For decades, Colgate has been a dedicated supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community and a global leader in diversity and inclusion to demonstrate its commitment to Building a Future to Smile About for everyone in all households.
This year, Colgate’s ‘Smile with Pride’ campaign continued to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and the importance of diversity and equal rights during WorldPride in New York City.
Colgate’s objective was to identify and bring to life various ways that could connect directly with the community, spread as many smiles as possible and celebrate WorldPride’s history, diversity and share the collective outlook of a bright future.
Colgate’s ‘Smile with Pride’ campaign featured a two-pronged approach focused on rallying employees through activism and celebrating the community through grassroots events, national sponsorships, influencer engagement, PR and advertising.
Colgate was happy to celebrate WorldPride in New York City, the company’s global home where William Colgate got his start downtown on Dutch Street 213 years ago. Employees were invited to get involved in multiple ways, whether it was to volunteer at the local NYC events, participate in LGBTQIA+ podcasts, or attend onsite panels and discussions throughout PRIDE month to spread education and awareness around diversity and inclusion.
Colgate was a sponsor at NYC PrideFest, exposing the brand to more than 350,000 attendees in New York City. In addition to giving away samples and swag, the brand’s “Reasons to Smile” Post-It board asked consumers to write and share heartfelt messages on what makes them Smile with Pride.
To expand national reach, Colgate formed a strategic partnership with Live from the Artists Den as the Presenting Partner for their special WorldPride concert with platinum-selling music artist and LGBTQIA+ supporter, Charli XCX. The integrated partnership was centered around a unique live concert celebration in NYC attended by over 2,000 fans and high-profile influencers and media, including an intimate Rolling Stone exclusive interview. Within Colgate’s hundreds of influencer partners and brand ambassadors, the brand’s LGBTQIA+ influencer network came out to show their support, create content and celebrate with the brand. The custom activation included photo moments and artist murals all designed to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and bring to life the power of a smile. Consumer social promotions leading up to the event helped to build excitement and provide local fans a chance to get tickets to the concert. The partnership culminated in a national PBS broadcast airing that streamed footage from the concert with a surround-sound of :15 Colgate TV commercial spots. The specific “Charli XCX: Live from the Artists Den - World Pride NYC” episode will air on PBS for the next 3 years.
Lastly, the company designed numerous creative social media assets that were shared throughout social to celebrate and spread a month full of celebrations, pride, and smiles.
At the campaign’s conclusion, Colgate succeeded in building a compelling communications platform and campaign targeting the LGBTQIA+ community.
The Smile with Pride x Live from the Artists Den partnership generated more than 250 million earned media impressions, over 1 million broadcast views within 3 months, and over 5,000 ticket entry submissions. With over 115 press placements, coverage highlights included Forbes, People, Billboard, Good Morning America, Yahoo! Entertainment, and more.
Throughout the duration of the campaign, Colgate’s ‘Smile with Pride’ Facebook and Instagram social content creative exceeded industry benchmark goals. Ad recall performance was almost double CPG norms at +12 points, and Message association was nearly 3x higher than the benchmark goal.
Year over year, Colgate’s ‘Smile with Pride’ campaign continues to successfully bring together a community in celebration of inclusivity and diversity of smiles around the world.
