By Amanda Dunlap, with contributions from the team
Pride Month kicks off the summer season with joyful celebrations, bright colors, and messages of inclusivity and love. Unfortunately, this all too often leads to the disingenuous positioning of rainbow logos and thoughtless “love is love” posts from businesses on social media. When authenticity is missing from the picture for the sake of optics, the meaning behind the message is lost — and can even come across as cynical or exploitative. For businesses and brands seeking to show sincere allyship and support to the LGBTQIA+ community in the coming weeks and throughout the year, read on for ways to take tangible action or incorporate inclusive and respectful campaigns that go beyond the performative rainbow flag.
Lean on Curated Content
Curated content — the sharing of resources from trusted third-party online sources — is an effective way to promote relevant cultural topics without misreading the moment or appearing inauthentic if you’re unsure what to say. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel with not-so-inspirational quotes or a showy set of graphics. Instead, create space for others’ voices by promoting impactful events, charities, or other goings-on in your community that your audience might find relevant.
Give Back
Get your internal team involved and decide on a nonprofit or charity to donate to on behalf of your company. This can be done entirely with staff, or as a product-related incentive to encourage your audience to partake in the contribution. Pairing your posts with meaningful action takes your content from display to doing. Once an organization is chosen… commit! Be sure to carefully track funds and establish a clear deadline on when the donation will be made. Need some ideas? Here is a list of some online resources!
Amplify Queer Voices
Prioritizing and highlighting queer-owned or queer-focused organizations in your industry not only directly supports LGBTQIA+ community members in your area, but is another effective way to make space for those who have more to say during Pride Month. If you have a close personal relationship with the creator or org, reach out directly and find out what would be most impactful for them — whether it’s an active collaboration, a donation, or simply sharing their work and content for visibility.
Photo credit: Kum & Go Instagram
The quest for queer liberation has been a long and exhausting journey — and with the fight far from over, true allyship demands much more respect than rainbows and parades portrayed on social media for optics of inclusivity. Take the time to map out your Pride Month content to ensure genuine support of this community, with everything from historical context to the vital conversations happening in the news every day. A bonus beyond your solidarity and knowing you’re on the right side of history? If you strike the right authentic tone and prove that what you’re saying is more than just words, your commitment to justice will help you build credibility and social cachet with those whose respect your org needs most: your audience. Need assistance with your strategy? Contact us today and we’ll set up a discovery session to discuss how your org can thrive in Pride Month and beyond!
Amanda Dunlap is our Director of Strategy and Relationships, who has an extensive background in copywriting — she likes to dust the rust off every now and then with posts for our blog. She loves “FoodTok,” astrology, and straddling the line between wellness junkie and McDonald’s enthusiast.
