Inclusive advertising delivers higher sales
Advertising campaigns with gender balance deliver 5% higher shorter-term sales and 16% higher longer-term sales. It leads to 62% higher likelihood of being a consumer’s first choice and 15% higher customer loyalty, according to a study by the Unstereotype Alliance, an industry-led initiative and convened by UN Women. The study was made by Saïd Business School at Oxford University.
It says that inclusive advertising pays off for brands in multiple commercially, financially, competitively, and strategically relevant ways.
“More inclusive advertising is not difficult to do in practice, yet it can deliver significant benefits to brands — let alone to society at large.”
“A particularly important takeaway from our findings is that the adoption of more inclusive advertising practices appears to attract customers to brands and keeps them there.”
The study comprises 392 brands in 58 Counties over a four-year period from 2020 to 2023 and represent a wide variety of product categories such as confectionery, snacks, personal care, beauty, pet care, pet food, alcohol, consumer healthcare, and household products.
It says there are compelling evidence in support of the business imperative of inclusive advertising.
The report says that brands with more inclusive ad practices:
- Sell more (3.46% higher shorter-term sales and 16.26% higher longer-term sales), are considered and trialled more (33% higher strong consideration, 62% higher likelihood of being a consumer’s first choice, and 8% higher incidence of being trialled)
- Enjoy higher customer loyalty (23% lower chance of being abandoned after trial and 15% higher loyalty)
- Are valued greater by consumers (54% higher pricing power), and have higher brand equity (8.3% more meaningful, 12.1% more different, and 9.4% higher salience).”
“These commercial benefits of more inclusive advertising practices are found regardless of product category or geographic market.”
“This study irrefutably demonstrates that inclusion equals income. Inclusive advertising, in fact, helps brands to grow and commercially prosper.”
The Alliance says that with the publication of the report, it is calling on the business community to adopt more inclusive advertising practices.
“The idea that inclusive advertising content can commercially damage a business has limited progress for too long”, says Sara Denby, Head of the Unstereotype Alliance Secretariat at UN Women.
“The assertion is consistently unfounded – but we needed to provide evidence to the contrary. This irrefutable data should reassure any business and encourage brands to renew their commitment to inclusivity in all forms, to not only benefit the communities they serve, but to drive growth and financially prosper.”
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