U.S.
- Past Event Highlights
- Article
Attitudes Towards Inclusivity in Advertising: A Twelve Country Study
Steven Millman – Global Head of Research & Data Science, Dynata
Steven Millman of Dynata shared key findings from Dynata’s global research on attitudes towards inclusivity in advertising and why that matters. The online survey was conducted across 12 countries (U.S., Canada, U.K., Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, China, Japan, Australia and Brazil) with a representative sample of 18+ adults and a total of 12,043 respondents. The survey examined attitudes and feelings of various minority groups (including LGBTQIA+, women, seniors, people with disabilities). Race was only considered for the U.S. sample, as race couldn’t be asked in certain countries or it was challenging to get sufficient diverse samples by race in non-U.S. countries. Overall, the study found that members of minority groups generally feel somewhat less authentically represented in advertising than do others. With the exception of racial minorities in the U.S., marginalized groups also tend to feel less satisfied by their portrayals in advertising. The presentation also delved into cross-country trends and differences, as well as a deeper dive into the impact of political affiliations and gender on attitudes and purchase intent in the U.S. along issues of inclusivity and diversity. Key takeaways:- Across countries, members of minority groups generally feel somewhat less authentically represented in advertising than do others. However, most people do not across the board.
- Marginalized groups, especially LGBTQ+, are also less likely to be satisfied by their portrayals in advertising. The only exception was underrepresented racial group in the U.S.
- In general, people think inclusivity in advertising is important, especially among younger groups. However, the exception was seniors, who only ranked portrayals of people over 65 as highly important.
- Portrayals of equal representation of women and men and people with disabilities ranked the highest in importance across different age demos.
- Portrayals of the LGBTQIA+ community ranked the lowest in term of importance across all age groups, and the portrayal of LGBTQIA+ was important to less than half of non-LGBTQIA+ respondents.
- The majority felt that we are going in the right direction in terms of whether things are getting better or worse with respect to inclusivity in advertising. This satisfaction was overall lower in the U.S., similarly between racial and non-racial minorities.
- In the U.S., Democratic men were much more likely than Republican or Independent men to say that they would be more likely to purchase from inclusive advertisers. There were similar differences among women along party lines, but the gaps were much closer.
- Among countries, Brazil reported the importance of the portrayals of marginalized groups as the highest.
Understanding & Using Ethical Data Attitudes to Improve Consumer Relationships
A Wunderman Thompson survey of 1,000 consumers each in the U.S. and U.K. found that concerns about data privacy rank 4th—behind only the economy, the COVID pandemic and healthcare. Most consumers see the collection and use of their personal data as an opaque process, creating a “negative halo” for companies they associate with this. Consumers generally do not perceive the benefits to them of sharing personal data and desire greater control—without necessarily knowing how this could be done. Mazda’s Brad Audet said that best practice in communicating about data privacy must start with a focus on the consumer, not the company’s data needs. Citing the example of Amazon, he urged that companies “co-create opportunities with customers” to use data for personalization that creates real value for them. Otherwise, their concerns will add to the current “cascade of distrust” in government and other large institutions.
Member Only AccessMODERATED TRACK DISCUSSIONS: Cross-Platform: Measurement & Identity
During the discussion, Duane Varan (MediaScience) and Steve Bellman (MediaScience & Ehrenberg-Bass Institute) discussed the metrics they used, the implications of their research for media planning, and the results of their research in the U.S. Sean Pinkney (Comscore) talked about the lessons he had taken away from his analysis of missing data.
Member Only AccessAustralia’s Largest Cross-Platform Study: The Power of News
According to the study’s sponsor, the research was prompted by many advertisers’ “ambivalence” about news as context for their ads. The study, the largest of its kind ever conducted, used an experimental design, placing comparable ads in newspapers and on digital platforms. Digital ads were placed in news and other contexts. The study was conducted in Australia, but U.S. data were also obtained. The analysis focused on three issues:
- Does the news context promote ad recall, positive attitudes about the product, and brand choice?
- Do ads work better on print or on digital platforms?
- What do the findings tell us about how advertising works in different contexts and on different platforms?