GroupM is forming a coalition that it says will help brands better adapt to changing U.S. demographics and “assist in developing their audience planning and media strategies accordingly.”
Disney, Google, iHeartMedia, Meredith Corporation, NBCUniversal, Twitter, Univision and Viacom are joining the collective effort, which GroupM has dubbed the New Majority Ready Coalition.
New Majority Ready LLC, a minority-owned marketing and content consultancy founded by Oswald Méndez and Jacqueline Hernández earlier this year, will serve as the “coalition consultant” to assist with creation and development efforts.
A recent ANA report found that multicultural media investments make up only 5.2% of total advertising and marketing spending, despite the fact that the U.S. population as a whole is expected to become a majority-minority nation by 2044, according to projections from the Census Bureau.
According to GroupM, the coalition plans to develop “tools and solutions” that brands can use to better connect with these audiences, including a benchmark tool that will gauge a brand’s “readiness” for this demographic shift.
Additionally, it plans to create a communications program to “drive better understanding of America’s population transformation” and encourage the use of majority-first media strategies that reach these consumers.
“The facts clearly point to an exciting opportunity for brands to engage and grow with a rising population who command and influence significant purchasing power in the United States and will only increase,” Tim Castree, CEO of GroupM North America, said in a statement. “With respect to this cultural reality and in recognition of the business opportunity, we hope that by bringing the industry together we can better understand the new majority and build authentic, sustainable and engaging brand relationships with them.”
