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October 31, 2005
Gay Buying Power: Economics Trumps Prejudice
A new poll of the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender [GLBT] community shows this group, with an estimated purchasing power of $600 billion, prefers import and luxury brands, and is more attuned to non-traditional and word-of-mouth marketing when making purchasing decisions.
Conducted by Harris Interactive, the GLBT study was conducted online this summer and interviewed 2,818 self-identified gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender adults [aged 18 and over] and 2,121 heterosexual adults [aged 18 and over].
The results also showed a stronger propensity [51% vs. 34% for non-gay respondents] to consider buying a hybrid over a gas-only vehicle, with the attendant belief that the extra cost was justified.
The result of the poll that should be strongly considered by all marketers was that 72% of GLBT consumers were more likely to buy from a company that specifically reached out to the community via advertising. Volkswagen, Subaru, Volvo and BMW are perceived as the top brands that extend the greatest outreach to the GLBT community.
This phenomenon is not new. Indeed it is parallel to what has happened with the African-American and Hispanic communities -- when companies want their dollars, they create products, policies and messaging to win them over. In reality, this is how civil rights actually moves from politics to everyday reality -- via economics.
As the country pays its respects to Rosa Parks who helped ignite the black civil rights movement, its useful to look back and see how inclusion has been accomplished -- from protest to legislation to economic participation. As the black middle class has grown over the decades it has become easier for true integration to occur, though it is an ongoing process.
The same is true of the current Hispanic integration, and of the GLBT community. By patronizing companies that provide the kinds of services each group desires, along with the appropriate marketing, outreach and most of all, employment policies, all groups can stake a greater claim for themselves in the mainstream of society.
In other words, economics trumps prejudice.
Highlights from the Harris Interactive GLBT Study:
-- GLBT consumers favor luxury brands versus non-luxury brands, though balancing image with affordability is a high priority.
-- Automakers' quest to move away from "traditional" media sources--having more of an online presence and "viral marketing" focus -- hits squarely at the GLBT consumer. This group relies heavily on both the Internet [62%] and "word-of-mouth" [45%] advice when deciding which vehicle to purchase.
-- Gay males [17%] are more likely than the GLBT population on a whole [12%] to listen to satellite radio programming, with the majority of these respondents [67%] tuning in to GLBT-specific stations.
Posted by Frank at October 31, 2005 4:59 PM | Filed under Auto News