Community Marketing: 2008 is "The Year of the Lesbian"

News release:

Community Marketing researchers are often asked, "What’s new in lesbian and gay market trends?" This year, the most important insights come from new, statistically significant research findings into lesbian consumers. Based on this new wealth of research and analysis, we are calling 2008 "The Year of the Lesbian," but that is just the tip of the iceberg.

"For decades, corporate America has only partially targeted the gay and lesbian community, using market studies and communications resources that focused predominantly on gay men," said Tom Roth, president, Community Marketing, Inc. "Today, marketers can begin a direct dialog with lesbians, understanding and leveraging their dynamic role in the global marketplace."

Community Marketing Inc.’s Lesbian Consumer Index™, with data and analysis from more than 10,000 U.S. lesbian consumers, is the largest, most comprehensive study of lesbian consumer habits in history. The Lesbian Consumer Index distinguishes lesbian preferences and purchasing habits from gay men for the first time ever, including coverage of spending patterns, political attitudes, unique motivations and more.

Some of the key findings include:

* 79 percent of lesbians used a Visa card in the last month, more than MasterCard (56%) and American Express (24%).
* The top three most-read national mainstream publications by lesbian consumers: People, AARP, and O Magazine.
* 91 percent of lesbians voted in the 2004 election and 78 percent voted in the 2006 mid-term election.

Community Marketing followed up the Lesbian Consumer Index with the most detailed look at lesbian travel habits than has ever been done. The 12th Annual Gay & Lesbian Tourism Study includes breakouts of top destinations visited, not only by gender (lesbian), but also by generation. This study found that the most-visited US destination for Lesbian Boomers and Gen-Xers is Las Vegas. Lesbian Seniors are most likely to visit Provincetown, and the Lesbian Gen-Y group prefers San Francisco.

"This research has been a long anticipated, much needed tool from which much insight can be gained," said Robbin Burr, Partner, Rapport Marketing Group, LLC, a lesbian-specific consultancy. "While those of us who've worked with lesbians have made some fairly accurate assumptions over the years, we've also allowed guesswork to steer us incorrectly at times. Now we have some solid information from on which to build strategies and marketing plans. This report deepens our ability to match companies and their messages with this important and growing market."

"The word 'gay' infers men and not lesbians. To reach the affluent lesbian market, you need to target lesbians specifically through lesbian-specific publications, events and web sites," voiced Francis Stevens, publisher of Curve, the nation's best selling lesbian magazine. "Most LGBT publications skew highly male and are less effective at reaching a women's demographic. When marketing to lesbians, it's best to use lesbian-specific imagery (images of lesbian women together or lesbian concepts / graphics... you need to go above and beyond the rainbow flag). Curve readers are 98% more likely to buy from a company that targets them specifically as lesbians."