June 28, 2023 — Numerator revealed insights on diverse representation in advertising based on a sentiment survey of more than 1,200 consumers, equally balanced between the Generation Z, millennial, Generation X, and baby boomer generations. 
 
Here are some key takeaways:
 

• Overall, 63% of consumers say diverse representation in advertising is important to them; only 16% say it’s unimportant.
• Younger, urban, and racially diverse shoppers emphasize the importance of diverse representation in advertising more than older, rural, and white consumers.
• Respondents cited racial and ethnic diversity (62%) as most important followed by age diversity (56%), disability representation (56%), LGBTQIA+ representation (37%), and gender identity (34%).
• Overall, 51% of respondents say diversity in advertising has a positive impact with certain demographics skewing higher: Black (71%), Asian (62%), urban (59%), Hispanic/Latino (58%), Gen Z (58%), and millennial (55%) consumers.
• Only 12% of consumers say they are unlikely to buy from brands that feature diverse representation. On the other hand, 47% say they’re likely to buy from a brand that features diversity, and 41% say it wouldn’t affect their decision.
• Forty-seven percent of consumers believe the amount of representation is “just right,” 31% think there is too much, and 22% believe there is not enough. Broken down by demographic, Black (76%) and Gen Z (44%) respondents are more likely to believe there is not enough diverse representation in advertising; baby boomers (30%) and Gen X (22%) are more likely to say there is too much.

 
To mark Pride Month, Numerator gleaned insights specifically about LGBTQIA+ representation:
 

• Forty-four percent of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed it is important to feature LGBTQIA+ representation in advertisements. The groups more likely to agree with this statement were Gen Z, millennials, Black consumers, Asian consumers, and Hispanic/Latino consumers.
• More than three-quarters of respondents report feeling positivity or neutrality when faced with LGBTQIA+ representation—significantly higher in younger, urban, and racially diverse shoppers. Twenty-four percent of shoppers reported feeling negatively, a sentiment more common among baby boomers, rural, and Midwest shoppers.
• Thirty-seven percent of consumers don’t think LGBTQIA+ representation has a positive impact on society, 34% think it does, and 29% are neutral. These figures vary heavily by age, race, and other factors: More than 40% of Gen Z, millennials, urban, Black, Asian, and Hispanic/Latino shoppers think LGBTQ+ representation has a positive impact. Over 40% of Gen X, baby boomers, rural, white, and Midwest shoppers think it has a negative impact.

 
For more information: numerator.com.