cross-cultural marketing - is it necessary?

What is cross-cultural marketing?

Crafting messages that resonate across multiple ethnic and cultural groups. 

This means more than slapping Chinese characters on a Christmas card, or including token minorities in ads. It means finding a way to really connect with a community that may have different backgrounds, different taboos, different languages and celebrations. It takes more than simple one-off programs that only reach out at major festivals like Chinese New Year or Diwali. Those come off as insincere and opportunistic - and people see right through them. 

At scratch we prefer to build a relationship between the brand and the community and create an on-going dialogue through integrated programs. By building on this momentum, we can continue expanding that relationship into mainstream communications, as members of the cultural community begin to immerse themselves into the larger Canadian community. The brand is then introduced to the newly immigrated through brand campaigns and by those who already connect with the brand, thereby creating a cycle of acceptance and trust. 

Numbers don’t lie…

• Over 5 million people in Canada identify as being part of a visible minority
• 1.3 million South Asian-Canadians
• 1.2 million Chinese-Canadians
• ¾ of the total South Asian and Chinese populations of Canada live in the metropolitan areas of Vancouver and Toronto

And yet...

When Marketing Magazine asked “What percentage of your work deals with campaigns specifically aimed at ethnic Canadians, complete with cultural nuance and sensitivity?” here is how the industry responded:

• None (37.8%) 
• Less than 10% (34%) 
• Between 10% and 25% (14.6%) 
• More than 25% (13.5%)

How scratch can help...

• Demographics Research 
• Multilingual Campaigns 
• Culturally Tailored Promotions 
• Targeted Outreach

Why scratch?

Our culturally diverse staff and consultants have a sincere interest in cross-cultural communication. We have the knowledge and experience to speak appropriately and effectively to multicultural audiences across many different mediums. At scratch, we have the creative and functional expertise to convey the right message to the right people in the right way.