceremonies, salutations, celebrations) •  Values –  Invisible; inferred from symbols, heroes, rituals Source: Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, 2005 Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

What about social media culture?

Cultural Views Emerging Hacker Business Tech •  Focus on technical •  How to remain true •  Diverse markets proficiency to our hacker present a business •  Stick to the roots, but…show opportunity “operating system” me the money! •  Revenue is King •  Human and •  All levels of mental •  All levels of mental personality levels programming programming, but of mental •  Opportunity for narrow view of programming expanded culture •  Resistance to understanding of highlighting culture culture Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Lesson # 2: Engage Groups by Using Co-cultures

Mental Programming Specific to Inherited individual and learned PERSONALITY Specific to group Learned or category CULTURE Universal Inherited HUMAN NATURE Source: Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, 2005

Co-Cultures •  Everyone belongs to multiple cultural groups (“co-cultures”) –  National origin –  Ethnic/regional background –  Gender –  Economic status –  Education level –  Physical appearance (e.g., weight, height, attractiveness, coloring) –  Sexual orientation/preference –  Religion •  Sometimes these co-cultures conflict Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

What do you see? •  Lisa Dineo •  Born in Japan; lived there until she was 12 •  Teenage years in Iowa •  ½ Black, and identifies herself as multi-ethnic •  M.P.H., Johns Hopkins •  Religion: Catholic •  On her iPod: Rihanna, Colbie Caillat, Lazybatusu •  Married to a Japanese man, 1 son Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Marketing to Co-cultures •  Hacker culture –  Less emphasis on commercial issues—it’s about exploration of new ideas •  Multicultural marketing (Business) –  Choose culture with highest affiliation (e.g., ethnicity, gender, etc., or socio-economic status) –  You can only do so much specialization •  Emerging Tech –  The Long Tail is profitable (because social media has aggregated these markets –  Phase 1: combine multicultural marketing with social media Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Multicultural Social Media Pros Cons •  Integrates with current •  Lexicon still muddled business practices and •  Still using major identity nomenclature categories—not reaching •  People are somewhat all co-cultures conditioned to view •  Some controversy about culture as ethnicity use of culture in •  Gives some sense of business practices using culture as a connection point Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Connecting with Co-Cultures: NBA •  Rather than focusing on one aspect of users’ identities, establish multiple connection points –  National origin –  Multiple language offerings –  Regional interest –  Entertainment www.nba.com/enebea offerings Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Connecting with Co-Cultures: American Airlines •  Part of larger diverse marketing campaign •  Focuses on Black travelers •  Nelson George, Travel Expert-at-Large •  English language (other languages could expand reach) •  Blackness has different connotations in other www.blackatlas.com regions of the world Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Lesson #3: Establish Next-Level Connections

Getting Past Cultural Basics •  Connect with users beyond what is generally considered culture •  Consider these areas: –  Emotional connections –  Values (e.g., family-oriented, respect for elders, religious considerations) –  Highlight commitment to community –  Showcase a group’s history Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Marketing to Co-Cultures - Search •  Search engines target religious users who want to avoid certain content •  Could be of interest to non-religious users •  I’mHalal has warnings for the devout Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Historical Connections: The Queerest Places •  Chronicles historical sites with relevance to the LGBT Community –  Cole Porter’s house –  GLAMA in Kansas City •  Celebrates LGBT culture and history queerestplaces.wordpress.com •  Part of community of historical LGBT sites Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Lesson #4: Watch out for Pitfalls

Pitfalls on the Road to Success •  Assuming everyone will like your idea –  Not a fit w/personality PERSONALITY –  May prefer the “human only” approach CULTURE –  You cannot please everyone •  Avoid limiting culture A screenshot of Pitfall! on the Atari 2600 HUMAN NATURE to appearances, languages, cuisines Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Pitfalls II •  Skip the stereotypes –  Reducing an ethnicity to one characteristic •  Be careful with humor –  it varies considerably across cultures –  insider/outsider dynamics may not allow you to express certain types •  Remember the idiom!! Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Lesson #5: Test Your Concept and Site

Going to Market •  Two models –  Hacker culture says do the site quickly, make refinements later •  Pros: first to market, establish leadership with the group •  Cons: this could lead to costly mistakes and really bad publicity if things go poorly –  Business culture says test, test, test •  Pros: Sensitive to the importance of culture, may resonate on deeper levels •  Cons: Slower to market; does it get waylaid in the pipeline? Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Unilever’s Approach •  Tested brands like Pond’s Age Miracle Cream with Chinese women •  Used blogs to connect with testers •  Testers shared their thoughts on the product •  Risky move, but paid off—product very well received Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

American Airlines’ Approach •  Several stages of testing –  Focus groups –  Employees previewed and gave feedback •  Took perspective of audience seriously •  Continued monitoring and engagement www.blackatlas.com Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Social Testing •  Engaged users will highlight site, including pros and cons •  Try to engage them (not just to respond to comments), but take their concerns seriously –  Be selective with this approach Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Lesson #6: Get Ready for the Future

Future of Multicultural Social Media •  Mobile –  Broad reach across demographics –  Reaches global markets that lack significant technological infrastructure •  Customized user experiences –  Everyday life –  Entertainment and leisure Copyright © 2010 Jessica Faye Carter.

Connect with me jcarter@jessicafayecarter.com twitter.com/jescarter 203.539.1436

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Lessons from the Marketing Campaign Trail: Using Social Media to Engage Multicultural Communities

by Jessica Faye Carter

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