Mindset Matters: The Impact Of Marketing And Branding To Move Beyond Art And Commerce To Shape Social Innovation

A Radical Departure

A new decade calls for embracing a new business philosophy, and when looking at the current landscape and growth of key market segments it is imperative that intersectionality play a pivotal role in how marketing and advertising professionals shape the growth of brands and develop a language that can have a lasting connection with consumers. Unlike any other market segment, the application of intersectionality will have the most resonance among persons with disabilities. Being that this community is unique in the sense that it covers such tremendous terrain from social, cultural, economic and demographic boundaries it offers these professionals a plethora of creative opportunities to explore potential leads and develop relationships with brands in a variety of ways that will only benefit both the consumer and products. 

It is for this reason why it is critical to re-think the role that marketing, and advertising professionals play in today’s society. No longer can they be seen as just agents who serve their customer and cultivate brands, but rather something more that goes beyond art and commerce.  Chief Marketing Officers (CMO’s) and other advertising professionals in fact make up an industry that is going through a radical change and they are the tip of the spear of new generation. They are seeing an industry make a dramatic transformation where people are not only consumers of information, but content creators which is redefining the role of the industry itself. The marketing and advertising business are morphing into the curators of culture in this fast-past digital reality. 

The Role of Leadership For The Marketing Professional In The Digital Age 

CMO’s and other marketing and advertising professionals must learn to be more agile and nimble in this ever-changing landscape. No longer is there a top down approach to controlling the brand narrative. In fact, in this age of social media there is a plethora of platforms from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube redefining the balance of power. Marketing and advertising are shaping up to be more about cultivating a dialogue with the consumer than it is about trying to seduce them to purchase a product or service. It has also opened up pandora’s box in a way that these professionals relinquish control and rather than dictate the action, they play a different role, much like a conductor who guides the orchestra through a piece of music.  This new paradigmatic model accentuates a greater understanding that not only has the power dynamic shifted but the future of the industry lies on the idea that the role they play is critical to shaping perception and redefining a new reality where identity is paramount and the selling of products and services actually have a higher calling across numerous planes of social, economic and cultural discourse.

The Role of Disability, Intersectionality, In Shaping A New Marketing And Advertising Industry 

As the industry continues to go through this profound revolution where the power of the brand is being shared and often times defined by influencers and others across social media outside the traditional industry it is critical that CMO’s and other advertising professionals rethink their role in the industry. Defining brands may see building relationships with key stakeholders as even more valuable then writing copy, creating a social media strategy or buying television or print space. This is where the disability community plays an essential role in defining the paradigm of a new marketing and advertising model for the business of the 21st century. Being that the disability community is defined by the concept of intersectionality it is vital for any marketing, advertising, or branding firm to incorporate these concepts as an essential component to their ongoing corporate learning and development process and see it as a crucial element in gaining a competitive advantage. Intersectionality refers to the idea that there is an interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender that can apply to any given individual or group offering a sense of awareness where we can better acknowledge and ground the differences among us.

Marketing professionals need to look toward the disability community as a way to shape the business model for the 21st century. Building multifaceted relationships using the disability community as a template will enhance the industry to see that it will be the relationship that drives the creative process to build brands around identity and stories that resonate with customers, influencers, and the social media ecosystem alike.  

In the next Mindset Matters column, we will extrapolate further into the ever-changing disability market segment and explore how intersectionality is impacting brand development and shaping the industry for the 21st century.