• by Danielle Oster , July 12, 2024

In 2023, anti-LGBTQ+ extremists engaged in a coordinated hate campaign targeting brands for acknowledging Pride Month.

Far-right media personality Matt Walsh was transparent about this campaign in a May 24, 2023 post: “The goal is to make ‘pride’ toxic for brands…First Bud Light and now Target. Our campaign is making progress. Let’s keep it going.”

Such hateful voices played an outsized role in how brands decided to show up -- or not -- for Pride in 2024. Some brands ended long-standing brand activations around Pride Month – like Nike’s decision not to release a “Be True” Pride collection this year, for the first time since 2012.

While most didn’t ignore Pride Month altogether, a not insignificant number of brands approached the occasion with a more cautious, if not fearful, approach. According to a survey of senior leaders at Fortune 500 companies by Gravity Research, 22% admitted to plans to alter their approach to Pride this year in response to 2023’s anti-LGBTQ+ hate campaigns – and within the CPG category, that figure rose to 30%.

And while many had heavily promoted Pride campaigns in previous years, this year they tended to avoid the spotlight.

For example -- Target, which last year had faced threats to its employees -- limited the number of stores in which the 2024 Pride collection would appear and ended partnerships with LGBTQ+ creators.

Skittles -- which was also targeted by the far right -- ended its practice of partnering with LGBTQ+ external creators who designed the packaging for its "Pride Pack," opting for a more muted approach less distinguishable from its usual packaging.

“The fact is [some brands] made decisions that don’t punish the people who are committing the misinformation offenses or harming people,” Graham Nolan, co-founder of Do the WeRQ –- a community focused on elevating LGBTQ+ creativity and representation in the ad industry -- told Marketing Daily. “The bullies step up and we’re the ones that get punished for it.”

Price and Cowardice

It’s easier for brands to see the “risk” in action than in inaction, but prioritizing a few angry voices on social media is short-sighted.

A recent study published by Do the WeRQ and brand experience platform Disqo found 39% of consumers reported being positively influenced by brands’ Pride participation, compared to just 17% who said they were negatively influenced.

The report concluded that, despite the degree to which brands and headlines focus on  “the negative impact of consumer boycotts on the bottom line,“ they “often omit that backtracking support can be just as damaging.” Since more people view Pride participation favorably, particularly among “influential younger and LGBTQ+ audiences,” the report concluded, “The ROI is twofold: long-term business and community benefit.”

Nolan said that social media has had “an outsized impact of how people are responding…they lose track of the data streams that are telling them about the impact to their commitments [to the LGBTQ+ community] and to the general market.”

Beyond Pride

The report also found half of consumers overall, and 88% of LGBTQ+ consumers, said it was important for marketers to show support for the LGBTQ+ community year-round.

“That importance is only going to grow as Gen Z gets older [and] brands need to make sure that they’re aligning with their values,”Disqo marketing communications director Stacy Perrus told Marketing Daily.

Jon Evans, Chief Customer Officer at digital marketing platform System1, told Marketing Daily that angry voices on social media opposing Pride activations represented a “tiny minority” that didn’t reflect audience views more broadly. Evans authored System1’s recent “Feeling Seen USA” report on the effectiveness of inclusive advertising, which found “a broad base of support for and enjoyment of these inclusive ads.”

“If you take the conversation away from fear, the data supports it being the right thing to do,” he said, from a business perspective, “as well as the moral thing to do."

While some brands take a box-checking approach to engaging with LGBTQ+ consumers during Pride month, Phil Schraeder, CEO of global digital advertising company GumGum, said other brands view “Pride month as foundational and critical to their opportunity to connect and grow …they recognize that [nearly 30%] of Gen Zers identify as part of this community.”

He added: “Right now, the world is testing brands for authenticity,” holding them accountable when they fail to stand behind their professed values. “If you're authentic, you handle the situation as it comes out,” he added. “Brands who stand in their value system, and in response to whatever alleged ‘backlash’ there is – that’s what's going to win…If fear is dictating, you won't’ win.”