Mobile communications company Vodacom has put a different spin on Valentine's Day this year by being more inclusive.
The service provider, with more than 55 million customers, has embarked on a Facebook campaign, celebrating the LGBTQ+ community.
For their "month of love deals", they posted a picture of a same-sex couple and captioned the post: "You’re the perfect match, now all you need are matching Huawei’s."
What makes the ad stand out even more is the wording below the couple, saying: "For those who take pride in their relationship." The company seems to have scored big on the ad, with many Facebook users commending them on taking strides when it comes to LGBTQ+ rights in SA.
Picture: Facebook screenshot
According to SA's basic human rights, the protection of LGBT rights in South Africa is based on section 9 of the Constitution, which forbids discrimination on the basis of sex, gender or sexual orientation.
Vodacom's stance follows another inclusive ad on Twitter by Chicken Licken in May last year. In the ad, a guy is seen telling his father, with the help of three female friends, that he is gay.
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/hashtag/NeedaSoulSister?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NeedaSoulSister👩🏾👩🏾👩🏾 #LickenLove pic.twitter.com/w4M8MXoZB8
— Chicken Licken (@ChickenLickenSA)
Some comments on Vodacom's Facebook post included: "The first thing I did was screenshot this and send it to my best friend! I love this! 🥺🏳️🌈 I'm so changing to Vodacom." and "Oh Vodacom i love you even more".
Another said "Thanks for the representation Vodacom!", while one commented: "I'm so happy to see a proudly South African company standing up for the LGBTQ+ community"
Kudos to Vodacom for coming through during the month of love. Hopefully, this sets the standard for other local companies to come to the party when it comes to inclusivity.