GAY DOLLAR

At its most basic, money is a tool that enables us to meet our individual needs. As a form of potential energy that empowers us to generate change, it is neither good nor bad. We GAYS are familiar with being different, but our financial situations are also different from the ones modeled by those within society at larger. We have more money to spend and no families or other typical commitments that we must meet. Ironically, the lack of advertising/marketing attention towards the gay/lesbian community is money down the drain. “We are a huge community with great spending power,” we are persons with great jobs, education and healthy relationships. We own houses and purchase expensive cars and are frequent travelers, extremely concerned about grooming and fashion, and are avid fans of music. However our society doesn’t recognize this potential ‘GOLD MINE’ and doesn’t try to tap into this market. Hence, we face the major challenges of not being recognized as a viable marketing niche. So who's to blame, for such a vast oversight? Are HOMOPHOBIC marketers really at fault? In actuality the answer is a bit more complicated and two-fold in nature. Ironically, this situation lies parallel to what exists today within the mainstream community where there's a lack of diversity and outreach to the GAY community. Further, when everyone sitting at the advertising decision table all look the same, what usually occurs is more of the same type of advertising and marketing directives. So I am of the opinion that as more gay/lesbian people come out the closet and begin to publicly self-identify as gay, the face and voice of the gay dollar will soon begin to transform. Therein lies the distinct possibility of gays not only being consumers of gay focused products and services but instead becoming leaders of the direction of gay focused products and services. As we forge further, the possibilities of the potential power of the ‘GAY DOLLAR’ appear to just now be awakening and emerging in the corners of my mind, the only thing left is for US to make society take US seriously and invest in community that will sure provide profit beyond measure.