Name: Why marketing needs to empower youth
Uploaded: 2022-11-30T14:41:51.533Z
Duration: 802.8
Description: To market to the youth, it is important first to understand their priorities and expectations. Diversity, equity, and inclusion might be more important to this generation than any previous, which is why Deanna Ransom champions their "beautiful intolerance" in this video explaining why and how marketing needs to empower youth.

Deanna Ransom Final Draft.mp4

Deanna Ransom.vtt

English

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There is an extreme passion and there
is a need to be heard, to be heard

{{00:00:07}}
accurately, and to have any systematic
element that is impeding their ability

{{00:00:15}}
to be able to move forward and live
at what we all would call the way

{{00:00:22}}
any other human would want to live.

{{00:00:24}}
With freedoms, with benefits,
with just having an unrestricted

{{00:00:34}}
opportunity to be self.

{{00:00:44}}
As we explore the youth generation,
and really how to best market to

{{00:00:47}}
them, I think it's really important
to understand how much more diverse in

{{00:00:51}}
you know, identity, race, ethnicity,
and really the thought that they kind

{{00:00:56}}
of have compared to other generations.

{{00:00:58}}
So how does this diversity affect the
way that they interact with the world?

{{00:01:03}}
Yeah, it's a great question.

{{00:01:05}}
You know, I believe that there's
so much more awareness now.

{{00:01:11}}
There's a connectivity
that wasn't there before.

{{00:01:14}}
Social media has removed a lot of the
barriers that were able to be in place

{{00:01:21}}
and it's caused the youth to really
find things that were never acceptable,

{{00:01:29}}
that they are just not tolerant for it.

{{00:01:32}}
And you know, I am here
for it all day long.

{{00:01:34}}
Like I support that.

{{00:01:37}}
And, when it comes to marketing, it's
not just their awareness and their

{{00:01:42}}
consciousness that causes them to want to
identify with brands that demonstrate that

{{00:01:49}}
they understand their need for diversity.

{{00:01:52}}
I find that they are more mission driven.

{{00:01:57}}
They're more connected in that way,
and so they consciously choose to look

{{00:02:05}}
at companies and brands who do good
in the world, who, you know, stand

{{00:02:10}}
for more diversity, and want that
inclusion, and they will vote that way,

{{00:02:15}}
or move that way with their dollars.

{{00:02:17}}
They're not looking for statements,
you know, that can be read.

{{00:02:22}}
They're not looking for sound bites.

{{00:02:24}}
They're looking for action and
they're gonna keep, you know,

{{00:02:27}}
pushing back until they get it.

{{00:02:29}}
But there's still a lot of disparity
and inequalities that exist for them.

{{00:02:33}}
So can you talk a little bit about
some of those and what those are?

{{00:02:37}}
Absolutely.

{{00:02:38}}
So I'll take a quick step back.

{{00:02:40}}
For example, I spent
over 20 years in tech.

{{00:02:44}}
And you can see I am an
African American woman, right.

{{00:02:48}}
And I led and worked
within sales and marketing.

{{00:02:52}}
And so there weren't a lot of
us at the table, so to speak.

{{00:02:55}}
Yeah.

{{00:02:56}}
And so, whenever you're coming from
a perspective of not being clearly

{{00:03:02}}
heard, or not being clearly understood,
it does increase your passion,

{{00:03:09}}
right, to want to shift the dynamic.

{{00:03:12}}
Not because of anything that is, you
know, anger, although there could be

{{00:03:17}}
some anger, and it could be justified,
it really is passion to write a wrong.

{{00:03:25}}
So what I think young folks, other folks,
any folks that are marginalised, right?

{{00:03:33}}
There is an extreme passion and there
is a need to be heard, to be heard

{{00:03:41}}
accurately, and to have any systematic
element that is impeding their ability

{{00:03:48}}
to be able to move forward and live
at what we all would call, um, the way

{{00:03:56}}
any other human would want to live.

{{00:03:57}}
With freedoms, with benefits,
with, you know, just having an

{{00:04:04}}
unrestricted opportunity to be self.

{{00:04:08}}
I think that's what I would say
the young folks are feeling.

{{00:04:13}}
Right.

{{00:04:14}}
And who does not want that?

{{00:04:17}}
Yeah.

{{00:04:18}}
Right.

{{00:04:18}}
So they're not, you know, what I tend
to think of is I love their intolerance,

{{00:04:28}}
their willingness to put themselves
out there across multiple platforms

{{00:04:36}}
to say we will not stand for this.

{{00:04:39}}
And I think it's that kind of,
I call it radical intolerance.

{{00:04:44}}
That is what it's going to take for us
to tip the scales against strongholds

{{00:04:50}}
or systematic barriers that have
been in place that are stifling.

{{00:04:54}}
As we again, think about marketers and
the role that they play in, sort of

{{00:05:01}}
the responsibility, but the potential
to sort of empower this group,

{{00:05:06}}
empower equity within this generation.

{{00:05:09}}
Do you think that marketers
actually should play a role,

{{00:05:14}}
or have a role, in that?

{{00:05:17}}
You know, it's easy to
tiptoe the status quo.

{{00:05:22}}
Yep.

{{00:05:23}}
Right.

{{00:05:24}}
But as a former CMO, as chairperson of
D, E and I, I am excited to say that

{{00:05:31}}
not only does marketing play a role,
but marketing should play a role.

{{00:05:38}}
Number one, marketing tends, not just
from a brand perspective, to own the

{{00:05:45}}
company's visual and their voice.

{{00:05:49}}
Marketing also has a tremendous
impact and responsibility in how it

{{00:05:57}}
connects to, and engages with, every
single audience that a brand or a

{{00:06:04}}
company is looking to engage with.

{{00:06:06}}
And that means marketing has the power
and the influence to begin to shift the

{{00:06:17}}
narrative, the visual, to make sure that
it is thinking clearly and articulately

{{00:06:25}}
about who are we talking with?

{{00:06:28}}
Who do we want to attract?

{{00:06:31}}
How do we go about attracting them?

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What do we wanna say to them?

{{00:06:37}}
What's important to them?

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Right?

{{00:06:40}}
Marketing is supposed to be focused on
that, both internally and externally.

{{00:06:46}}
So I 100% believe, and have led those
types of initiatives for companies

{{00:06:52}}
where we have to take either sometimes
a step back, or maybe you bring

{{00:06:58}}
in expertise that you do not have.

{{00:07:01}}
But you must be mindful, you must
be thoughtful of what you're putting

{{00:07:05}}
out, and what it looks like to others.

{{00:07:09}}
What would you say to brands and really
like, what the benefit is to, you know,

{{00:07:16}}
actually kind of help work towards
promoting positive social change?

{{00:07:19}}
You know, I can be very clear on that.

{{00:07:22}}
Not only because the work that
we do at Women in Revenue, right?

{{00:07:26}}
Which is literally marketing, sales, and
customer success within brands, and we

{{00:07:32}}
are literally fighting for 100% equity
and inclusion within corporate workspaces.

{{00:07:39}}
But I'll go back again to being a CMO
and think about, when you say what should

{{00:07:46}}
brands, you know, literally be doing,
what should they be thinking about?

{{00:07:51}}
Here's something that's important.

{{00:07:53}}
There's data that supports, and
I believe it's a McKinsey report.

{{00:07:57}}
Companies that have more diverse
leadership, and diverse board boards, have

{{00:08:03}}
a 36% increase in profits over companies
that do not have diversity in place.

{{00:08:14}}
I want to repeat that
because that's pause worthy.

{{00:08:17}}
Primarily because, think about a business
that's in business to make profits.

{{00:08:24}}
But they also demonstrate that they have
the ability to connect corporate social

{{00:08:31}}
responsibility of equity and inclusion,
literally increasing their profits.

{{00:08:40}}
So what I'm saying is,
doing good is good business.

{{00:08:45}}
It's good business because it helps
you to have a more well-rounded,

{{00:08:52}}
human-centric perspective of the world.

{{00:08:58}}
That's incredible.

{{00:08:59}}
The proof is in the numbers.

{{00:09:01}}
The proof is always
gonna be in the numbers.

{{00:09:04}}
So you know, how can companies avoid woke
washing in their marketing messaging and

{{00:09:08}}
really just provide actual genuine value?

{{00:09:12}}
I'm going to answer that with
two words: authentic empathy.

{{00:09:20}}
Right.

{{00:09:21}}
So, when someone is checking a box, right?

{{00:09:25}}
They're putting out a message
because it's the right thing to do.

{{00:09:30}}
They're generating a campaign because Me
Too, everyone else has put that out there.

{{00:09:35}}
There becomes, there's a lack of empathy.

{{00:09:38}}
It's not authentic and you're
signaling that to the world,

{{00:09:42}}
whether you mean to do that or not,
and it can be picked up, right.

{{00:09:48}}
We all know when someone is talking at us
versus when someone is talking with us.

{{00:09:57}}
And, those nuances are so important.

{{00:10:02}}
That as marketers, we ought to recognise.

{{00:10:06}}
We talk about buying signals, we
talk about the customer journey.

{{00:10:11}}
We talk about all of these things.

{{00:10:13}}
Number one, if you're unwilling to
support my journey, I know the difference.

{{00:10:19}}
If you are signaling that, if you're
saying one thing, but the signal does not

{{00:10:25}}
authentically resonate that you truly mean
and care about that, I can pick that up.

{{00:10:31}}
Young people can pick that up.

{{00:10:33}}
People in general can pick that up.

{{00:10:36}}
So I would say to the brands,
it's authentic empathy.

{{00:10:42}}
And then, take the right action.

{{00:10:44}}
So what would the future dynamic
of brands and customers look like?

{{00:10:49}}
You know, as these kind of equity
empowered youths, you know, graduate

{{00:10:53}}
into adulthood and really have
even more buying power, and also

{{00:10:57}}
just more influence in the world.

{{00:10:59}}
What does that look like?

{{00:11:00}}
What does the future look like?

{{00:11:01}}
And, you know, it's interesting.

{{00:11:03}}
I think about, hey, and I'm
gonna say I'm a youth too,

{{00:11:06}}
just for the sake of saying it.

{{00:11:08}}
But, you know, when I think
about the youth, and I have three

{{00:11:12}}
children, and I think about their
powerful dynamic, and thinking of

{{00:11:19}}
their intolerance for the thing.

{{00:11:21}}
In fact, funny story, my, one of my
children, my son, I have a set of twins.

{{00:11:28}}
And they're boy, girl, and my son said
to me, mom, I think your generation

{{00:11:36}}
tolerated things that they shouldn't have
and you are always telling me to be more

{{00:11:42}}
careful, but do we need more careful?

{{00:11:47}}
Or do we need more change?

{{00:11:50}}
And as badly as I wanted to be like, ah,
I walked away and said, God, dog on it.

{{00:11:58}}
He's right.

{{00:11:59}}
We need more change.

{{00:12:03}}
I would suspect that as these bold,
brave, empowered, intolerant in a good

{{00:12:18}}
way, youths, begin to take roles and
spaces, and have more influence and buying

{{00:12:28}}
power, that it would behove brands to
learn, partner, pivot, and take the right

{{00:12:38}}
actions from an authentic place right now.

{{00:12:42}}
There's no time to
wait, the future is now.

{{00:12:47}}
And so, it's going to look like a
brave, new, unchartered world where

{{00:12:55}}
perhaps, just perhaps, we'll all
be able to sit at a table together.

{{00:13:03}}
Learn from, enjoy, and benefit
from one another and what we

{{00:13:10}}
each bring to a collective table.

{{00:13:13}}
Thank you so much for providing the
insight and being here today with us.

There is an extreme passion and there
is a need to be heard, to be heard

accurately, and to have any systematic
element that is impeding their ability

to be able to move forward and live
at what we all would call the way

With freedoms, with benefits,
with just having an unrestricted

As we explore the youth generation,
and really how to best market to

them, I think it's really important
to understand how much more diverse in

you know, identity, race, ethnicity,
and really the thought that they kind

So how does this diversity affect the
way that they interact with the world?

You know, I believe that there's
so much more awareness now.

There's a connectivity
that wasn't there before.

Social media has removed a lot of the
barriers that were able to be in place

and it's caused the youth to really
find things that were never acceptable,

And you know, I am here
for it all day long.

And, when it comes to marketing, it's
not just their awareness and their

consciousness that causes them to want to
identify with brands that demonstrate that

they understand their need for diversity.

I find that they are more mission driven.

They're more connected in that way,
and so they consciously choose to look

at companies and brands who do good
in the world, who, you know, stand

for more diversity, and want that
inclusion, and they will vote that way,

They're not looking for statements,
you know, that can be read.

They're looking for action and
they're gonna keep, you know,

But there's still a lot of disparity
and inequalities that exist for them.

So can you talk a little bit about
some of those and what those are?

For example, I spent
over 20 years in tech.

And you can see I am an
African American woman, right.

And I led and worked
within sales and marketing.

And so there weren't a lot of
us at the table, so to speak.

And so, whenever you're coming from
a perspective of not being clearly

heard, or not being clearly understood,
it does increase your passion,

Not because of anything that is, you
know, anger, although there could be

some anger, and it could be justified,
it really is passion to write a wrong.

So what I think young folks, other folks,
any folks that are marginalised, right?

to be able to move forward and live
at what we all would call, um, the way

With freedoms, with benefits,
with, you know, just having an

I think that's what I would say
the young folks are feeling.

So they're not, you know, what I tend
to think of is I love their intolerance,

their willingness to put themselves
out there across multiple platforms

And I think it's that kind of,
I call it radical intolerance.

That is what it's going to take for us
to tip the scales against strongholds

or systematic barriers that have
been in place that are stifling.

As we again, think about marketers and
the role that they play in, sort of

the responsibility, but the potential
to sort of empower this group,

Do you think that marketers
actually should play a role,

You know, it's easy to
tiptoe the status quo.

But as a former CMO, as chairperson of
D, E and I, I am excited to say that

not only does marketing play a role,
but marketing should play a role.

Number one, marketing tends, not just
from a brand perspective, to own the

Marketing also has a tremendous
impact and responsibility in how it

connects to, and engages with, every
single audience that a brand or a

And that means marketing has the power
and the influence to begin to shift the

narrative, the visual, to make sure that
it is thinking clearly and articulately

Marketing is supposed to be focused on
that, both internally and externally.

So I 100% believe, and have led those
types of initiatives for companies

where we have to take either sometimes
a step back, or maybe you bring

But you must be mindful, you must
be thoughtful of what you're putting

What would you say to brands and really
like, what the benefit is to, you know,

actually kind of help work towards
promoting positive social change?

Not only because the work that
we do at Women in Revenue, right?

Which is literally marketing, sales, and
customer success within brands, and we

are literally fighting for 100% equity
and inclusion within corporate workspaces.

But I'll go back again to being a CMO
and think about, when you say what should

brands, you know, literally be doing,
what should they be thinking about?

Marketing to the youth

Expert Insight

To market to the youth, it is important first to understand their priorities and expectations. Diversity, equity, and inclusion might be more important to this generation than any previous, which is why Deanna Ransom champions their "beautiful intolerance" in this video explaining why and how marketing needs to empower youth.

Content Strategy

Gen Z

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Deanna-Ransom_494477_1657566571.jpg

Deanna Ransom

Executive Director

Ransom outlines the drive of the next generation to connect with companies determined to do genuine good in the world.


Expectations of a diverse youth

Ransom describes the passion of marginalised voices demanding to be heard and be themselves.


What disparities and inequalities still exist?

Ransom explains why marketing both does and should play a role in empowering equity.


Marketing's role in empowering equity

Ransom relates how "Doing good is good business".


Benefits to businesses with positive social change

Ransom discusses 'authentic empathy' and how to achieve it.


 Avoiding 'wokewashing' in marketing

As brands pivot towards authentic, positive change, we will see a new world emerge where people benefit each other.
