Marketing to ethnic minorities in Britain

TLDR

Britain’s sizeable ethnic minority population represents an untapped market, and in fragmented, turbulent markets, companies risk competitive peril if they ignore the growing market pluralism and multi‑ethnic reality. This paper offers a literature overview of key determinants for successful ethnic marketing programmes and aims to stimulate detailed examination of best practices, critical success factors, and guiding principles. The authors conduct a literature review of crucial issues likely to become important determinants of success in developing ethnic marketing programmes.

Abstract

The ethnic minority population in Britain is sizeable and represents a viable and untapped market segment. In today’s fragmented and increasingly turbulent markets, ethnic marketing offers a new strategic focus for product/market development and, in many respects, companies which ignore this do so at their own competitive peril. Companies wishing to do business with ethnic minority groups will fundamentally have to review the basic premisses of their marketing plans to take account of the growing market pluralism and the multi‐ethnic reality of modern Britain. Accordingly, this paper provides a literature over‐view of the crucial issues which are likely to become the important determinants of success in developing ethnic marketing programmes. It is hoped that this paper will stimulate thought towards detailed examination of good practices, critical success factors and associated principles which might help to improve marketing practices aimed at the ethnic minority population.