IMC 622
Multicultural Marketing teaches cultural sensitivity and prepares students to promote products and services to a diverse marketplace within the U.S. The course focuses on racial/ethnic groups in the U.S., and it also covers mature and gay/lesbian markets.
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of IMC 622, students will be able to:
- Appreciate how multicultural consumers are social influencers.
- Consider whether the general market is a part of the new majority.
- Discuss the ways in which stereotypes can influence marketing messages, and the precautions marketers should take to avoid stereotyping.
- Explain the ways in which marketers can recognize the multicultural consumers who are brand loyal.
- Follow the multicultural consumers who are mobile app users.
- Identify the advantages of marketing to the African-American, Asian American, Caucasian-American, and Hispanic-American cohorts.
- Learn what it means to market to subcultures, such as Gay Americans and Mature Americans.
Course Topics
- Marketing to Multicultural Consumers in the United States – An Overview
- Marketing to African Americans
- Marketing to Asian Americans
- Marketing to Caucasian-Americans
- Marketing to Hispanic-Americans
- Marketing to Gay Americans
- Marketing to Mature-Americans
What students say about IMC 622
“I have always been intrigued with other cultures, so from the moment I started the IMC program I knew that I wanted to sign up for the Multicultural Marketing elective. Being able to better understand ethnic groups within the U.S. and how to effectively communicate with individuals in those groups proved to be an invaluable learning experience. This course got to the core of market segmentation, where multicultural consumers are more accurately categorized in subset groups in which marketing messages will resonate with them. Each week, the course provided thorough knowledge of a culturally diverse group including Mature Americans, Hispanic Americans, African Americans, Gay Americans and Asian Americans. We learned about each group’s demographics, psychographics, their presence in current media and, most importantly to me, how to create effective messages aimed toward individuals in these groups. A key takeaway from the elective is that ethnic groups will no longer be satisfied with seeing themselves in ads—they want to see messages that truly target them. Consequently, one of the challenges (and also rewards) with the weekly assignments was trying to find ads that didn’t just feature ethnic individuals, but that communicated a message that resonated with them. This course will continue to have relevance in the marketing industry as one in every three people in the U.S. associate with an ethnic minority. With this number expected to rise, communicators will need to continue to find ways to sell products and services to America’s increasingly diverse population.” - Tiffany Wright
