Hotel Hillock, Mount Abu, India - Boosting Business through Social Media and Ecommerce - Example

Hotel Hillock, Mount Abu, India Proposal to boost business through social media and ecommerce Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Abstract 1 Executive Summary 2 Need for a Marketing Plan and its Scope 3 Conclusion 4 References 4 Abstract The paper is a project proposal on Hotel Hillock in Mount Abu, India. The paper discusses the hotel per se, overall scenario of the tourist inflow to the location and around and how it can get benefited from that, the need for a marketing plan and its scope and demonstrates how the two-pronged strategy of social media and enhanced internet presence can help the hotel boost its revenues. Introduction Hotel Hillock is a 40-room hotel located in the picturesque tourist destination Mount Abu in the Western part of Rajasthan state in India. In a state that otherwise boats of India’s biggest desert – Thar, Mount Abu is the only place that has the distinction of being a hill station. In this hill station, Hotel Hillock has the distinction of being backed by people who have more than 50 years of experience in the hospitality industry. Of the 40 rooms that the hotel has, 9 are in the standard category, 27 in deluxe, 3 in super deluxe, and it also has 1 suite – almost all opening up to a panoramic view outside from the landscaped gardens and hills branching out from the Aravali range of mountains. The hotel’s dining facility comprises of a well-stocked mini bar, a coffee shop, a multicuisine and a garden restaurant; that just compliments a banquet hall having a maximum capacity of 120 persons and equipped with state of the art equipment for conferences and presentations (HotelHillock.com, Viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.hotelhillock.com/). Based on 30-odd traveller reviews, TripAdvisor ranks Hotel Hillock #2 of 25 listed hotels in this category in Mount Abu. However, around 90% of the travelers who have voted (mostly in favour of the hotel) are from different parts of India; only around four persons are tagged 2 each from London, one from California and 1 from Singapore (TripAdvisor.in, Viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.tripadvisor.in/Hotel_Review-g679012-d1181942-Reviews-Hillock-Mount_Abu_Rajasthan.html#REVIEWS). Looking at its Alexa ranking, you have it pegged at 2,490,456, and there is no regional statistics available. Given that majority of reviews on Hotel Hillock are positive and yet there is a serious lack of it found on Trip Advisor from overseas travelers, and given that the Alexa ranking on the hotel too small to be considered, it can be deduced that the hotel is doing only too little or naught to promote its business through the website. Executive Summary Rajasthan has practically a walk-in tourist from Europe, America and Australia and other world destinations. Going by the fact that 60% of all foreign tourists visiting India visit the golden triangle (Rajasthan.gov.in, Viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.rajasthan.gov.in/rajgovresources/actnpolicies/tourism_files.pdf), which is formed by Rajasthan (where Hotel Hillock is), Delhi (the capital city of India) and Agra (famous for Mughal emperor Shahjahan’s Taj Mahal), strong online presence – particularly live online reservations through internet banking – of the hotel can help it boost its occupancy beyond imagination. At present, the hotel’s online presence cannot be termed as magnificent as the image that the hotel has developed for itself over the years. This proposal will enumerate detailed account of how e-booking can facilitate hotel’s transition from one that seeks inquiries from its “online inquiry form” and gets back to prospective travelers belatedly through e-mail when they have possibly lost interest in the inquiry or have already booked themselves elsewhere to a location that offers them facility to book a stay as they think of it. Need for a Marketing Plan and its Scope The hotel is strategically located and at a tourist destination that is already pretty popular among the travelers throughout the world; but if that were enough, the hotel would should have by now a strong internet presence. But that is not the case. Its Alexa ranking, as discussed above, is far from satisfactory and talking of its link bank status, it is linked to only two websites, which means no referral web traffic. Another aspect that the hotel needs to look into is its presence in social media network which, in this internet-driven age of commerce, works wonders for hospitality industry. This makes the hotel part of around 25% of world’s hotels, which aren’t promoting their services through social media networks (Kris Holt, 2011). To start with, the hotel can create its Facebook presence, which is being used for generating business by around 65% hoteliers. Around 20%, as per a May webinar poll this year conducted as part of “2011 First Quarter Hotel Industry Update: Adapting to the Changing Revenue Management and Marketing Landscape”, keep tweeting themselves, followed by other smaller social media networks. Creating social media presence can be a marketing plan that sans any huge investments, but guarantees ample returns, and if the hotel hasn’t really been serious about it, it actually isn’t too serious about growth then. However, this shouldn’t be considered as enough if worked out in isolation. Strong social media presence would ensure the hotel increased web traffic, which, if not complimented by a user-friendly interface would spell disinterest of repeat site visits and disaster in reputation. That sort of a threat calls for an immediate revamping of the hotel’s website from a static model to an extremely dynamic one. As on date the design, the elements, the navigation, and the very branding on the site doesn’t match the 50-year legacy that the hotel claims. A visitor willing to book the hotel instantly through its “Get Online Reservation” form is quickly driven to a third party website, which triggers a distracting pattern and must be “turn off” against an online booking. To overcome this and create a “comfort zone” for a prospective client, the hotel can have any Indian bank integrate an exclusive payment gateway on the website. The long-term benefits of such a ecommerce model would far outweigh the short-term expense on this. Conclusion In conclusion, it can be said that the hotel on account of its legacy and reputation among its existing visitors can make tremendous strides in its clientele and thus volume of business if it revamps its online presence. This would, primarily, include rebuilding and refurbishing its brand image, showcase its presence on social media networks and set up an exclusive ecommerce platform. References A Place Where You Feel at Home, Away from Home, HotelHillock.com, viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.hotelhillock.com/ Kirs Holt, STUDY: 25% Of Hotels Fail To Use Social Media To Boost Business, viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.cmo.com/social-media/study-25-hotels-fail-use-social-media-boost-business, TripAdvisor.in, World's most trusted travel advice, Hillock, viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.tripadvisor.in/Hotel_Review-g679012-d1181942-Reviews-Hillock-Mount_Abu_Rajasthan.html#REVIEWS Rajasthan.gov.in, Rajasthan Government Report, viewed July 28, 2011, http://www.rajasthan.gov.in/rajgovresources/actnpolicies/tourism_files.pdf Read More