Marty Davies is Joint CEO, Outvertising and Co-Founder of Trans+ Adland, a community group of trans, non-binary, gender non-conforming and intersex people in the marketing and advertising industry, and the founder of creative consultancy Smarty Pants.
Marty is a force of nature, driving change across our industry. A columnist for Campaign magazine and industry campaigner and thought leader, she led Outvertising’s call for brands to stand their ground during Pride Month 2023. Over 120 organisations signed up, including the top 10 media agencies.
The conversation covers topics including redefining allyship, the dangers of agencies’ LGBTQIA+ networks being exploited for creating additional value for clients rather than focussing on employees’ needs, and the huge problem of ‘dirty attention’ in online advertising.
On brands’ fear of backlash:
“You will get backlash and you need to be prepared for it. To be queer, to be trans in our society, is to receive backlash. If you’re going to do a campaign including queer or trans people, you’re sitting with us in our discomfort, so you ahve to expect some backlash as we get it every day of our lives.”
