Ask how diverse your company is? Do LGBTQ+ employees have a seat at the table where decisions are made? Does the company have a sustainable culture of support that encourages LGBTQ+ people to apply? Are employees encouraged to be their authentic selves? Show continuous outward support It’s also the people who work in the company. Ask if you are doing absolutely nothing for the LGBTQ+ community while still producing Pride merchandise and marketing campaigns? Are you making donations to LGBTQ+ organizations only during Pride month? Does your company have internal policies that support a sustained culture of support for LGBTQ+ employees? Evaluate your internal cultureĪ brand isn’t just the campaign it puts on a billboard or in a social post.
Here’s how to do it: Know where you are to know where you’re goingīrands need to acknowledge the level of support they are providing and decide how they want to proceed. Support has to be part of a brand's culture and sustained throughout the organization, throughout the year.
Words with meaning need to stand behind those colors. Support shouldn’t happen only when the rainbow spotlight is on. If you want LGBTQ+ consumers to think that you’re authentic, then embrace authenticity. If a brand is doing bad things, you won’t have to look far before someone in the LGBTQ+ community spills the tea.īrands must commit to a sustainable way of life and way of doing business. And you’d be surprised how much a little consumer research can reveal. You’ve got to perform your due diligence to become an informed consumer. It’s great when a brand makes a donation to an LGBTQ+ organization during Pride month but where else is it spending its time and money?ĭoes this mean you need to research every single brand you buy? Yes. Pay attention to what they’re saying and doing throughout the year.
For many brands, it’s not a part of their culture once July begins.ĭuring Pride, brands will have their latest campaign front and center, but once you dig deeper, you can see where their support lies. Brands needn’t fly a rainbow flag year-round-even I put my rainbow tank tops away after June-but I’m still gay when the rainbows go away. Rainbow-washing is a problem because it’s inauthentic and-dare I say-a blatant lie. Such blatant rainbow-washing usually indicates that they lack a sustainable culture of authenticity. They can be gay today and business as usual tomorrow. So, why do so many brands fall short of being authentic? Some brands just don’t know better. LGBTQ+ consumers can tell the difference between empty gestures and genuine brand commitment. To be fair, this isn’t completely inaccurate I bought a rainbow crown (yes, a crown) for absolutely no reason other than it has rainbow colors-but I digress. In short, it’s the idea that if you slap a rainbow on it during Pride month, then gays will buy it.