curriculum.naf.orgcurriculum.naf.org/packaged/assets/downloads/hospitalit… · Web viewPleasant Vista is in a good location. The B&B sits on a hillside surrounded by family-owned

AOHT Hospitality Marketing

Lesson 1What Is Hospitality Marketing?

Student Resources

Resource Description

Student Resource 1.1 Analysis: Is This Marketing?

Student Resource 1.2 Reading: What Is Marketing?

Student Resource 1.3 Reading: Trends in Hospitality Marketing

Student Resource 1.4 Defining Format: Marketing Terms

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AOHT Hospitality MarketingLesson 1 What Is Hospitality Marketing?

Student Resource 1.1

Analysis: Is This Marketing?Student Name: Date:

Directions: Read each scenario and then take a guess: is this part of marketing? Circle Yes or No.

The Bean MachineDanielle De La Cruz’s family has owned the Bean Machine Coffee Bar for as long as she can remember. The coffee bar is in a suburb outside Houston, Texas. It has always been a place where everyone in the community can gather. In the mornings, commuters stop by for their coffee before facing the long commute into the city. On hot summer afternoons, kids hang out in the coffee bar, enjoying big scoops of homemade ice cream. On the weekend evenings, local bands play on the small stage.

But in the last few months, business has dropped off dramatically. The customers just don’t seem to be coming in the way they used to. Danielle heard her mom and her uncle talking about ways they could get feedback from the customers and maybe fix their flagging sales.

Is this part of marketing?

My guess: Yes No

My reason:

I learned:



Pleasant Vista Bed and BreakfastMichael Karimi and his wife, Lauren, bought the struggling Pleasant Vista Bed and Breakfast in the small town of Temecula, California, about a half hour outside of San Diego. They always wanted to own a B&B, and this was the best one they could afford.

Pleasant Vista is in a good location. The B&B sits on a hillside surrounded by family-owned farms and vineyards. The two-story house has eight guest rooms, each with a private balcony or patio overlooking the valley below. The local community has a few attractions, including a day spa, some small family-owned wineries, and an antique festival in the fall as well as a hot air balloon and music festival in the spring. But the B&B has never been very successful, and Michael and Lauren want to change that. So the first thing they did was to develop a strategy for how to promote their business, including where they wanted to advertise.


My guess: Yes No

My reason:

I learned:

Traveler’s Friend Travel AppTiffany Kwan and her best friend are working on developing a new travel app called Traveler’s Friend. Tiffany interned with a travel agency when she was an AOHT student, and ever since then she wanted a career where she helped people plan their vacations. Her college roommate is really good with computers and designing programs, so they thought they would go into business by launching a travel app for smartphones.

But there are a lot of travel apps out there, and Tiffany worries about how to make sure hers is a success. She decided to ask her former college professor for advice. He told her that she needed to decide which specific customers she wanted to target. For example, was she trying to serve wealthy customers or people on a budget? Did she want to help couples planning their honeymoon or retired couples who want to take a cruise and enjoy their retirement?

Tiffany did research and determined there were lots of apps for business travelers but not that many apps to help couples plan their honeymoon. She decided that their app should focus on honeymooners or people planning to take a romantic vacation, and she and her best friend started making changes to the app’s look and trying to think of a new name that would sound more romantic.


My guess: Yes No

My reason:

I learned:



Fun WorldBrendan Boyle is the general manager of Fun World, an indoor arcade and amusement park in Kansas City, Missouri. Fun World is one of the most popular places in the city for people under 18. It offers a wide range of arcade games, carnival games, and an indoor roller coaster.

Fun World is like a kid’s dream come true. You buy an entry card, which is charged for a certain period of time. During that time, you can use the card to play as many games or go on as many rides as you want. When the card expires, you have to recharge it in order to keep playing, but it’s really a great deal. Fun World is the top place for birthday parties for children in their area.

Now Brendan has an opportunity to bring in a new simulation game with 3-D graphics. He’s heard that it’s really popular, and he has to do something to compete with all the games that kids can play on their phones, their computers, and their gaming systems. Brendan has to decide where to put the equipment for the game. It needs a lot of space, because the players get inside something that’s shaped like a spaceship and then the spaceship moves around a lot. Brendan can’t decide: should he put it up at the front of Fun World? It would be more crowded there, but more customers would see it. Or should he put it at the back, so that customers can have something to look forward to as they play the other games?

Is this decision part of marketing?

My guess: Yes No

My reason:

I learned:




Reading: What Is Marketing?

This course is called Hospitality Marketing. But what is marketing? And how is it different from advertising or public relations?



There are a variety of ways to define marketing. These definitions keep changing as our understanding of the relationship between selling, products, and consumers evolves.

As you can see from this definition, marketing is not one easily described thing; it’s many related things collected under the umbrella term of “marketing.”



In 1960, E. Jerome McCarthy, a professor at the University of Michigan, developed a framework for thinking about marketing that is so simple and clear that it is still useful today. The Four Ps are the main categories that marketing activities fall into. They are also called the “marketing mix,” because these categories are all interrelated and they are all “ingredients” of marketing.

Product: Defines the features of the product that meet the needs or desires of the consumer. The purpose, style, and quality of the product are among the product’s features that are important to marketing.

Pricing: Many decisions need to be made regarding a product’s cost, including its wholesale, retail, and discount prices.

Place: Includes where a consumer can buy a product, how it’s placed relative to other products, and how the product gets to the places where it’s sold. Many people call “place” distribution, because it refers to how and where a product is distributed.

Promotion: This is the information about a product that consumers receive and that gives them a favorable impression of the product so that they are more likely to buy it. Advertising and public relations fall into this category.



Although the Four Ps are always part of the marketing mix, modern marketers often refer to the Seven Ps of marketing. This is an introductory course, and we will be studying the original four. But it’s important to be aware of the other three. They are a sign of how fast marketing is changing as it makes use of new technology and new understanding about marketing.

People: All the people involved in selling the product must be well trained and good at interacting with customers. Sometimes “people” also refers to the customer.

Process: Delivering high-quality customer service and products results in high degrees of customer satisfaction. If you can nail down this process, you will succeed.

Physical attributes: What a customer will experience if he or she buys your hospitality service, or what a product looks, feels, and smells like. “Attributes” are qualities or features of something. With online marketing playing such an important role today, marketers have to get creative in order to give a customer an idea of what a product or service will really be like.



Marketing should be foremost in the thoughts of anyone who is coming up with a new product. Of course you can always develop a new product without considering marketing; but just thinking up a good idea may not get you very far. What if the product is so specific that only a few people will use it? What if it costs so much money to make that almost no one can afford to buy it? What if it’s only for sale in the United States, but people in Africa really need it? What if it doesn’t sell because people have no idea how it will benefit them? Without considering these kinds of questions, a new product may not be a success. That’s why an inventor needs to consider marketing throughout the process.

Thinking about a customer’s problems is a great way to develop new products. For example, people felt as though they didn’t have enough time to keep in touch with all their friends…until Facebook solved that problem!



The purpose of advertising is to persuade the consumer to buy a product or take some kind of action. For example, if you see an ad for a running shoe, you’re being asked to buy something; an ad about becoming more physically active is asking you to take action.

Advertising takes a wide variety of forms and uses many methods. There are ads in newspapers and magazines, banners and pop-ups on the Internet, radio and TV commercials, flyers, and billboards. But an ad can also be on the handle of a shopping cart or on the side of a bus. It could be a prop in a TV show or a movie.

Ads reach a wide audience, but only some of those people are potential customers. In the case of this billboard, if the Summer Sale is for expensive cars or jewelry, that most people can’t afford no matter what, then the billboard won’t help sell the product.

It can be difficult to measure an advertising campaign’s effectiveness. Sometimes an ad contains a “call to action” that can be tracked. For example, if the ad says, “mention this ad and receive a 15% discount!” then data can be gathered.

Advertising can be a very powerful form of promotion. Online advertising is becoming very sophisticated with the use of mobile ads, pay-per-click campaigns, and text messaging. Ads placed on social media sites take advantage of specific information about purchasing habits and interests to target their audience.



Public relations is sometimes seen as “free” publicity, because the company doesn’t buy space or time (as opposed to advertising, where space or time is purchased). However, a great deal of effort or investment may go into obtaining that “free” publicity. Consider, too, that not all PR is in fact good PR. Many businesses will hire a public relations firm to arrange the publicity for them. We will learn more about public relations later in the course.

One goal of public relations efforts is to get the company’s name out in front of the public in a positive way, which all of these examples do. Also, public relations campaigns can build goodwill between the company and potential customers or existing customers. So women who hear the restaurant owner speak at their luncheon might say, “Hey, let’s go eat dinner at her restaurant.” If a travel agency sponsors the local baseball team, the parents of the kids on the team may notice and use that travel agency to arrange a family vacation. In this case, good public relations generates business.

Public relations can also be used to manage a crisis. If an accident happens at a hotel and the media arrives to cover the story, a public relations person can work with the media to ensure that incorrect information doesn’t reach the public and to prevent a public relations disaster.



Strategy is another word for a planned approach to meeting marketing goals. The strategy has to have the big picture in mind as well as the details.

The big picture is:

• Knowing what the product is

• Knowing who you want the customer to be

• How much of the product you want to sell in a certain amount of time

• What price you want to charge

• How the product will look (and in the case of food or beverage, taste)

For example, maybe you are in charge of marketing a new candy bar and you want it to be available in the grocery store aisles of major supermarkets across the country in three years. Your marketing strategy contains the details of how this is going to actually happen. Shelving—which shelf your candy bar goes on and what the display looks like—is a part of your strategy. Every detail matters!

The strategy has to be laid out further within each marketing category (product, pricing, promotion, and place). But all of the phases have to work together. For example, place and pricing each require a lot of thought, but neither can be decided without also knowing about the product and its promotion.



There are four basic phases of a marketing plan. What stage the product is in determines which phase of the plan requires attention. If you are working with a new product, you start with defining the product and the customer it is designed to serve. You research your competition, research your target customers, and define the product’s benefits. Then you work out the strategy—the approach—as well as the steps you need to take to carry out the strategy. While the plan is being implemented, you troubleshoot. There will be unexpected challenges and opportunities during this phase, and flexibility is key. It’s important to remember that no plan can be rigid; it has to be adapted to fit the current circumstances. Finally, once the plan has been carried out, it needs to be revisited. What should happen next? What worked that you should keep, and what needs to change?

The diagram is circular because each phase leads into the next and what happens in one phase is determined by the previous phase. In reality, the phases overlap. In fact, they can go backwards before going forward. And once a product has been introduced to the target audience to buy, managing the plan is ongoing. Good businesses are always ready to re-examine their marketing plan and make changes in order to stay profitable.



Every business has a philosophy or set of beliefs that guides how the business operates. Sometimes the philosophy is clearly stated and sometimes it isn’t. Companies may change their philosophy over time, or they may follow more than one philosophy at a time.

The three most common marketing philosophies are product based, sales based, and market based.

• Product-based businesses focus primarily on making their product better. As long as people want that product, this type of company can succeed.

• Sales-based businesses focus on aggressive selling and promotion, but the product still needs to be in place first. They want any sale they can get, even from people who aren’t their usual customers. This type of company can make money through sales volume (making a lot of sales).

• Market-based businesses pay attention to the customers and do market research. This type of company wants to build long-term relationships with customers. These businesses will make money through customer satisfaction and good word of mouth.

Hotels and restaurants may use all of these philosophies simultaneously for different parts of their business. For example, a hotel sales manager may use one philosophy for attracting high-end customers and another for attracting customers with less money to spend.



If the B&B follows a product-based philosophy, Brittany’s aunt and uncle would focus on changing the product. They might add something new, like a bottle of champagne for every couple upon arrival, or they might just change the pricing so they make more money off every package sold.

If the B&B follows a sales-based philosophy, their goal is to increase the total number of sales. They might actually lower the price to attract more guests, or they might try new sales methods or promotion ideas.

If the B&B follows a market-based philosophy, they are going to try to learn what the market (the customers) want. They might interview some of the couples who have purchased that package and find out what they liked and didn’t like. They might also do some research by talking to new potential customers who have not visited the B&B and asking those potential customers what would appeal to them.

Remember that many businesses use a combination of different philosophies, or they might try different philosophies at different points in time.



The subject of marketing is so huge that you can major in it in college, and you can develop a specialty in a particular kind of marketing or even in marketing a kind of product. For example, some people are particularly knowledgeable about online marketing, and some are especially good at marketing energy-efficient cars.

This course is an introduction to marketing for hospitality and tourism, which has its own unique characteristics. In some ways, hospitality marketing is easier because most people want to travel. In other ways, hospitality marketing is more complicated. After all, if you don’t sell that car today, you can sell it tomorrow. But who’s going to buy today’s fresh fish of the day after tonight?

This course will focus on some elements of this subject more than others, because hospitality marketing is very complex. In fact, each of the Four Ps is a major topic on its own!




Reading: Trends in Hospitality MarketingDirections: Read this article to discover what trends in marketing prevail currently. See whether you have noticed their effects in marketing materials that you’ve come across online, on TV, or in print.

Changing DemographicsSenior citizens are seeing the world. There are between 1.3 and 1.6 billion senior citizens in the world, and many of them want to travel. In the United States, this generation is often referred to as the Baby Boomers. The Baby Boomers are people born between the years of 1945 (just after World War II) and 1960. The oldest Boomers have reached retirement age. There are a lot of them, and they are living longer than ever. They don’t see retirement as a time to slow down but as a time to travel, take up new interests, and generally stay active. They often want to travel with their extended family (children and grandchildren), which means they want destinations that can appeal to a wide variety of ages.

On the other hand, the Millennials are the youngest group of adults currently in the market. The Millennials are made up of people born between the early 1980s and 2000. There are 78 million millennials versus 74.6 million Boomers. Millennials tend to be much more ethnically diverse and interested in international travel. They may be more likely to travel with friends rather than family and to visit urban destinations or find specific destinations that are personally meaningful to them. This generation has practically grown up online, so they expect much more technological awareness from businesses. They have also been a generation that has faced higher levels of unemployment as they graduate from high school and college, so their ability to travel—or the kinds of vacations they take—may be different from previous generations. Businesses need to find ways to reach all these groups.

TechnologyTechnology is becoming increasingly important in all parts of our lives. In 2013, nearly two-thirds of all travelers did online research before taking a trip. As more and more people carry smartphones like the iPhone, tablet computers like the iPad, or laptops when they travel, hospitality and tourism businesses are working on how to make the most of these technologies. More and more companies are making an effort to offer free wireless Internet; one industry analyst described Wi-Fi as “a necessity just like running water.” Some hotels and airlines are creating apps—applications for smartphones and tablets that make a customer’s experience even better. For example, there is now a Disney parks app that helps you find your way through the theme park and track how long wait times are, and some hotels offer apps that allow you to check in or even order room service before you arrive at the hotel. Some hotels now offer guests special iPads that have apps enabling you to order room service and other extras. Some hotels have apps that allow you to just go straight to your room and unlock the door with your smartphone—no front desk check-in required!

Technology is also revolutionizing how products and services are marketed, as people explore new ways to use Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and other social media sites to reach new potential customers. Some hotels create Instagram moments―photographable moments that a guest could capture and post on the photo-sharing app Instagram.

Technology is helping people blur the lines between their professional and personal lives. The demands of a busy career mean that many people check their email and conduct other work activities on the weekend or on vacation as well as during the traditional workweek. They never really take a day off. Destinations can use this information to help guests blend work and play by ensuring that guests have Internet access wherever they are.



On the other hand, some people feel that technology is too present in our lives. So some hotels have started offering technology-free zones to give busy travelers a chance to unplug and truly relax.

CustomizationAs technology improves, it has become more and more possible to target the specific needs and wants of customers. Computers and customized databases can track details on individual customers that were impossible to keep track of before. The vast amount of customer data that is available for potential marketing purposes allow companies to obtain more relevant information about their target customers. Now, instead of sending out a generic letter about their services to 1,000 people and getting a low response rate, they can send out a more specific letter to 500 people who might actually be interested in their product.

Customers also expect more custom options because of how easy it is to book travel online. Using a website, customers can pick their seat on an airplane, say what size bed they want in their hotel room, request a certain type of rental car, and make dinner reservations at a nice restaurant. Sites like Travelocity or Expedia also let customers put together their own travel packages, including airfare, hotel, rental car, and activities at their destination. These packages can save a customer money. None of these technological options were available 20 years ago.

Ecotourism and Green ConcernsEcotourism is growing in popularity. The World Tourism Organization believes it to be the fastest growing market in the tourism industry.

Ecotourism could be called “travel with a conscience.” It is responsible travel that is designed to have a positive impact on the tourist destination—on both the environment and the local community—rather than the negative impact tourism frequently creates. Of course, tourism will always have some negative impact; large numbers of visitors and the waste they produce affect the lives of the local inhabitants. The goal in ecotourism is to minimize the negative effects by recycling, showing respect for local customs, and so on. Ecotourism emphasizes environmental protection, sustainable building, and energy efficiency.

The green trend also affects dining by promoting locally grown or organic foods. Buying locally supports the local farming industry and creates less pollution, since food doesn’t have to travel as far to get to the customer. Green transportation options—such as bike sharing or ride sharing—and increased focus on public transportation options including high-speed rail and streetcars—are also important. These green practices are so much a part of the tourism industry today that many people see them as mainstream rather than a trend.

Short Trips or StaycationsToday’s families have less time to travel, so short trips (e.g., a long weekend) are growing in popularity. In some cases, these short trips replace longer vacations. Short trips generally focus on a single, easy-to-reach location, like a tourist resort, a national park, a theme park, a ski resort, or the beach. In some cases, people opt for staycations—staying at home and doing day trips as a way to save money.

Short trips can also happen when business travelers add an extra couple of days to a business trip to get in some sightseeing or personal travel. Airlines are encouraging this trend because nonstop flights are getting more crowded and harder to find. People are being forced to take layovers, and some of them are turning those layovers into one- or two-night mini vacations.




Defining Format: Marketing TermsStudent Name: Date:

Directions: Review the example below for the term cat. Then complete the table, including at least three characteristics for each term.

Term Category Characteristics

A cat is an animal that 1. meows.

2. has fur and a tail.

3. can be a pet.

4. has babies called kittens.

Complete the table below. It will help you to explain new concepts and terms in your own words. If you run out of space, continue listing characteristics in your notebook.




Marketing is a range of activities that

Advertising is a way to promote a business that

Public relations is a way to promote a business that


The Four Ps are categories that

A marketing strategy is a planned approach that

A marketing trend is a response to current changes in society that



Make sure your assignment meets or exceeds the following assessment criteria: The characteristics for each term are accurate and clear.

The characteristics are distinct from each other and each describes a different aspect of the term.

The characteristics for each term are varied and together create a complete picture of what the term means.

The characteristics use new terminology appropriately.

The characteristics are legible, with proper spelling and grammar.


Documents

curriculum.naf.orgcurriculum.naf.org/packaged/assets/downloads/hospitalit… · Web viewPleasant Vista is in a good location. The B&B sits on a hillside surrounded by family-owned