Strategic and tactical marketing objectives - Essay Example

 Strategic and tactical marketing objectives Abstract This report identifies the importance as well as the differences of strategic marketing and tactical marketing to hotel marketing success. In addition, the hypothetical marketing efforts of a Swiss Alps hotel chain are recommended in order to show how to bring higher profit and satisfy customers. The identified strategies provided for this hotel include celebrity endorsement, discounting, place marketing for environmental focus, and alliances with limousine providers in order to gain more customer interest. The report shows how strategic and tactical marketing are crucial to the success of a total integrated communications campaign for high-cost hotel businesses. I. Introduction There are considerable differences between strategic marketing and tactical marketing. Strategic marketing usually involves the planning portion of achieving a marketing objective which relies on research information on target customers. Tactical marketing is the actual application (processes) which are implemented in the hopes of achieving positive marketing results. In the hospitality industry, especially hotel marketing, both strategic and tactical marketing contribute to how the hotel performs in areas of the marketing mix. This report applies the activities involved in strategic and tactical marketing and applies them to a hypothetical resort in the Swiss Alps that provides services for wealthy guests. The marketing objective is to increase its market base by 20 percent in one year and target newlyweds from European nations. In order to achieve this goal, it will be necessary to create distinguished promotional materials which are suitable for mass market cultural beliefs and also the beliefs of newlywed couples. Marriage is a day of celebration and, for this particular niche market, should extend well beyond the actual ceremony and be a part of their entire vacation package during this celebratory period. II. Strategic and tactical marketing “Strategic marketing involves determining what the target market wants and the types of messages that resonate with that audience” (Brockington, 2009, p.1). Gaining this information about potential customers begins with conducting research, either in the form of interviews, focus groups, or surveys. “You have to understand why they buy, what they buy – you have to see the world through their eyes!” (ignitemarketinggroup.com, 2009, p.1). Strategic marketing represents early planning efforts which identify the most likely audience to buy a product or service, such as segmenting customers and assessing their buying behaviours. Tactical marketing “is the execution of the marketing plan, such as generating leads, placing media, creating marketing tools, and implementing a follow-up system” (Bell, 2008, p.1). Tactical marketing involves the specific channels that will deliver the consistent marketing message and the internal efforts physically developed to ensure success of the marketing strategy and meeting its goals. In a sales environment, as one example, tactical marketing might involve analysis of current versus historical sales figures after a new promotional campaign has been launched. This type of marketing would also involve the actual development and distribution of online or print advertising that is involved with an integrated communications campaign. III. Hotel marketing – Strategy and Tactical Hotels must be concerned with satisfying the client, establishing a strong brand, recognising cost reductions when appropriate, and considering methods to differentiate the company from other competitors with similar offerings. Depending on the type of hotel, whether high-cost or low-cost, strategic and tactical marketing would require a different approach in order to create a message that would be considered important to target customer groups. Luxury hotels would need to work on developing a strategy that outperforms competitors and makes this particular destination more appealing than others in the industry. The first step is to segment customers by those most likely to have the resources and motivations to purchase the service or product and then identify their needs and perceptions of luxury hotel and its links to personal and professional travel. For example, it is in this stage of marketing where areas of the marketing mix are considered, such as how price might impact these target groups at the psychological level in order to develop a workable pricing policy. “Where women go, men follow” (Kanner, 2004, p.43). Strategic research might have uncovered that women tend to make most of the purchasing decisions when deciding which hotel to visit. Therefore, when deciding on what type of advertising would be most suitable, women might be the focus of these promotional efforts in order to gain their attention over that of potential male markets. Once these needs have been identified, tactical marketing begins by coming up with an integrated communications campaign that includes promotions, both at the place of the business and in the external consumer environment. One example, if positioning the business in terms of the customer, might have internal promotional materials which show smiling guests engaged in various hotel service activities or similar advertisement. Tactical marketing for this industry, if referring to a low-cost hotel chain, might involve distribution of a buy one, get one free night’s stay as a reward for choosing that particular chain to fit their one time needs. Depending on the specific objective of the hotel, tactical marketing will have different steps, but it includes the actual launch of a campaign and the process of monitoring its success through auditing or sales analysis. IV. Strategies for a Swiss Alps resort The goal of a hypothetical Swiss Alps resort catering to wealthy consumers is to increase the market base by 20 percent in just one year’s time. In order to accomplish this goal, the hotel must blend strategic and tactical marketing. The first step is understand the desired target market, in this case trying to reach newlyweds in European countries (among other target groups), in order to create marketing messages which would be considered important to these groups. Weddings are a time of celebration and the bride, who makes the most decisions in deciding which hotel to visit, should be reminded of this special event in the entire integrated marketing communications effort. “Brides want to feel special on their wedding day and don’t want to be one of four weddings going on at a hotel or banquet facility” (usabride.com, 2009, p.2). Therefore, the first strategy is pursue a strategic alliance with local limousine companies or, if not appropriate due to the infrastructure of the area, build a small fleet of limousines to cater to this special need in women decision-makers. Developing such an alliance or building a fleet of limousines is founded on strategic marketing research which identified that men follow women’s decision-making. Rolling up to the hotel destination in a hotel-offered limousine, either free of charge or at reasonable reduced pricing, is one effort to reach this target audience of newlyweds. Though this would require a one-time investment if purchasing this small fleet, the results of higher business and the ability to differentiate through limousine services could set this Swiss Alps resort apart from competitors. If there are local agencies that supply these services, alliances can be developed that will be mutually-beneficial for both parties and can be promoted in all online and print literature distributed by this hotel. This service can be launched, as part of tactical marketing, to provide transportation to and from the local airport and can even be accessed, for a moderate fee, throughout the duration of the hotel stay to make the bride continue to feel special on their honeymoon evening. Yet another strategy is to use place marketing in order to appeal to the newlywed groups in Europe. The Swiss region is world-famous for its many festivals and contributions to traditional food-making and cultural tradition. There is one Spring-time celebration that occurs in this country known as Desalpe that involves cheesemaking and citizens dressed in Swiss costumes with a wide variety of food and beverages (Kemp, 2009). Since women generally do not like to be married in the Winter, gaining new business involves using local cultural festivals and events for the recent bridal couple. For couples with higher financial resources, the wedding event is filled with designer gowns, high-class guests, and a Cinderella-type of feeling that is part of the bride’s special day. For the Swiss Alps resort, why not continue this trend? These festivals represent a sort of magical, costumed event which reminds individuals of community and heritage in an environment filled with laughter, food, and plenty of alcoholic beverages. Much like the original wedding celebration, women looking to extend the magic and thrill of their big day should be exposed to concentrated promotional materials which emphasise the thrill and majesty of similar Swiss festivals. Getting advanced bookings, with advanced payment, ensures instant available cash that can be applied to further marketing efforts or purchase of recommended limousine fleets/alliances. If appropriate, various wine tasting festivals which occur simultaneously to Desalpe can be part of an allied marketing campaign offering significant wine discounts or individual couple consultation with wine experts from the region. This Cinderella-style, personalised service will appeal to this target market group still reeling from their recent marriage. There is a growing trend for nearly all consumer groups, of different demographics, related to their needs in relation to corporate social responsibility and the environment. This is noticeable in companies like Sandals Resort which is working to change its environmental performance because of global trends on eco-friendly tourism (Ricketts, 1999). One traveller suggests, “One sustainable practice annoys the author more than any other: That is the promise of a green laundry system that isn’t put into practice by the housekeeping staff” (Heney, 2009, p.6). It is clear that customers are genuinely concerned about the environment and this is becoming a mass market trend. Therefore, again, place marketing can be conducted which is low-cost to show the benefits of the Swiss Alps environment. The region is known for its clean air and snowy mountainsides, along with other breath-taking beauty in meadows and rich greenery, therefore the environment is a model environment for environmental advocates around the globe. The benefits of choosing this particular high-end resort are being able to experience the quality of the air in the Alps and experience untouched, preserved nature at its best. Linking the place benefits of this hotel with eco-friendly discussion virtually sells itself and the picturesque landscape will represent a greener environmental focus. Internal activities planned within the organisation, as part of tactical marketing, should include landscape tours or other recreational activities which keep in line with the green theme. A final strategy for this Swiss Alps hotel is to offer steep discounts for individuals who book at least four days in advance. The Four Seasons resort in Hawaii, known for being a location where Julia Roberts favours to vacation with family members, offers 1,000 USD credits when staying four nights (Tegmeyer, 2009). Celebrity endorsements are common methods of gaining more consumer interest and the Four Seasons allows social buzz on the Internet to act as their publicity tool for gaining customers who are interested in meeting celebrities. “One of the sectors to take the hardest hit in the global economic downturn has been the hotel industry” (Walker, 2009, p.34). Therefore, there must be a unique feature about the hotel, along with discounting when appropriate, that is exploited in order to remain competitive. If this Swiss Alps hotel has no famous guests on its client list, then it is recommended to recruit a well-known celebrity (for the European marketplace) to act as a compensated endorser for the resort. Since this is a high-end resort working with wealthier client lists, it is assumed that such a promotion could be developed using available funds or funds that are borrowed from lenders to assist in building a better image for this resort. Once the celebrity has been recruited, and the discount programme for multiple nights has been launched, capturing video or photographs of the celebrity in various areas of this Swiss resort will familiarise potential target customers with the layout and architecture of the business. Says one traveller, “going to most hotels is like going to Grandma’s bedroom. It’s fussy and old-fashioned” (Mustafa, 2004, p.18). Having the celebrity move about the business, being captured in both humorous and provocative situations (when relevant) will only gain more interest in consumers who are already familiar with these celebrities and show customers that the resort is modern and aesthetically-pleasing. Depending on the costs associated with recruiting the celebrity for endorsement both online and in print/television advertising, the celebrity should also be linked to the other, new target segment: the newlyweds in Europe. Photographing this famous individual carrying out a wedding ceremony or kissing the lips of another actor dressed in wedding attire will only make this resort stand out among competition. Many consumers, in mass markets, are motivated by the presence and communications of celebrities and this final recommendation for success is sure to bring this Swiss Alps resort more visibility and publicity. The movements of this recruited celebrity, during the entire campaign, can be communicated online in order to improve social buzz in mass markets and build exposure to this hotel. V. Conclusion Strategic marketing is very important to success since it acts as the foundation for the activities that will be carried out in order to reach specific hotel goals. Tactical marketing, the efforts that occur after launch of a new communications campaign, will not be successful without this strategic knowledge gained through initial research. Ivanka Trump, famous hotel owner in the United States, offers that it “is important that her properties are viewed as contextual” and not rigid in areas of internal design (Heney, 2009, p.4). Trump conducts strategic marketing as part of an ongoing basis to ensure that her hotels have a positive brand identification. This is yet another example of how businesses rely on strategic marketing to achieve objectives. How these efforts are carried out should be flexible and totally relevant to the desired target customers. The Swiss Alps resort simply requires developing new tactical strategies to differentiate the business and invite more customers, both niche market and mass market. The development of a hotel-sponsored limousine service, multi-night discount packages, celebrity endorsement, and place marketing for ecologically-minded travellers are the most appropriate strategic and tactical steps necessary to gain more customer interest in global and local markets. These activities will position the business as one which is focused on providing extended value to customers and understands the needs of the newlywed as they search to retain their special moment throughout the duration of their wedding vacation. These steps will bring this Swiss Alps resort more visibility, will connect them to famous individuals of virtually any variety, and produce more profitability through advanced bookings which are motivated by limited booking availability. Added to this the online environment as a medium for much of this communication, many of these recommendations provided are low-cost and practical to budget-minded hotels looking for new promotional efforts. References Brockington, S. 2009. Differences between strategic marketing planning and tactical marketing planning. http://www.ehow.com/about_5492301_differences-planning-tactical-marketing-planning.html?ref=fuel&utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=ssp&utm_campaign=yssp_art. (accessed 7 Dec 2009). Bell, J. 2008. 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Prentice Hall. Tegmeyer, D. 2009. Luxury for less. Fortune Magazine, New York. 159(12), p.47. Usabride.com. 2009. Top Wedding Trends. http://www.usabride.com/wedplan/a_wedding_trends_p2.html. (accessed 8 Dec 2009). Walker, A. 2009. Hotels: Adapting to change. Media, Hong Kong. 4 Jun, p.34. Read More