Marketing to modern Britain has never been more important, so what can be done to keep up with change?

We’ve landed ourselves our first female Chancellor who will soon lay out a masterplan for the economy.  

And while Rachel Reeves has a CV that includes a spell at Oxford and the Bank of England, she promises to bring a fresh perspective that diverges significantly from many of her predecessors.  

Keir Starmer’s cabinet overall has been seen as more socially inclusive and representative of life today, with the most ever members educated at comprehensive schools.   

If our Government and Chancellor are appearing to be better at representing the finances of the masses, what can be said about some of the UK’s biggest financial institutions?  

For established brands and challengers alike, it’s undisputable that the ‘right thing to do’ has been to model, make and market products that suit all. Yet at a glance, the way many products are developed and marketed isn’t nearly as inclusive or representative as it could be.  

We often find that topics like family finances, retirement planning and buying a home are based on married couples and families from dual-income households. Products themselves are seldom suitable for people who don’t conform to what’s considered ‘average’.  

A simple search of recent media coverage shows that very little is focused on saving for a flat as a singleton, pension planning for the widowed, or how to tackle finances within blended families. 

To give examples, the topic of ‘single mum finances’ featured in just a handful of articles over the last month, vs the 1,200 mentions of ‘saving for a wedding’ in the same timeframe. Meanwhile, tips on ‘how to save for a mortgage as a single person’ has featured less than 10 times in the last 30 days, but guidance on ‘avoiding inheritance tax’ featured in almost 2,000 articles.  

In my opinion, here lies the big opportunity.  

Financial services brands that can lead here have chance to gain credibility and loyalty from customers left behind by competitors.  

Doing this wouldn’t put them out of place.  

Countless consumer facing sectors have been championing inclusivity more explicitly and have made significant gains as a result.  

We know that the majority of people are far more likely to buy from brands that make an effort to represent people like them, so it’s no wonder that fashion, beauty and other fast moving consumer goods providers have devoted resources to doing this better.  

Here are just a few examples that illustrate the point:  

The beauty of inclusion 

Dove and Fenty are some of the biggest beauty brands leading the way, at an impressive pace. When music legend Rhianna launched Fenty she called for ‘beauty for all’ and the business is now worth just shy of $3billion. This year Dove, amongst the world’s most successful beauty brands, has continued its Real Beauty Pledge to promote inclusivity, diversity, autonomy, and body confidence. Its latest TV ad brings to life the impact AI is having on beauty standards and shows the brand vowing to never use AI in its campaigns.  

Cult Beauty, one of the UK’s leading beauty retailers, also launched the Can’t (Re)Touch This campaign to promote healthier attitudes towards beauty standards over the summer.  

Going further at the grocery store  

Aldi, Tesco and others have strived to become more inclusive in many areas, including those that have impacting people that have previously not seen much light.  

One of which is supporting women during menopause. From the start of this year, Tesco has dedicated aisle space to menopause related products, providing those suffering with symptoms with education resources and Aldi launched menopause guides and training for employees.  

Trend setting in fashion 

Fashion brands have noticeably changed their tune when it comes to marketing for the masses too.  

ASOS’ models look more like the average person than I remember as a regular shopper in my 20s – nowadays more shapes, sizes and health conditions are represented in its models.  

Primark is a brand that also stands for making fashion accessible for everyone and launched an adaptive range of lingerie alongside a long-term commitment to drive change across its business to better serve disabled colleagues and customers.  

Fitness has been another area for great progress. British cycling brand Rapha, teamed up with Cycle Sisters after finding that Muslim women were resorting to wearing men’s cycling clothes compromising on comfort and performance. The brand created performance clothing for Muslim women including long jerseys, ankle-length padded trousers and close-fitting hijabs.  

What’s next? 

As we settle into the new political era, we are likely to see additional policy changes across all aspects of our lives, especially with the Autumn Statement fast approaching at the end of next month.  

While what this means unfolds, there’s a lot more to learn when it comes to communicating with inclusivity, diversity and fairness front and centre.  

Financial service firms can achieve more by following in the footsteps of other industries. By taking a stand and offering more diverse products and services, they’ll be able to reach, engage and support more people. It’s a win-win.