For Pride we are proud to highlight Scott Gatz of Q.Digital, whose brands include Queerty, GayCities, LGBTQ Nation, and INTO. The company has been a trusted voice for the LGBTQ community for over a decade.
GGBA: Please tell us more about Q.Digital.
Scott Gatz: Q.Digital is the nationβs largest LGBTQ media company with a reach of over 9 million people each month. Our popular sites include Queerty (culture and entertainment), LGBTQ Nation (news), GayCities (travel), and INTO (targeting GenZ and BIPOC communities). We want to help every LGBTQ person live their lives to the fullest and weβre proud to be LGBTQ owned and operated and an NGLCC certified LGBTBE.
GGBA: Why did you decide to create Q.Digital?
Scott Gatz: Our company was founded 13 years ago at a time when there were very few online LGBTQ media companies. We knew that we could connect, inform, and entertain our community better than what existed, and weβre humbled by the way that people have followed us over the years. To be able to uplift the voices and stories that matter, and for so many millions of people to engage with that content, is a true honor.
GGBA: Who are some of your role models, and especially those who helped to influence your business?
Scott Gatz: So many people along the way have offered advice, connections, and research and Iβm forever grateful for their assistance. Community Marketing, Inc. (a fellow NGLCC LGBTBE), publishes research about the LGBTQ community, which deeply influenced our work; and its leader Tom Roth generously connected me with people who helped shape who we are today.Β Tomβs kindness and mentorship was a gift. If you need custom research, please consider reaching out to Community Marketing.
GGBA: How long have you been a member and how has being a member of GGBA helped your business so far?β¨
Scott Gatz:Β We joined GGBA many years ago, but became more involved as we sought our NGLCC certification. It was important for us to showcase that we are LGBTQ owned and differentiate ourselves from our well-known, but non-LGBTQ owned, competitors. Since then, the GGBA Accelerator program helped us improve business processes and we have made lasting connections through GGBA as weβve met inspiring business owners.
GGBA: What other advice would you give to someone who is thinking of starting their own business?
Scott Gatz: There is never a βright timeβ to start, so just start. Youβll meet lots of well-meaning people along the way who will share concerns or doubts. Take heed and course correct if itβs warranted, but donβt let them discourage you. The hardest thing is pushing past your own fears (and perhaps the fears of those well-meaning people). And as the old saying goes, change is the only constant. Be prepared to take twists and turns along the way and chase opportunitiesβyou never know what youβll find.
GGBA: Is there anything else that you would like to share?Β Β
Scott Gatz: Weβre all so lucky to live in the Bay Area with such amazing, innovative LGBTQ business owners. I encourage all of us to support our fellow LGBTQ business owners. We all have choices about where to spend our personal and our businessβ dollars and I hope we can all choose LGBTQ-owned businesses and help each other thrive.
And lastly, I hope youβll visit our sites and follow us on social: Queerty, LGBTQ Nation, GayCities, and INTO.
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