LGBT Diversity Economic Forum at Europride in Zurich

Zurich, Switzerland takes center stage in the world of LGBT diversity and gay marketing this week.


Ian Johnson, Out Now
May 30, 2009

TOPICS:egma - European Gay Managers Association. IGLCC - International Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. Network. Zurich, Switzerland. LGBT Diversity issues. Out Now. Gay marketing. International LGBT Economic Forum.

Next week the city of Zurich takes center stage in the gay universe with the annual Europride celebrations taking place there.

Europride culminates next week on June 6 with a huge street parade and gay community party.

Before that there are many and varied cultural and community events taking place all across the wonderful Swiss city of Zurich.

One event that I have been privileged to be invited to speak at is being hosted by the Swiss Network organization for gay managers and professionals, in conjunction with egma - European Gay and Lesbian Managers Association.

International LGBT Economic Forum

This is part of the Zurich Europride 2009 series of cultural events.

The focus of this forum is very interesting, and brings together a powerhouse of lesbian and gay managerial decision-making talent.

LGBT Diversity & Inclusion: Friend or Foe? -- is the theme for the event, and it promises to be an action-packed collection of high-level plenary sessions and in-depth workshops running over two days in Zurich on June 4 and 5.

There are so many impressive speakers: including Angelo Caltagirone, President of egma and member of the board of Network; David Pollard, board member of the International Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce IGLCC; Andreas Citeck, Global Business Development Executive, IBM Diversity Solutions; Erika Karp, Head of Global Sector Research, UBS Investment Bank; and Urs Eberhard of Switzerland Tourism.

The sessions are thought-provoking and promise to stimulate a lot of discussion, and probably some energizing debate too.

As well as the various plenary sessions, there are workshops and round-table discussions - all with some of Europe's leading management talent.

I am particularly looking forward to a presentation being given by Andreas Citack of IBM Diversity Solutions: Competitive Edge From Diversity and Inclusion: Real or Imagined? That is a topic that seems likely to focus delegates' minds on the overall LGBT Diversity and Inclusion theme of the forum as a whole.

If you are amongst those lucky enough to be attending this event, please do be sure to come up and say hello.

The International LGBT Economic Forum runs June 4 - 5, 2009 at Technopark, Zurich, Switzerland.

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AdWeek recently referred to one of Out Now's gay advertising campaigns as "the year's most talked about tourism ads." Out Now Consulting is a leading global gay marketing specialist agency, founded in 1992. Clients include Barclays, IBM, Toyota, Citibank, German National Tourist Office, Visit Britain, Lufthansa and Time Inc. Magazines. Out Now recently won the "Outstanding Interactive" category in New York at the 'Images in Advertising' awards for an online campaign for their client Lufthansa.

If you would like Out Now to help you take your marketing to the leading-edge of sales results, please do get in touch.

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To learn how to get lesbian and gay marketing strategy right -- rely on gay marketing expert strategic advice from Out Now -- the leading experienced global strategic gay marketing, research and communications agency.

The Apprentice Targets Gay Market

Gay and lesbian travel market branding is not something new. But it is for one place. TV's reality show 'The Apprentice' where UK contestants recently tried their hand at 're-branding' the faded UK seaside town of Margate as a gay destination. Learn how badly they went wrong. And why.


Ian Johnson, Out Now
May 26, 2009

TOPICS: Gay market branding. Lesbian and gay market research. UK lesbian and gay marketing. The Apprentice. Margate, UK seaside resort. BBC TV. The Apprentice BBC TV show in the UK attempts to re-brand Margate as a gay target travel and leisure destination.

Reality TV is a taste I rarely enjoy.

One notable exception is the UK version of Donald Trump's corporate reality program - The Apprentice.

This year's offering has to me seemed weaker than any before it.

Nonetheless it was interesting to watch when the hapless contestants were given a task to 're-brand' a seaside UK destination - the town of Margate in Kent.

Margate and the Pink Pound

The format of 'The Apprentice' TV show is consistent across weeks, across continents, and across versions.

A collection of contestants vie for the 'best' result each week, and are rewarded. The losing team then slug it out in front of the high profile corporate celeb - which in the case of the UK program is the founder of Amstrad Computers, Sir Alan Sugar - and where one of them each week gets to hear that farewell catchphrase: "You're fired!"

When Sir Alan Sugar asked the teams to choose how to best re-brand the seaside town of Margate, one team decided they would target the gay market and attempt to turn Margate into a pink pound tourism magnet.

Their idea was not entirely flawed, although their execution almost entirely was.

What went right?

The team that decided to pitch Margate at the gay travel market did do some things right.

They travelled to the destination and did some fieldwork research. Admirable first market research step.

Admittedly this appeared to consist of not too much more than quizzing some locals about the gay life of Margate, but at least they apparently recognized some kind of need to identify existing product 'assets' they could seek to utilize in their re-branding exercise.

I would like to have seen them doing much more research asking non-Margate gay people - ie their key target audience - what things might attract them to consider a seaside vacation in a town like Margate.

They also had a gay team member who had some say in the selection of their models for a photo shoot campaign for a resulting tourism brochure and poster. (This worked okay, but many times having a gay staff member at a company in charge of corporate gay marketing strategy can be a recipe for disaster - as the individual in question can incorrectly seek to project their own personal experiences of gay life out onto the gay market at large. Usually a costly marketing error ensues.)

Having said that, little about their efforts made an impact likely to attract any kind of serious tourism success for Margate from the gay tourism market.

What went wrong?

There were so many things to fault the hapless team on that I will stick to just a couple.

Time management by their team leader appeared woeful.

We all know that deadlines can sharpen the mind's focus - but cruising blithely through a deadline, without even making any serious effort to complete their brochure, was clearly a fundamental error.

What was even worse though was the actual content they put into their brochure and their poster.

The graphic design visuals used by the team were 'tired' - shall we say. The font really looked like it would be more at home on the BBC's retro hit Ashes to Ashes than on The Apprentice.

The text on the poster was more than excessive in quantum, to say the least.

The worst mistake?

While it is hard to say what was the worst mistake made, it is quite likely their misguided attempt to use a rainbow flag map of the UK showcasing gay centres such as London, Manchester and Brighton and adding in 'Margate' as a fourth name on the map.

This really is unforgiveable as a fundamental error against the most basic of 'Gay Marketing 101' principles.

Margate is not, and likely never will be, a gay centre of the likes of those other cities.

So do not attempt to sell it as such.

There are plenty of good reasons to give lesbians and gay men to discover the joys of a holiday to Margate.

Trying to position the town as a leading UK 'gay capital' is definitely not one of them.

What they should have done?

First step - research. Find out what the target market (ie gay people not from Margate) think of the place.

Then consider the product. How could the location augment its product to better appeal to a gay audience.

For example, register local hotels into the GayComfort training, accreditation and marketing program to show the target audience that the product on offer in Margate would do a good job in service delivery to their needs.

Look into distribution. How should this audience best be reached? Online distribution is a key sales strategy with the gay market, and so partnering with effective and established gay travel and tourism operators could help do a lot to shore up any marketing effort applied by the team themselves.

Improve their woeful marketing. The little we saw of the team's marketing efforts really were sad - and misguided.

Martine Ainsworth-Wells, Marketing Director at VisitLondon - known to readers of Gay Market News - made some well considered remarks in the show's wrap-up episode.

The marketing nutshell?

In gay marketing - as with any effective form of market development strategy - the basics always apply.

In a nutshell - understand the target market, and their needs, then set about meeting those needs. Pure marketing basics.

It would work with Margate - or for Stockholm, or Berlin or Tel Aviv - or any of the many destinations that Out Now currently does exactly this kind of work with.

If you would like Out Now to help you take your marketing to the leading-edge of sales results, please do get in touch.

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To learn how to get lesbian and gay marketing strategy right -- rely on gay marketing expert strategic advice from Out Now -- the leading experienced global strategic gay marketing, research and communications agency.

AdWeek recently referred to one of Out Now's gay advertising campaigns as "the year's most talked about tourism ads." Out Now Consulting is a leading global gay marketing specialist agency, founded in 1992. Clients include Barclays, IBM, Toyota, Citibank, German National Tourist Office, Visit Britain, Lufthansa and Time Inc. Magazines. Out Now recently won the "Outstanding Interactive" category in New York at the 'Images in Advertising' awards for an online campaign for their client Lufthansa.

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IGLTA Rocks Gay Market in Toronto

Toronto, Canada was the focus of the gay and lesbian travel market this month when the IGLTA annual convention rolled into town.


Ian Johnson, Out Now
May 21, 2009

TOPICS: International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association annual convention. Toronto, Canada. Lesbian and gay marketing. Out Now. IGLTA. GayComfort online training and accreditation marketing program. GLBT travel and tourism. Creating Cost-Effective Marketing Strategies. IGLTA convention held in Toronto, Canada.

Toronto, Canada has just found itself at the center of the gay and lesbian travel marketing universe.

The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association - IGLTA - has just concluded their annual convention in Toronto - an event that saw the great and the good of the lesbian and gay tourism marketing fraternity gather for four days of strategy, marketing - and fun.

One of the more exciting developments was the launch of various committees dedicated to enhancing the organization's focus on specific areas of future growth and development of lesbian and gay travel and tourism marketing.

I was invited to join the Education Committee - and it was very encouraging to see the high quality of ideas that resulted from the synergy of collaboration between all members of our Committee.

The business opportunities that arise from the IGLTA convention are very strong and for serious players in the world of gay travel, the IGLTA event is a 'must-attend'.

Creating Cost-Effective Marketing Strategies

Out Now presented an educational seminar that was all about how to utilize a range of smart marketing options that are low-cost, high-value opportunities to increase sales in today's challenging marketing environment.

It was a great experience to interact with so many esteemed colleagues from the world of travel marketing.

I was also pleased to learn a new acronym - SRO - that apparently means 'standing-room only'.

UPDATE: Watch Out Now Gay Marketing Class video here.

During this cost-conscious session I covered a lot of ground, including how to integrate social marketing online sites into an overall marketing strategy. We looked at Facebook, flickr, Linked-in, YouTube, Blogger and more.

Ideas about cost-effective PR marketing techniques were included - such as making effective use of databases and email marketing, as well as online and direct media approach integrated marketing techniques, to garner serious media coverage for your business.

We also reminded people that so-called 'old media' PR - involving journalists working at print media products - can often deliver far greater reach than the new media darlings of Web 2.0 fame.

Most importantly, whatever you do in terms of marketing, be sure to apply Return-on-investment (ROI) practices to really measure whether all the time you invest is making money for your business.

"Remember the point. To sell stuff." - That was a phrase I mentioned more than once about various aspects of the seminar.

It was really encouraging to see the large numbers of people taking detailed notes - and coming up to say how much they got out of the presentation. This was a very satisfying presentation to make and it was really gratifying to see it be so well received.

A great level of questions rounded things out with interaction between audience members helping all attending to take out some great budget-saving marketing ideas from the session.

We are planning to upload the video of the presentation to our YouTube.com/GayMarketing channel - and will update all readers of GayMarketNews.com about this soon.

Media Trade Show

Saturday morning at the convention included the annual media trade show.

I attended for the GayComfort Global Media Partners Network - and we are really pleased with the new gay travel marketing opportunities that have resulted for GayComfort media partners - and all our GayComfort members.

The media trade show highlighted the best of gay media from around the world.

Increasingly gay media continues to evolve to set new standards of professionalism and quality, making it much more effective for corporate clients we sell into gay media worldwide.

There are also some more exciting GayComfort announcements that will be made soon.

One more thing...

Air Canada Vacations announced a new partnership with GayComfort at the IGLTA convention.

More information of that and the benefits it delivers to gay and lesbian travelers is to follow...

For a detailed look at pictures from the IGLTA convention click on GayMarket at Flickr.

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AdWeek recently referred to one of Out Now's gay advertising campaigns as "the year's most talked about tourism ads." Out Now Consulting is a leading global gay marketing specialist agency, founded in 1992. Clients include Barclays, IBM, Toyota, Citibank, German National Tourist Office, Visit Britain, Lufthansa and Time Inc. Magazines. Out Now recently won the "Outstanding Interactive" category in New York at the 'Images in Advertising' awards for an online campaign for their client Lufthansa.

If you would like Out Now to help you take your marketing to the leading-edge of sales results, please do get in touch.

Like this? Subscribe to Gay Market News. It's free. Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

-------------------
To learn how to get lesbian and gay marketing strategy right -- rely on gay marketing expert strategic advice from Out Now -- the leading experienced global strategic gay marketing, research and communications agency.

Gay at Eurovision

The annual pilgrimage to TV screens by gay people the world over has ended. Boy-wonder Alexander Rybak of Norway won. And gay issues are as prominently linked to Eurovision as ever. Learn how.


Ian Johnson, Out Now
May 17, 2009

TOPICS: Eurovision. Gay and lesbian community. Gay market. Lesbian and gay marketing. Transgender. LGBT. Dana International. Israel. Graham Norton. Peter Tatchell. Alexander Rybak. Gay people and their connection to Eurovision.

Well that is over for another year.

One of the things that makes me pleased to live in Europe is the annual gay and lesbian pilgrimage to TV screens that millions of people make to watch the slow-motion car crash of music that is the Eurovision Song Contest.

This show makes you stop and scratch your head in wonderment that the best music that a continent - plus Israel, Russia and a few other Euro-hangers-on - can produce so often seems to involve a woman onstage playing an accordion, or a group of people pretending to play violins.

This year the cute-as-a-button 23 year old flirty young male singer and musician - Alexander Rybak - represented his adopted country of Norway and won with a record-setting lead in votes.

So what's the gay market appeal?

Eurovision has attracted the intense interest of gays and lesbians since around the time that the broadcasts were commenced in color - and that evergreen gay favorite - ABBA - took home the Eurovision prize in Brighton in 1974.

In the UK the event is telecast on state broadcaster BBC-TV.

This year's BBC telecast was hosted for the first time by out gay TV celebrity, Graham Norton.

Graham Norton is one of the new-wave of gay celebrities who has been openly gay - and very successful - since their careers began. More power to others like them.

Norton's nodding and winking gay sensibility was perfectly suited to the event for the many gays and lesbians holding Eurovision parties all across the UK.

Color and Movement

The point about Eurovision is all about stereotypes.

Out Now spends a lot of time educating clients how to get past the stereotypes that the media propagate about gay people.

Yet this one night of the year - sort of like some Europe-wide televised Pride fest - seemingly makes it okay for all to let loose, with gay abandon; and to ponder, marvel and laugh at the entertainment - watching OTT campy, colourful outrageous performances, ever so occasionally mixed with serious musical attempts to be crowned Eurovision winner.

Stereotypes are not reality for most nights of the year but - with Eurovision as with gay Pride festivals - on these very rare occasions it is so much fun to let loose and get imbibed with Euro trash stereotypes.

Watching the lighting and choreography - as well as the camped up gay market appeal - makes for a fairly innocuous fun evening's entertainment.

Alexander Rybak was a very easy-on-the-eye contestant for the millions of gay male voters across Europe. As was Sakis Rouvas for Greece and Alex Christensen of Germany who was joined onstage by burlesque celebrity Dita von Teese.

Ukraine's Svetlana was joined by some very muscled Roman gladiator-esque dancers.

The 2009 UK entry was penned by Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber.

Gay appeal and Eurovision are seemingly intertwined.

Israel was rejoicing and conflicted over the Eurovision win in May 1998 in Birmingham of Dana International - that country's biggest female transsexual star.

Gay rights

Graham Norton correctly pointed out to his BBC UK audience that this year's event was marred by "heavy handed" police tactics.

What he neglected to mention was that this occurred in the context of a gay rights demonstration.

Russian police earlier in the day arrested dozens of gay and lesbian Pride march attendees seeking to highlight the dire lack of equality suffered by Russian gays and lesbians.

Veteran UK campaigner Peter Tatchell was amongst those arrested then later released.

It leaves a bitter taste in this night of light entertainment to know that Russia continues to refuse to join a modern Europe acknowledging and accepting lesbians and gay men as equal.

Russia did not score well in the evening's vote - and next year's competition is off to Oslo, Norway.

Norway was the first country in the world to enact an anti-discrimination law protecting homosexuals.

Russia - take note.

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AdWeek recently referred to one of Out Now's gay advertising campaigns as "the year's most talked about tourism ads." Out Now Consulting is a leading global gay marketing specialist agency, founded in 1992. Clients include Barclays, IBM, Toyota, Citibank, German National Tourist Office, Visit Britain, Lufthansa and Time Inc. Magazines. Out Now recently won the "Outstanding Interactive" category in New York at the 'Images in Advertising' awards for an online campaign for their client Lufthansa.

If you would like Out Now to help you take your marketing to the leading-edge of sales results, please do get in touch.

Like this? Subscribe to Gay Market News. It's free. Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

-------------------
To learn how to get lesbian and gay marketing strategy right -- rely on gay marketing expert strategic advice from Out Now -- the leading experienced global strategic gay marketing, research and communications agency.

Tel Aviv Gay and Lesbian Tourism Expo

One of the newest - and most impressive - tourism destinations targeting the lesbian and gay traveler is Tel Aviv. Now comes details of a significant new travel marketing opportunity. Learn more.


Ian Johnson, Out Now
May 5, 2009

TOPICS: Tel Aviv. Gay and lesbian travel marketing. Gay marketing. LGBT tourism. Jerusalem. Jewish culture. Lesbian and gay destinations. Destination marketing. CVBs.

It is always exciting to discover new opportunities in life.

I spent the past few days discovering what makes Tel Aviv one of the up and coming 'hot' new destinations for gay and lesbian travel.

Thanks to the people out there I met with, I left utterly convinced that Tel Aviv is set to see a growing number of lesbian and gay travelers keen to discover the new 'in' destination.

What astounded me was the difference between what I usually see reported about Tel Aviv in the media, and what I actually saw on the ground.

Suffice to say that after CNN, Fox and Sky News pack up their cameras and chase their next drama, Tel Aviv gets on with the business of life.

Big business

One of the exciting new developments is the inaugural TLV Gay and Lesbian Tourism Expo - happening next month.

For a miniscule amount of money - travel companies, hotels, airlines, destinations, online booking agencies and more will get to showcase their wares to an eagerly receptive and growing gay and lesbian market over in Tel Aviv.

Out Now is pleased to be involved, and be sure to mention us if you are quick enough to take advantage of the special reduced price offer to get your tourism business out in front of more than 12,000 new gay customers next month. This will be the biggest event happening in Tel Aviv on June 12.

Here are the essential '101' details:

TLV Gay and Lesbian Tourism Expo

On Friday June 12, more than 12,000 gays, lesbians, families and friends will all be in one place. At the GLBT Community Center in Tel Aviv. 12,000+ customers — looking to learn more about gay travel.

As a high growth market region, your participation at the TLV Gay and Lesbian Tourism Expo in Tel Aviv will be one of the smartest marketing decisions you will make this year.

Some key facts.

• Timed to coincide with the start of the 2009 tourist season.
  
• Low cost
  
• Prominent event position
  
• Strategic location
  
• 5 hours of crowds before start of Tel Aviv Pride parade
  
• Priced from just USD$350 — taking a stand at this event is a minimal expense in one of the world’s fastest growing gay markets.
  

Special rates apply only until 15 May, and remaining spaces are limited, so don’t miss out. Act now. Special bonus discount of up to USD$100 for IGLTA members.

For information, and to register today, contact:

Shai Doitsh
Head of Gay Tourism, Aguda
City of Tel Aviv
shai@glbt.org.il
www.GayIsrael.org.il
Phone: +972 - 50 - 382 0125

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AdWeek recently referred to one of Out Now's gay advertising campaigns as "the year's most talked about tourism ads." Out Now Consulting is a leading global gay marketing specialist agency, founded in 1992. Clients include Barclays, IBM, Toyota, Citibank, German National Tourist Office, Visit Britain, Lufthansa and Time Inc. Magazines. Out Now recently won the "Outstanding Interactive" category in New York at the 'Images in Advertising' awards for an online campaign for their client Lufthansa.

If you would like Out Now to help you take your marketing to the leading-edge of sales results, please do get in touch.

Like this? Subscribe to Gay Market News. It's free. Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

-------------------
To learn how to get lesbian and gay marketing strategy right -- rely on gay marketing expert strategic advice from Out Now -- the leading experienced global strategic gay marketing, research and communications agency.