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Pride & Promotion: Let Your Most Authentic Marketing Come Out this June
Wander | June ’25
HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!
It’s a time to celebrate and reflect on the huuuuge leaps made towards LGBTQ+ equality.
It’s never been more important as a brand to speak up and come together to support equality and represent them in our campaigns.
But what’s the right (and wrong) way to go about it?!
Genuine diverse marketing vs token campaigns
Once upon a time Pride Month marketing was a simple profile picture change across social accounts.
They stayed put for the month then were swiftly erased as soon as we hit July.
That was it. No mention of the reasoning behind it, no highlighting awareness, no real impact. Fast forward to 2025 and this just doesn’t cut it.
Highlighting LGBTQ+ issues is super important to promote diversity and inclusivity, but there’s a reeaaalllly fine line between being sincere and jumping on a monthly trend for that CSR badge of approval.
And it can have some pretty negative effects if you get it wrong…
When it works
When your audience invests in you, they’re buying into values. They want brands that get them, that stand for something real.
Look at Absolut Vodka, these legends have been LGBTQ+ allies since the 1980s. Their ‘Here’s to the Family You Choose’ campaign wasn’t just made for the community, it was made WITH the community. Artists, consultants, photographers, customers, employees… all involved to make campaigns that truly represent.
And their rainbow edition? Available all year round, because inclusion isn’t a one-month thing.
Converse has also been smashing it with their 10th annual Pride collection. Designed by LGBTQ+ employees and allies, with genuine involvement from the inside out. Since 2015 they’ve donated nearly £3 million to local, national and international LGBTQ+ causes.
That’s real impact, not just talk.
Paddy Power even got involved with their Rainbow Laces campaign in partnership with Stonewall. They linked up with the Premier League, FA, PFA and Football League for their second run of this campaign and turned football into a platform for change.
Arsenal and Manchester City players rocked those laces, even appearing in the ‘Changing the Game’ ad.
The campaign blew up online with loads of other brands showing support, millions of impressions AND a cheeky feature on Corrie.
That’s a cultural impact for days.
We’re ALLLLL ABOUT keeping it authentic. Our diverse team of creatives make bold content in June and beyond. From celebrating LGBTQ+ media milestones to putting together pride playlists and sharing our team’s fave queer movie recs, we make sure the voices of LGBTQ+ employees shape our campaigns.
Authentic voices? That’s the secret to real connection.
Aaaaand when it doesn’t…
Your audience has eagle eyes for fakery.
They’ll hype a brand that shows up all year and drag one that treats Pride like a 30-day marketing stunt.
…Just ask Bud Light.
In 2021 the beer giant tried to flip LGBTQ into ‘Let’s Grab Beers Tonight Queens’. Social turned savage, saying it felt cheap and erasing, not cheeky.
Then, in 2023, Bud Light partnered with trans creator Dylan Mulvaney, but when backlash hit, the brand half-backed out, pleasing no one and sparking a boycott from both sides.
Lesson learned: if you claim allyship, stand firm or don’t stand at all. Stereotypes sink fast, too.
Vaseline went even further off-brand, charging full price (and in some cases a WHOLE QUID more) for a limited-edition Pride tin sitting right next to the identical standard product that was on clearance.
The pattern? No LGBTQ+ creatives in the room. No long‑term plan. No community buy-in.
Doing your bit: Representation is EVERYTHING
If your brand is telling stories (hint: it should be!), then you’ve got a role to play.
LGBTQ+ people exist in every audience, every community and every scroll of the feed, so they shouldn’t be missing from your campaigns and brand narratives.
From the first onscreen kiss in EastEnders back in 1989 to Oscar-winning Moonlight and hit Netflix TV shows like Heartstopper, LGBTQ+ stories are more prevalent than ever on our screens.
And its impact is proven with a whopping 80% of people exposed to LGBTQ+ representation in the media saying they are more supportive of equal rights for LGBTQ+ people.
That’s real-world change sparked by storytelling.
Audiences (espeeeeecially Gen Z) have a sharp BS detector and if your message isn’t real, they’ll scroll right past it.
Good representation in your marketing builds trust, loyalty, relevance and actually reflects the world we live in.
If you’ve got a platform, use it.
And if you’re telling stories, tell them properly.
In A Nutshell: Authenticity Matters
Cast beyond the cliché and let queer talent write, direct, code, design and front campaigns.
Spread that inclusivity across all your channels: website copy, landing pages, Insta stories, internal training decks, the lot.
If the vibe on your social feed doesn’t match the vibe in your office, your audience will clock it in seconds. A diverse workplace isn’t just good PR; it feeds the creative, uplift those authentic voices already on your payroll.
Being genuine might sound obvious, but it’s the difference between a campaign people scroll past and a community they choose to stand with.
How to avoid the flop
- Invite LGBTQ+ staff, influencers and organisations into the briefing… not just the photoshoot.
- Incorporate user-generated content from LGBTQ+ individuals.
- Moderate hate speech like it’s part of brand safety (because it is). A safe comment section is as important as strong campaign messaging.
- Show real people, not symbols. Don’t reduce anyone to a gender-identity gag, tell human stories that resonate across communities.
- Influencer ads? They’re gold. Because when someone from the community speaks up, it’s visibility, connection and representation all wrapped in one.
- Don’t be shy about reaching out to LGBTQ+ organisations, charities and people who live and breathe this space. Their input means your campaign won’t just look good on paper, it’ll resonate for real.
- Show advocacy YEAR ROUND. The brands smashing it keep their support on tap 24/7, 365. Build campaigns that last beyond Pride Month, year-round products, ongoing donations, inclusive benefits.
Do it right and you humanise your brand. Do it wrong and you’re an overnight case study in what not to do.
What are we up to?!
We’re helping brands boost their authentic personalities this June.
The team are also are in the middle of finalising some huge TV projects so keep your eyes peeled for them dropping later in the year 👀
Wanna be ahead of the marketing game?
Let’s talk → welovewander.com/contact
