Show, Don't Tell.

How making simple changes to your marketing has big impact on inclusivity

Last week, I had the pleasure of sitting down with two amazing entrepreneurs for a radically honest conversation about building queer-centric businesses.?

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The biggest takeaway from the conversation struck me smack in the face. It was one of those messages so incredibly obvious you wonder how you overlooked it before.

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It was about the importance of representation and inclusivity in your marketing. In particular, the notion of whether or not you can claim a supportive and inclusive business environment if it's not made visible in the ways you show up and share.

The statement from Dr. Fritz and Meg Wells of River and Root Photography that struck me was as simple as it was powerful.

“You can't claim to support the LGBT community if I can't go to your website or your Instagram page and see visible examples of that community being represented.”

And it's true, it's just that simple.?

Pride month is a popular time for people to show up and share their support for the queer community. And it's exciting to see, but equally loud this month, is commentary and rhetoric, extolling hate and harm towards that same community so many claim their support.

It’s why I want to encourage you to consider the ways in which you can shift your marketing to show your support for inclusivity simply by making a few key changes to the kinds of imagery and language you share.?

This idea was reinforced this past week while working on some slides for a core client of ours.

I’d asked for access to their internal stock library and was delighted to find inclusion across the board. Images of every type of human you can imagine were represented in this gallery, including queer couples. The photos weren't tokenizing; they were carefully selected to not only match the brand's guidelines but also to ensure the values they support are fully represented across all of the visuals they share as a brand.

It used to be really hard to find imagery like this but thanks to great strides around the importance of inclusivity over the past few years, it's easier than ever to find queer, inclusive, and truly representative imagery from places like Pexels, Unsplash,?and my personal favorite TONL .?

My invitation to you all is to take a hard look at the imagery you're sharing in association with your brand.?

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If you claim to support queer communities and see that support as an extension of your values, this is your chance to add representation to the content you're creating, your website, social media and other places you share, to show your support without having to say anything at all.?

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Another action that came up in a client conversation recently is the simplicity of adding pronouns to places like your LinkedIn, email signatures, client forms, and team bio pages.?

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It signals to those questioning whether or not they're going to be supported and respected by the businesses they reach out to, that you are creating a company intended to be a safe space. It shows you’ll respect and honor their identity without having to say anything beyond adding a couple words to a profile.?

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These may seem like small acts, but they make a huge impact. The more we show up to?demonstrate we care about, support, and recognize the existence of queer identities, the more we normalize a world where visibility matters. We each have the ability as individuals and allies to take small but meaningful steps in the way that we show up and share to make others feel safer and seen in the world.?

- Madeline Reeves

Looking for some additional ideas on how to showcase your inclusive values through the ways that you market to the world?

Our team put together a list of four core actions you can take to enhance the inclusivity of your content and company.

Episode 5 of Finding Fearless?rolled out yesterday across podcast platforms - and it is a conversation not to be missed.?

Madeline sits down with transgender parent, entrepreneur, and author, Trystan Reese for an intimate conversation about leaning into and owning your authentic identity in business.

The two unpack Trystan’s journey of becoming a business builder, the importance of understanding your own brain to be able to build processes that work best for you, and the importance of bringing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives even further to the forefront in business.

In case you missed it - our team is hosting an incredible event for women founders and leaders in just a few weeks. Over 50 women have already said yes to attending?Uplift?- and our goal is to grow the group even further.?

This is an organic moment for the women of our network to meet each other in a casual and supportive setting - and during the course of the hour, we’ll break out into small groups to share about ourselves and our work. Before we wrap up,?every attendee will have a chance to make an ask of the women gathered - whether for referrals, feedback, or to stay connected after the event.

This is a moment on?June 21st?from?11 am-noon PST?for women to support women - so please join us and help us spread the word.