50 years since the Stonewall Riots, the LGBTQ community’s Pink Dollars are estimated at 3.7 Trillion Dollars
Today marked 50 years of PRIDE, a big moment for both, the LGBTQ community and the brands that were a part of it. As I pen this, the streets of New York are filled with millions of people in what has been called the world’s largest LGBTQ gathering, celebrating love and 50 years of the movement that started at The Stonewall Inn. More than 150 groups from outside the United States participated in the parade, with tens of thousands of people traveling the globe to mark the historic occasion.
The parade passed by the Stonewall Inn, the site where it all started in 1969 and saw the LGBTQ community fight back against police officers that routinely raided the bar to harass the gay community. Sunday’s march was the final event of a month-long celebration of all things Pride, including a rally commemorating Stonewall 50, Youth Pride and Pride Island, a three-day outdoor music festival.
The LGBTQ community has become a force to reckon with, today estimated to be about 4.5% of the U.S. population with massive buying power of almost $1 trillion in 2018, up from $884 billion in 2014. Referred to as Pink Money, a more recent study indicated that at $3.7 trillion, the global queer community’s purchasing power would be right there, ranking amongst the larger economies of the world. And this is just one of the many reasons that brands need to speak to this unique group of consumers.
This group can be very brand loyal, sticking to those that support the rights of their community. And it showed in New York today. The brands that were most represented? It was Vans and Converse when it came to shoes and for clothing, Calvin Klein and Michael Kors were amongst a handful that made the cut. The LGBTQ community is not only brand conscious but also rights-conscious, sticking to those that stick to them. In a world where brand loyalty is so yesterday, that is great news for a marketer.
A study conducted by Hornet indicated that 73% would be willing to pay a premium for a product or a service and 87% would recommend a product or a brand to a friend or family member. Aah, that holy grail of brand loyalty and advocacy! It is, therefore, in a brand’s best interest to relate to the LGBTQ community and those that do, not only win customers but also win advocates who are willing to stand up for them.
But before diving further into the long-term obvious benefits of reaching this community, let’s understand how it all began and why is this year so important for gay representation:
It began in an Inn called Stonewall in the Greenwich area of NYC. 1969 saw the clash of LGBTQ members with the police, members who were sick of being discriminated on the grounds of their preference. This was of course, back in the days when being gay was a crime as serious as stealing a car.
Now, looking back, it seems like the Stonewall Inn was the perfect place to start a global movement. A bar with no liquor license, run by the mafia, it served alcohol that was bootlegged and heavily watered down. There was no running water and the glasses were reused as soon as they were rinsed, but it became a safe haven for the gay community to meet and mingle amongst their own people, at a time when it was almost dangerous to be gay.
But this was a fact that worked well for the mafia, who knew that if they opened a place for the gay community, they would come. Back in 1969, New York had the largest gay population in the US, and the mafia knew this. Amongst the clubs that the mafia sponsored for the gays were the 181 club, the Howdy club and of course, the now-famous Stonewall Inn. In many ways, thank god for the mafia, who were there for the community in a city with a police force that was heavily committed to pursuing and punishing the LGBTQ community.
“I was the safest on the streets of New York than I had ever been,” said one gay-club bartender. “If anybody ever threatened or intimidated me, I had recourse. The police had stopped me and all I had to do was give them the name of my employer and they let me go, because we were both working for the same people.
But even though they tried, the Mafia could not pay off every New York police officer. By the mid 60s, more than 100 men were being arrested every week.
Whatever happened on June 27, 1969 at The Stonewall Inn, happened spontaneously and quickly. The police burst into the Inn at 1:20 am and neither the mafia nor the gay community was prepared. Patrons were lined up against the way and asked for identification. If their gender did not match their id, they were arrested and those who did not have an id were taken to another room to have their sex verified the, ahem, old-fashioned way!
It did not stop the patrons from coming again the next night and the night after and so on. A Stonewall patron and protester explained the atmosphere, saying: “We all had a collective feeling like we’d had enough of this kind of shit. It wasn’t anything tangible that anybody said to anyone else, it was just kind of like everything over the years had come to a head on that one particular night in the one particular place, and it was not an organized demonstration. There was something in the air, freedom a long time overdue, and we’re going to fight for it.”
The 1969 Stonewall riots put gay rights on the global map. Exactly a year later, the Gay Pride March was held in New York, to mark the first anniversary of the riots.
50 years later, the global gay community continues to swell and become a force to reckon with. As more and more countries around the world such as Canada, Spain, Sweden, Portugal, Iceland, Germany, Malta, Belgium, The Netherlands and New Zealand become more ‘gay-friendly’, brands are become more aware of the ‘Buying Power of Pink Money.’
Brands such as Cheerios, Vans, Nike, Campbell Soup, and Converse have been comfortable targeting the LGBTQ community for a while now, while managing any backlash from existing consumers. And now other brands such as Michael Kors, Coach and even financial institutions such as TD Ameritrade have started making efforts to make their brand more inclusive of the exceptionally loyal LGBTQ community.
So what is the best way that marketers can ‘authentically’ tap into the growing Pink economy?
1. Do your homework:For one, be careful where you tread. This community is extremely sensitive to ‘authenticity’. So unless you mean it about being ‘inclusive’ by understanding their needs and their differences, do not enter the market. In other words, do your homework! Perhaps start with the LGBTQ group in your organization to better understanding who you are targeting and then tap into some more secondary research that may offer specific insights into your local community. Most importantly, be committed to making your brand part of their ‘safe space’.
2. Commit to it:Once the research is done, literally ‘step’ into the commitment. Be part of a local Pride event or parade. Sponsor a local LGBTQ non-profit. Have content on your brand packaging and site that speaks to your commitment to this community.
3. Constant feedback loop:This is a community made up of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgenders and Queers. Each of them is a complete audience ecosystem by themselves. It is very important to understand how to target the community without alienating any other segment in the community. Feedback is key and having your ears to the ground, as a marketer is critical. This is also a close-knit community. Once offended, it will be very difficult for your brand to gain trust back. Make feedback and debriefs a continuous loop, in conjunction with all communication partners.
4. Make the message consistent across the organization:Before targeting the LGBTQ community, it is important to ensure that the inclusive message runs across the entire organization. The brand won’t be helped if the CEO is openly homophobic, tweeting about his or her feelings while the brand messaging is trying to be authentic. It is also important that the company walks the talk with its employee policies and practices, with benefits to match. There is no space for double standards or inconsistent messaging when it comes to this audience.
5. Remember, these are smart consumers:Most importantly, as a marketer it is important to remember that this is an extremely smart and sensitive group of loyal, committed consumers with the buying power to match. Many in the community choose their loyalty to brands by relying on the Corporate Equality Index Buying guide. Needless to say, Vans and Converse are right there, as brands that are not only supportive but walk their talk when it comes to the LGBTQ community.
So what did 50 years of Pride teach me? For one, it is important to understand that LGBTQ themed communication has been proven to drive stronger brand recall with brands perceived to be more positive and progressive. Alcohol and insurance drew 15% and 14% stronger brand recognition with LGBTQ-themed advertising, respectively, while hotel brand recognition was 7% stronger with LGBTQ-themed ads. On the contrary, automobile brand recognition was 20% stronger with generic-themed advertising.
Community targeted advertising was also more likely to inspire purchases and recommendations as we saw earlier. In fact this was seen more in this audience than in other generic audiences. Buyer intent was 40% higher and willingness to recommend the brand was 66% higher for the LGBTQ community.
There was a time when brands could choose whether to be LGBTQ-friendly or not. Not anymore. As this inclusive, sensitive, loyal community continues to grow globally brands can no longer ignore the pink dollars that are at stake. After all, we are talking about losing out on $3.7 trillion, the global queer community’s purchasing power that is only going to go up year-on-year.
Join me every week, as we navigate these ever-changing waters to make sense of this ‘always-on’, ‘always-connected’ consumer and the technologies that define their everyday. I will be bringing you insights from some of the sharpest global minds in the industry as well as in academia. And do join the conversation.
Until next week
Anika
Anika Sharma
A seasoned Advertising and Digital expert, Anika has worked across countries and continents and spoken at companies such as Google and universities such as New York University. She is currently Professor of Business at New York University’s Stern School of Business, teaching Digital marketing, Social Media, Mobile and Digital Strategy. Follow Anika on twitter @anikadas.
©AnikaSharma. No part of this article can be used without explicit permission. All rights reserved.
