Works Pride 365

Pride Month is a time of celebration and a reminder to advocate for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community. As in years past, on June 1, social media quickly turned to a sea of rainbow-coloured profile images and supportive messaging that often seem generic and hollow. When it comes to companies discussing Pride Month, there’s a fine line between a brand being honest and supportive and a brand being inauthentic and performative.

So how do you make sure you’re showing support in a respectful and productive way? Here are a few places to start:

Make It Authentic

Social media is a place for companies to showcase their voice and communicate directly to the public. These platforms are also a place for the public to engage with brands and share their opinions and, often, their criticisms. That is why being authentic is so important.

Don’t Stop on June 30

There are several ways to be authentic with your Pride messaging, the easiest being to continue posting about diversity and inclusiveness after the month comes to an end. Only posting Pride content during Pride Month is the opposite of being authentic.

Show, Don’t Tell

Don’t just tell the audience what you believe in, show them through open, genuine stories about how you’re actively working to make a difference. Engage with your employees, share stories and demonstrate how diversity and inclusion are ingrained in your company’s DNA. Anyone can talk the talk; show your audience that you’re also walking the walk.

Be Empathetic

Empathy is underrated – especially in the corporate world. A great way to show your audience how diversity and inclusion are embedded in your organization is to share highlights about your own employees and how they’re celebrating Pride. It is important that these efforts don’t suddenly end at the start of July. Work with, and listen to, your team to create an ongoing strategy that communicates your company’s voice and the voice of your team. At the end of the day, Pride is about people, not corporations.

Get Creative

When developing your campaign, ensure that your messaging aligns with your company’s values but also stands out from the crowd. Just because your competitors are changing their profile images doesn’t mean you have to. Just follow the above suggestions, have fun and be BOLD, be TRUE and be YOU.

Just because Pride Month ends doesn’t mean the conversation should. Advocating for the rights of LGBTQIA+ people should be embedded in all that you, and your company, do. That’s how we can make real change.

As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, acceptance and inclusivity have always been important to me. Throughout my career, I have had to open closed doors and break through glass ceilings. Feeling like an outsider, fighting to prove my equality to my peers, where others had mentors to compare to, I felt like I had to forge my own path. While society has certainly come a long way, there continues to be a need for loud voices and even louder actions. As a co-owner of Works Design, I am incredibly proud to be a role model for our employees and our clients and to have unwavering support from my partners. Together, we continuously work toward creating a diverse and inclusive environment where great ideas come from everyone and people are celebrated for their differences.

– Ellie Rosen, Chief Operating Officer