Pride Month Is Not Your Company's Seasonal Cash Grab

As creators become a central part of humanizing a brand, it is even more important for companies to get clear about what they actually stand for, and what they stand against. The recent high-profile LGBTQ+ partnership failures by Bud Light, Target and the Los Angeles Dodgers should remind all brands that they must be willing to stand by the marginalized communities they hope to acquire and retain as customers. With more than 650 pieces of legislation threatening LGBTQ+ communities pending across the United States, it is vital that brands understand the complexities of working with LGBTQ+ creators—and be willing to alienate those who stand against them. Creators Are People, Not Ad Units. It’s Time for Brands to Catch Up Proactivity is key A cursory look at the news will reveal that LGBTQ+ rights are still deeply politicized. When working with queer creators in any capacity, companies must be willing to authentically stand by the individuals they engage, or risk alienating an entire community. Consider Bud Light, owned by Anheuser-Busch, engaging Dylan Mulvaney, a trans creator. The partnership received swift and extreme blowback from homophobic critics, including a brand boycott. However, according to Pew Research, only 10% of people oppose or strongly oppose policies that protect transgender individuals from discrimination in jobs, housing and public spaces. This small minority should not have influenced the brand's support of its LGBTQ+ audience, which has about $3.7 trillion in annual global spending power. That Bud Light hadn’t clearly and strategically developed a crisis communications plan for a situation like this is irresponsible. Instead of standing by the brand’s decision to work with Mulvaney, Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth attempted to distance the brand from the campaign, which only enraged the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. The reactive and poorly thought-through response shows how little strategy went into evaluating the potential business impact of boycotts, which research shows is nominal. Know what your brand stands against When working with diverse creators, companies must be willing to alienate those who support the power structures that oppress those diverse communities. While we often talk about generating brand love, it’s just as important to focus on eliciting brand hate. When Nike launched its 2018 campaign with Colin Kaepernick—the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who hasn't played football since the 2016-17 season when he took a knee during the national anthem in protest of police violence—the brand's stock fell nearly 3% and fierce critics posted images of burning Nike shoes. However, Nike had made the strategic decision to alienate those who uphold racist ideals, going so far as to release a statement instructing people on “how to burn our products properly.” The campaign ended up generating $163 million in earned media worth, added $6 billion of value to Nike's brand and boosted sales by 31%. When working with creators from marginalized communities, it’s important that companies are willing to show unwavering support for the community the creator represents. Otherwise, it’s performative marketing that often ends up costing the brand in reputation and revenue. How an Army of Creators Is Helping Bose Modernize Its Marketing The limits of localization Localization is a powerful tool for high-performing campaigns. However, brands cannot localize their values, or advocacy, without sweeping (and Google-able) consequences. Though Target has sold merchandise for Pride over the past decade, and its leadership espouses values supporting LGBTQ+ communities, it made the miscalculated decision to pull back Pride merchandise in areas where homophobic critics were the loudest. The result has been national coverage with negative brand sentiment positioning Target’s support of LGBTQ+ communities as performative and a seasonal cash grab. What the retailer should have done is evaluate the business case supporting LGBTQ+ communities, which would’ve shown that doubling down on its advocacy was much more authentic, purpose-driven and ultimately lucrative than trying to curb blowback from a hateful minority. The evidence is in the data. According to a poll conducted by PRRI, roughly 80% of Americans favor laws that protect LGBTQ+ people against discrimination in employment, public accommodations and housing. Gallup’s 2022 study shows that 7.1% of Americans identify as LGBTQ+ and roughly 21% of all adult Gen Z Americans now identify as LGBTQ+, indicating a generational shift against heteronormativity. In the U.S., LBGTQ+ communities are the fastest-growing minority segment with $1.4 trillion in buying power. To stand by LGBTQ+ people is not only the right thing to do but also a powerful economic decision. As we continue to hold brands accountable for the diversity and inclusion promises they’ve made, it will become clear which brands were, and were not, authentic in their commitments. Those that stand up boldly in support of diverse creators stand to gain the most in the long run.

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Not a Seasonal Cash Grab: Brand Lessons on Engaging With Diverse Creators

Recent high-profile LGBTQ+ partnership failures expose the gaps in strategy and communications

Kaitlyn Barclay

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Kaitlyn Barclay