PrideAM Launches Pride Brand Makeover

Pride in Advertising and Marketing (PrideAM) has launched its first ever Pride Brand Makeover. In the run up to a summer of Pride festivals all over the country, the volunteer-run organisation has issued a challenge to brands and agencies to reimagine existing or new campaigns for an LGBT+ audience. The campaign is designed to start a debate around diversity and inclusion when it comes to LGBT+ representation in adland.

The campaign has already been backed by leading marketers including Royal Mail’s Jonathan Harman, Michele Oliver from Mars, and Jan Gooding from Aviva.

The competition is open to everyone in the industry: in-house, at an agency, a freelancer or a student and the winners will be chosen after Pride in London by an expert industry panel. The best work will be featured in Gay Times, Diva and The Drum.

Jan Gooding, Global Inclusion Director at Aviva said: “Supporting initiatives like these is crucial and I encourage all brands and their agencies to join in. The only way we are going to drive forward diversity and inclusion in the industry is through action, rather than just talk and this is a big step in the right direction. It’s a great opportunity to experiment where this new lens takes established creative ideas. I can’t wait to see what people do’”.

Jonathan Harman, Managing Director of Royal Mail MarketReach said: “I’m supporting this because as one of the UK’s biggest employers we are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone is valued and respected, and where discrimination, harassment, bullying and prejudice are not tolerated. We’re keen to reflect these values in our communications, and I’m looking forward to having fun with our advertising to ensure it resonates with the Pride audience.”

Mark Runacus, President of PrideAM said: “We know that 49 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds don’t identify as totally straight or gay. As a result, it’s simply not acceptable to ignore LGBT+ people in the creative development process. For the next generation, LGBT+ inclusion is the new normal. This isn’t about gaywashing. Our Pride Brand Makeover is deliberately created to trigger a debate about how to better integrate LGBT+ audiences into the work we do. It’s been proven that the majority of consumers think more positively of brands that embrace diversity in their advertising.”

Brands and agencies are encouraged to enter at www.prideam.org/makeover. Entries close on 31st July 2017.