As Marketers Fumble Attempts at Allyship, Edelman's LGBTQ+ Taskforce Is Making Money

"Should we make our logo rainbow this year?" was one question clients asked Lauren Gray, an Edelman svp and a leader of its Out Front LGBTQ+ task force, before this June's Pride celebrations. Nervous about marketing to the LGBTQ+ community, many marketers sought Out Front's guidance on how to do it right. Two high-profile marketing catastrophes–one at Bud Light and the other at Target–made brands wary of marketing to the LGBTQ+ community. Bud Light, for its part, incited outrage from fans across the political spectrum–first, when it partnered with transgender content creator Dylan Mulvaney, and then when it subsequently backtracked on that partnership. There are often consequences for marketers embroiled in these controversies, even when they do the right thing. Soon after Bud Light's CEO distanced himself from the influencer deal, the brand's lead marketer–the first woman marketing vp in the company's 41-year history–took a leave of absence. Edelman created its task force last April. It not only generates revenue, but drives some of its clients to tap into Edelman's other services. This means that brands are prepared to pay agencies for their work on and insight into purpose-driven business and advertising strategies. It also indicates that building teams with values-based marketing knowledge is not only ethical, but can be a viable business expansion pipeline. These Brands Are Still Flying the Rainbow Flag for Pride Month "There's this very heightened fear of backlash in this deeply-polarized environment that we're in right now," Gray told Adweek. "What we're saying to clients, in regard to some of those questions, is that we don't want companies to learn the wrong lessons from the past few months." One year in and $1 million generated Out Front has a large service offering, of which creative campaign development is just one aspect. The task force educates brands on how to respond to LGBTQ+ social issues, sometimes as these issues are unfolding on the public stage. It also offers corporate strategy development services, sometimes in the aftermath of harmful shifts in laws and policies. The task force can also educate client teams on the LGBTQ+ experience, and facilitate training sessions. A year after its launch, Out Front's served approximately 60 clients. During that time, it generated over $1 million in revenue. Brands, the agency found, are now willing to pay for agencies' values-based marketing expertise. Meanwhile, in 2022 legislators drafted 315 anti-LGBTQ+ bills. So far this year, legislators have proposed about 465 of them. That's tenfold the number proposed five years ago, making it even more crucial for brands to step up for the LGBTQ+ community. "All of the anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and legislation kicked off in Florida, and that's when brands really took notice of the struggles they were going to be facing as they started to navigate this environment," said Greg Casto an Out Front founder and executive vp of brand at Edelman. These brands asked simplistic questions like what they should say in response to harmful legislation, and how to say it. Brands are asking, 'what should we do?' Consumers largely expect brands to have answers to those questions. The torrent of legislation belies that Americans largely support the LGBTQ+ community. They are twice as likely to buy or use a brand that publicly supports and demonstrates a commitment to expanding and protecting LGBTQ+ rights, according to research the Edelman Trust Institute and GLAAD conducted last fall. Plus, U.S. employees are on average 4.5-times more likely to work for a brand that publicly supports and demonstrates a commitment to protecting LGBTQ+ rights. It was important that Edelman select the right employees for the task force. Casto cultivated a diverse group of employees. They represent a variety of identities, professional and personal backgrounds, he told Adweek. "Bringing those people together was a key part of it, and we built a community where we lean on each other," Casto said. "Especially as these moments have become very nuanced over the last year." Task force membership is not technically limited to employees that identify as LGBTQ+, but they must bring extensive experience with LGBTQ+ advocacy regardless of how they identify. Members also need the right professional expertise–say, in brand activations or creative, depending on the client's scope. The more informed perspectives Edelman can bring to conversations with clients, the better. The task force's flexible structure means Out Front members can become "an extension" of existing client account teams, a model that other agencies could emulate without racking up too many overhead costs. "It is literally just us, with our regular rates, providing counsel to our clients and making sure that we have a team of experts consulting with the brand teams or the corporate teams," said Casto.