Android Tops LGBT-Favored Brands in U.S.

Google’s Android mobile operating system is #1 on the top 20 brands favored by the LGBT community, according to the researchers at YouGov BrandIndex. Last year, Google's YouTube topped the annual LGBT ranking.

The 2012 LGBT buzz list includes four Apple-related and several other tech and social media brands, and looks quite different from last year’s ranking, with 12 new brands making the top 20: Android, iPad, Target, Samsung, Aleve, Kindle, Advil, PBS, LG, Starbucks, Comedy Central, and Skype. Disneyland and Disney World share fourth spot, reflect the parks' annual LGBT days and outreach to the gay community.

“Gay consumers number 15 million and counting, spending $743 billion annually” in the U.S., according to LGBT marketing agency Prime Access. Falling out of the top 20 this year: Google, Amazon, Whole Foods, Claritin, HBO, Lowe's, Cheerios, Food Network, M&Ms, Nike, Trader Joe's and Bose.

The 1,100+ brands in the YouGov BrandIndex universe were measured with the company’s buzz score, asking respondents “If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising, news or word of mouth, was it positive or negative?” 

Results were filtered for respondents who self-identified as lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transgender. The measurement scores range from 100 to -100 and are compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive, with a zero score for equal positive and negative feedback. 

YouGov BrandIndex interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative US population sample, totaling more than 1.2 million interviews per year.