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Brands know LGBTQ+ marketing helps grow their business—they’re just afraid to use it.
A study released exclusively to ADWEEK by the ANA found that despite 82% of marketers believing there’s still significant room for more marketing that includes LGBTQ+ people, just 55% of brands actively marketed to or included the LGBTQ+ community in their marketing.
The study found that such marketing efforts positively impacted brand perception (97%) and increased brand loyalty (83%). While 93% of marketers think it is important to represent the LGBTQ+ community in their ads—up from 79% in 2021—another 82% think more positively of a company that actively markets to LGBTQ+ consumers (up from 66% three years ago).
“The message is clear: There is both a need and an opportunity for deeper inclusion strategies with LGBTQ+ consumers,” said Bob Liodice, CEO of the ANA.
But that was before a wave of anti-LGTBTQ+ legislation swept across the United States and brands including Bud Light and Target shrank away from commitments to LGBTQ+ consumers amid controversy. Though the ANA’s Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM) suggests much of the brand damage was self-inflicted—an AIMM survey released in October found that 77% would stop buying from brands that back away from promises to diverse groups and causes—once brave allies let fear guide their LGBTQ+ marketing mission.
Brands were once worried about the cost of inclusive marketing campaigns (44% in 2021) or getting them wrong (50%). By August and September of 2023, when the ANA conducted its survey of 101 advertisers, there was more fear of potential consumer blowback or not finding brand-safe environments (39% each) than of cost or awkwardness (29% and 25%, respectively).
“Brands today are making decisions to step away from inclusivity because they’re hearing the message from 11% to 13% of the population, which is very unfortunate,” said Lisette Arsuaga, co-founder of AIMM. “The majority of the population expects greater inclusivity when it comes to seeing individuals represented in ads.”
The value of showing up
Emily Stutzman, co-owner and CEO of Portland, Oregon-based creative agency Happylucky, noted that brands have also been afraid of any LGBTQ+ campaign that doesn’t produce immediate results and hit short-term KPIs. Her agency has seen brands invest less in year-round grassroots efforts during the last year and show more interest in one-off media spending.
