Embedding inclusion in your brand
Staff at students at UEA
In April, UEA’s Head of Brand and Content - Charlene Katuwawala - was our guest speaker for an online session looking at the importance on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in brand work. Charlene drew on her marketing background in a range of sectors, and her lived experience, with particular reference to her most recent work leading a project to make the UEA Brand more inclusive.
During the session, Charlene asked and reiterated a key question – which will inspire those who already value accessibility, and could be the lynchpin in making a business case for investing in this work…
Why wouldn’t you want to reach the widest possible audience?
This was a really inspiring and comprehensive session, with strategic thinking and some really simple practical tips. Some other headline thoughts and takeaways included:
Be consistent and mean what you say. If inclusion work is a tick-box activity, it will be apparent
Is your language alienating anyone? Is it inclusive? Avoid slang and write in impartial ways
Is your imagery representative of your audience? Can people see themselves in the pictures you share?
It sometimes seems that bias can be very subtle, but its only subtle when it doesn’t apply to you
The spectrum of inclusion is huge, changes to include some audiences won’t include everyone
Use audience research and data – find out if there are common examples of feedback that need to be addressed
You can’t do this work in a silo. Consult with your users and those with lived experience and acknowledge their input (ideally, pay them for their time)
Ensure that know what your organisation’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion objectives and policies are – and if there are laws and regulations that pertain to inclusion in your area of work
Don’t let accessibility and inclusion be an afterthought
Grow and learn – fail, say sorry, learn, do better
ASK QUESTIONS. DON’T ASSUME.
Lastly, and really importantly, there can be real joy in this work, make sure you celebrate success.
Charlene also shared some links to useful websites:
WUHCAG for simplifying WCAG criteria
Potential funding information/grants
Good Things – Fix the Digital Divide Fund