How to Deal With Anti-LGBT Backlash

You’ve seen why your business needs LGBT-Marketing. You’ve learned about some of the most important dos and don’ts, and you now know why some companies have failed hard or won big with LGBT ad campaigns. Now, it’s time to talk about backlash. The sad truth is that LGBT-related topics are still regarded as controversial by some groups. Whether you like it or not, voicing one’s opinion has never been easier. One tweet can be the start of a whirlwind of negativity (less eloquently put, a shit storm). So, let’s say you’ve launched your campaign and the shit starts hitting the fan. Now, do not panic. The Queer Marketing Blog has you covered. I’ve created a video explaining some simple things to do when facing conservative backlash:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8_5vHO4ook

Now, I’m curious to hear from you! Have you ever boycotted a brand? If yes (there’s plenty of noble reasons to boycott brands), why?

Stay tuned for the next post on how to avoid pinkwashing by making your brand inclusive from within, first.

In the meantime, please share my blog post with your peers! 

Do you want to know more about LGBT-Marketing? Read my other posts, too!

? 4 Reasons Why Your Business Needs LGBT-Marketing
? The Dos and Don’ts of LGBT-Marketing
? LGBT-Marketing: Worst Practices
? LGBT-Marketing: Best Practices
? Rainbow-Washing: Explained


Literature:

Witeck, R., & Combs, W. (2006). Business inside out: Capturing millions of brand-loyal gay consumers. Kaplan Pub..

Olivier della Valle

Hi, I'm Olivier - student and marketing professional in the auto industry. I'm passionate about future mobility, marketing, and pop culture. I also happen to be a proud gay man. The Queer Marketing Blog is about all that and more. It shines a light on how a gay Millennial sees the marketing world around him. It should be an informative, helpful and fun way to show marketers why they should care about LGBT-marketing. Since the Stonewall riots in New York in 1969, many governments across the globe have realized, that people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) should be offered the same rights and privileges as their fellow straight and cis-gendered citizens. You may ask now, if LGBT people seek full equality, though, why should you market to them differently from everyone else? Apart from the fact that in many countries, including Switzerland, equality is still far away from reality, from a marketing standpoint, the answer lies in the ability of brands to create an emotional bond with every single one of their consumers. This of course leads to higher conversion rates, and more sales. With socio- and geo-demographic mapping of the LGBT community and analyses on their propensity to spend across varied markets, we have been able to learn that the LGBT community collectively over-indexes in many categories. The 2015 Nielsen LGBT consumer report shows that when compared to the general population, LGBT people spend 35% more online, are 25% more likely to see a movie on opening weekend and are 26% more likely to subscribe to an entertainment streaming service. A 2017 GLAAD study showed that 20% of Millennials – consumers who are building considerable earning potential in their 20s, 30s and 40s – identify as LGBT. In addition, LGBT consumers are over twice as likely to buy from companies they trust. Marketers need to find ways to authentically engage with this growing segment. To find out how to make LGBT-marketing work for your brand, read on!

View all posts by Olivier della Valle →

5 thoughts on “How to Deal With Anti-LGBT Backlash

  1. Hey, Oliver, great post! I work in marketing myself and find your articles very helpful. I think you have to be very careful today about what and how you communicate something. Unfortunately, even today you still read and hear discriminatory contributions. I am curious about your further posts!

    1. Hi Anja! Thank you! Me too, but somehow I’ve never found a lot of information about LGBT-Marketing specifically so I decided to write about it myself, instead. 🙂

      1. Hi Olivier,
        very interesting post.
        I fully agree that consistency is key, a brand should stick to its core values and to what it does best.
        Ultimately that is what a great brand is about.

  2. Thank you Oli for this post. Unfortunately, there are always negative voices in many controversial campaigns but amazing how you show in this video how to best act in such a situation. Keep up your good work!

    1. Thank you so much for your comment, Eva! And, yes, unfortunately that’s very true. I think one important thing to keep in mind, too, is to always find out who the boycotters are. In Subaru’s case, the detractors had never bought one of their cars before, were extremely unlikely to ever buy one anyway, and sometimes even misspelled the brand’s name. That’s how they knew they could just ignore them and carry on.

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