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  • Writer's pictureMarketThink

Queerporations : Marketing Pride

Introduction

"Your brand is a story unfolding across each customer touchpoint."

There are some Multinational Corporations which support and capitalize on the month of pride have relations with queerphobic organizations and also fund those organizations or support them while some go berserk if something happens to the dignity and pride of any community by showing solidarity and changing their policies, if required. So, how does a consumer being the ultimate node of the market differentiate between such brands and corporations?


Marketing has many tactics and concepts. While some concepts are not criticized by the public eye, some do hold a negative impact on the audience. One of such widely criticized tactic can be observed in the month of June by the consumers. June being the month of pride initiates the pink-washing of every brand’s products called "Rainbow Capitalism".


Rainbow capitalism is a marketing tactic used by multinational corporations in orienting their product under the garb of “pride” in the month of June with flashy signs or rainbows and its inclusion in the product vertical of organizations to benefit off of the upper-middle class progressive people of the society.


The campaigns set out by various brands are not a new trend that is being noticed. The approach has always been orienting the advertisements around the social causes and the brands have been trying to propagate the social messaging of causes that are tabooed in the society.


Examples of Rainbow Capitalism

The corporations have used media as a source of their outreach. Advertisements being the intermediary to exchange information should sell the glamour of these corporations. Let's leave it up to your discretion how you perceive the campaigns of the following brands.


  • In the year 2013, the tagline "Move On" used by Fastrack, a sub-brand of titan watches launched a TV advertising campaign "Come out of the closet" featuring two women coming out of the closet with an attempt to show a same-sex relationship between both of them on-screen.




  • In the year 2015, a campaign called "The visit" by one of the giants called Myntra was launched for one of its major fashion lines. In the advertisement, Anouk can be witnessed featuring a lesbian couple who are anticipating a visit from their parents.



  • In the year 2016, the American Multinational E-commerce company eBay launched an advertisement campaign titled “Things Don’t Judge” which represents only a view of the modern day “progressive” Indian life (which is entirely represented by the upper middle class life).



Why do Brands do this?

If one can go ahead and describe the year of 2021, it can be termed as a “performative” year because of the colors that were spread across by the corporations and rainbow washing the products. The word “performative” is used by everyone in society. Be it the people who practice diversity and inclusivity describing the socially oriented efforts taken by the corporations.


“A rainbow logo does not make you an ally”.


The Corporations try to pink-wash the products due to :


  1. Fostering Inclusivity to attract customer base - Brands shape their products dependent on the customer choice and preferences. With the evolution in time, the progressiveness in the society has captured the attention of the organizations that everything can be sold by holding people’s emotions and beliefs. Also, pride being a celebration of expression and identities, makes the brands go berserk with their products and the promotion strategy.

  2. Targeting a Progressive Customer Base - The customer base of any organization has usually been the upper middle class section with a progressive mindset or someone on the upper tier of consumption levels and affordability. The “progressive” factor helps the brands cater to the alignment of beliefs of the consumers with the organization ultimately targeting them.

  3. Social Media Outreach - Corporations not only try to rainbow wash the products but also try to penetrate to the outreach that it might create for the brand to sustain in the market. It is a chain effect that corporations are prone to. The year 2021 saw the chain reaction in the logos of the organizations who did it to foster the values intrinsically.


Why is Rainbow Capitalism Harmful?

Rainbow capitalism concentrates corporate profits and interests, making capitalism in general the focal point of many Pride celebrations. Corporations profiting from rainbow capitalism have taken over spaces designed for queer people, making Pride less about protests, rights, and freedom, and more about a way to make a profit. Unfortunately, Pride has become increasingly about consumerism, with people visibly showing their allyship through purchased goods, rather than being anchored in activism, as a result of rainbow capitalism's negative effects.


One should heartily support brands that show a varied range of communities. It must, however, come from a place of understanding and trust. A corporation shouldn’t just show up for one activation a year and then disappear for the rest of it. Despite this, many brands have failed to recognize this fundamental fact. For the month of June, many firms contemplate putting a rainbow flag to their social media pages as a sign of allyship while some support the cause with their policies and actions. The truth is that making a tokenistic gesture does not automatically make one an ally but one being inclusive does. The actions that make a difference are what the corporations do within the limit of their powers.


Are there brands who have supported the cause?

On one side of the aisle where there are many brands capitalizing on the cause, there are many who have supported the cause throughout. One of such companies being Ben & Jerry’s Inc. Ben & Jerry’s has had a long history of commitment to social justice, including the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community and marriage equality. The commitment is engraved in the values of the company, which include a deep respect for all people and an unshakable belief that everyone deserves full and equal civil rights.


Ben and Jerry’s stores banned same flavored scoops in Australia in solidarity with the community to legalize same sex marriage. They quoted, “Many Australians still don’t have the choice to marry who they love.”


If one has to describe another incident by the company, let’s navigate to the polish lands where a mob violence dismantled the rainbow structure in the city of Warsaw as it became the target of hateful attacks. The sculpture was then replaced by Ben and Jerry's in the form of a natural rainbow forming out of water and light, a symbol of love.


The executive director of Lalit Suri Hospitality Group, Keshav Suri, is among one of the pioneers of harboring inclusive rights of the community and also for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community. Their policies include providing cover for gender reassignment surgeries for trans employees and therefore underlining the need to go beyond a defined gendered approach which makes the workplaces more inclusive.


United Airlines is the first airline service to offer the benefits to same sex partners and the first to allow their customers to fly as they have booking options for non-binary individuals.


Is there any other method to address the issue?

All the while being critical to the concept does not mean we're trying to be positive to bring the change in society. Well, referring to the above mentioned brands, let's have an insight on how to address the issue at large.


If a company wants to go beyond tokenism, it should use its campaign as a springboard – or as an extension of its existing engagement in other communities. Marketers from a variety of backgrounds make up the teams of brands that have done successfully in this area. They can act as a consumer's voice and provide firsthand accounts from those communities. Alignment with disadvantaged community publishers also provides alternate viewpoints to what broadcaster publishers might bring in terms of interacting with, rather than merely reaching, a certain audience.


Brands, above all, have a responsibility to authentically reflect the world. There could be a 16-year-old out there that is lonely, afraid, and uncertain about themselves. Marketers have no idea how powerful they are in dispelling those anxieties. Advertisement representation allows those folks to be seen, affirmed, and valued.


You must know, you were 16 once.



Conclusion

Some corporations profit off of rainbow capitalism and try to gain the share of the customer base but some organizations do harbor inclusivity. When it comes to being inclusive and educated about incidents and the communities that have been oppressed for a long time, corporations do hold the power to change the narrative. It depends on how they would use the power they hold. Despite all odds, corporations are lifting themselves to the benchmark of being an ally and continuing their businesses. Inclusivity should be pervasive all 365 days of the year and not just to the 30 days of the pride month.

https://www.ungender.in/quick-dos-and-donts-guide-to-help-your-company-do-more-for-the-lgbtqia-community/

https://www.hindustantimes.com/lifestyle/festivals/honouring-pride-month-brands-bat-for-inclusivity-101624619214652-amp.html

https://hbr.org/amp/2016/02/lgbt-inclusive-companies-are-better-at-3-big-things

https://www.refinery29.com/amp/en-us/2021/06/10509012/rainbow-capitalism-explained-memes

https://medium.com/@kashishsingh2002/rainbow-capitalism-what-is-it-why-is-it-problematic-6b917ce78979

https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.6042417

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