D&Ivertising: Lifestyle Brands & Gen Z Loyalty

Diversity and inclusion (D&I) in marketing have become crucial factors that affect consumer behavior and brand loyalty trends. This study looks at the interactions between D&I representations through racial diversity and gender inclusion in advertising and consumers' subsequent purchase intentions and brand loyalty. This is the context of Gen Z consumers in Western cultural contexts. Gen Z believes brands should incorporate social responsibility and D&I initiatives into their advertising and business practices due to their strong belief systems and tendencies to hold brands accountable (Lutrell & McGrath, 2021, p. 29). Gen Z specifically was selected as the focus of this research due to their unique consumer behavior trends and their rising purchasing power within today’s marketplace (Thangavel et al., 2019, p. 2; Wang, 2021, p. 73). There is little research on how D&I representation impacts brand loyalty and purchase intent among Gen Z consumers in the West. This study seeks to close this gap by exploring how D&I representation in advertisements influences Gen Z consumers' perceptions and loyalty toward lifestyle brands. We chose a quantitative survey experiment as our methodology, where data was collected from Gen Z consumers across Western countries to understand their perceptions of genuineness and authenticity concerning advertisements featuring diverse forms of racial representations as well as inclusive representations based on gender. Our insights show that advertisements containing gender inclusion do not result in increased attributions of authenticity and genuineness. However, racial diversity does play a significant role in attributing genuineness and authenticity to a brand, thus increasing individuals' purchase intentions and loyalty to the brand. These insights are very useful for marketers, brands, and academics, as they uncover the significance of D&I in advertising and their subsequent implications. This study allows for a more in-depth understanding of the internal cognitive processes that take place when consumers engage with advertisements. This is valuable for academics in the fields of consumer psychology and marketing, as it allows for deeper insights into the psychological processes that lead Gen Z to certain attributions and perceptions of said advertisements. Future research could expand upon the types of diversity that are assessed, we advise more diverse demographics, such as sexual orientation, gender, or disabilities to allow for more progressive findings. We would also recommend future researchers to expand beyond Western cultural contexts, this could offer insights regarding today’s globalized marketplace and the realities of shared meanings and their variations within cross-cultural contexts. This research is a valuable tool for furthering one’s understanding of modern marketing, consumerism, Gen Z, lifestyle brands, and D&I, all of which are relevant topics in today’s globalized marketplace.