THe UK may be keen to keep out immigrants of any hue (the politicians are, anyway) but it’s trying its damndest to attract tourists and VisitBritain is launching a new campaign to attract LBGT people (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) from the US.
The campaign, ‘Love is GREAT,’ is by specialist agency Out Now Consulting which is also opening a US office.
At the same time VisitBritain’s masters the UK government Cabinet Office has appointed RKCR/Y&R as its lead agency. RKCR/Y&R handled the debut of the GREAT campaign in the UK last year.
On the LBGT front, new marriage equality laws come into being in England and Wales on March 29 with Scotland due to follow later in the year. Can’t see the Northern Irish signing up to this one. American tourists want to know they’re on the right side of the law – not unreasonably given the historic behaviour of some British hoteliers.
Campaign partners include Virgin Atlantic, specialist tour operator Further Afield, tourism marketing agencies for Manchester, Birmingham, Wales and Brighton and several Radisson Blu Edwardian hotels in England.
The campaign itself is pretty unremarkable but I suppose Out Now needs to tread carefully. Maybe next year we’ll get some gay Guardsmen in bearskins.
