Standing Strong: Supporting LGBTQ+ Consumers During Pride Month and Year Round

Collage Group has the pleasure of working with brands to build the Cultural Fluency needed to successfully support and engage the LGBTQ+ community, as well as all diverse consumers, while retaining and engaging support from traditional consumer groups. As you look ahead to cultural celebrations and support for marginalized communities, take a few minutes to ask your insights, brand, marketing and DEI teams these questions:

• • Is your brand data-driven about culture – values, attitudes, preferred terminology? For example, do you understand and embrace LGBTQ+ and multicultural terminology organization-wide? Authentically engaging and supporting diverse communities is about more than saying the right word to refer to the right person, it’s about dignity and empathy. Terminology is really a matter of respect: saying I see you, and I affirm your identity.
  • Are you embracing diverse segments as intrinsic to the mainstream audience, not as an afterthought? Cultivate relationships with diverse consumers and show support year round. Most Americans, particularly younger ones, want to see companies represent people in diverse ways. Incorporating diverse consumer insights into your marketing strategy also allow you to leverage Halo Effects with other consumer segments, especially younger Americans.
  • Have you evaluated how your brand fits within the values, priorities, and belief systems of the specific consumers you currently serve and those who you are hoping to serve? Every brand begins their journey to Cultural Fluency from a different place. Be sure to ask yourself, “who are my customers now?”, “who will my customers need to be to grow?”, “what are their values?”, and “where do they both give me permission to play?”
  • Are you celebrating the contribution of diverse consumers both to America and the world? Take the opportunity during cultural moments, like Pride, to emphasize the joy and celebration, combined with education, to connect the diverse consumers and their allies. For Pride, celebrate LGBTQ+ segment’s perseverance amid the struggles the group faces. Acknowledge the hardships while maintaining a celebratory tone.
  • Are you engaging with diverse employees year round through an Employee Resource Group? ERGs are voluntary, employee-led groups who work to foster a diverse, inclusive workplace aligned with your organization’s values. They create a safe space where employees can bring their whole selves to the table.
  • Do you recognize the significant size of both support and “ally” populations – friends, families, found families, coworkers – and strategically engage with them and non-profit partners to build real loyalty among these audiences?
  • Do you have a crisis plan? Assume you will come up against a backlash crisis, and plan for it. For many brands, it is only a matter of time.