I recently enjoyed a presentation by Dr. Doug Norris, Chief Demographer for Environics Canada, affectionately known as “Mr. Census”, which was based on Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census. The data was enlightening. Canada’s ethnicity is changing rapidly in every province. Canada will become far more diverse, like a microcosm of global cultures. While growth was limited in Quebec, growth was strong in all other provinces, with the highest growth in the maritime provinces. 

The highest countries of origin over the past five years (total immigrants from 2016-2021) were India, Philippines, China, Syria, and Nigeria (40K). Immigrants are also making up larger proportions of Canada’s youth, and Federal Permanent Resident immigration targets continue to grow, from 300K annually pre-COVID, to a target of 500K in 2025.

As a marketing strategist, I believe it is vitally important that businesses, not just global ones, but even small and mid-sized ones, pay attention. There are boundless opportunities when you can think “globally” about customers, even if you might be executing only locally.

Here are a few ideas to key you started:

1. Prioritize Diversity of Front-line Staff

While diversity is valuable throughout an organization, achieving this within front-line personnel should be considered an especially high priority, i.e. roles such as sales or customer service. Having diverse staff helps immigrant customers feel more comfortable and confident in expressing their needs. If it is difficult to find the diversity given the skillsets the job requires, you can hire interpreters to assist you, or make an arrangement to have them available during office hours.

In the bigger picture, maintaining diverse hiring practices is always wise, since it maximizes perspectives and enhances decision-making.

2. Get Involved with Diverse Communities

Unfortunately, immigrants can often feel unwelcome when visiting unfamiliar businesses. For this reason, they often rely on referrals from within their families or community. 

To facilitate referrals, a business that reaches out to support various immigrant associations, for example, by sponsoring or attending community events, sends a signal that these diverse customers are welcome. 

The business who gets involved within these communities will also enjoy the benefits of gaining first-hand insight. For example, perhaps there are products or services immigrants are seeking (and that they formerly received abroad), that are not available in Canada. This knowledge can allow a business to quickly adapt to these needs, and grow into new areas. It might also be a valuable source of recruitment.

3. Show Diversity in Marketing Messages

Reflecting diversity in imagery is important – whether you are posting photos on your social media pages, shooting an ad, or producing a video for promotional use. This could of course be diversity in age, gender, weight and many more areas, but ethnicity is certainly crucial to make immigrants feel welcome. Modelling and talent agencies offer a great range of diverse choices, so why not show inclusivity?

4. Market to Diverse Communities

Marketing to a given target group is a way of saying, “we want your business,” so placing marketing in and around diverse communities – via their local publications, popular websites, or by joining their social media groups, is a great step.  It also subtly says that if you’re spending money and effort to win these customers, they can expect to be treated well.

5. Consider Translation of Websites, Signage and Advertising

Have you considered adding a “Google Translate” button to your website? Now, it is not perfect, but it will help international readers feel accommodated and cover a lot of ground. 

With more brief communication done by email, a similar app can translate as correspondence is received. To ensure quality writing for proposals or key documents, translators can assist, and the costs are usually very reasonable. It may also be wise to translate key signage, such as washrooms and/or directional signs.

For meetings or web-conferencing, interpretation services are readily available (just add one more person, i.e. the interpreter,  to your group conversation). After all, as more immigrants come to Canada, more interpreters in those languages also follow. One service we love working with is Language Venture, a division of CIWA, the Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association – they are extremely professional and rates are very affordable.

6. Access Market Research

Market research is clearly critical when re-positioning your business to welcome new cultural markets.  Why guess at customer preferences when you can be certain?  Market research is available in a wide range of languages, and your research team can assist you by knowing the right questions to ask, and the best way to ask them. Research can also have the positive effect of making your potential customers feel heard and valued. 

How Tenato Can Assist

At Tenato Strategy, we offer a broad range of market research, strategy development, and branding support services, including those to culturally diverse markets. We also work with interpreters and translators to ensure your business is represented conscientiously and positively. Please contact us if you would like to discuss these; and if you need to chat in a language other than English, simply let us know which one, and we’ll be ready for you.