How to fly the flag in your marketing

June is the month of Pride. With origins in New York in 1970, Pride has grown to become an internationally recognized movement and celebration. Pride is the celebration of those in the LGBTQIA+ community. A community who have suffered, and still do suffer, in both law and societal attitudes across the world. But it’s also so much more.

Pride is no longer just a movement about sexuality – today it represents every minority group that seeks to achieve social equality. Much like feminism and Black Lives Matter, the goal of Pride is the same, for everyone, no matter their sexuality, gender, race, or religion, to be treated fairly and to live freely without fear of persecution.

At Dotdigital, we’re loud and proud supporters of Pride. For us, it’s not just another date in the calendar to demonstrate some corporate activism.

Pride in marketing

In recent years there has been an increase in Pride-focused marketing campaigns. In a post-pandemic society, we are seeing trends of brand values being more important than ever to consumers. This has led to an increase in human–to–human marketing, where brands openly show their personality and passions, and in doing so, connect with their audience on a more human level.

Brands that celebrate Pride on a surface level or because “they’re doing it so we will too” will quickly be found out. In the same way, customers are switched on to unsubstantiated greenwashing claims, they can also see a brand’s genuine commitment to a cause through its marketing campaigns. Customers are choosing to do business with brands that share their values. They will be more loyal to these brands, particularly if they feel as though shopping and interacting with them will help the causes they’re passionate about.

Having Pride in your marketing is about so much more than sticking a rainbow flag on your logo. In this blog, we’ll show you some of our favorite Pride campaigns. They demonstrate commitment and speak with authenticity. If you’re looking to amplify your cause-based marketing, these are amazing examples of how it can and should be done. 

1. Make it relevant to your industry

Surfer fashion brand Quiksilver addresses the history of homophobia in surfing culture in this email campaign. The email campaign highlights icons that are working to change this attitude within the sport and look forward. It’s not shying away or burying its head in the sand. By acknowledging and addressing a real issue in its industry, Quiksilver is doing a good job at linking Pride and its brand, something a lot of customers will appreciate.

2. Create a Pride collection

A huge part of pride is being proud. The rainbow is an instantly recognizable symbol of the Pride movement. Levi’s has created a range of products for customers to purchase and wear to show their support. Levi’s is also offering the option to round up your purchase at checkout to donate to an LGBTQIA+ organization. What’s more, the collection is available all year round. The campaign uses strong imagery and language to show its full support. 

3. Embrace your community

Baby and kids clothing brand Carter’s used real families and real customers as brand ambassadors for their Pride campaign. Using images of these real families, alongside a quote about what Pride means to them, Carter’s gives its customers a platform on which their voices can be heard. This clever use of UGC connects with the reader and demonstrates its strong and authentic brand community. They also include a product section with rainbow items for customers to purchase and show the next generation the power of love and inclusivity.

4. Highlight your people

5. Connect with influencers

A great way to demonstrate your genuine commitment to the Pride movement is to connect with influencers, organizations, and charities. Shoe and accessories brand, Kurt Geiger is a strong, vocal supporter of Pride. Its ever-growing rainbow collection is available year-round and it donates to some of the smaller, lesser known but equally important charities and organizations to help the movement. 

6. Be educational

Pride isn’t just for ecommerce, B2C, and D2C brands. There are so many ways a business can demonstrate its commitment to the Pride movement without also having to push Pride-themed products. Take Ironhack for example. This international school specializes in web development, data analytics, and UI/UX design. You might not think a Pride campaign is a natural fit, but Ironhack turn it into a learning opportunity for its community.

Show your colors this Pride month

Ultimately, Pride is a key moment in the social calendar. It’s an opportunity for you to step away from your day-to-day, BAU campaigns and create something impactful. Find an approach and message that works for you and create something colorful this Pride month. 

Be real. 

Be authentic. 

And, most importantly, be you.