This is from an advance review copy for which I thank the publisher.

This is the second non-fiction book tied to the LGBTQIA community that I shall review today and it gets a 'worthy', too, despite problems I had again with the formatting of the ebook. Clearly this is intended as a print book, with the e-version getting short shrift, in that it looks like ti was pretty tossed together to get it out before reviewers, but just as this book advises those who wish to take advantage of the spending power and willingness to travel of a particular community to prepare well and know your market, I'd advise publishers to send out better review copies if they don't want to irritate reviewers and get lower grades!

That said this is an important book, and formatting problems aside, it offers a detailed and thoughtful approach to how businesses can position themselves to take advantage of the current boom (which I dearly hope continues) in how the LGBTQIA community is looked upon by the rest of us, and I thought it deserved to have the shortcomings of the e-version overlooked in the hope that if this ever does get released as an ebook, it will look a lot better than the sorry copy I got to review! The rainbow community deserves better, too!

It may sound a little mercenary to talk about a community of people who have had enough crap to deal with already, as a marketing opportunity or as a rising segment of disposable income, but that's what this book is about, and businesses wouldn't be in business long if they didn't make money, so what are they going to do? Ignore this community? They're morons if they do. Meanwhile the smart ones are going to be looking for ways to work with an in this community and this is where this book shines. The authors have done their homework and talked to the people who know.

I list below a more detailed contents than you might find elsewhere, because that's what my blog is all about! And frankly, I deserve a medal for managing to extract this from Kindle's crappy app!

THE FOUNDATIONS OF LGBT TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY
Your “elevator pitch”: The importance of developing a segment-specific program for LGBT tourism
Sizing the LGBT segment: Buying power
The importance of the LGBT segment in the travel industry
Tips before launching your LGBT marketing campaign
Success in the LGBT travel market: Top ten tips from Jeff and Ed

BUSINESS ESSENTIALS: UNDERSTANDING THE LGBT TRAVEL MARKET
Understanding key segments and focusing your resources
Lesbian travel: Women first, then lesbians
Bisexual travel: Identifying an elusive population
Putting the T in LGBT travel: Introducing the trans traveler
LGBT family travel trends
The top ten trends in LGBT travel
Training, staff, business policies, and employee resource groups

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
LGBT tourism and hospitality businesses
LGBT events, festivals, and sporting events: An overview
LGBT sports to drive revenue and visitation
Pride festivals
Tailoring your mainstream product with an LGBT twist
Welcome signs and symbols
The cruise industry
LGBT tour operators
Gays and the motor coach
Airlines: Putting more butts in seats
Hotels and lodging
Meetings, conventions, and business groups
Milestone celebration travel: Weddings, honeymoons, and other celebrations
Navigating controversies and turning them to your advantage

MARKETING YOUR BUSINESS
Setting your marketing goals, budget, and staff
Getting your advertising history straight
Strategies for building an effective marketing campaign
The changing media landscape: The rise, fall, and rise of LGBT publications
Great content in context is your foundation
Communications, public relations, and media relations
mart press trips
LGBT print advertising and gay-inclusive creative
Online and digital marketing
Marketing through mobile phone apps
Ten tips to keep your LGBT campaign and your destination competitive
The ten classic principles of successful LGBT marketing

THE GLOBAL VIEW: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
Asia: The most gay-friendly destinations
Argentina: Five tips for your LGBT business
Brazil: A strong LGBT tourism market
Canada: New ways of marketing using content in context
China: A market opportunity
Colombia: Five tips from an emerging destination
Europe: Tips on the lesbian market
India: Cultural, religious, and societal challenges
Israel: Marketing LGBT tours in Tel Aviv
Japan: Welcoming international LGBT guests to a conservative country
Mexico: A gay-friendly but macho country
United Kingdom: Reaching LGBT travelers is always a challenge
The United States: Beyond New York and San Francisco

TRENDS AND INDUSTRY RESOURCES
Market research: Companies, data, surveys, and reports
Associations and conventions
Advocacy organizations
Conferences and expositions
Further reading
Annotated bibliography
Discussion question
Notes
Index
I'll mention a few of the problems with formatting I encountered which will hopefully be cleared up before any ebook is released. need to mention. There were items like this: "For exam2A ple, an LGBT traveler in the United States," where some sort of numerical marker had become embedded in the text. This was quite common.

There's a table, Table 2.2, featuring "Terms Used by Trans People to Describe Themselves" which is so screwed up that it's completely unintelligible. The phrase, "3d 3D PRIDE FESTIVALS" was not only repetitive, it was in three different font shades/colors!"

But as I said, I am not rating it on the crappy Kindle app(earance). I'm not a fan of Kindle (or Amazon!), so ignoring that, I rate this a worthy read and a valuable asset to anyone who wants to attract LGBTQIA business, because take it from me, we're never going to be over the rainbow!

The LGBTQ community is becoming larger in a sense that in record numbers they are being allowed to live more openly as they embrace their right to live just like everyone else. Like the rest of the world who loves to travel and share adventures with their loved ones they also deserve to do so safely. It was obvious the authors put a great deal of time and effort into this book in order to provide information on how the tourism industry and other businesses can show their acceptance and incorporate friendly practices into their business model to provide equal treatment.

Although this book is written for those who market and or own businesses in the travel and hospitality industry I think it would be a good read for even the everyday traveler so they can recognize the signs of who will provide them the standard of hospitality they are looking for in their next vacation. It’s no great secret that despite the fact we’re all equal on a human level it doesn’t mean everyone gets treated the same way even if it isn’t being done intentionally. If a man and woman go up to a hotel desk to reserve a room the initial assumption and generally only question asked is “Would you like a room with a queen size or king size bed” because there’s an initial belief they will share one. If a couple approaches that same desk but it’s two men or two women then they’ll often get asked “Do you want a room with 2 beds or do you need 2 separate rooms”. I liked how the authors are trying to educate from the most basic of levels and work their way up.

They also provide a basic history of how these thought patterns have changed over the years as companies began to realize they need to have more inclusive policies. They have even broken down chapters to focus solely on those specifically in the lesbian community, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and the family unit. I thought this was insightful because although for lack of a better phrase everyone who is not ‘heterosexual’ gets lumped together under the LGBTQ banner they in fact have different needs.

One of the other interesting aspects was the section where they broke up the world by chapter so you can see how different areas treat those in the community, how to adapt policies to the culture and what challenges are faced in those regions. They provide a list of associations to look into for more resources around the world and what specifically about them would be helpful. There is also a list of books added for further reading to get a wider understanding of LGBTQ Tourism needs.

This definitely seems to be THE go to manual for how to provide a friendly, safe, and open experience to a demographic that deserves to be treated with the same hospitality as everyone else.

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This is a well researched book on the emerging trends of LGBT tourism and how businesses can leverage their brand to be inclusive. I was truly enlightened about the struggles the LGBT community face especially safety issues when travelling.

Although this book focuses on brand marketing strategies and relationship marketing that are inclusive of the LGBT community, it educates readers about engaging effectively.

In a generation where respect for fundamental human rights is key, the LGBT community is no exception.

There are examples given of companies and governments who initially had no inclusion policies for the LGBT community but over the years have realised the importance of an all inclusive policies.

Policies that protect these rights should not exclude certain demographics because of their sexual orientation, religion, race or any other reason.

Favourite Quote: “LGBT travelers are just like other travelers: they want to be respected and they want a meaningful travel experience. Respect can be as simple as recognizing that two men checking into a hotel room may want to share one bed."