Using your platform for good

From international brands to social media sensations, having an audience to communicate to is a huge responsibility. How do you choose what cause to put your weight behind? How can you ensure you get the right messaging? 

This week you may have noticed #BlackoutTuesday trending on Instagram and Twitter, where millions of accounts - both business and personal - shared a black square on their profiles. The idea was to social media with these black squares, freeing up the time people would usually spent posting and scrolling to educate themselves on the Black Lives Matter movement. 

On top of this, many brands have posted messages and sent emails to their network to call out racial injustice, profiling and discrimination. However, by vocalising their outrage - they're also opening themselves up to backlash for getting the messaging wrong, for lacking consistency or for 'jumping on the bandwagon'. 

How can they avoid this? By not only speaking out, but acting on it. We know that 9 in 10 of our bees worldwide believe brands should try to improve the world, but authenticity is essential.

Here are a few examples of how brands are using their platform to educate the world:

Educating all ages. Children's TV network Nickelodeon went off the air for 8 minutes and 46 seconds — which is the exact amount of time that George Floyd was pinned to the ground with Officer Derek Chauvin's knee on his neck. Many parents praised the brand for sharing the important message - one that we rarely see from brands targeted towards children. 

Front page news. Instead of the usual designer-clad celebrities, British Vogue has dedicated the cover of its July 2020 issue to London's key workers. The magazine publisher hopes to be more representative of their readers and give recognition to those on the front line. The three key workers include London Overground train driver Narguis Horsford, midwife Rachel Millar and supermarket assistant Anisa Omar. 

Is the age of the influencer over? Navigating the minefield of social activism is something that brands have been doing for decades - but the online influencer is a far newer entity, not to mention there's often a higher expectation on an individual to use their platform to support social issues. However, some choose to fill their feeds with sponsored posts and paid partnerships - and consumers are quick to spot those that lack a conscience.

In fact, 1 in 4 advertising complaints to the ASA were for influencer posts - having a large following brings responsibility, and those that lack authenticity are in for trouble.

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This past week will go down in history, and hopefully for inciting real change in modern society. It's not enough to post on social media that we are supporting a cause - only action can lead to change. 

For this to be the beginning of a better world, we must also better ourselves. Streetbees' community is the most important thing to us - and their wellbeing and safety will always come first. With that in mind, I want to welcome all feedback and suggestions - from our bees, our team, and the companies we partner with - on how we can use our voice to help amplify theirs further. 

Black lives matter. 

Learn more about the Black Lives Movement at https://blacklivesmatter.com.