One Size Doesn’t Fit All: A Conversation About the Heterogeneity of Asian Americans with Jeannie Yuen
What does it mean to be an Asian American? Being Asian American means being the fastest growing ethnic and racial group in the U.S. According to the Pew Research Center, Asian Americans are projected to surpass 46 million by 2060. Six major origin groups accounted for 85% of the Asian American population in 2019, but they all differed significantly when it came to income, education and other statistics. Combined with intergenerational and intercultural differences, the Asian American population isn’t a monolith like many stereotypes generalize.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Asian Americans have faced increased challenges ranging from violence to racism. These experiences are known to negatively impact mental health, yet Asian Americans have the lowest access to mental health treatment according to HealthAffairs.
Jeannie Yuen is the CEO of APartnership, a multicultural advertising agency focused on the Asian American demographic. She spoke with us on what exactly it means to be Asian in America and how we can create impactful communications among the Asian American community.
Briefly introduce yourself and describe your journey to starting APartnership?
My name is Jeannie Yuen, CEO and Strategy Lead at APartnership. I am Singaporean by birth, attended school in Canada, graduated from the University of Alberta and landed my first job at Saatchi & Saatchi in Hong Kong, after which I joined DDB Needham with responsibility for Greater China.
After I moved to New York in 1994, my first experience with Asian American marketing was at LLT, and later, the Asian American arm of Y&R, Mosaica. That was during a time when clients were reliant on those agencies for just translations. And I thought there was so much more the agency can provide to marketers to realize the full value of this consumer segment, and so I started my own agency with the goal to help marketers build a compelling business case and long-term strategy to engage with and win this fastest growing segment of the US population. Today, APartnership is an award-winning, full-service multicultural agency focused on the Asian American segment.
What are some key things people should know about the Asian American community? And that companies should know about Asian American consumers?
Asians are projected to become the largest immigrant group in the US surpassing Hispanic immigrants. More than 70% of Asian adults are immigrants and 90% of them speak a language other than English. This is a segment that is completely underserved by mainstream media due high in-language dependency – more than 70% of Asian American adults are foreign-born.
As well all know, the Asian American community is diverse. It’s made up of 20 ethnicities that speak many different languages. What people may not realize is that the top 6 Asian subgroups make up 85% of the market, and over 70% Asian reside in just 10 states, so there are efficiencies that marketers can leverage.
How have organizations historically treated outreach to this population? How has this changed over the years/decades?
Historically, marketers adopted a simple approach – get ads translated and run them in traditional in-language media. But this audience, like other segment populations, has adopted a more dynamic mix in their media consumption. Over the last decade or so, marketers have become more sophisticated, augmenting their communications approach to include community-based tactics, social influencers, collaborations, program integrations, podcasts, etc. The in-language media landscape has evolved in the last few years to make some of these exciting tactics possible.
What would you say is the thing that is still misunderstood the most when it comes to health communications directed at Asian Americans? Describe the essential components of an effective health communications approach.
The thing that we need to keep in mind is where the audience is at. Which home country did they arrive from? How long have they lived in the US? Where do they live, work, and play? All these factors influence their awareness, attitude, and usage of products and services. The Asian American, or immigrant experience, means that their awareness, understanding, and attitude towards a health issue may be very different from Americans in general. Knowing what that starting point is can mean a hit or a miss in any health communications program.
This is related to one other thing I want to stress, and that is the need for data disaggregation. In all verticals, but especially in public health, it is unrealistic to expect an effective plan when the information it’s based on is indeterminate.
Hate crimes against Asian Americans have been on the rise during COVID-19. How has this impacted your work and how you approach your work?
This is something very much on our minds, not just in our work, but also in how it affects our employees personally. I think the current environment just calls for greater empathy all around. Demonstrate that we understand what people are going through and be part of the solution. And the more we can do that in our communications, the more receptive the audience will be.
What are some of the books, podcasts, and other resources that have most influenced your understanding of Asian American health and communications outreach?
I highly recommend ‘Minor Feelings’ by Cathy Park Hong for an Asian American voice in America’s racialized consciousness. Jeff Yang is a great thought-leader and influencer for the current generation of Asian Americans. The Asian American Advertising Federation is a good resource for all things related to Asian American communications, including a media consumption report that they publish. NYU Center for the Study of Asian American Health is another great resource for health-related data on Asian Americans.
I have to say, though, that my best teachers have been the highly dedicated public health clients we worked with, and the high bar they set in terms of promoting health equity and eliminating disparities.
