Quick stats: Around 78% of SG consumers care about D&I efforts in ads

Around 78% of Singapore consumers care about diversity and inclusion (D&I) and want to do more to help promote D&I causes. A vast majority of consumers agree that diversity is important to the future of their country as they (74%) believe that their individual actions have a significant impact in helping support D&I causes. Due to this belief, 55% of consumers have changed their shopping habits to help support these causes. 

As the world we live in is increasingly becoming a diverse one, D&I are key industry topics ushering in a new era of responsible marketing and advertising. In fact, more than 90% of advertisers say that reducing bias and discrimination in marketing is now a priority as well.  Nearly three in four consumers actively consume content related to D&I. 

These numbers are found by an online survey Integral Ad Science ran among Singapore consumers to better understand consumer attitudes toward D&I overall and in digital advertising specifically. This study explores why diversity matters in advertising and measures how inclusive messaging affects consumer sentiment, receptivity and purchase behaviour. Furthermore, this report gauges the impact that contextual adjacency has on consumer sentiment and behaviour in relation to brands’ D&I efforts.

Around 88% of consumers think advertisers and brands should make an effort to place ads around content that promotes diversity as local consumers believe that it’s important for advertisers and brands to promote diversity and inclusion in their advertising and media buys too.

About 63% of Singapore consumers would be likely to engage with an ad that appears alongside content that promotes diversity and inclusion efforts, and 65% would be likely to purchase a product or service from an ad that appears alongside content that promotes diversity and inclusion efforts.

If brands don't include D&I efforts, almost half (40%) of consumers would most likely not even interact or purchase products from ads placed alongside content that oppose D&I.

Around 38% of consumers also say that engagement with an ad would also decrease as consumers would feel less favourable towards a brand that has an ad that appears alongside content that opposes D&I efforts.  

The brand and content surrounding the ad can be linked in the minds of Singapore consumers, impacting ad performance and brand perception. So it isn't surprising that staggering 81% of local consumers believe that brands have a responsibility to reflect our modern culture and that 63% of consumers hold advertisers most responsible for th type of content ads appear near, the study said. 

If brands don't take D&I seriously, around 47% of consumers would most likely boycott a brand. That is a pretty big number for brands to take on. 

Loyal customers (57%) that have been fans of a brand for a long time might switch from a brand if the brand demonstrates poor diversity and inclusion values. 

Including D&I in ads

The D&I factors that brands can consider in their campaigns are race, gender identity, age and socio-economic status. However, brands should also take note of using D&I in their ads solely for increasing their profits as 56% of Singapore consumers are aware of that. When brands do that, consumers are wary of these hollow or inauthentic attempts to address diversity in advertising. 

Advertisers have to be careful of the content surrounding an ad, as consumers can associate brands with the content which will lead them to believe that advertisers may be endorsing adjacent content. Around 73% of Singapore consumers believe advertisers approve of the content near their ads. 

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A large majority of Singapore consumers agree that brands should reflect modern culture, and also be involved in social conversations around diversity and inclusion. Meanwhile, 81% of Singapore consumers believe that brands have a responsibility to reflect our modern culture

There is an expectation for fashion (65%), food/beverage (55%) and retail (52%) brands to advocate for D&I. They are the top advertisers consumers expect to advocate for D&I. 

According to the survey, there are benefits for brands to place advertisements around content that promotes D&I. Ultimately, Singapore consumers hold advertisers and brands most responsible for the type of content ads appear with - but publishers also have a role to play.

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