Out Now Consulting

Out Now Consulting is a marketing agency that provides specialised gay marketing services to large companies by researching gay lifestyles and using the information to develop strategies to target gay and lesbian consumers.

Out Now
TypeCompany
IndustryMarketing
GenreGay marketing specialist
Founded1992/2001
FounderIan Johnson
HeadquartersAustralia, Netherlands
Area served
Europe, US, Australia
ServicesMarket research, strategy, advertising, PR, training
ParentSignificant Others
Websitehttp://OutNowConsulting.com/

Origins

Although Out Now is a Dutch company, its origins lie in the formation of an Australian company, Significant Others, which after its establishment in 1992 became known in Australian media over subsequent years for its work as a specialist gay marketing agency.[1][2][3]

Significant Others presented the Keynote address at the world's first gay marketing conference in 1994.[4]

Following the establishment of an office in Amsterdam, Out Now became the first business of its kind with agencies in more than one country.[5][6][7]

Activities are now undertaken in the US, UK, Germany, Belgium, France, Ireland and The Netherlands markets.

Out Now's role in the development of gay marketing in various countries has been discussed in the Dutch language edition of 'Principes van Marketing' (Principles of Marketing) - a marketing textbook - by Dr. Philip Kotler.[8]

Areas of work

The company works in five areas: market research, advertising, training, PR and strategy development and is cited by mainstream media as an authority on gay consumer issues.[9]

Out Now won a Commercial Closet Association 'Images In Advertising' award in New York (June 11, 2007) in the "Outstanding Interactive" campaign category for an online promotion for Lufthansa.[10][11]

The agency has initiated research projects for gay and lesbian media in several countries including Sydney Star Observer, DNA Magazine (Australia), Gay Community News (Ireland), Diva, Gay Times, Bent (magazine) (United Kingdom) and De Gay Krant (Netherlands), such research usually being the first marketing analysis of gay consumers.[12]

The resulting findings have been reported in various international media.[13][14]

Other work includes social research - such as a 2004 work on discrimination in the Netherlands.[15]

Industry role

In June 2006, the MD of Out Now Consulting was Keynote speaker for the Pink Pound Conference held in London.[16]

In November 2006 Out Now presented a Keynote seminar at the world's second largest travel conference, London World Travel Market.[17]

Out Now presented at the February 2007 Marketing For Good event in London which for the first time considered gay marketing topics.[18]

In August 2007 the Market Research Society reported that Out Now was to undertake a "major survey of the lifestyles and spending power of the UK's three million gay consumers".[19]

In February 2015, the firm became the first organization in the world to be allocated a dedicated .LGBT domain name".[20]

'So gay' campaign

During 2008, a UK travel advertising campaign created by Out Now which used the term "So Gay" as an advertising slogan attracted global media attention.[21][22]

The poster campaign featured six US destinations seeking to attract gay travelers from the UK. One poster saying "South Carolina is so gay" was criticized by a Republican State Senator and the office of South Carolina governor Mark Sanford,[23] but was favorably received by members of the gay community.[24]

The campaign was later described as "the year's most talked about tourism ads" by several media outlets, including AdWeek.[25]

Notes
  1. Liz Hayes (1994), "TV interview of Out Now / Significant Others CEO", Nine Network, Today (Australian TV program)
  2. Amanda Keller (1996), "'The Hub' - Australian TV program on Significant Others", Foxtel
  3. Hubble, Ava (September 26, 1994), "The Guide - Media - Significant Others advises John Singleton and Barrie Unsworth on gay media market", Sydney Morning Herald, p. 2
  4. Chasing The Pink Dollar conference, Sydney, Australia. April 1994
  5. Lucassen, Christine (February 5, 2002), "Tapping Into The €400 bn gay market - Marketing group Out Now advises clients on ways of targeting 'pink' euro", International Herald Tribune - NL edition, p. 2
  6. Gons, Piet Hein (February 7, 2002), "The First Office Outside Australia of Gay Marketing Agency Out Now Is Opened in Amsterdam - Beweer nooit dat je een homomerk bent - Het eerste kantoor buiten Australie van homomarketing-bureau Out Now is onslangs geopend in Amsterdam", Adformatie, p. 16
  7. Emily Maitlis (2006), "UK TV News coverage of Out Now", BBC
  8. Kotler, Philip (2006), Principes Van Marketing (Principles of Marketing), Pearson Education, pp. 365–367, ISBN 90-430-1071-5
  9. Barker, Andrew (April 12, 2007), "Same-sex ads swim into mainstream - Industry embraces buying power of gay market", Variety
  10. Commercial Closet 'Images In Advertising' award winners
  11. Quartini, Joelle L. (June 15, 2007), "Image Makers - Commercial Closet honors advertising that includes gays.", New York Blade, archived from the original on October 24, 2007 – Scholar search
  12. "How Green is the Pink Euro? New Ireland Gay Market Study To Find Out", Echelon Magazine, 2006, archived from the original on January 8, 2007, retrieved 2007-08-04 – Scholar search
  13. Bloomfield, Steve (January 29, 2006), "Closet UK: 49% of gay people are too scared to come out at work", The Independent
  14. Burnett, Scott (March 2, 2007), "Business of Gay Weddings", Financial Mail
  15. "Gaykrant-onderzoek: Tolerantie is op z'n retour", Homo Emancapatie, August 6, 2004, archived from the original on March 11, 2007
  16. Pink Pound Conference, 22 June 2006
  17. "World Travel Market - WTM Gay and Lesbian Market webinar", Reed Business Exhibitions, 2007, retrieved 2007-08-04
  18. Marketing For Good conference, 28 February 2007
  19. Bain, Robert (August 28, 2007), "Out Now Consulting to conduct 'groundbreaking' study into the UK's three million gay consumers", Market Research Society: Research-live.com, retrieved 2007-08-29 External link in |newspaper= (help)
  20. BBC newsbeat report (February 12, 2015), "The first websites ending with the domain name LGBT go online", : BBC.co.uk, retrieved 2015-07-22 External link in |newspaper= (help)
  21. Adams, William Lee (July 17, 2008), "S. Carolina Huffs Over UK 'Gay' Ads", Time
  22. Baker, Vicky (July 16, 2008), "South Carolina - not 'so gay' after all", The Guardian
  23. Lisa Mullins (July 14, 2008), "London ad campaign upsets South Carolina", PRI The World (radio program)
  24. Ivey, Page (July 23, 2008), "South Carolina's 'so gay' travel ad upsets state officials", USA Today
  25. Lee, Tom (February 5, 2009), "Millions see 'So Gay' ad", Pink Paper, archived from the original on 16 July 2011, retrieved 2009-05-19
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