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Guerillascope

Brands, agencies and the fear around disability

Stuart Bryan, content manager at Guerillascope was born without his left forearm. Here, he explains why representation in advertising is so important – and how brands failing to feature people with disabilities appear out of touch with society.

Brands, agencies and the fear around disability

When it comes to shaping public discourse, brands wield huge power. The most courageous have the capacity to act as zeitgeists, defining and crystallising new attitudes or behaviours that can have profoundly positive impacts on society.

We are long overdue displays of such courage in the representation of people with disabilities.

Exposure dismantles barriers
Anyone with a keen interest in this topic knows that, despite accounting for 20% of the population, just 0.06% of characters featured in UK advertisements have a disability, according to a report commissioned by Lloyds Bank.

There can no longer be any excuses for this disconnect, especially when 55% of Brits believe there are not more people with disabilities in ads because it makes others “feel uncomfortable”. Especially when 63% of those with physical disabilities (and likely many more with an unseen disability) believe greater exposure chisels away at associated stigmas. We must dismantle these barriers.

An incident from my childhood springs to mind here. While round our family’s house for dinner, my sister’s 11-year-old friend started sobbing wildly after seeing my prosthetic arm laying in the laundry basket. No, they’re not washing machine friendly and yes, I’m pretty sure she thought we were a clan of serial killers.

Overcome fear through listening
We laugh about this story now and that’s because familiarity breeds acceptance. This is what we need on a societal level. Yet, when it comes to inclusion, there is simply far too much talk and not enough listening.

As somebody with a disability, am I expected to feel grateful when brands post a nice LinkedIn status on International Day of Disabled Persons, when not one single ad creative they’ve ever produced has featured a disabled person?

I do not for one second believe that this reluctance is borne from a lack of empathy. Invariably, we’re talking about decision-makers who are nice, compassionate people; people who want to see positive change.

Rather, it boils down to fear. Fear of looking inauthentic. Fear of causing offence. Fear of striking the wrong tone. Operating under the scrutiny of a cancel culture fanned by social media, it’s almost understandable.

Diverse talent brings diverse perspectives
Yet, here’s a solution: employ more people with disabilities. Involve them in the creative process. Engage with and understand their lived experiences. Take a stand and embrace different perspectives – don’t shy away.

There’s an urgent need for talent that understands and champions people who, when you strip away problematic notions of ‘normality’, are just like everyone else. We shop (the spending power of people with disabilities is estimated to be worth £249 billion to the UK economy). We go out with friends. We play computer games, try to stay healthy and have strong opinions on every Love Island contestant.

Yet we’re made to feel like outsiders. The psychological impact of feeling unrepresented – of being ignored and effectively banished – in the media content we consume can damage profoundly. Human beings are fundamentally gregarious; we need that sense of belonging; we crave acceptance. To deprive someone of that is to rob them of self-validation.

But here we are. And it’s not just a brand-side issue, either. Agencies must also up their game; for while noteworthy gains have been made with regards to gender equality, sexual identity and, more cautiously, the representation of ethnic minority groups, disability seems to be a ‘risk’ many leaders are unwilling to take on.

Breaking up the hegemony
This predominantly white, ‘able-bodied’ – and I use that term resentfully – hegemony that permeates the upper echelons of decision-making is unfit for purpose (fact: it never has been) in a society so richly varied. We cannot sit here congratulating ourselves for a job well done on diversity, while continuing to shun disability.

There are shoots of progress, of course. Children’s TV in particular is blazing a trail of inclusivity with programming such as Melody & Friends and Pablo; brands such as Microsoft, River Island and M&S have also launched marketing campaigns focused on or prominently featuring people with disabilities. But generally, they do not reflect the norm.

Ultimately, great marketers distinguish themselves as such by producing emotive, contextually relevant campaigns that resonate on a personal level. They brighten, entertain, reassure, inspire and comfort. So why are we as an industry not including people with disabilities in the snapshots of reality we specialise in capturing? 

The only thing we should have to fear is a society that marginalises people for things they cannot – nor should ever want to – change.

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