Brand marketers are being urged to consider the ‘missing Australians’ when planning successful and impactful marketing campaigns.
Leading inclusive marketing experts have urged brands to not merely participate in culture, but shape it and make sure that they are reaching diverse audiences where they show up.
This Thursday, brand marketers have a unique opportunity to hear from some of Australia’s leading CMOs, agency planners and strategists and inclusive marketing experts on how to achieve Inclusivity with Impact.
Please fill out the ‘Expression of Interest’ form to attend Inclusivity with Impact
Leading inclusive marketing experts, including Unilever’s Kate Westgate, Suncorp’s Rapthi Thanapalasingam, inclusivity expert Sara Shams, the Australian lead for the UN Women Unstereotype Alliance, Anna Konieczny, Identity Communications Santosh Murthy, MCO’s Ronnie Navani and more will share their expertise at this free event for brand marketers.
“Australia has an incredibly rich culture; our communities are some of the most diverse in the world. Embracing multicultural advertising is essential for us at Suncorp, because it helps foster inclusion and challenge outdated stereotypes in advertising,” Suncorp’s head of brand & content Thanapalasingam said.
“This is front and centre of our work through brands like AAMI, GIO and Suncorp Insurance—in recent years you would have seen how our iconic AAMI Woman has evolved to be a true representation of our diverse Australian community.”
Kate Westgate, the head of marketing at Unilever, told B&T that brands have a unique opportunity to shape culture.
“They influence what Australians see, hear, and believe every single day, which means we have a powerful role in driving inclusion. We know that inclusive advertising is both the right thing to do and a smart commercial move. But the real challenge is in the how.”
Westgate will feature on a panel alongside Konieczny, Murthy and UM senior strategy manager Alisha Imam to discuss audiences that are often overlooked by marketers and how there are tools by the Unstereotype Alliance that allow agencies and brands to embed inclusion meaningfully and “not just in what we say, but in how we show up”.
Please fill out the ‘Expression of Interest’ form to attend Inclusivity with Impact
Konieczny said that the business case for inclusive campaigns to drive drive business outcomes has never been clearer.
“And yet audiences are still being overlooked. At its heart, inclusion work is about noticing who isn’t in the room, whose stories aren’t being told, and what perspectives we might be missing,” she said.
“Progress doesn’t happen by accident though. We need to keep asking questions, challenging assumptions, and create the conditions for more authentic representation. We do this best in safe spaces, in like-minded industry alliances, and in rooms just like this one.”
The missing Aussies
The Unstereotype Alliance has produced research that found there is a large number of Australians that feel left out and unrepresented in advertising.
Only 57 per cent of people born overseas and 48 per cent of people with a disability feel positively portrayed in Australian advertising.
Sara Shams, the founder of Ethnobility, advises advertisers and agencies about diversity in marketing, will deliver a powerful keynote speech about her own lived experience.
“As a woman of colour and double above-knee amputee, I know what it feels like to be left out of the story, to not see yourself reflected in the media, campaigns, or leadership spaces shaping our culture,” Shams said.
“That’s why Inclusivity with Impact is so important. It challenges us to move beyond tokenism and into truth and to tell stories that don’t just include, but genuinely reflect the richness of who we are.
“When brands and storytellers get this right, it’s transformative – for audiences, for business, and for the next generation watching on.”
Ronnie Navani, the founder and CEO of Multicultural Outdoor (MCO), will be joined on a panel with Thanapalasingam, VML chief strategy officer Alison Tilling and Moonshot Marketing founder Nicolette Briscoe how to get inclusive creative execution rights.
“The opportunity for brands to authentically connect with multicultural Australia has never been greater. This event brings together an incredible calibre of speakers who understand how to translate cultural insight into meaningful impact,” Navani said.
“It’s exciting to see the conversation move from why inclusivity matters to how we can execute it brilliantly across media and creative.”
Identity Communications managing director Santosh Murthy said Inclusivity with Impact is a “must attend” for brand marketers that are seeking inclusive marketing insights that go beyond the surface level or a box-ticking exercise, while Moonshot’s Briscoe attendees can look forward to an open and inspiring conversation about how to create work that genuinely connects with multicultural Australia.
Hear from two expert panels on the day including:
- Santosh Murthy, Identity Communications MD (Moderator)
- Annie Konieczny, the Australian Lead for UN Women’s Unstereotype Alliance
- Alisha Imam, UM Senior Strategy Director
- Sara Shams – founder of Ethnobility, disability rights and diversity consultant
- Kate Westgate, head of marketing – Homecare, Unilever
- Rapthi Thanapalasingamm, head of brand and content, AAMI
- Ronnie Navani, founder, MCO
- Alison Tilling, CSO, VML
- Nicolette Briscoe (Moderator)
Marketers are invited to a B&T Breakfast Club – in partnership with Identity Communications, MCO and Microsoft – that unlocks Inclusivity with Impact.
Thursday 30 October
8.00 am-10.00 am
Microsoft Office Level 27/ 1 Denison St North Sydney
Please fill out the ‘Expression of Interest’ form to attend Inclusivity with Impact
