Hidden Valley Resort - Research Paper Example

 Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 1. Executive Summary: 2 2. Introduction: 3 3. Company Overview: 3 4. Findings: 4 4.1 Market Information: 4 4.1.1 Target Markets: 4 4.1.2 Estimated Markets: 5 4.1.3 Competitors: 5 4.2 Opportunities 5 4.2.1 Opportunity One: 5 4.2.1.1 Financial Considerations: 6 4.2.2 Opportunity Two: 7 4.2.2.1 Financial Considerations: 7 4.2.3 Opportunity Three: 7 4.2.3.1 Financial Considerations: 8 4.2.4 Ranking of Opportunities: 8 4.2.5 Operational Changes and Customers: 8 4.2.6 Resources and Communication: 8 4.3 Conclusions and Recommendations: 9 References 10 1. Executive Summary: The report discusses details about the Hidden Valley Resort and provides a deep analysis of the company. A list of three opportunities has been included in the paper to help the company grow and expand its business. The opportunities have been discussed after a detailed analysis of the company and the competition and keeping in mind the current market conditions. Also a major basis for the opportunities that have been discussed is the trend and need for better online presence of the company along with the important factor of keeping the business customer centric (Kotler & Keller, Marketing Management, 2008). 2. Introduction: Hidden Valley Resorts are known for the eco friendly environment that they serve. This report aims at discussing the current marketing situation of the company and also aims at developing a few opportunities for the company. An analysis of the internal as well as external environment of the company has been made which permits a chance to draw out the opportunities and to study the viability of the opportunities. The report will set down two to three opportunities for the company which can be used to help develop the current market condition. These will be accessed financially and the details like the changes that might occur within the operations of the company will also be discussed. The next section will provide a brief overview of the company and a high level image of the operations will be discussed. 3. Company Overview: Hidden Valley resorts are a renowned resort located about one and half hours Northwest of Townville in the Paluma range in Queensland. The location of the resorts has untouched nature at its best and there are a wide range of natural species of birds, butterflies, wallabies and also other nocturnal animals (Hidden Valley , 2010). The cabins are known for the carbon Neutral Resort and the operations are based completely on green working. Company operates completely on solar power and as explained on the website of the company, “... with the help of our friends at Climate Friendly we purchased carbon credits to off set the green house gases we omit into the atmosphere and are now CLIMATE NEUTRAL” (Hidden Valley, 2010). The resort was introduced in 1982. The main focus of the resort then was to cater to the needs of the timber cutters, tin miners and the graziers. The resort has been owned and operated over the last 24 years by Ian and Bonnie McLennan and has been developed over the years to improve and become better (Hidden Valley , 2010). All the buildings of the resort are built from timber and this is considered to be one of the most environmental friendly resorts in the country. The operations are very small and the company has a total of six cabins and four homestead rooms. The company is a small home run company and even the restaurant serves homemade food for the guests (Hidden Valley , 2010). 4. Findings: The main aim of this section is to detail the various elements of the company and some essential aspects of the company like the target markets, and more details of the market that it operates within. 4.1 Market Information: 4.1.1 Target Markets: The target markets for Hidden Valley resorts are basically any person who is a lover of nature and is responsible for the environment (Johnson, Scholes, & Whittington, 2006). Also there is no set age for the target markets. Hence the target markets for the company includes, environmentalist, nature lovers and can include people from all age groups. 4.1.2 Estimated Markets: The current market and competition in this industry are very low, however, it is clear that the Australian government is taking the environmental friendliness to be a major part of the society and is encouraging more people to participate in the going green efforts of the country and majorly working towards the reducing the carbon footprints (Australian Government, 2010). 4.1.3 Competitors: The main competition that the company faces is more of the normal hotels and resorts. The location that the company is built at is 3000 feet above sea level, which makes it a very different and beautiful resort on a hill station. The tourists in these areas are high and hence the hotels are also booked to a great extent (Jobber, 2004). Hence the competition that the hotel faces is from the local hotels and the resorts. 4.2 Opportunities Hidden Valley has a number of opportunities that it can use for its growth and development. 4.2.1 Opportunity One: One of the best opportunities for the company is to improve the website and make it more informative and interactive. This would prove to be quite beneficial for the company as it will not only allow for the company to increase the sales, but would also provide the company with a solid form of marketing (Kotler, Kotler on Marketing: How to Create, Win, and Dominate Markets , 1999). The cost for the company will be very minimal as the company already has a well developed site. It is true that the company already has an ecommerce site and booking and payments can be made online (Kotler & Keller, Marketing Management, 2008). However, improving the site and the ecommerce system will be very helpful for the company. Also, implementing SEO for the website will help improve the sites page ranking as well (Kotler & Lee, Corporate Social Responsibility: Doing the Most Good for Your Company and Your Cause, 2004). 4.2.1.1 Financial Considerations: The benefit for this however will be more than just an increase in the sales. It would prove to provide a good marketing for the company, and the company can also include its banners in other websites which would provide for as a strong advertisement. The benefit of the website is more of the non monetary along with the monetary benefits (Jobber, 2004). There is a greater deal of advertisement and a good will which is created for the company. The return on investment is very fast as this would help the company save up on the monies it would otherwise need to spend for the advertisements and the transaction costs when it comes to the physical stores. This will also meet the growing use of the internet and the growing use of the e – Commerce websites (Jobber, 2004). The costs involved are very low and here the company can make more returns with a small change and improvement to the website. 4.2.2 Opportunity Two: The next option that the company has is developing a forum which provides details of the solar energy products and discussions of the benefits of using solar energy. 4.2.2.1 Financial Considerations: The financial considerations and investments that the company will need to invest is a start up cost of around $1000, and a dedicated server from a leading hosting company will cost around $5000 for a period of one year. Apart from this, the company will only need to pay for a moderator to participate in the forum, and can pay the individual up to $20,000p.a. This can also be reduced if the one of the owners participate in the forum and keep it running (Kotler, Kotler on Marketing: How to Create, Win, and Dominate Markets , 1999). The benefits of this are that it will help develop better leads and these can then be used for marketing purposes. 4.2.3 Opportunity Three: Another excellent option for the company is to get into a partnership with other travel and tourism companies and to promote their services within the cabins as well. The partners can advertise in the cabins for their services and the money earned from each lead of the hotel will make the partners due to give Hidden Valley a commission (Johnson, Scholes, & Whittington, 2006). 4.2.3.1 Financial Considerations: Financially, there is not too much to worry about here in this case. The company does not have to make any investments into the partnership and they earn out of all the tourism and travel customers (Jobber, 2004). The commission will act as an added income for the company and will help in adding value services for Hidden Valley. 4.2.4 Ranking of Opportunities: In terms of ranking the opportunities will be in the same line as that that has been discussed. The implementation of such ideas into the company will allow an overall development and improvement of the company. 4.2.5 Operational Changes and Customers: All the three opportunities that have discussed do not involve any major changes to the current operations. The only addition that will be made to the operations is the need to concentrate and to participate in the forums and to keep the forum live and running. 4.2.6 Resources and Communication: In terms of resources and communication, there will be limited or no change within the company. All the opportunities that have been discussed does not include any form of resources or communication changes, however they can impact the overall customer experience to a great extent. There is a higher chance to gain more customers with the changes that the company makes and to develop a better brand name and image based on the above mentioned opportunities. 4.3 Conclusions and Recommendations: In conclusion, Hidden Valley is a growing company and there are innumerable chances that the company currently has. There is a high need to develop and improve the company in the current times and this will in turn not only help in higher sales but will also lead to better customer care and customer service as well. It is recommended that the company follows and implements the above mentioned opportunities and these will help the company grow and develop and to improve the market position as well. References Australian Government. (2010). Tackling the challenge of climate change. Retrieved August 10, 2010, from http://www.climatechange.gov.au/ Hidden Valley . (2010). Bookings. Retrieved August 11, 2010, from http://www.hiddenvalleycabins.com.au/bookings.htm Hidden Valley. (2010). Australian Tourism Award Winners! . Retrieved August 10, 2010, from Hidden Valley Cabins: http://www.hiddenvalleycabins.com.au/ Jobber, D. (2004). Principles and Practice of Marketing. Berkshire: McGraw – Hill. Johnson, G., Scholes, K., & Whittington, R. (2006). Exploring Corporate Strategy. Essex: Prentice Hall. Kotler, P. (1999). Kotler on Marketing: How to Create, Win, and Dominate Markets . Free Press. Kotler, P., & Keller, K. (2008). Marketing Management. Prentice Hall. Kotler, P., & Lee, N. (2004). Corporate Social Responsibility: Doing the Most Good for Your Company and Your Cause. Wiley Publishers. Read More