Tylenol - #HowWeFamily
June is Pride Month, and while we used to just celebrate alone, I'm starting to feel a massive movement of inclusion. I couldn't be happier.
And since I'm a brand guy, of course I'm going to notice that we are now starting to see more and more brands roll out the rainbow flag. As a marketer, I couldn't be more proud of us all.
I was there back in the day when there wasn't a brand in sight supporting or acknowledging the gay community. Eventually the travel and liquor companies started to see where their business was coming from, so of course they jumped in. It was good business. We welcomed them with open arms and gave them more business. The mutual support was appreciated.
Other brands took notice.
A few years later I was working on the Tylenol brand and I had the opportunity to create a first. A first for me, a first for the brand, and a first for Pride.
I personally wrote and released the very first OTC (over-the-counter) product print ad targeted to the LGBT community... on behalf of Tylenol...some twelve years ago. Twelve years! It may seem like nothing now, but it was a breakthrough moment for everyone involved, and I took great delight in helping to make it happen. The press quoted me as being "openly gay," yet another first for me.
Well the brand is back again, supporting Pride in a different way by showing us that any family is family regardless of where you come from and how you may have come together. The first time I saw the ad, I was beaming. Given my personal history, in more ways than one, how could I not?
My how the messaging is oh so different a dozen years later, right in tune to what we see happening in our culture.
It's not a wink and a nod like the ad that I wrote. Oh no. It's not even about being gay. It's about family...the equality of any family. Any family, no matter where you come from or how you all got there. As a gay father who raised two kids, I am sure you can understand why I'm beaming.
Yes, this is #HowWeFamily...for Pride Month and every month of the year. My how we have all grown.
What's your experience? JIM.
PS - Check out my new book where I chronicle my journey as a father, with all its twists, turns, and a few twirls. It's called "Out and About Dad." Available at Amazon by clicking here.
And since I'm a brand guy, of course I'm going to notice that we are now starting to see more and more brands roll out the rainbow flag. As a marketer, I couldn't be more proud of us all.
I was there back in the day when there wasn't a brand in sight supporting or acknowledging the gay community. Eventually the travel and liquor companies started to see where their business was coming from, so of course they jumped in. It was good business. We welcomed them with open arms and gave them more business. The mutual support was appreciated.
Other brands took notice.
A few years later I was working on the Tylenol brand and I had the opportunity to create a first. A first for me, a first for the brand, and a first for Pride.
I personally wrote and released the very first OTC (over-the-counter) product print ad targeted to the LGBT community... on behalf of Tylenol...some twelve years ago. Twelve years! It may seem like nothing now, but it was a breakthrough moment for everyone involved, and I took great delight in helping to make it happen. The press quoted me as being "openly gay," yet another first for me.
Well the brand is back again, supporting Pride in a different way by showing us that any family is family regardless of where you come from and how you may have come together. The first time I saw the ad, I was beaming. Given my personal history, in more ways than one, how could I not?
My how the messaging is oh so different a dozen years later, right in tune to what we see happening in our culture.
It's not a wink and a nod like the ad that I wrote. Oh no. It's not even about being gay. It's about family...the equality of any family. Any family, no matter where you come from or how you all got there. As a gay father who raised two kids, I am sure you can understand why I'm beaming.
What's your experience? JIM.
PS - Check out my new book where I chronicle my journey as a father, with all its twists, turns, and a few twirls. It's called "Out and About Dad." Available at Amazon by clicking here.