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Gay hotels, per se, are a bit of a misnomer as the average gay traveler will tell you. Gay-friendly hotels, certainly. Gay bed and breakfasts, absolutely. But gay hotels? Not so much. That is, until recently. With increasing frequency, multinational hotel chains are turning their attention to the gay travel market. And with an estimated market value in excess of $50 billion annually in the U.S. alone, it's hardly surprising that they should be vying for their share of the pie. In the past, hotels traditionally curried favour within the gay community by sponsoring high-profile events within local markets. For instance, pride celebrations in Toronto, New York, San Francisco; Mardi Gras in Sydney; or the myriad gay and lesbian film festivals and other like events in metropolitan markets. Traditionally, this meant offering room nights or discounted event rates, however, little promotion or marketing was actually involved; the supposition being that the gay community would come onside with the hotels simply by seeing their logo in various event programs or onsite banners and other such limited audience channels. It was the right strategy for the time, and certainly, is still effective today, with individual hotels courting the gay market within their locale. "W" hotel in Sydney frequently plays host to Fruits In Suits, a gay business professionals gathering, in addition to being the host hotel for Mardi Gras. But the times, they are a-changing. And the multinational hotels, they are a-coming to understand that when it comes to the gay travel market. Hotel chains are now investing millions of dollars in print advertising campaigns targeting the gay market. These include W and Westin of the Starwood consortium, Wyndham hotel properties and others. And the results are, according to the hotels, working, with promotional packages targeting, naturally, various pride celebrations. It is a valiant and praiseworthy effort. But it is only a beginning. Gay men and women are, afterall, gay all year long, not just at pride. We travel with more frequency than our general population counterparts. We show a higher incidence of passport ownership. We also, as recent research has demonstrated, travel for business more frequently than our straight population peers. Additionally, and hotel chains would do well to remember this in their gay marketing initiatives, while brand advertising will get the hotel name out there, when we're looking for gay or gay-friendly hotels, our first point of research more often than not these days is the Internet. It is, afterall, how you found this article, isn't it? About Wilde Marketing Wilde Marketing is a strategic consulting agency focused on gay marketing and advertising. The company offers comprehensive advertising, marketing communications, strategic and public relation services to companies who understand the value of engaging gay consumers in this country. Wilde Marketing is located at 102 Pickering Street, Suite 3, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M4E 3J7, 416.821.3074 phone, 416.483.3513 fax. For more information, email Wilde Marketing. |
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