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Toyota’s 21st Century Diversity
Strategy
From
its meetings with Rainbow/PUSH, Toyota
agreed to “a comprehensive rededication to
diversity and inclusion” that would
generate $7.8 billion into the African
American community during the next 10 years.
This
plan, entitled the “21st
Century Diversity Strategy,” calls for a
number of initiatives, including:
-
Retaining
an African American advertising agency
with annual spending of at least $25
million.
-
Spending
another $25 million over the next three
years with a Hispanic ad agency.
-
Increasing
its minority dealer network by 4 to 6
stores per year over the next 10 years.
-
Increasing
the dealer development financial
assistance budget by more than 67%, to
$25 million.
-
Establishing
a minority management training program
and an automotive training center.
-
Increasing
the amount of goods purchased from
minority businesses to 5% of total
purchasing.
-
Establishing
an external diversity board.
Did
Toyota
do the right thing?
Yes, but only after inducing
tremendous ill-will and being threatened
with a boycott.
Doing the
Right Thing
When
it comes to relationships with clients,
businesses should first think about
what their customers want; not what they
want to sell them; not what they want
customers to do for them; and not what would
benefit the corporation most.
Businesses should instead focus on
satisfying the customers’ needs and
providing customers with a clear set of
benefits.
In
the case of Toyota, African Americans clearly want solid,
reliable transportation, vehicles that are
high quality and reasonably priced.
They also want to know that they are
dealing with a company that respects them
collectively, and as individuals.
Stereotyping people as lazy, and
outfitted in gold teeth, is certainly not
the way to motivate the bulk of African
Americans to spend tens of thousands of
dollars on what is typically the second
largest purchase that most individuals make
in their lifetime.
There
are several “right things” businesses
can do to develop positive relationships
with diverse markets.
These right things can help make the
sale! Perhaps
they can benefit you and your business.
| No.
1
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Communicate Often
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| Listen
to what your customers have to say about
their needs.
Go below the surface to determine why
certain goods and services are desired.
Look for ways to gain input and
feedback.
Set up advisory boards, conduct
surveys, host focus groups, perform exit
interviews, and review complaint and
complement data.
Be available to speak to clients in
person, on the phone, via electronic mail,
or in any way that will give you the
opportunity to know your customer better.
|
| No.
2
|
Act – Don’t React
|
| Engage
in bold and innovative actions that
illustrate your understanding of your
customers’ needs, and how your product or
service can best satisfy those needs.
Also, be willing to change things.
What worked last time, last year, or
with the last campaign may not be
appropriate this time.
Do not wait for the customer to tell
you how your service could be better, how
your product could be more cost effective,
or why your goods and services are superior
to those of the competition.
Show your diverse customers how
important their business is to you, before
your competitors do!
|
| No.
3 |
NEVER Treat “Some” Customers
“Less Than Others”
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It
is important to understand that minorities
often feel as though businesses fail to do
for them what they normally do for
non-minority customers.
History and a series of investigative
television news programs have shown that
minorities are often correct in their
perception of being treated less than.
Every business should ask itself a
series of questions to determine whether it
has been appropriate and consistent in its
treatment of all of its customers.
These questions include, Have we take
any short cuts in servicing minorities, and
if so, what are the critical assumptions we
are making?
(They are frequently wrong.)
Do we “dot all the i’s, and cross
all the t’s” when it comes to
facilities, products and services slated for
minority communities?
Are they the same caliber as the ones
we provide to upscale markets?
Do we dedicate the same amount of
resources to our diverse marketing efforts?
Have we put in place barriers that
would not normally exist for other markets,
if so, why?
If
your business has been consistent with the
level of facilities, products and services
it provides across all of its markets, then
it is among a handful of businesses that
consistently do the right thing.
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| No.
4
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Accept Unique Customer
Characteristics and Traits
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| The
diverse market you are selling to may have
its own unique characteristics.
You probably cannot change these,
just as you cannot change the personality
traits of the people around you.
Learn to understand and accept
diversity where it exists.
In the most cases, you will find
diversity something to celebrate, not avoid.
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| No.
5
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Be Inclusive
|
| Make
sure that those who are in your diverse
markets are also part of your strategic
processes.
One way to institutionalize inclusion
is to establish internal diversity councils
that provide feedback on all of the
company’s processes that reach diverse
markets.
These processes include employment,
purchasing, product development,
positioning, and packaging; service
standards; communications; and community
outreach. If a company wants to reach a
diverse audience, it is best to rely upon
the expertise of those who are intimately
familiar with that audience.
Returning to our discussion about
Toyota
, a minority-owned advertising agency would
have undoubtedly provided
Toyota
with a more appropriate message for its
multi-cultural market segments. |
| No.
6 |
Make Deposits |
| Relationships
are a lot like bank accounts.
The number and size of the deposits
and withdrawals determine the balance of any
relationship.
Deposits need to be made on an
ongoing basis to ensure a healthy balance.
Look at your company’s
philanthropic, volunteer, community, civic,
and other local activities.
Each one contributes to a base of
support with specific market segments.
Building goodwill with diverse
communities creates a relationship balance
that can be drawn upon as the need arises. |
Take
Everything Into Consideration
My
six suggestions for establishing positive
relationships with diverse customers can
enhance both the immediate and the long-term
prospects of any organization.
The
sincerity of
Toyota
’s diversity efforts will be measured by
what the company does during and after its
ten year commitment period.
I am not willing to wait that long to
buy my next car.
Instead, I will have to evaluate each
automaker’s “community responsibility
factor”, along with other key factors, and
make a purchase.
You
can bet that I will purchase my next car
from a company that values diversity and
appreciates their relationship with my
community!
The
End |
