Inclusive Marketing News Recap - 19th March

We’re back with the top marketing and disability news of the last two weeks! 🚀

👩‍🚒 LIFE-SAVING SIGN LANGUAGE: A group of deaf students, aged 4-12 from Newcastle, have created an interactive video and fact sheet featuring essential sign language phrases. These have been designed specifically for firefighters from Newcastle Central Community Fire Station, to assist in situations involving deaf residents. 

🧑🏽‍💻 TONE TAGS: Paige Layle, an influential advocate for autism, has partnered with TikTok ForGood to delve into the significance of tone tags and their effective utilisation during online communications. In her video, she not only introduces various popular tone tags, but also provides insights into the appropriate application. 

🕶 META’S AR GLASSES: Meta plans to unveil its next-gen AR glasses prototype, codenamed Orion, at its conference this year. The glasses aim to showcase advancements in AR technology. Mark Zuckerberg compared them to the latest Apple’s Vision Pro, highlighting its superior performance and lower price. 

🦮 ROBOT GUIDE DOG: Robbie has been developed by the University of Glasgow, and it’s a walking robot equipped with sensor and AI technologies. This innovation aims to potentially replace traditional guide dogs by offering navigation, communication, and environment description capabilities.

📚 ‘HOW NOT TO FIT IN’ - BOOK RELEASE: Jess Joy and Charlotte Mia founded @IAmPayingAttention in October 2020, and they both identify as late-diagnosed Neurodivergent women. Their new book explores their journeys of discovering, accepting and flourishing with your neurodivergent brain, diagnosis, navigating the world, and lots more!

📱 TIKTOK TESTS AUTO-TAGGING PRODUCTS: TikTok is testing a new feature that automatically identifies products in videos and offers a link to "Find similar items on TikTok Shop." This experimental feature follows the launch of TikTok Shop in the US, allowing creators to add product links to their videos. Currently limited to approved influencers and brands, this feature could potentially expand product links to all videos, significantly enhancing TikTok's e-commerce capabilities. 

🚍 INACCESSIBLE TRANSPORT: A survey by Oak Tree Mobility shows that 25% of Disabled and elderly people avoid using UK public transport due to accessibility issues. And 93% of train travellers face challenges such as boarding, accessing stations, and lack of clear information. Oak Tree Mobility calls for prioritising accessibility in public transport, which is essential for greater social inclusion and equality.

💌 INSTAGRAM’S NEW DM UPDATES: Instagram has rolled out new DM features, including message editing, pinned chats, read receipts, chat themes, and sticker saving. This reflects a shift towards private interactions over public posting. Messages now serve as the primary social element, while the main feed becomes an entertainment stream. 

🏆 CAMPAIGN SPOTLIGHT - B&Q: B&Q has launched a new ‘You Can Do It’ ad campaign in collaboration with Uncommon. It aims to inspire and empower customers to tackle DIY projects. The campaign will air on ITV and across various channels and online platforms. 

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