Virtual LGBTQ Pride Marketing Campaign Ideas For 2024
LGBTQ people and their rights are under attack every day. Now more than ever, we need businesses and organizations to show their support for the LGBTQ community during Pride Month and beyond. There is strength in numbers, and when brands take a stance to empower LGBTQ people in meaningful ways, we can drive positive change on a local, national and global level. How, you ask? With a creative LGBTQ Pride marketing strategy, of course!
Read on for fun and simple ideas to help you craft a memorable and authentic LGBTQ Pride Month marketing campaign of your own. You can apply these suggestions across channels, such as social media, email and video, to reach your audiences on their favorite platforms. The best part? These ideas are all budget-friendly, so you don’t have to worry about spending tons of money to show your pride.
Is a Pride Marketing Campaign Right for my Brand?
Important note: We recommend that you consult with members of the LGBTQ community and allies before launching your campaign. By doing so, you can create more genuine and insightful content. It can also help you avoid awkward and damaging situations by preventing you from sharing insensitive content. It’s always better to be safe than sorry, right?
If you need a little more help figuring out if organizing an LGBTQ marketing campaign is right for your brand, ask yourself these four questions to help you find the answers.
Remember, you should only launch a Pride Month campaign if you and your business truly support LGBTQ rights. Do not take this as an opportunity to make money or sell rainbow-colored merchandise.
Top 6 Virtual LGBTQ Pride Marketing Campaign Ideas for 2024
1. Host a Virtual Pride Parade
This is our favorite idea. Collaborate with fellow business owners and nonprofits to host a virtual Pride Parade on your favorite live video-sharing platform. Participants are encouraged to build mini Pride Parade floats and showcase their creations in real-time. Social media platforms like Facebook Live, Instagram Live and YouTube Live are great options for hosting your virtual Pride Parade. If you prefer a more organized video-sharing tool, consider options like Zoom or Microsoft Teams.
Need inspiration for your virtual parade float? Lego built a mini Pride parade out of 750+ bricks in honor of the 50th anniversary of Stonewall in 2019. It was on display at the Legoland Discovery Center in Westchester, New York. Read this piece from Newsweek for all the details (and more awesome photos). Photo credit: Legoland Discovery Center Westchester.
Pride floats can be inspired by anything, from LGBTQ community leaders to the colors of the rainbow. The mission of this virtual Pride marketing strategy is to bring people together from the safety of their homes while showcasing the beauty of love for all.
Don’t have the time to organize a video parade? No problem. Encourage your audiences to post photos or videos of their Pride floats using a specific hashtag on social media so you can easily find and share them on your pages.
2. Pay Homage to LGBTQ Pioneers
The LGBTQ community wouldn’t be where it is today without pioneers like Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera and Harvey Milk. Share quotes and images from your favorite LGBTQ activists to remind your audiences of the courage it took—and still takes—to overcome inequality and adversity.
We shared LGBTQ history lessons during our Pride Month campaign for Miami Beach Pride in 2019. Here, we featured Marsha P. Johnson, a key player in the LGBTQ liberation movement. Below, you’ll find additional history lessons we shared throughout the month of June.
Another one of our clients, PBS National Sales, shared educational content during Pride Month as well. We tweeted the post below to encourage viewers to tune in to the premiere of “The Lavender Scare,” a documentary detailing how the federal government identified and fired LGBTQ employees. The piece also introduced viewers to pioneers of the LGBTQ equality movement.
Do you need ideas for people to feature in your campaign? Sift through this awesome list of 50 LGBTQ+ rights movement leaders from Newsweek.
3. Feature LGBTQ Employees or Community Advocates
If you work at an inclusive company that values diversity, let people know it! Give your employees the opportunity to share their experiences as a member of the LGBTQ community. Whether they want to share their experiences working at your company or steps they’re taking to advance equality in their neighborhood, this is a simple way to share genuine content on your marketing channels. It also strengthens LGBTQ employees’ voices in the workplace. You can also feature local advocates in your campaign.
While working on Miami Beach Pride’s Pride Month campaign, we also invited local community leaders and advocates to share what Pride Month meant to them on their own social channels. We then reposted their stories across Miami Beach Pride’s social media accounts to demonstrate the community’s solidarity beyond the nonprofit organization’s April festival. Above, City of Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber and the Miami Dolphins reveal why they hold Pride close to their hearts all year round.
Important note: Do not pick and choose who gets to share their LGBTQ-related story. You don’t want to “out” someone or make anyone feel uncomfortable. Consider creating a Google Form where employees can share their stories if they choose to do so. Make sure to get permission from each employee before sharing their entries across your business’ marketing channels.
4. Organize a Pride Flag Contest
Encourage local businesses, nonprofits and even your neighbors to decorate their storefronts or windows at home with Pride flags, lights and other rainbow-colored memorabilia. Ask them to take photos or videos of their masterpieces and share them on social media for the chance to win a prize.
Again, make sure they use a specific hashtag and mention your account so you’re notified of the posting. Then, share the post and give the creator credit. This is a great way to showcase your community’s support of LGBTQ equality in a safe and tasteful manner.
5. Give Back to the LGBTQ Community
This is probably the most important and impactful tip we have to share. Sure, sharing cute mini Pride parade floats sounds fun, but that can only do so much. To make a lasting impact, consider making a donation to a local LGBTQ nonprofit organization. Several of them exist, and they offer resources to help LGBTQ youth, students, seniors, the homeless and disadvantaged groups overcome adversities.
If you’re more comfortable making a donation to a national LGBTQ nonprofit, check out GLAAD’s list of organizations.
6. Consider a Rainbow Logo (but only if you walk the walk)
Important Note: Only implement this strategy if your company is doing everything possible to empower LGBTQ people. Pinkwashing has become even more prevalent, and that is unacceptable. Pride Month wasn’t created so organizations could make more profits from the LGBTQ community.
The Pride Flag is more than a combination of pretty colors. It’s a symbol of peace, individuality and social equality. If your business is a true and active LGBTQ+ ally, consider designing a rainbow version of your logo. Brands of all sizes across industries have shown their pride with rainbow logos throughout the month of June. You can brighten your logo up, too, with your go-to graphic design software.
Speaking of software, check out a list of our 12 favorite free marketing tools (including free graphic design software) to help you save money and maximize your budget.
Bonus: Our founder and CEO, Jonathan Ochart, shared insightful social media marketing tips and tricks on NBC 6 South Florida. Watch the interview to get ideas for your own campaign!
Remember, We’re all in This Together
We know times are tough. That’s why we’re sharing these budget-friendly marketing tips so you can continue growing your business and maintaining relationships with your audiences.
Download Your Free Pride Marketing Guide
We also created a free do-it-yourself marketing guide to help you launch smart and engaging LGBTQ+ marketing campaigns during Pride month and beyond. Download the guide now and learn how to gain new social media followers, keep your customers engaged, maintain brand relevance and save money with free marketing tools. A number of our clients have found the guide useful, so we hope this helps you show your pride across your go-to digital marketing channels.
Making custom marketing graphics for your Pride Month campaign is easy! We used Canva to create the graphic above featuring a quote from our founder and CEO, Jonathan Ochart. Canva is one of many free yet easy-to-use digital marketing tools we included in our free Pride Marketing Guide. Check it out now!
If you’re not sure how to connect with your audiences before, during and after Pride Month, reach out to us for a free marketing consultation. We’re happy to talk through your challenges and provide ideas to help you get through these uncertain times. Complete the form below to get in touch with one of our marketing and public relations experts today.
