Hey Guys!! This has become a normal way to address people in both personal and professional spaces. Women do not mind and, of course, men do not have any reason to.
Now, consider a situation where the address gets reversed to, “Hey Girls!”
Will men accept this? Or will they see it as an insult?
And the latest doing rounds is “Bro” – again while addressing all. Is this the inclusivity that we keep harping on these days?
In our early schooling days, we all learnt pronouns and their usage based on gender which was binary male/female, and on singular/plural framework. Now, in modern society, those rules of grammar seem outdated. New, complex layers have been added to people’s identity and our language has to account for that.
In one of my earlier articles too I talked about how language undergoes change and how it becomes imperative for language to grow, expand, morph and adapt to meet the needs of the changing times. In that earlier article, I detailed the journey of the word ‘Distance’. And this article is about the changing usage of pronouns and its acceptance, as a part of evolution.
In 2015, singular “they” was declared ‘word of the year’ by the 200 linguists at the American Dialect Society. Both Merriam-Webster and the Oxford dictionary also include the singular “they”. Though it goes against what our fifth-grade teacher taught us, but “they” as singular pronoun is now recognized as grammatically correct.
In 2017, an Instagram post by the global superstar and award-winning singer, Jennifer Lopez, drew lot of attention and praise from her fans, where she shared a photo of her sister's child, Brendan, with a caption which said, “This is Brendan my sister Leslie's second child!! They were the one person selected to represent their school at #globalyoungleadersconference in Washington DC!!! And I couldn't be more proud!!!”
Of course, the post reflected the emotion of a proud aunt. But behind the emotion, the message inspired many for use of gender-neutral pronouns like "person," "they" and "their".
Celebrities and public figures taking steps towards show of solidarity and support to a particular community, definitely inspires many and makes the change in society easy and possible.
Nowadays, we are seeing the trend of mentioning pronouns on social media bios picking up. Individuals are already being seen moving and embracing the inclusive, gender-neutral world. If we observe we will find he/him, she/her, they/them, on social media and email signatures of people becoming a new norm. It’s a small change on self-portrayal but a big step towards inclusivity and safeguarding respect of many.
Globally, societies are getting increasingly sensitised towards the right portrayal of gender roles and expect the same from the world of marketing and advertising as it’s a powerful agent for change. It plays a major role in shaping consumer behaviour and societal values.
As more and more consumers are becoming aware and raising their voices for the right cause, brands have to follow suit. A study by McKinsey stated that 48% of Gen Zers value brands that don’t classify products as male or female. Such shifts in consumer perception have to become a part of brand voice and get reflected in the marketing of products. As is visible in beauty and wellness segment, where unisex salons, fragrances and many other gender-neutral products are launched. Positive gender norms can contribute in bringing gender parity over time, thus leading to a better outcome for both society and brands from a financial and sustainable view. The power to change brand behaviour definitely lies with the consumer.
Certain well-meaning changes are being seen in last few years. For the first time, in 2017, The Associated Press announced that it permits journalists to use “they” as a singular pronoun. Similar initiatives are expected from brands across.
Recently, in the month of June which is celebrated as Pride month throughout the world, I had written an article for WARC. The article mainly focused on how the brands which come out in rainbow colours during Pride month should move beyond such symbolic gestures and turn their attention towards creating true value for the LGBTQ+ community, leading to long-term real impact.
Today with woke culture evolving, we find consumers more socially aware, demanding and vocal. For many, the preference of brands goes to those which take a stand on relevant issues. A diverse, equitable, inclusive culture is what today’s aware consumers aim at creating, both at home and workplace. Same is expected from the brands and corporations.
Certain examples from the brand world definitely deserve a mention here to depict the role being played by brands towards this societal transformation.
Coke carries a legacy of advertising, emphasizing the brand’s core values of inclusion and diversity. In that line, it came out with a new super bowl ad ‘The Wonder of Us’ in 2018, which included singular they/them.
Another notable example is that of hard seltzer US brand White Claw, which has been highly successful with its trends’ driven marketing strategies. Its ubiquitous product designs have a wide appeal for all different demographics and this brand, launched in 2016, reported 283% year-over-year growth, in July 2019, mainly attributed to its gender-neutral approach. Also, standardized packaging and product design leads to positive outcome from cost-savings and sustainability perspective.
In a very recent development, Instagram users will be able to mention their pronouns, as this Facebook-owned social media platform has now added an extra field to profile bios. Currently, the new feature is available only in a few countries, with plans to cover other countries like India soon.
Even toy brands like Barbie are playing an important role of being silent changemakers by depicting gender-neutrality through their dolls with LGBTQ+ identity, and thus, providing positive learnings to kids right from their developing age. Laura A. Jacobs, LCSW, a psychotherapist and author devoted to the diversity of gender identity and sexual expression, very well expressed, “I think that these dolls send a message to outsiders that these identities are becoming more and more a normalized society."
Brands and consumers are inextricably linked, each influencing the other and both together shaping culture & society.
Brands of the future will be the ones which will think of people as just humans, not women and men. Success for brands rests on (unique) individuals and role of brands should be to satisfy an individual rather than a gender. As, focus on the prior would enhance the product and that on the latter would divide it instead.
On the consumer/individual front, easiest way to bring pronouns into our everyday culture is to start with yourself. While introducing yourself, along with name, include your gender pronouns too. If you carry a singular and visible gender identity, you are the privileged lot and this introduction will be your acknowledgement of this privilege. At the same time, this will be a positive way to show support & respect for those people in minority, you work with. Each individual deserves the respect of being referred to in a way that aligns with how they see themselves and choose to be seen. After all sex is assigned at birth whereas gender is a social construct, is located in the mind.
To many, this difference may be insignificant, but it's a very important distinction indeed.
Hopefully, one day it will all become commonplace and completely normalized.
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