‘I don’t see myself reflected, so I don’t engage’: Survey uncovers advertising’s LGBTQIA+ pitfalls
In a new survey, independent full-service agency, Young Folks, in collaboration with LGBTQIA+ grassroots company, Queer Town, has revealed that there is a severe disconnect between how marketing portrays LGBTQIA+ people and the general public’s expectations.
The survey’s results, garnered from more than 300 Australians, spotlight the ineffectiveness of inauthentic representation.
81% of survey respondents feel that advertising does not showcase real LGBTQIA+ experiences, while 75% say that the amount of current representation is not enough. Respondents justified their answers with several issues, such as subpar diversity, an overdependence on cliches, and a lack of LGBTQIA+ talent and voices working on advertising campaigns.
16% of respondents also said that a top priority for them was seeing more real-life stories playing across marketing works.
“Making marketing and advertising more inclusive of LGBTIQA+ people and experiences should be a priority, not just a ‘nice to have,'” said Erin Morris, managing director of Young Folks.
“True inclusivity starts long before a campaign goes live – diverse voices and identities should be brought to the table in the campaign planning stage to weed out any unconscious bias, and truly reflect the diversity of the community it’s marketing to.
“We created this guide to give brands, marketers and agencies a practical tool to get representation right.”
Morris was referring to ‘Beyond Rainbows: LGBTQIA+ Inclusion and Representation in Advertising’ – a comprehensive resource advertisers, brands and marketers can use to improve queer representation within their advertising.
And according to survey respondents, investing in proper representation can have a direct impact on how consumers look and engage with a brand. 78% of people said they are “more likely to support brands that accurately depict LGBTQIA+ identities”. At the same time, 57% even said they would be willing to pay more for these brands’ services and products.
On the other hand, 65% of respondents stated that offensive or poor LGBTQIA+ representation actually caused them to boycott a brand.
Considering that 73% of people agreed that today’s advertising is still relying on stereotypes, despite these brands’ attempts at being inclusive, using cliches such as “the flamboyant gay best friend, the masculine-presenting lesbian, or the androgynous non-binary person” is only going to continue harming companies and subject the LGBTQIA+ community to negative biases.
“If I saw people like me in ads and on TV when I was growing up, I wouldn’t only be finding myself now,” an anonymous respondent said in their survey.
“Too often, the advertising industry recycles the same, worn-out representations of LGBTIQA+ lives, missing the diversity and day-to-day experiences of our community today,” Queer Town’s chief executive officer and founder, Archie Beetle, said.
“I don’t see myself reflected, so I don’t engage. This guide [above] is a call to action for agencies everywhere to elevate their game.
“We don’t need rainbow colours in June; we need authentic reflections of our multifaceted lives all year round. With this resource, we aim to empower creatives to design and create content that embodies queer stories, rather than mimicking them.”
Young Folks and Queer Town are using a “through the line campaign” approach to advertise their joint guide, leveraging numerous channels, including outdoor, programmatic, Google Ads, email marketing and LinkedIn Ads.
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