Community Marketing, Inc. (CMI) of San Francisco recently published the results of an online survey of more than 22,000 lesbian and gay adults. Participants were asked a series of questions relating to their lifestyle and buying habits. About 90% of both gay men and lesbians responded that their buying decisions are favorably influenced by a brand’s support or sponsorship of LGBT events. Purchasing decisions are also affected by the way a company treats their gay and lesbian employees. According to one of the researchers, they are very aware of business practices and often read up on corporate profiles through equality indexes beforehand. Unfortunately, it is difficult to project any research findings onto the entire gay or lesbian population, as the majority prefers to remain anonymous due to social, employment and political pressures. For similar reasons, these groups are averse to using coupon or tracking codes when purchasing. So if you choose to research the market and target them with a marketing campaign, you will find a challenge in measuring the actual success of your hard work. Sara Wojdacki – AE
We’ve talked many times before about how to categorize customer segments – by general demographics, by purchase habits and lifestyle traits. But are you ready to invest in reaching out to the gay and lesbian community? It will take more than a print ad in a local paper or a banner on a website.
