Brand Tip: No Copy & Paste Activism

We found the following post while scrolling on Instagram courtesy of the account @AsToldBy.Greta and we absolutely HAD to stop and talk about it.

If you do not know that this post is in reference to, this is mocking most brands and businesses posts about the many demonstrations that have been happening over the past few weeks.

From the NFL to Macy's to even Disney, brands are trying to make their voices heard across their social media and show where they stand on the issues of social justice.

But is a copy and paste post enough?

We at Thriving Vine Social say a resounding NO.

Unless you have already established a presence on your socials discussing issues of justice, posts like these come off as disingenuous at best, or worse, in the case of the NFL, as completely tone-deaf and fake.

In the passionate matters of social equity and justice, we must all be very careful about how we present our brands to people. Too professionally written and it comes off as fake. Too many promotions involved and it comes off as salesy. Too much like the post above and it comes off as a formula; a one-shot post with no actionable steps to back up the pretty but empty words on your social media.

Instead of sharing a cut and paste post, why not share something a little more authentic, human, tangible, and real.

Instead of posts like the one above, plan a human response. Talk about the issue by name. This is not the time for KUM-BA-YAH, one world posts. By addressing the social concern by name, you show your empathy towards that concern. Whether its climate change, gender equality, Black Lives Matter, Pride, or any other movement, make sure to say it by name.

A few other ideas:

Share an image of a poster at a rally that your brand identifies with the most.

Or ask some of the members of your company if its ok to share some of their images from rallies.

Or, if folks are willing, share some of the faces of your brand standing in solidarity with the concern, whether they are holding up fists for Black Lives Matter or wearing rainbows for Pride.

Why not have the founder or CEO of your company film a 30-second video expressing how they feel about the current climate and what actionable steps your brand will be completing in order to help facilitate change.

Feature the causes you are contributing to. This alignment shows that your brand is actually serious about social justice and not just service lip, or in this case social, service.

Whatever your brand decides to do, make sure to be real and human about it. Copy and Paste activism is obvious, but just as obvious is a real and authentic outreach.

Keep Thriving!