What do you do if you suspect biases in advertising messages?

Begin by recognizing potential biases in advertising messages, including stereotypes, discrimination, or exclusionary language. ? Conduct regular diversity and inclusion training sessions to educate advertising teams about unconscious biases. ? Utilize AI-powered tools like IBM Watson or Google’s Perspective API to analyze text and flag potential biases. Example: A cosmetics brand identifies gender biases in its ads by using AI tools to analyze language and imagery, leading to more inclusive messaging.

?If biases are suspected in advertising messages, conduct a thorough review of the content, considering factors such as language, imagery, and representation of diverse groups. Seek input from a diverse team or external consultants to identify potential blind spots and perspectives. Prioritize inclusivity and sensitivity by revising messaging to accurately reflect and respect the diversity of the target audience. Implement diversity and inclusion training for the advertising team to raise awareness and mitigate biases in future campaigns. Continuously monitor feedback and performance metrics to ensure advertising messages resonate positively with all audiences.?

Dive deeper into understanding biases in advertising through research, collaboration, and engagement with relevant stakeholders. ? Partner with academic institutions or research organizations to conduct studies on bias in advertising. ? Engage with advocacy groups and communities affected by bias to gain insights and perspectives. Example: A beverage company collaborates with a university research team to analyze cultural biases in its marketing campaigns and address them effectively.

Foster an environment where team members feel empowered to critically examine advertising content and challenge assumptions or biases. ? Facilitate open discussions and debates within the team to encourage critical thinking about biases. ? Organize diversity training workshops and seminars to raise awareness and facilitate dialogue. Example: An advertising agency hosts regular brainstorming sessions where team members openly discuss potential biases in upcoming campaigns and brainstorm inclusive solutions.

To spot biases within your advertising message, you often need to identify it within the early strategic rounds and tune in during the review with your team's material developments. Allow for an open discussion to spot any early flags and watch outs in potential narrative to steer clear from. In any later phase when you introduce changes will greatly impact the team's timelines & budget. We see this happen often in corporate as projects are cancelled last minute because it's too late to implement a fundamental narrative change for the greater team to cater to. We believe it's worthwhile for project leads & teams to both align during key milestones to catch early addressable issues such as biases within the campaign narrative.