The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau is a trailblazer in LGBTQ tourism and marketing.
“We’re the only tourist board or [Convention and Visitors Bureau] in the world that has a designated department that is solely responsible to develop and grow LGB tourism into a destination,” said Richard Gray, the bureau’s LGBTQ managing director.
This year, the Visitors Bureau made history by producing the first mainstream advertising campaign using transgender models. It launched in Times Square on New Year’s Eve on the digital billboard and will appear in print, TV and other media.
Greater Fort Lauderdale has also taken the role of hosting the Southern Comfort Transgender Conference for the third year. The event is the largest of its kind in North America.
Gray credits county residents for the campaign’s success. Locals are diverse, inclusive and welcoming. Visitors “like the energy we have here,” he said.
In 1996, the Visitors Bureau rolled out its marketing strategy with the word “rainbow,” Gray said. No one had the courage to use “gay” in the campaign.
“Within five years, we found gold at the end of the rainbow and felt comfortable using the word gay, then LGB and now LGBTQ,” Gray said. That pot of gold is the $1.5 billion in spending which 1.5 million travelers bring to the region annually.
Festivals such as the Stonewall Parade and Festival in Wilton Manors on June 17, are big attractions for both residents and tourists. Visitors are drawn to a destination where they can attend special events, he said.
Last year’s Stonewall Festival attracted more than 40,000 revelers. The 17-year-old fete promotes unity and pride while “commemorating one of the most impactful events in LGBT history,” said Wilton Manors Mayor Gary Resnick.
Wilton Manors is the epicenter of the community, Gray said. It’s also home to one of the country’s largest Pride Centers, the world’s first AIDS museum and the Stonewall Museum — one of few spaces devoted to LGBTQ history and culture.
Along with Greater Fort Lauderdale, the area has the highest concentration of same-sex couple households in the country, according to the 2012 U.S. Census report.
“I truly believe that diversity and inclusion is an integral part of this destination’s personality,” Gray said. “We want all travelers that come to our municipalities – whether it’s Wilton, Fort Lauderdale or Hollywood – we want them to feel safe and I think we do a great job of that.”