Brands that bend to anti-LGBTQ+ pressure lose more customers, study says

Despite recent right-wing attempts to punish brands for LGBTQ+-inclusive marketing, a recent study has found that majorities of consumers are okay with LGBTQ+-inclusive ads, and brands are more likely to lose customers by stopping their LGBTQ+-inclusive marketing efforts in response to anti-LGBTQ+ criticism.

Earlier this year, right-wingers began boycotting Target and Bud Light for their LGBTQ+-inclusive marketing campaigns. While both brands experienced an immediate downturn in profits, each one’s different response may determine how well they fare in the long term: Target pledged to continue its LGBTQ+ support, but Bud Light said it had made a misstep, signaling possibly pulling back its LGBTQ+-inclusive marketing in the future.

Related Stories LGBTQ+ groups & experts are encouraging companies to keep supporting Pride

There are many ways for corporations to stand up to anti-LGBTQ+ hostility, and many benefits too.

Brands that are willing to include LGBTQ+ people and stand by them amid criticism can help increase consumers’ opinions, trust, and interest in purchasing from them, according to a recently released study from the marketing firm Cultural Inclusion Accelerator and the industry organization Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing.

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An estimated 59% of 2,300 consumers said they’d either feel “motivated” or “strongly motivated” to support brands that treat all employees and customers equally regardless of sexual orientation. Additionally, large majorities of all consumers — even those who don’t identify as allies of the LGBTQ+ community — said they felt comfortable or indifferent to LGBTQ+ representation in a brand’s marketing efforts.

Approximately 79% of all adults said they felt comfortable or indifferent about gay and lesbian representation in a brand’s marketing efforts, and 74% said they’d feel similarly about transgender representation in a brand’s marketing efforts. This latter percentage is especially encouraging, considering the recent increase in anti-trans rhetoric and legislation from the right wing.

image via Cultural Inclusion Accelerator and the industry organization Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing Bar graphs showing attitudes toward LGBTQ+-inclusive marketing

Even more interestingly, 32% of all respondents said they’d be less likely to support a brand if they backed down from LGBTQ+ advertising. Conversely, only 18% of all respondents said they’d be more likely to support a brand that backed down from LGBTQ+ advertising.

Put another way, if a brand decided to quit including LGBTQ+ people in its ads because of right-wing pressure, it would lose two customers for every customer who supported the decision. The survey found that this trend largely held true across different geographic regions in the U.S., even in the nation’s most conservative areas. It also held for Gen Z, consumers born between 1997 and 2012.

“For every Gen Z consumer supporting brands that back down from LGBTQ+ advertising,” the report said, “there are three Gen Z consumers that would withdraw support from brands that would acquiesce to anti-LGBTQ attacks.”

image via Cultural Inclusion Accelerator and the industry organization Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing Bar graphs showing how consumers respond to brands that withdraw LGBTQ+ support after right-wing criticism.

Approximately 8% of the surveyed consumers identified as part of the LGBTQ+ community and an additional 42% identified as allies of the LGBTQ+ community, meaning that at least 50% of all consumers feel allied with queer people. Among the self-identified LGBTQ+ community members, 65% said they’ve felt underrepresented in brand advertisements

The survey also found that a brand’s inclusive ads can increase LGBTQ+ consumers’ opinions, trust, and interest in purchasing from such brands. These increases are even more heightened for younger consumers.

A recent Ad Age-Harris Poll found that 34% of consumers between the ages of 18 and 34 said they’d be more likely to purchase from companies that support LGBTQ+ rights during Pride Month. In other words, such investments will last well beyond June — especially since nearly one in four teenagers identify as non-heterosexual. As these teens age and earn more, they’re increasingly likely to spend on inclusive brands that support the LGBTQ+ community.

The survey’s findings were also echoed in a recent study from the LGBTQ+ media monitoring organization GLAAD. That study found that, out of 2,500 adults who don’t identify as LGBTQ+, 70% believed companies should publicly support the LGBTQ+ community through inclusive policies, advertising, and sponsorships.

The GLAAD survey also indicated that the majority of Americans disagree with the loud minority of right-wingers who are targeting school districts, medical professionals, and companies for uplifting LGBTQ+ identities.

Some brands have worried that queer-inclusive marketing campaigns might put them in the middle of a culture war. But allyship during this sensitive time not only develops brand loyalty, it also lays the foundation for more significant societal change, cultural communications expert Rana Reeve said.

Brands that release LGBTQ+-inclusive marketing can strengthen their support by preparing responses that explain the company’s decision and provide talking points to help public-facing employees respond confidently to any backlash, Reeve noted.

Brands can also take different approaches to LGBTQ+ support, such as by donating to local or national LGBTQ+ community efforts or encouraging their own employees to donate too. Such donations can fuel social and political efforts to create a more inclusive society for the queer community, its allies, and everyone as well.