Members of the LGBT community and allies gathered in New York City recently for a synergistic day of education, networking and discussion on how to successfully market to gays and lesbians.
An energetic group of advertising, marketing and PR professionals came together at the Kimpton Hotel for the fourth annual Gay and Lesbian Marketing Conference. Hosted by Community Marketing Inc. (CMI) and Pink Banana Media, the one-day event kicked off with a whirlwind of data presentations and case studies from John Lake, director of corporate development for the Human Rights Campaign, and David Paisley, senior research director for CMI. "It's expensive to try and be all things to all people. Focus and find your niche," the presenters imparted. "There is no [all in one] gay market."
For the past four years, CMI has published an annual community survey that has grown to have more than 45,000 respondents, making it the largest of its kind. According to Thomas Roth, president of CMI, organizations cannot continue to "market to gay men and lesbians in the same manner." As he paced the dimly-lit stage exuding an aura of assuredness and candidness, Roth peppered the attentive audience with comprehensive information, such as:
—74 percent of CMI's survey respondents prefer the term(s) "Gay and Lesbian/Lesbian and Gay";
—19 percent of CMI's survey respondents favor the title(s) "Queer" or "Alternative";
—Current advertisements are lacking representation of ethnic minorities, the 55 and older age group, as well as single gays and lesbians; and
—Corporations such as Wells Fargo and Kaiser Permanente have used up-to-date and believable images of our community in their past campaigns, while the majority of advertisers are still using stock photography that is not authentic to the community.
Roth was joined by Darren Spedale, founder of StartOut, and Richard Oceguera, who heads the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce New York. The trio segued into the importance of joining professional organizations and networking. They acknowledged the new website www.dot429.com ("the LinkedIn" for the gay and lesbian community) in addition to the Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and StartOut.
The morning sessions had attendees live-tweeting nuggets of information to their followers. After a comedic luncheon sponsored by The Advocate, the afternoon opened with a spirited presentation by Jerime Black, LGBTQ sales and marketing manager of Barefoot Wine.
Black delved into some of the creative strategies that Barefoot Wine has used to make their logo and name a "lovemark" for LGBT consumers, providing an example of when the company set up a giant, inflatable wedding cake on which San Francisco pride goers could climb atop as bride and bride or groom and groom and slide down to have their photograph taken. The cake was positioned directly in front of City Hall and the event was shortly after the California gay-marriage debacle. Using fun, but timely and photo-worthy marketing, Black made clear that a company can be supportive as well as savvy.
Lesbians and gay/lesbian
families: Emerging markets
Curve magazine's editor-in-chief, Merryn Johns, and Jessica Rothschild, senior entertainment editor for Autostraddle.com, were exciting additions (as women presenters were absent from the first half of the conference). CMI still has a bit of work to do in attracting women and ethnic minorities—something it is trying to change.
When it comes to marketing to lesbians, it is unfortunate that the common belief is they are not a viable and profitable segment, or worse, reluctant to spend. Although untrue, lesbians are still shrouded in stereotypes, which hinder the perception of advertisers. "Think of lesbians as women first," and "think beyond stereotypes," Johns encouraged while showing a lengthy slide show of how different lesbians look.
Lesbian media has been hit harder than any other during the recent recession. Johns and Rothschild covered lesbian statistics, gave tips on how to reach lesbians through the blogs ads, print media and offline at events such as women's music festivals. Their presence was warmly received and they were eagerly sought as some attendees had never heard of Curve magazine, the nation's bestselling lesbian periodical.
All in all, the conference was a success and is bound to grow as it continues to provide valuable and thought-provoking information. It is a suggested event for all businesses to attend, whether GLBT oriented or not. This is clearly an emerging market full of opportunity for those who have the prudence to pay attention to it. For more information on CMI and the LGBT Marketing conference visit: www.communitymarketinginc.com .
