Introducing our new employer guidance

Outvertising’s purpose is to make UK advertising and marketing completely LGBTQ+ inclusive. One way we can achieve this is by encouraging advertising and marketing organisations to be completely LGBTQ+ inclusive in the workplace. 

To help every organisation work toward this goal we’re announcing a set of twenty actions designed to ensure LGBTQ+ inclusion by helping everyone feel comfortable, accepted and supported in their workplace.

Drawn up in collaboration with HR experts, industry leaders as well as the Outvertising team, these actions cover areas including gender-inclusive language, diversity monitoring, training, allyship and contract recommendations.

The vague vanguard: The story of one unintentionally groundbreaking 90s TV ad.

At Outvertising, LGBT+ history month is a time to look back at inclusion in advertising throughout the years.

In doing so, a question that arises is what, exactly, we’re looking for. 

Explicit examples exist, such as the much referenced Dining Table ad from Ikea as early as 1994 but these examples are few and far between. Far more common are adverts where the sexuality of those featured is a matter of how they are perceived by the viewer. Coined by Michael Wilke in 1997, ‘gay vague’ is the appearance of people who are seen by some viewers as gay, without it being explicitly stated or shown.

When done intentionally, this allows brands to court two audiences: those longing for representation alongside those who would be put off by it. 

The lack of historical representation also means, however, that LGBTQ+ people don’t always need the representation to be intended by the creators. 

We spoke to Alan Pafenbach, one of the creators behind ‘Sunday Afternoon.’ This ad for Volkswagen features two young men driving around LA, with an armchair collected along the way implying that they live together. It’s not much to go on, but in 1997, surrounded by images of heteronormativity, it was all that many people needed to view the two men as a couple. It gained attention at the time that surprised Alan and his team.

““There was a sense that it was coded to reach the gay community. It was not intentionally done. My creative partners and I were not that clever, but the dissection of the various details of the film was a wonder to observe.””

— Alan Pafenbach

VW - Sunny Afternoon

And dissection is an accurate term. From the fastidiousness of the driver to the way that the pair communicate without words, evidence was found by those who were looking for it.

But as representation gradually improves, stereotypical readings are far less likely to be accepted and embraced in this way. It seems doubtful that the men in ‘Sunday Afternoon’ would be viewed as gay today, at a time when boyfriends can be, and are, shown intimately and physically in mainstream media.

Perhaps now, we’re looking to other identities to be represented in ways that we haven’t seen before.

How can a single relationship shown on screen explicitly and accurately represent bisexuality? What can advertisers do to represent asexual and aromantic people in a clear, positive way? One thing we know is that, until they figure it out, people will find their representation where they can.

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Volunteer with us: Co-Directors needed

[UPDATE 31/12/2021 – Applications now closed]

We’re searching for three new volunteer directors to join the Outvertising team. As the UK’s advertising LGBTQ+ advocacy group we work to make UK advertising and marketing completely LGBTQ+ inclusive. We do that by providing free resources to drive LGBTQ+ belonging and inclusion in our workplaces, and with free insights and tools to encourage LGBTQ+ inclusion in advertising. Join us and we promise networking, personal and professional development, and friendship. All are welcome to apply – LGBTQ+ and allies alike.

We have three important vacancies to fill:

Co-Director of Communications
From social to newsletters, you'll be jointly responsible for how Outvertising shares our message far and wide. This is a hands-on role.

Co-Director of Insight
You'll push brands and their partners to be more LGBTQ+ inclusive in their advertising by developing Outvertising’s insight tools and resources.

Corporate Secretary
You'll be jointly responsible for administering the regulatory and legal aspects of the organisation, which is a company limited by guarantee.

For more information please email info@outvertising.org. You’ll be joining a friendly and enthusiastic team of folk who have day jobs in marketing and advertising and who are passionate about inclusion.