Using WeChat to reach Chinese consumers in Australia

by thangngo | Jul 8, 2017 | Chinese Marketing

How to reach Chinese audience in Australia with WeChat

Are you interested in Marketing to Chinese consumers? Nolan Yu, a former PR ninja in Shanghai, now a media warrior in Sydney, writes this guest post about WeChat, the Chinese social platform that ‘rules them all’.

You might not use the WeChat, but I am sure you’ve heard about this Chinese instant messaging app, which The Economist has labelled the “one app to rule them all”. The 2017 WeChat User Report from Tencent revealed the average time spent in WeChat is now 66 minutes per day, creating little doubt that WeChat is the no.1 platform to reach the Chinese audience today.

Last year, The New York Times posted a video called How China is Changing Your Internet which perfectly demonstrated the mind-blowing functions WeChat can offer and how this app changed Chinese people’s day to day life. You can even order a meal in a restaurant that has no wait staff or menus.

Today in Australia, users can’t do all of those cool things on WeChat, because some functionality aren’t available outside of China. What functions can we use in Australia? How can we leverage those functions to reach the local Chinese community?

If you want to know the answer, please keep reading…

Why use WeChat?

Even though I have WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and SnapChat on my phone, I rely on WeChat to stay in touch with my Chinese and some non-Chinese friends. In Australia, some Chinese SMB owners use the ‘group chat’ function to reach and directly communicate with customers, and in app functionality allows you to easily share and scan the group’s QR code to spread it among contacts to join the chat group.

As WeChat is called the “one app to rule them all”, it refers to a features that at a minimum, can do whatever Facebook can offer, including ‘Page’ and ‘Timeline’. They call these functions ‘Moments’ in WeChat. This is where I maintain my loose relationships through that news feed and posting pictures, liking and commenting on others’ posts. ‘WeChat Moments Ads’ (sponsored posts) are available for advertisers, unfortunately, this tool hasn’t been rolled out to Australia yet to target Australian users. Advertisers can however, target Chinese users in China with this feature, and potentially those who are tourists.

The good news is the first-ever ‘Moments Ads’ was just launched in North America, so I reckon we don’t have to wait too long for it to arrive in Australia. I reckon it will open a new door for Australian marketers to reach local Chinese.

BMW’s Moments Advertisement

WeChat is also the main source of information for most Chinese, including myself, as I try to catch up with the latest trends in China while living in Sydney. For example, on my way to work, I read articles and reports from LinkedIn and The Business of Fashion (BoF) by simply subscribing to their official accounts (almost all major publishers and brands have their own accounts).

Nolan’s WeChat subscriptions.

I also follow some Chinese influencers such as one of China’s top fashion blogger, ‘gogoboi’. The latest post, sponsored by YSL, has exceeded 100,000+ views (the largest number can be shown in the post).

gogoboi’s post sponsored by YSL

The feature of the official account is not limited to just posting articles, as WeChat has opened their ecosystem to brands and developers. You can actually consider it as a web browser, where brands can plug in their online store, offer 24/7 customer service and enable chatbots to serve their official accounts. It means users don’t need to leave the app to make the transaction, which is powered by WeChat’s online payment platform, WeChat Wallet.

More and more Chinese businesses operating in Australia have started supporting WeChat Wallet (or their biggest rival, Alipay), where users can pay by scanning a QR code. There are three leading payment mPOS and POS systems in Australia that are enabling retailers and advertisers to connect to these Chinese payment systems – PayLinx, Dinpay and Royal Pay.

WeChat Wallet

Australian Brands on WeChat

The recently released June 2017 Census data shows that there are over half a million Chinese-born residents in Australia with NSW being home to about half of this population. So you shouldn’t be surprised that there are publishers curating localised content for those Chinese residents.

Some Australian businesses like Westfield Australia, David Jones, and Qantas have their own official WeChat accounts to build brand awareness and manage customer loyalty.

David Jones’ Official WeChat Account

Local official accounts also mean opportunities for advertisers to target local audiences. Unfortunately, WeChat’s display advertising service is not yet available in Australia (it’s planned for Q4 of 2017). But just like how you work with Australian bloggers, you can directly contact those official account representatives to purchase banners built in their posts, or more easily, through IDENTITY Communications, the intelligent multicultural marketing agency.

WeChat Sponsored Posts

In addition, if you have a higher budget, you can also develop native content, or organise a brand sponsored event with those publishers. The challenge here is that there are not many local publishers with a strong subscriber base. Two major Sydney publishers are WeSydney and SydneyToday.

Sydney Today’s WeChat Display Banners

QR Codes & HTML5 on WeChat

The last thing I want to mention are QR codes and HTML 5 campaigns. To be honest, I am surprised that I still haven’t seen any QR Code Outdoor campaigns or HTML 5 WeChat campaigns yet in Sydney, which I think could be an opportunity for Australian advertisers.

JD.com WeChat html5 campaign

There is a code scanner embedded in ‘WeChat’, which is commonly used in Chinese OOH campaigns that include the QR code in their creative assets and message tag line as a call to action to drive a direct response. By scanning the Code, users can be directed to the campaign web page, or the brand’s WeChat official account. More importantly, Chinese audiences are familiar with this format, since they have formed this behaviour in China. So when you include the QR code in your campaign, your brand will create the opportunity for a direct communication channel with them.

‌Kindle OOH QR Code Campaign

QR Code WeChat Campaign at Metro Station in China

But it doesn’t mean you should simply include the QR code in every campaign and expect Chinese people scan it. Your content and the way you incorporate a QR code definitely needs to be interesting, engaging. It should offer a value exchange to give potential customers enough incentive to pull out their phones and scan the code.

Hope it helps, please feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions.

Credit: Main image from Business Insider all other images provided by Nolan Yu.

Key Statistics From The 2016 Australian Census

by thangngo | Jul 1, 2017 | Statistics

Key multicultural stats from the 2016 Census June 27 release.

The Census is the most comprehensive research into diverse communities in Australia. IDENTITY, the intelligent multicultural marketing agency, has summarised key multicultural stats from the June release of the 2016 Census below, including:

Top languages spoken in Australia, other than English.
Top 35 languages ranked by low English proficiency.
Top 50 countries of birth in Australia.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Status by Age and Gender.

If you find this information useful, please share – we’re happy for everyone to use.

Top languages spoken in Australia (other than English).

4.9m people speak a language other than English in Australia according to the 2016 Census. That’s an increase of 1m since the last Census in 2011. Mandarin is now our most spoken language other than English, by a long way – almost double the next language group, Arabic.

All languages recorded in the Census ranked by total Australian population. To sort by a State or Territory, click on the arrow pointers at the top of the corresponding column. For example, to find the top languages spoken in NSW, click on the arrow pointer to the right of the NSW column. For top languages spoken in Victoria, click on the pointer on the right of VIC.

Rank	Language	NSW	VIC	QLD	SA	WA	TAS	NT	ACT	Total
1	Mandarin	239945	191793	69474	28780	47840	3971	2163	12408	596711
2	Arabic	200825	79589	13644	9292	14132	829	361	3040	321728
3	Cantonese	143333	78079	24900	9666	19339	972	729	3853	280943
4	Vietnamese	102896	103430	25914	19017	20247	442	1215	4216	277400
5	Italian	75694	112272	20009	29106	29401	1096	765	3245	271597
6	Greek	81683	110707	10538	22993	4790	1191	3245	2436	237588
7	Tagalog/Filipino	69344	40831	28370	9347	25585	938	5039	2995	182493
8	Hindi	67034	51241	18163	7310	10747	639	852	3646	159652
9	Spanish	63527	35494	21006	5669	10415	936	487	3273	140817
10	Punjabi	33435	56171	17991	9306	12223	489	670	2215	132496
11	Korean	59912	15519	19620	3600	7107	506	360	2370	108997
12	German	23033	19714	16488	6453	9320	1576	842	1913	79353
13	Tamil	29681	25662	5520	2701	6888	306	516	1883	73161
14	French	23743	19313	11988	2720	9597	820	646	2047	70873
15	Urdu	29722	23205	4957	2942	5368	291	441	2369	69293
16	Indonesian	30032	16782	5551	1822	10934	253	1191	1325	67891
17	Macedonian	28144	29487	1264	633	5849	18	26	599	66019
18	Sinhalese	11234	37423	5907	2640	4939	222	527	1721	64612
19	Nepali	34606	10414	5918	4504	2831	1647	1219	866	62005
20	Turkish	21620	31832	2054	697	1727	88	53	285	58355
21	Persian (excluding Dari)	22044	16434	6713	4745	6703	593	151	937	58313
22	Croatian	21156	20504	4009	3075	5556	270	43	2272	56885
23	Japanese	17319	11480	16877	2200	5859	601	506	1116	55966
24	Thai	24839	11669	8126	1955	6403	490	866	1077	55444
25	Bengali	31687	10992	3683	2406	3263	148	432	1941	54566
26	Serbian	21488	17057	4759	4175	5038	127	61	1095	53801
27	Malayalam	13881	16950	7614	3692	7544	254	1274	1994	53206
28	Gujarati	18873	15059	6065	4345	7435	80	275	739	52888
29	Russian	18763	17685	6005	3289	3218	317	134	895	50314
30	Portuguese	23003	7301	8634	1550	7070	109	532	654	48853
31	Polish	14124	15175	5224	5677	5978	685	118	1089	48083
32	Samoan	16544	11609	14969	155	943	49	117	486	44869
33	Afrikaans	7735	5560	12525	2362	14208	375	308	652	43741
34	Khmer	11694	14720	2545	4255	1569	26	251	369	35428
35	Telugu	12456	13158	3442	1325	2169	110	255	1519	34435
36	Dutch	8686	8600	7157	2551	5100	903	243	582	33835
37	Non-verbal, so described	11716	9206	4860	2219	3611	366	398	790	33179
38	Maltese	12327	16898	1357	846	387	19	6	153	31987
39	Dari	9139	12386	2129	3408	2822	160	15	368	30437
40	Assyrian Neo-Aramaic	20317	7567	274	14	124	3	0	44	28349
41	Hazaraghi	4831	9060	1611	3922	2560	132	44	100	22272
42	Chinese, nfd	7115	7095	2330	1292	1211	232	62	637	19979
43	Hungarian	6533	6730	3478	1409	1232	129	89	290	19895
44	Malay	2838	4948	1893	1015	5899	189	143	326	17942
45	Min Nan	7210	5749	1327	810	2481	35	63	200	17905
46	Tongan	10286	3257	3054	130	440	41	122	364	17691
47	Chaldean Neo-Aramaic	9341	7779	35	7	3	0	0	8	17172
48	Burmese	4901	4176	1202	514	4904	108	168	348	16321
49	Bosnian	3885	5881	2549	1406	1877	61	25	138	15832
50	Somali	1244	7457	2441	415	2528	18	26	45	14176
51	Marathi	5969	3879	1038	708	1066	56	53	288	13055
52	Romanian	2451	5125	2365	968	1857	48	25	115	12955
53	Inadequately described	3246	4274	2381	793	1362	312	184	290	12847
54	Dinka	2010	4869	1781	1780	1600	11	104	537	12701
55	Maori (New Zealand)	2429	1680	4264	222	2859	52	178	58	11747
56	Swahili	1773	2447	2262	2004	2364	143	232	238	11460
57	Shona	2583	2129	1757	624	3215	51	356	324	11037
58	Hebrew	3468	5177	716	189	623	22	16	133	10341
59	Karen	827	5175	1404	350	2067	168	48	228	10270
60	Armenian	7843	2005	115	111	103	4	0	24	10194
61	Auslan	2695	2874	2336	852	941	204	61	155	10112
62	Lao	5404	1999	863	708	226	20	47	718	9983
63	Kannada	3663	3655	839	453	801	32	30	225	9701
64	Pashto	2654	4692	532	590	546	15	21	184	9233
65	Albanian	772	6834	512	579	404	14	20	48	9181
66	Hakka	1679	5533	488	93	595	6	531	47	8989
67	Swedish	3317	1905	1940	396	1009	120	66	206	8956
68	Australian Indigenous Languages, nfd	610	159	2299	618	1545	21	3482	44	8803
69	Fijian	4525	1008	1700	172	370	34	175	131	8145
70	Czech	3392	1562	1394	484	783	124	51	150	7938
71	Southern Asian Languages, nfd	2748	2841	1042	389	680	31	58	118	7915
72	Ukrainian	2208	2836	706	1097	617	52	18	141	7676
73	Kriol	3	19	364	3	2376	0	4390	0	7155
74	Amharic	769	3724	685	498	890	151	9	87	6812
75	Kurdish	2654	1604	592	754	533	19	4	42	6199
76	Yumplatok (Torres Strait Creole)	78	25	5901	4	103	0	55	4	6171
77	Serbo-Croatian/Yugoslavian, so described	1828	1913	895	507	811	13	7	88	6061
78	Finnish	1589	968	2115	260	417	115	42	473	5962
79	Danish	1728	1089	1631	286	766	98	57	118	5777
80	Slovak	2238	1588	731	363	414	27	10	61	5437
81	Maori (Cook Island)	1612	1468	1609	63	308	10	21	28	5107
82	Creole, nfd	133	844	3414	106	172	8	203	68	4939
83	Chin Haka	166	3143	150	574	720	12	42	0	4806
84	Tigrinya	378	2215	711	325	745	125	4	76	4583
85	Djambarrpuyngu	0	3	6	0	0	0	4275	0	4282
86	Mauritian Creole	762	2368	82	19	929	3	14	19	4200
87	Slovene	1269	1736	466	265	200	22	17	108	4089
88	Bisaya	1025	808	937	314	667	45	152	97	4061
89	Tok Pisin (Neomelanesian)	643	315	1887	86	603	22	92	94	3741
90	Burmese and Related Languages, nec	309	1828	525	356	312	54	3	29	3407
91	Wu	2150	936	106	72	51	3	0	62	3384
92	Pitjantjatjara	8	13	14	1847	364	3	868	3	3125
93	Kirundi (Rundi)	247	324	1002	878	576	24	39	7	3097
94	Akan	1742	486	209	110	423	13	11	105	3095
95	Oromo	115	2101	183	134	405	79	18	12	3047
96	Latvian	875	1007	277	492	161	28	15	97	2950
97	Norwegian	964	523	717	172	370	38	20	91	2898
98	Cebuano	756	705	535	234	450	20	78	42	2820
99	African Languages, nec	845	571	465	288	480	46	38	59	2786
100	Fijian Hindustani	1464	535	542	45	52	0	19	45	2710
101	Bulgarian	843	704	411	334	330	18	15	24	2682
102	Krio	1315	292	262	162	346	34	9	115	2530
103	Yoruba	635	672	381	149	462	24	50	93	2465
104	Hmong	151	573	1667	0	0	43	0	18	2449
105	Konkani	830	967	194	108	255	8	13	44	2416
106	Other Southern Asian Languages	306	182	130	62	1159	19	7	533	2398
107	French Creole, nfd	367	1215	182	23	552	0	4	40	2385
108	Warlpiri	7	16	15	50	39	0	2171	3	2304
109	Rohingya	964	566	609	51	23	0	19	4	2248
110	African Languages, nfd	602	626	350	140	402	22	26	54	2232
111	Nuer	19	1601	136	69	289	10	34	0	2157
112	Mongolian	1507	181	194	46	121	12	0	88	2144
113	Tiwi	6	6	9	8	3	0	2006	0	2040
114	Igbo	716	450	237	146	250	31	47	152	2035
115	Pidgin, nfd	78	190	1544	50	17	11	81	46	2021
116	Lithuanian	722	654	165	244	151	29	5	36	1999
117	Murrinh Patha	4	8	4	0	3	0	1958	0	1973
118	Irish	586	412	299	73	473	24	25	40	1941
119	Estonian	608	290	314	117	411	21	55	20	1844
120	Kunwinjku	0	0	0	0	3	0	1703	0	1710
121	Welsh	434	300	365	147	365	23	17	43	1688
122	Sindhi	458	574	259	111	101	3	11	69	1592
123	Alyawarr	0	0	19	3	0	0	1523	0	1548
124	Yiddish	137	1294	28	4	27	7	0	5	1495
125	Anindilyakwa	0	0	19	0	0	0	1458	0	1484
126	Tibetan	857	391	81	35	22	19	0	74	1473
127	Indo-Aryan, nfd	611	349	226	60	95	12	10	28	1400
128	Ndebele	356	203	198	51	420	3	87	49	1363
129	Sign Languages, nfd	388	200	415	98	124	36	18	12	1296
130	Ngaanyatjarra	0	0	0	4	1097	0	11	0	1112
131	Tetum	300	337	63	41	117	7	222	20	1105
132	Zomi	63	620	234	181	3	13	0	0	1104
133	Acholi	72	111	420	143	253	55	28	0	1089
134	Norf'k-Pitcairn	125	9	166	3	11	0	3	3	1035
135	Uygur	289	271	50	397	10	0	0	3	1025
136	Gaelic (Scotland)	317	247	177	48	161	19	15	22	1006
137	Burarra	0	0	6	0	3	0	986	0	995
138	Kalaw Kawaw Ya/Kalaw Lagaw Ya	12	3	930	0	3	0	8	0	957
139	Luritja	3	0	0	15	27	0	904	0	955
140	Tokelauan	455	28	402	13	41	0	17	0	953
141	Burmese and Related Languages, nfd	58	379	87	96	288	26	0	10	951
142	Madi	185	42	286	148	172	73	14	13	934
143	Iranic, nfd	296	326	84	89	91	0	3	5	891
144	Kinyarwanda (Rwanda)	144	98	350	137	120	16	0	13	880
145	Cape York Peninsula Languages, nec	0	3	854	0	3	0	13	0	875
146	Bari	79	169	93	147	319	19	19	12	853
147	Arrernte, nec	8	7	16	31	7	0	780	0	840
148	Niue	311	108	269	10	80	8	0	3	787
149	Bemba	61	81	87	21	513	3	6	12	783
150	Guugu Yimidhirr	0	7	765	0	0	0	0	0	775
151	Yolngu Matha, nfd	27	9	40	0	8	0	633	0	724
152	Martu Wangka	0	0	0	0	720	0	7	0	724
153	Oriya	313	236	58	23	43	4	0	41	721
154	Indo-Aryan, nec	335	217	44	43	56	7	3	14	716
155	Swiss, so described	171	114	218	35	128	20	20	9	711
156	Ilonggo (Hiligaynon)	220	176	130	56	96	5	17	3	696
157	Motu (HiriMotu)	54	27	543	13	13	0	22	15	693
158	Arrernte, nfd	0	0	3	3	0	0	674	0	688
159	Zulu	170	110	107	44	164	9	37	21	664
160	Mon-Khmer, nec	39	128	462	0	3	22	0	5	655
161	Aboriginal English, so described	169	31	188	90	119	0	25	23	651
162	Tulu	191	230	50	24	88	0	7	0	585
163	Mandinka	121	63	162	173	48	8	7	0	582
164	Harari	17	514	17	4	25	0	0	0	576
165	Papua New Guinea Languages, nfd	56	32	410	14	27	3	19	11	570
166	IIokano	222	135	73	37	75	0	22	6	559
167	Ewe	155	119	83	68	94	0	9	18	541
168	Dhivehi	62	168	61	59	147	10	3	27	539
169	Anmatyerr, nec	0	0	0	3	0	0	521	0	531
170	Fulfulde	243	41	52	43	136	0	3	9	525
171	Seychelles Creole	51	27	166	7	275	0	0	0	522
172	Uzbek	72	87	154	169	29	3	0	8	518
173	Luganda	138	148	74	34	85	3	3	11	498
174	Timorese	125	263	15	6	23	0	58	0	498
175	Nyungar	15	21	12	11	419	0	8	0	475
176	Wiradjuri	372	22	37	0	0	0	3	19	457
177	Tswana	93	106	84	37	90	4	7	23	451
178	Wik Mungkan	0	3	442	0	0	0	0	0	450
179	Azeri	188	100	54	16	56	6	0	17	445
180	Catalan	164	132	72	18	37	11	0	8	443
181	Western Arrarnta	0	0	0	14	0	0	422	0	440
182	Yankunytjatjara	13	4	3	110	8	0	287	0	420
183	Nyanja (Chichewa)	43	66	45	40	196	12	10	15	416
184	Gurindji	3	0	3	0	3	0	390	0	405
185	Gilbertese	66	53	189	19	18	0	35	13	387
186	Eastern Arrernte	0	0	6	4	0	0	381	0	385
187	Yindjibarndi	0	0	0	0	375	0	0	0	377
188	Assamese	140	139	34	12	37	0	0	25	373
189	Maung	0	0	0	0	0	0	376	0	371
190	Rotuman	206	17	98	4	26	3	7	5	363
191	Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nec	169	14	57	30	28	44	16	8	362
192	Turkmen	155	55	36	66	24	0	0	3	336
193	Torres Strait Island Languages, nfd	11	4	292	0	13	0	16	3	335
194	Dhuwaya	0	0	0	0	0	0	334	0	334
195	Kuku Yalanji	0	0	326	0	0	0	0	0	323
196	Warumungu	0	0	6	3	3	0	302	0	321
197	Bardi	0	0	0	0	318	0	0	0	321
198	Nauruan	13	143	147	0	0	0	0	7	312
199	Ngarrindjeri	5	4	0	292	3	0	7	0	312
200	Manyjilyjarra	0	3	0	0	310	0	0	0	311
201	Latin	103	98	59	20	15	7	0	7	309
202	Southeast Asian Austronesian Languages, nec	88	56	79	14	51	4	3	9	305
203	Lingala	22	36	82	59	67	4	19	0	301
204	Solomon Islands Pijin	66	11	142	5	36	0	8	17	294
205	Southeast Asian Austronesian Languages, nfd	73	45	45	14	106	0	6	3	291
206	Icelandic	75	43	81	16	64	0	0	0	286
207	Walmajarri	0	0	0	0	279	0	7	0	283
208	Mon	23	35	8	12	56	0	0	143	282
209	Nunggubuyu	0	0	0	0	0	0	276	0	276
210	Pacific Austronesian Languages, nec	71	34	115	11	15	0	7	9	267
211	Bislama	77	36	105	10	7	5	7	13	266
212	Dhuwal, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	265	0	266
213	Liberian (Liberian English)	52	57	69	38	23	0	10	3	251
214	Balochi	56	25	14	15	142	0	0	3	251
215	Tuvaluan	23	60	148	0	10	0	5	3	249
216	Cypriot, so described	87	111	12	31	3	0	4	0	249
217	Pampangan	99	73	44	8	20	0	0	0	249
218	Anuak	34	22	106	16	57	3	0	0	242
219	Ngarinyman	0	0	0	0	12	0	220	0	234
220	Shilluk	12	200	0	0	4	0	0	4	231
221	Ga	81	41	30	28	38	0	3	7	227
222	Wangkatha	0	3	8	0	213	0	0	0	225
223	Dan (Gio-Dan)	62	91	8	28	31	0	0	0	222
224	Key Word Sign Australia	54	42	70	6	29	0	3	3	218
225	Meriam Mir	0	0	195	0	3	0	21	0	217
226	Jaru	0	0	0	0	207	0	3	0	217
227	Kashmiri	78	89	16	6	9	0	0	8	215
228	Nyangumarta	0	0	0	0	211	0	0	0	211
229	Kuuk Thayorre	0	0	204	0	0	0	3	0	205
230	Hausa	64	57	20	19	32	11	0	5	202
231	Balinese	69	32	40	9	37	0	13	0	199
232	Georgian	103	73	7	9	0	0	0	3	198
233	Moro (Nuba Moro)	54	28	52	0	53	5	0	0	188
234	Belorussian	47	81	16	19	13	0	0	3	187
235	Kune	0	3	0	0	0	0	175	0	180
236	Ndjebbana (Gunavidji)	0	0	0	0	0	0	173	0	177
237	Tigre	4	103	6	15	35	0	0	4	170
238	Kija	0	0	0	0	162	0	0	0	169
239	Romany	31	96	13	3	21	3	0	0	167
240	Mandaean (Mandaic)	85	32	24	7	14	0	0	0	164
241	Czechoslovakian, so described	73	28	20	18	17	3	0	3	161
242	Xhosa	41	27	35	9	33	0	0	4	159
243	Eastern European Languages, nfd	40	38	5	9	64	0	0	0	157
244	Miriwoong	0	0	0	0	139	0	13	0	156
245	Papua New Guinea Languages, nec	26	27	69	4	4	7	3	6	152
246	Pintupi	0	0	0	0	60	0	80	0	147
247	Gupapuyngu	0	0	0	0	0	0	145	0	146
248	Mayali	0	0	0	0	0	0	146	0	145
249	Wajarri	0	5	0	0	108	0	27	0	145
250	Adnymathanha	0	0	0	130	0	0	3	0	140
251	Kikuyu	21	40	5	25	37	0	8	0	137
252	Luo	24	30	24	7	32	0	3	7	135
253	Gooniyandi	0	0	0	0	134	0	0	0	134
254	Invented Languages	32	37	15	23	13	3	0	4	131
255	Kukatja	0	0	0	0	121	0	9	0	130
256	Garrwa	0	0	12	0	0	0	117	0	129
257	Dhuwala, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	125	0	125
258	Iwaidja	0	0	0	3	0	0	112	0	123
259	Kaytetye	0	0	0	0	0	0	118	0	122
260	Other Eastern Asian Languages, nec	58	19	34	3	3	0	6	0	120
261	Dravidian, nec	44	48	14	0	3	0	0	0	118
262	American Languages	36	28	26	4	12	0	3	4	116
263	Gumatj	0	0	0	0	0	0	116	0	116
264	Tatar	3	9	0	86	0	4	0	0	113
265	Bandjalang	91	3	16	0	0	0	0	0	113
266	Bikol	29	28	25	16	8	0	0	3	111
267	Djinang, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	107	0	107
268	Gamilaraay	69	0	25	0	0	0	0	3	105
269	Anmatyerr, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	101	0	105
270	Banyjima	0	0	0	0	105	0	0	0	104
271	Acehnese	54	0	33	0	15	0	0	0	104
272	Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nfd	27	0	32	0	0	0	41	0	102
273	Mudburra	0	0	0	0	0	0	90	0	92
274	Gudanji	0	0	25	0	0	0	62	0	91
275	Djapu	0	0	0	0	37	0	49	0	90
276	Gumbaynggir	87	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	90
277	Galpu	0	0	0	0	0	0	89	0	89
278	Mann	11	29	18	21	10	0	0	0	88
279	Other Southern European Languages, nec	22	36	11	7	13	0	0	0	85
280	Pacific Austronesian Languages, nfd	22	9	49	0	6	0	0	0	85
281	Turkic, nec	20	15	11	3	21	0	0	0	80
282	Javanese	21	18	5	4	14	0	3	7	78
283	Bassa	24	19	3	15	10	0	6	3	77
284	Loma (Lorma)	3	32	4	7	26	0	3	0	75
285	Themne	53	0	10	0	0	0	0	0	69
286	Krahn	7	22	9	23	6	0	0	3	68
287	Mangala	0	0	0	0	68	0	0	0	68
288	Basque	15	13	43	0	4	0	0	0	65
289	Lardil	0	0	65	0	0	0	0	0	65
290	Dhalwangu	0	0	0	0	0	0	61	0	62
291	Iban	9	7	8	9	33	0	0	0	62
292	Yorta Yorta	3	55	0	0	0	0	0	0	62
293	Wambaya	0	0	0	0	0	0	60	0	61
294	Yawuru	0	3	0	0	44	0	17	0	61
295	Nyikina	0	0	0	0	60	0	0	0	61
296	Other Southeast Asian Languages	21	4	13	4	9	0	0	3	58
297	Na-kara	0	0	0	0	0	0	58	0	58
298	Wangurri	0	0	0	0	0	0	58	0	58
299	Sign Languages, nec	20	17	17	0	0	3	0	3	56
300	Frisian	14	14	16	7	3	0	0	5	55
301	Oceanian Pidgins and Creoles, nec	3	9	40	0	0	0	3	3	55
302	Ganalbingu	0	0	0	0	0	0	53	0	54
303	Kaurna	0	0	0	45	4	0	0	0	53
304	Kuninjku	0	0	0	0	0	0	51	0	51
305	Liyagalawumirr	0	0	0	0	0	0	51	0	51
306	Wardaman	0	0	0	0	0	0	50	0	50
307	Spanish Creole, nfd	3	26	10	0	0	0	0	7	49
308	Gun-nartpa	0	0	0	0	0	0	49	0	49
309	Letzeburgish	16	7	5	0	10	0	0	0	48
310	Aromunian (Macedo-Romanian)	3	43	0	0	0	0	0	0	47
311	Tai, nec	11	7	9	0	0	0	3	8	46
312	Gurr-goni	0	0	0	0	0	0	46	0	46
313	Bilinarra	0	0	0	0	0	0	44	0	46
314	Gundjeihmi	0	0	0	0	0	0	40	0	46
315	Djabugay	0	0	46	0	0	0	0	0	46
316	Dhangu, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	45	0	45
317	Middle Eastern Semitic Languages, nec	28	7	3	4	3	0	0	0	44
318	Girramay	0	0	44	0	0	0	0	0	44
319	Rembarrnga	4	0	0	0	0	0	37	0	43
320	Ngarluma	0	0	0	0	42	0	0	0	42
321	Paakantyi	29	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	42
322	Bunuba	0	0	0	0	41	0	0	0	41
323	Karajarri	0	0	0	0	39	0	0	0	41
324	Kiwai	0	0	34	0	0	0	9	0	40
325	Yanyuwa	0	0	0	0	0	0	35	0	39
326	Yinhawangka	0	0	0	0	39	0	0	0	39
327	Ngarinyin	0	0	0	0	38	0	3	0	38
328	Eastern Asian Languages, nfd	16	0	20	0	0	0	0	0	38
329	Chinese, nec	13	9	0	3	3	0	0	0	34
330	Dhanggatti	32	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	34
331	Celtic, nec	17	5	6	4	4	0	0	0	31
332	Iberian Romance, nfd	16	3	14	0	0	0	0	0	30
333	Celtic, nfd	3	21	4	0	0	0	0	3	29
334	Daatiwuy	0	0	0	0	0	0	29	0	29
335	Ngaliwurru	0	0	0	0	0	0	25	0	29
336	Dhuwal, nec	0	0	0	0	0	0	28	0	28
337	Dharawal	27	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	27
338	Ngan'gikurunggurr	0	0	0	0	0	0	28	0	26
339	Warlmanpa	0	0	0	0	0	0	23	0	26
340	Kimberley Area Languages, nec	0	0	0	0	26	0	0	0	26
341	Narungga	0	3	0	21	0	0	4	0	25
342	Nyamal	0	0	0	0	23	0	0	0	25
343	Iberian Romance, nec	13	3	5	3	0	0	0	0	24
344	Batjala	0	0	17	0	0	0	0	0	24
345	Jingulu	0	0	0	0	0	0	23	0	23
346	German and Related Languages, nfd	9	0	7	3	5	0	0	3	22
347	Ritharrngu	0	0	0	0	0	0	22	0	22
348	Bidjara	0	6	6	3	0	0	0	0	22
349	Kartujarra	0	0	0	0	21	0	0	0	21
350	Scandinavian, nec	3	0	6	0	4	0	0	0	20
351	Cape York Peninsula Languages, nfd	0	0	13	0	0	0	0	7	19
352	Waanyi	0	0	3	0	0	0	16	0	19
353	Kariyarra	0	0	0	0	19	0	0	0	19
354	Kpelle	3	3	8	3	5	0	0	0	19
355	Iranic, nec	16	9	0	0	0	0	0	0	19
356	Middle Eastern Semitic Languages, nfd	10	0	6	0	0	0	0	0	19
357	Yidiny	0	0	13	0	0	0	0	0	19
358	Dhay'yi, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	18	0	18
359	Wagilak	0	0	0	0	0	0	18	0	18
360	Wagiman	0	0	0	0	0	0	18	0	18
361	Oceanian Pidgins and Creoles, nfd	4	5	4	0	0	0	8	0	18
362	Arnhem Land and Daly River Region Languages, nec	0	0	9	0	0	0	8	0	18
363	Yugambeh	0	0	18	0	0	0	0	0	18
364	Warramiri	0	0	0	0	0	0	18	0	17
365	Rirratjingu	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	0	17
366	Southwest and Central Asian Languages, nfd	8	0	5	0	0	0	0	0	17
367	Liyagawumirr	0	0	0	0	0	0	16	0	16
368	Jawoyn	0	0	0	0	0	0	11	0	16
369	Yulparija	0	0	0	0	16	0	0	0	16
370	Southeast Asian Languages, nfd	3	4	4	3	3	0	0	0	16
371	Kukatha	0	0	0	11	0	0	0	0	16
372	Other Eastern Asian Languages, nfd	11	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	16
373	Marrithiyel	0	0	0	0	0	0	15	0	15
374	Wubulkarra	0	0	0	0	0	0	15	0	15
375	Arabana	0	0	0	14	0	0	0	0	15
376	Djinba, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	14	0	14
377	Larrakiya	0	0	3	0	0	0	11	0	14
378	Wergaia	0	14	0	0	0	0	0	0	14
379	Other Eastern European Languages, nec	7	3	3	0	3	0	0	0	13
380	Muruwari	3	0	0	0	11	0	0	0	12
381	Finnish and Related Languages, nec	3	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	12
382	Portuguese Creole, nfd	3	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	12
383	Finnish and Related Languages, nfd	9	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	11
384	Tai, nfd	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	11
385	Yapese	0	12	6	0	0	0	0	0	11
386	Wurlaki	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	0	10
387	Malak Malak	0	0	0	0	0	0	10	0	10
388	Wangkajunga	0	0	0	0	10	0	0	0	10
389	Other Eastern European Languages, nfd	0	0	0	3	8	0	0	0	10
390	Kuuku-Ya'u	11	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	10
391	Koko-Bera	0	0	6	0	0	0	0	0	10
392	Wunambal	0	0	0	0	9	0	0	0	9
393	Other Languages, nfd	0	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	9
394	Djinang, nec	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0	8
395	Madarrpa	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0	8
396	Marra	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0	8
397	Dyirbal	0	0	3	0	0	0	3	0	8
398	Tjupany	0	0	0	0	8	0	0	0	8
399	Kayardild	0	0	8	0	0	0	0	0	8
400	Scandinavian, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8
401	Marrangu	0	0	0	0	0	0	7	0	7
402	Worrorra	0	0	0	0	7	0	0	0	7
403	Turkic, nfd	0	0	4	3	0	0	0	0	6
404	Maringarr	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0	5
405	Palyku/Nyiyaparli	0	0	0	0	9	0	0	0	5
406	Diyari	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5
407	Dutch and Related Languages, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5
408	Dhangu, nec	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0	4
409	Eastern Anmatyerr	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0	4
410	Malngin	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	4
411	Alawa	0	0	0	0	0	4	0	0	4
412	Githabul	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
413	South Slavic, nfd	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
414	Kanai	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
415	Keerray-Woorroong	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
416	Gurindji Kriol	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	3
417	Manyjalpingu	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	3
418	Nhangu, nec	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	3
419	Ngardi	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	3
420	Warnman	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	3
421	Other Southwest and Central Asian Languages, nec	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
422	Gudjal	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3
423	Lamalama	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3
424	Wangkangurru	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3
425	Badimaya	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
426	Baltic, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
427	Southern European Languages, nfd	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
428	Wik Ngathan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
	Total	1,882,002	1,538,746	557,678	274,067	435,239	27,266	67,461	86,659	4,871,626

Note, English not included, Other Territories not included.

Top 35 Languages Spoken at Home ranked by Low English Proficiency.

To sort by other variables, please click on the arrow pointers at the top of the desired variable column.

Rank	Language	Well	Not Well	Total	Not Stated	Grand Total
1	Mandarin	437918	155418	593338	3372	596711
2	Vietnamese	188801	86706	275506	1896	277400
3	Cantonese	209203	70162	279361	1583	280943
4	Arabic	266667	51868	318537	3186	321728
5	Greek	197651	37619	235267	2321	237588
6	Italian	232917	34993	267910	3690	271597
7	Korean	73365	34748	108108	886	108997
8	Spanish	123821	15590	139411	1402	140817
9	Punjabi	117346	13832	131173	1315	132496
10	Other Chinese Langs	36340	13662	49999	285	50284
11	Other Indian Langs	124818	12810	137627	988	138617
12	Thai	43256	11664	54922	526	55444
13	Turkish	47044	10744	57785	571	58355
14	Persian (excluding Dari)	47176	10643	57824	489	58313
15	Macedonian	54777	10508	65286	733	66019
16	Serbian	44227	9036	53260	541	53801
17	Japanese	46922	8612	55539	431	55966
18	Hindi	150753	7621	158375	1273	159652
19	Russian	42434	7554	49984	334	50314
20	Croatian	49017	7273	56293	598	56885
21	Aust Indigenous Langs	55371	7189	62558	2204	64762
22	Tamil	65942	6649	72591	577	73161
23	Urdu	62587	5995	68578	714	69293
24	Indonesian	61513	5870	67387	502	67891
25	Tagalog/Filipino	175204	5537	180741	1756	182493
26	Polish	42540	5094	47631	448	48083
27	Bengali	50019	4199	54215	353	54566
28	Samoan	40466	3572	44039	826	44869
29	Sinhalese	60859	3321	64177	436	64612
30	French	67221	2983	70206	668	70873
31	Maltese	29272	2266	31539	446	31987
32	German	76191	2262	78456	900	79353
33	Other SE Asian Langs	26819	1987	28803	269	29073
34	Dutch	32675	774	33451	383	33835
35	Afrikaans	42802	656	43460	287	43741
	Total	4,009,194	810,002	4,819,194	52,448	4,871,647

Note: top 35 language groups shown. Total all non-English includes all languages other than English.

Top 50 Countries of Birth by Age.

Rank	Country	0-9	10-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50-69	70+	Total
1	Australia	2620528	2274553	2097998	1893951	1988729	3327196	1411877	15614834
2	England	22017	46704	54918	80365	137572	356337	209667	907568
3	New Zealand	24330	49909	75321	88078	96574	149542	34707	518462
4	China (excl SARs and Taiwan)	11312	42059	156460	98709	64394	105610	31016	509558
5	India	24438	27431	101364	170120	59300	53928	18802	455385
6	Philippines	9610	23487	31583	53385	46779	59247	8296	232391
7	Vietnam	3501	8956	28129	40750	50863	73570	13577	219351
8	Italy	952	1405	6759	7513	7597	61701	88117	174042
9	South Africa	5233	17952	21807	26778	36631	42155	11884	162450
10	Malaysia	4303	10193	26374	28396	20896	38078	10132	138363
11	Scotland	1910	4368	5665	10162	15937	49841	31539	119416
12	Sri Lanka	3838	7342	14947	26536	20123	28144	8921	109850
13	Germany	1061	2723	6143	9858	10773	38148	33883	102594
14	Korea, Republic of (South)	3286	8140	23690	27565	18089	14627	3378	98775
15	Greece	772	1586	1746	2512	4635	31955	50545	93740
16	Hong Kong (SAR of China)	2393	5922	18338	16871	10700	28474	4197	86886
17	United States of America	7078	10252	12985	15090	12971	22054	5690	86126
18	Lebanon	833	1964	5645	11593	16668	31880	10062	78649
19	Ireland	3156	3018	9975	19590	10788	17726	10631	74891
20	Indonesia	2267	6171	15167	19709	12508	13065	4326	73218
21	Netherlands	756	1492	2177	3666	5576	28242	28259	70172
22	Iraq	3001	6523	12607	13596	13222	14852	3540	67353
23	Thailand	3518	7522	13527	21486	11048	8392	731	66228
24	Pakistan	5727	5694	17608	18756	7530	5857	730	61918
25	Fiji	795	2860	6180	14175	13146	19737	4575	61472
26	Iran	2685	5026	8636	20300	8911	9906	2653	58112
27	Singapore	3391	6183	10838	8599	8983	13859	3087	54934
28	Nepal	1483	3757	25633	18491	3512	1726	153	54757
29	Taiwan	1223	1968	16154	14513	4902	7093	966	46822
30	Afghanistan	1602	5504	14147	11487	7306	5905	841	46799
31	Poland	295	516	1958	7451	5553	17932	11668	45370
32	Croatia	108	226	1921	2823	4059	18289	16259	43687
33	Canada	2041	2741	6660	9590	8462	10787	2774	43053
34	Japan	2289	3575	6468	10823	10550	7136	1585	42420
35	Bangladesh	2000	2342	9544	16026	6572	4456	284	41237
36	Egypt	1480	2762	2458	5634	3875	13903	9667	39776
37	The FYR of Macedonia	154	463	1764	3894	5624	18701	8386	38986
38	Malta	61	174	327	770	1425	18779	16078	37609
39	Zimbabwe	549	3685	5062	7075	7869	9270	1276	34789
40	Cambodia	515	1346	4001	6736	7412	10697	2440	33152
41	Myanmar	639	2868	6545	7247	5651	7206	2506	32656
42	Turkey	470	830	2569	5167	8097	11597	3443	32183
43	France	1008	1606	6636	7234	4816	6928	2889	31120
44	Papua New Guinea	730	2506	2538	4116	8781	8689	1436	28803
45	Wales	490	1284	1913	3021	4626	10589	6130	28046
46	Brazil	626	1189	8103	11636	3516	2163	394	27625
47	Chile	298	584	1954	4395	5245	9739	3870	26082
48	Mauritius	272	1158	2878	4910	3116	8627	3367	24324
49	Samoa	568	1838	2705	4060	5465	8148	1229	24016
50	Bosnia and Herzegovina	72	347	3423	4326	3922	8982	2871	23959

Note: Total All Countries include all countries of birth (not just the top 50).

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Status by Age and Gender.

	0-4	5-14	15-24	25-44	45-54	55-64	65+	Total
Males	37,768	75,292	63,283	78,788	31,654	21,446	13942	322173
Females	35,496	71,836	60,428	82,471	35,762	23,995	17012	327000
Total	73,265	147,133	123,718	161,256	67,415	45,438	30,952	649,177

The Australian Bureau of Statistics will be making more data available via Table Builder next week. And even more data will be released in October.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment or email us from the contact page!

Top 10 Languages Spoken in Australia – 2016 Census

by thangngo | Jun 27, 2017 | Statistics

The top languages spoken in Australia confirms our changing diversity.

The Australian population as at the 2016 Census was 23.4m people, compared to 21.5m in 2011, up 8.8%. The 2016 Census data released today confirms the changing face of Australia. Italian, is now the fifth most spoken language, other than English. It was number one at the 2006 Census and number two in 2011.

One in five Australians now speak a language other than English at home.

Growth in Asian and Indian languages are obvious. The most dramatic is Mandarin, now almost double the next largest language group, Arabic. Mandarin has grown by over 170% in the decade to 2016. The total number of Chinese speakers (Mandarin, Cantonese, Wu and others) now exceed 927,000 (our earlier prediction of 1m was pretty close!).

The growth is even more obvious when we graphed the growth (or decline) of the top 5 languages spoken in Australia.

Languages other than English spoken at home, 2016 Census.

You’ll hear dramatic stats about the number of people born overseas or have at least one parent born overseas. This is potentially misleading because it includes those born in the UK, NZ, USA and other English speaking countries.

If you’re looking at targeting people from different cultures who might speak other languages then the table below might be more relevant.

The number of people who speak a language other than English at home has increased by almost 1 million to 4.9m, which is 20.8% of the Australian population. The number of people with low English proficiency has also jumped to almost 820,000.

A Corporate Cultural And Food Experience

by thangngo | Jun 12, 2017 | Culture

You can rack up big bucks on corporate entertainment, or stand out from the crowd and give them an rich and interesting cultural experience. IDENTITY Communications, the intelligent multicultural marketing agency has a suggestion…

Last year a PwC report found report found that 82.7% of people who work in media and entertainment are monolingual and speak only English at home. Most live in Sydney and are clustered round the Inner West and Eastern Suburbs with the top 10 suburbs shown below:

North Bondi
Newtown/Camperdown/Darlington
Leichhardt/Annandale
Surry Hills
Potts Point
Bondi/Tamarama/Bronte
Coogee/Clovelly
Paddington
Randwick
Redfern/Chippendale

This is dramatically different from the demographic make up of Sydney, where one in three speaks a language other than English at home (2011 Census, ABS). According to ThinkTV research released this month, “media and advertising types are living in a bubble called AdLand“.

John street, Cabramatta

Last year, a media agency contacted IDENTITY Communications to run a food tour for their team of 20 people. The team has done just about everything; fine dining with lots of booze and other typical corporate bonding activities. Encouragingly, the group director really wanted his team to experience cultures and geographies outside of the inner city, eastern suburbs bubble. We jumped at the chance. The half day adventure was a roaring culinary and cultural success which is still talked about today.

While the cultural diversity of clients is probably more balanced than AdLand, a food tour of Sydney’s diverse suburbs can also be an eye-opener, and help clients and agencies understand their customers. It makes an imaginative and interesting change from the usual fine dining and boozing.

Merryland Taste Food Tours

As I discovered recently during a Merrylands experience run by Taste Food Tours, a three hour cultural and food tour costs less than a typical three course fine dining experience. Not only do you feel richer for the experience, the walking and talking burned more calories than sitting on plush chairs being looked after by uber cool waiters.

Merrylands was part of the Holroyd Council before it merged recently with Auburn to become Cumberland Council. Just over half of the residents of Holroyd Council spoke a language other than English according to the 2011 Census. The area is home to a sizeable number of migrants from Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Lebanon, China and India. This Taste Food tour was called From Afghanistan to Persia, an evening experience coinciding with Ramadan.

Afghan Mantu, Bahar Restaurant, Merrylands

Seven stops, seven different food experiences and an opportunity to talk with the hard working, humble owners of these amazing eateries. If you have a sweet tooth, check out Asal Sweet for their Persian cakes and pastries or Shiraz for the alluringly named dessert, rice in rose water and saffron ice cream. Love dumplings? Mantu (above) is a must-try; the skin is thick and firm, inside it’s a mixture of lamb mince, onion and spices. They’re served with a sauce made of yellow split peas, tomato, onion, garlic. Yogurt is also poured over the top. If you love your meat, Kebab Hojat is your stop – the charcoal grill will make your mouth water (below).

Kebab Hojat, Merrylands

Photos and videos used are courtesy of noodlies, Sydney food blog. You can read more about Taste’s Afghanistan to Persia food tour at noodlies.

If you’re looking for a different and interesting experience than the usual, pricey fine diner – a cultural food tour might tick all the boxes.

UPDATE: I did Taste Food Tour’s Ramadan Night Markets in Lakemba last night. It was amazing, check out the video below.

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Credit: This amazing Merrylands experience was thanks to Taste Food Tours (they do heaps of tours all over Sydney).

NITV And IPG Mediabrands Announce Unique Indigenous Partnership

by thangngo | May 23, 2017 | Multicultural Marketing

Justified criticism about the lack of diversity is good. We think providing positive solutions is better.

Rightly, the lack of diversity in the Australian media and advertising industry have been pointed out by organisations and individuals; not enough diversity on our screens, in our TV commercials and in the staff that creative and media agencies hire. For decades, multicultural marketing agencies have highlighted the benefits of multicultural marketing. The industry has long argued that advertisers should invest more advertising budget to multicultural or “ethnic” marketing.

L-R: Wei Ng (IDENTITY Communications), Mark Ella (NITV), Danny Bass (IPG Mediabrands), Glenn Hamilton (NITV), Thang Ngo (IDENTITY Communications).

IDENTITY Communications are hugely proud to lead an IPG Mediabrands-wide initiative aimed at increasing investment in Indigenous media as well as improving employment opportunities Indigenous Australians. The NITV and IPG Mediabrands partnership announced this week is a first in Australia. The partnership is supported and sponsored by Danny Bass, IPG Mediabrands CEO.

We’re hugely proud to play a role that takes the debate beyond debate and criticism, to providing one solution to this complex issue. Details of the Indigenous partnership between NITV and IPG Mediabrands are contained in the media release below.

IDENTITY will be announcing other Australian first multicultural marketing initiatives in coming months.

MEDIA RELEASE

NITV AND IPG MEDIABRANDS ANNOUNCE UNIQUE PARTNERSHIP

May 23, 2017: Australia’s National Indigenous Television network (NITV) and IPG Mediabrands have announced a unique partnership to raise awareness of the potential of Indigenous audiences within IPG Mediabrands’ client base. The partnership aims to increase investment from Mediabrands on NITV to help support more production of Indigenous content on the network.

NITV is a free-to-air channel led by and focused on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The channel commissions or acquires content primarily from the Indigenous production sector. It was founded in 2007, then launched as part of SBS in 2012 and currently reaches more than two million unique viewers a month. It is available in 95% of Australian homes.

The agreement is a first in Australia. NITV will help Mediabrands businesses develop a greater understanding of Indigenous communities and help develop insights, strategies and connections for client teams. Mediabrands will help NITV unlock greater investment into Indigenous media and create opportunities for improved representation across the marketing industry.

NITV Executive, Mark Ella said, “Australia’s Indigenous audience are sometimes stereotyped by advertisers who overlook the rich diversity of our people. This partnership will help us to understand what clients are looking for and bring the potential of our audiences to Mediabrands’ clients in an authentic way. It is a true partnership that offers both sides unique benefits.”

Danny Bass, CEO of IPG Mediabrands Australia, said there was both a need and a responsibility for the Media Industry to be far more inclusive of Indigenous people and minorities. “Our industry is a major contributor to helping shape the culture of Australia and that culture has been shaped in great part by our Indigenous People. The partnership with NITV is a two-way lens for brands and Indigenous people to influence each other in the digital world. More broadly, Mediabrands is fully committed to providing roles for Indigenous people within our business.”

At IPG Mediabrands the partnership with NITV will be led by the group’s multicultural division, IDENTITYCommunications. Thang Ngo, Managing Director of IDENTITY Communications, said, “Diversity and representation are topical issues in the industry. This partnership moves beyond debate and criticism to solutions that aim to make a tangible difference.”

The partnership allows for joint internship programs and NITV support in development of an IPG Mediabrands Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP).

The partnership is effective immediately.

Ends.