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5 Tips to Create Genuine & Impactful Pride Campaigns

Samuel Butcher
Written By
Samuel Butcher
Published On
Jun 22, 2021
A person waving a Pride flag in the air

If you want the rainbow, you’re going to have to deal with the rain.

Creating Pride campaigns that are authentic and impactful can be challenging for brands as the public is becoming increasingly more aware of those jumping on the Pride bandwagon, otherwise known as “rainbow-washing.” If the intentions of your brand aren’t genuine, consumers on social media are no longer afraid to call you out — and the backlash isn’t pretty. It can permanently damage your image.

Supporting the LGBTQ2S+ community involves more than just waving the rainbow flag during Pride month. It’s a constant fight for equality for every gender identity. Sincerity and consistency are key — and with these five tips, you’ll be able to establish your brand as a true Pride ally. 

Get ready to ride the rainbow and make a true impact with your Pride campaigns!

A group of individuals brainstorm for upcoming Pride campaigns

1. Have a Clear Goal

Why have you decided to produce Pride campaigns? What difference do you aim to make? Whether your goal is to educate the public on the LGBTQ2S+ community and their true stories or maybe recruit more Pride allies, having a clear objective can help steer you in the right direction. 

One major reason why brands tend to be accused of rainbow-washing is because they solely wish to leverage this cause for monetary gain. Considering that the LGBTQ+ community’s combined buying power has hit a total of $3.7 trillion, it’s clear why businesses are rushing to slide down the rainbow. 

Brands that only have money on their mind when executing Pride campaigns will find that it does more harm than good. Sure, the goal of any business is to make money, but another, more important objective of running a campaign around Pride, is to raise awareness. If there’s no concern for the greater good involved, then there’s no hiding this surface-level approach to marketing and the public will see right through it.
If you want to nail pride marketing, you need to have good intentions. 

2. Bring Queer Folks into the Creative Process

How do you effectively resonate with the LGBTQ2S+ community? We recommend asking Queer folks themselves! We can’t stress enough how important it is to take the point of view of a valued community member into account during the creative process of your Pride campaign. 

If there are LGBTQ2S+ people on your team, then inviting them to join in during the brainstorming stages will ensure that your campaign involves ideas that stem from the exact people you seek to uplift and celebrate.

A road sign that reads “diversity”, “equality”, and “inclusion”.

3. Think Diversity

Pride is both a celebration and a protest. It’s an act of social activism; and if social activism is truly something you stand for as a brand, then it’s vital to show that you don’t just seek social justice for a single cause. Social causes such as #StopAsianHate and #BlackLivesMatter are among the many issues that the world continues to fight for. 

For your Pride campaigns to truly make an impact, it’s also important to think about the inclusivity and representation of gender, race, and ethnicity in the final product of your marketing efforts. Supporting various causes reduces the chances of being labelled as a rainbow-washing brand. The power of diversity works in incredible ways.

4. Do Your Homework

Pride month itself commemorates the Stonewall Riots that occurred in Manhattan, New York in  June 1969. This uprising of the Queer community was in response to a police raid, and marked a huge turning point in the fight for LGBTQ2S+ rights. 
Doing your research about Pride history will allow you to have a clearer understanding of all the struggles that this community has faced throughout the years. When you know more about their trials and tribulations, you can create Pride campaigns that are well-informed and pay tribute to their rich narrative.

5. Collaborate with the Right Influencers

Elevate your campaign by collaborating with LGBTQ2S+ influencers. These social media personalities are important figures who amplify the voices of their community every day. Partnering with them for your influencer marketing Pride campaigns will connect you to a crowd who’s just as determined as you are to uplift the LGBTQ2S+ community.

A group of Pride activists holding signs at an event for LGBTQ+ rights

Go Beyond the Pride Campaigns

Support Pride and raise awareness for this social cause even when it isn’t June. You can do this by donating to LGBTQ2S+ organizations, as well as being more inclusive in your brand’s hiring process and the casting process for your campaigns. 

When your brand as a whole — and not just your Pride campaigns — is consistent, diverse, and inclusive, this contributes to the authenticity of your brand. 

With The Influence Agency’s team of digital marketing experts, you’ll be able to produce campaigns that inspire, educate, and spark change. Our Pride Toronto campaign succeeded at generating hype and increasing attendance for the 2019 Toronto Pride Festival. Our digital marketing efforts saw an impressive engagement rate of 25% and reached over 1.4 million people!

Connect with us to start dreaming up your next impactful campaign!

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