If advertisers are not not facing “some level of discomfort” when it comes to diversity and inclusion they’re not learning enough, according to Zehra Chatoo, head of connections planning for retail, EMEA, at Meta.
Speaking at IAB’s Engage event in London on 26 April, Chatoo highlighted the importance and value of having “uncomfortable conversations” about diversity.
“We know that by representing diverse voices and perspectives it drives growth, discovery and opportunity to explore endless possibilities,” she continued, adding that representative ads drive greater levels of effectiveness, performance and increases in brand preference.
She outlined a number of “uncomfortable truths” that need to be addressed by the industry, including around representation, language and cultural bias.
Chatoo noted that, according to Kantar research covering the 50 largest media spending brands, 92% showed people of colour, 43% had at least one occurrence of a senior citizen in their ads and 94% depicted women in a primary role.
However, she warned that only 15% of people of colour were culturally represented by more than their skin colour, hardly any senior citizens were characters in power and, in the majority of instances, women had stereotypical roles.
“The reality is data shows, since March 2020, ads are less likely to show women in speaking roles, or women working, and more likely to cast them in traditional gender roles,” Chatoo said.
In addition, she warned about bias in everyday language, which she argued is ”repelling against age”, and reiterated the importance of not casting people in stereotypical roles.
She called on the ad industry to create conditions for audiences to “challenge bias and call things out”.
IAB yesterday released its annual digital ad spend report, which revealed the UK’s digital advertising market is now worth £23.5bn.
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