Quick Facts on the GLBT market

Is your business missing a $54.1 billion dollar travel market with an average household income of $57,000 and an estimated buy power of $800 billion!        My name is Michael Henderson and I am the owner of VEGASONESOURCE.COM (VOS).  VOS is the leading internet information portal serving the local Las Vegas and worldwide traveling gay and lesbian [GLBT] community seeking information about Las Vegas. I would like an opportunity to discuss with you the significant potential advertising to the GLBT market presents.

 

 

Can advertising to this market improve your profits?  YES!  Consider the demographics listed below:

 

1)  The Dynamics

Gays and lesbians are sometimes elusive to quantify, but major advertisers have increasingly found that their efforts are well worth the investment to find them and for good reason. A recent study conducted by the Connecticut-based Greenfield Online, found that the average annual household income for gays and lesbians is $57,000.  The New York-based company, Spare Parts, Inc., which helps companies market to gays, estimates that the United States gay and lesbian population is between 15 million to 23 million.  According to another study (Inter@ctive Week, August 30, 1999. Page 20.), the US gay community consists of over 19 million people with an estimated buying power of $800 billion. Worldwide, these figures are MUCH larger. *[gaybusinesstools.com/marketing.cfm]

 

2)  The GLBT Market

 

$54.1 billion travel market

 

American gay & lesbian travels in 12 months…

98% took vacations

56% took 3 or more North America (US, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean) vacations

72% took one or more international vacations beyond the above (national average is 9%)

90% plan USA vacations in the next year; 45% plan to visit Europe; 31% plan to visit Canada

87% prefer independent travel (vs. organized group tours)

 

83% have household incomes above the national average (i.e. $40,000 or more)

34% have household incomes of $100,000 or more

33% budget $5,000+ per person/year for vacations

78% are over 35 years of age; 23% is over age 50

60% are in a committed relationship

*[http://www.mark8ing.com/documents/GayResearch2001.pdf  7th Annual Gay & Lesbian Travel Survey, by Community Marketing, Inc., San Francisco, CA, USA.  American Traveler Survey, Plog Research, Inc. as published in Travel Weekly]

 

3) Extremely brand loyal

 

A recent study showed that the demographic is 87 percent brand-affiliated, meaning most likely or highly likely to actively seek out a brand that had advertised in the gay and lesbian media. *[Simmons]

 

63 percent of gay and lesbian customers said they are willing to pay more for products from companies that are gay and lesbian friendly. *[Greenfield Online, 2000]

 

Research shows gay and lesbian customers uniquely value advertisers who speak directly to them. They are profoundly aware of an advertiser’s presence in gay and lesbian media. *[Gay.com]

 

Why choose VEGASONESOURCE.COM?

 

Traffic:  100,000+ page views a month. This is direct target traffic (i.e. the GLBT community seeking information on Las Vegas).  This is a specific target audience versus the Internet as a whole. People seeking the information we provide are finding and coming to us.  They could be seeing YOU!

 

Content: VOS provides information on hotels, shows, tours, employment, transportation, bar guide, dining guide, social groups, community news & resources, shopping, real estate, calendar of events, classifieds, and more!

 

Internet position:  VOS is listed in all the major search engines such as Google, MSN, Yahoo, AOL, Alltheweb, AltaVista, Netscape, Ask Jeeves, etc; listed in numerous GLBT designated search engines; broad cross traffic link exchanges with other Internet sites to expand visitor traffic, and increasingly stronger Alexa ranking.

 

Cost Effective:  We recognize the value of your advertising dollars and offer one of the best ROI (return on investment) for your business.  Flat-rate advertising eliminates any hidden costs and allows for more stability for budgeting, etc.

 

Please take a moment to consider what VEGASONESOURCE.COM has to offer and the impact of a consumer group with $800 billion purchasing power could have to your profits.

 

Thank you for your thoughtful consideration and I look forward to speaking with you soon.

 

All the best,

 

Michael Henderson, Owner

VEGASONESOURCE.COM

Email: MHNLV@VEGASONESOURCE.COM

Marketing to Reach the Gay & Lesbian Community   http://www.gaybusinesstools.com/marketing.cfm

What is the Gay Market?
Gays and lesbians are sometimes elusive to quantify, but major advertisers have increasingly found that their efforts are well worth the investment to find them and for good reason. A recent study conducted by the Connecticut-based Greenfield Online, found that the average annual household income for gays and lesbians is $57,000. The New York-based Company, Spare Parts, Inc., which helps companies market to gays, estimates that the United States gay and lesbian population is between 15 million to 23 million. According to another study (Inter@ctive Week, August 30, 1999. Pg. 20.), the US gay community consists of over 19 million people with an estimated buying power of $800 billion. Worldwide, these figures are much larger.

Below is a benchmark that helps to bring this market more into focus, allowing us to compare it to other diversity niche communities in the US marketplace.

Market Population Buying Power Buying Power
Per Capita
African American 30 Million $535 Billion $17.8K
Gay American 16.5 Million $450 Billion $27.3K
Hispanic American 31 Million $383 Billion $12.4K
Asian American 11 Million $229 Billion $21.0K

INTERESTING READINGS

http://www.gaydemographics.org/USA/2000_Census_Total.htm the University of Syracuse Study

The Center for Policy Research of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University in New York issued a working paper in 1999, titled Demographics Of The Gay And Lesbian Population In The United States: Evidence From Available Systematic Data Sources.

In it, the CPR states “we provide an overview of standard social science data sources that now allow some systematic study of the gay and lesbian population in the United States. We consider how sexual orientation can be defined in each data source, and we note the potential sample sizes of gays and lesbians from each data source.”