Current E-Marketing Engagement Practices - Assignment Example

MARKETING Introduction With the advancement in technology, creation of an online marketing is very important for all hotels to be on the competitive advantage. E-marketing will provide the hotels with the access to a wider market at a cheaper price. This will ensure that the hotels undertake a modified marketing approach. The flexibility and the cost-effective character of the e-marketing ensure that it is appropriate for small businesses. (Anonymous, 2014) In the recent past most hotels are shifting to the trends of e marketing. According to Csheing, e marketing is the promotion of products or brands via one or more forms of electronic media. The e marketing differs from traditional marketing in that it involves the use of channels and methods that enable an organization to analyze marketing campaigns and understand what is working and what is not typically in real time. Digital marketers check things like what is being viewed, how often and for how long, sales conversions, what content works and does not work.Normaly, the internet is the channel that is mostly associated with digital marketing.(Csheing, 2010) Ordinarily, digital marketing and its associated channels are important to the existence and the profitability of the company. It is important to know your customers better than anybody else so that you can communicate with them where, when and how they are most receptive to your message. This is done by consolidating views of customer preferences and expectations across all channels – Web, social media, mobile, direct mail and point of sale. Marketers can use this information to create and anticipate consistent, coordinated customer experiences that will move customers along in the buying cycle. The deeper your insight into customer behavior and preferences, the more likely you are to engage them in lucrative interactions thus much sales.(Csheing, 2010) Ordinarily E-marketing involves the use of the Internet and digital media capabilities to assist in increasing the sale of the products or services. The digital technologies use by the hotels contributes to the value addition compared to the traditional marketing approach. This is regardless of the size and type of the hotel or restaurant. Standard hotels have fully applied the e-marketing with the aim of increasing the profitability of the Hotel. (Porta, 2012) Standard hotels have e marketing objectives that are geared towards achieving its mission. Firstly; the Hotel has an objective of achieving about 30% of online sales within the half a year of starting online marketing campaigns. This will increase the online sales by 10% in 2015.Secondly; Standard hotel has the aim of growing the e marketing coverage by 52% of current customer base during this year. This will enable more people to buy the products from the hotel. (Ken, 2010) Thirdly, the annual expenses of direct marketing will be reduced by 23% if there is proper application of the e marketing. Lastly, the hotel has also the aim of improving the brand awareness which will persuade the customers to purchase the products and services that are offered by the hotel. (Ken, 2010) Current e-marketing engagement practices E-marketing involves the creation of strategies that will help businesses deliver the appropriate messages of product and services to the right target audience. The e marketing practices consists of all activities with the aim of attracting and retaining customers’ marketing has a wider scope of marketing compared to the ordinary marketing methods where the marketing is broad in scope. E-marketing also embraces the management of digital customer data and electronic customer relationship management which help to monitor the customers and ensures customers loyalty. (Anonymous, 2014) E-marketing includes the use of a website in combination with online promotional techniques such as search engine optimization (SEO), social medial marketing, interactive online ads, online directories, e-mail marketing and affiliate marketing. The standard hotel has been on the forefront in the usage of digital technologies as delivery and communication mediums. The standard hotels marketing practices and strategies are discussed below: Website. The website is so articulated in such as way that the hotels foods and other services have been highlighted. The website www.standardhotel.com has photos and other links to the social media to enable the customers to easily navigate easily in search of various hospitality services. This enables the hotel to be advertised more which will lead to increased sales. Standard hotel is on the competitive advantage since its competitor Ace hotel has no much links. (Ken, 2010) Email marketing. This is vital for the standard hotel for it enables the hotel to keep the records of the clients that visits the place. New customers are required to register and log in to the company sites to be able to access the hotels services and the foods that are prepared. The customers are able to book the reservations and even order spaces for special events. The hotels websites gives a provision for the registration and this enables customers to increase which will increase the sales in the long run. Online directories. The hotel has taken advantage of the directories. Any search by the local and the international tourist will enable the standard hotel to be found. The online directories ensure that the customers are able to get the contacts and the location of the hotel so as to easily reach the place. The knowledge of the place and the hotel has enabled most customers to like the serene environment and therefore the sale of the hotel has risen significantly. Social media marketing Facebook.Most of the group, both the old and the young are now using facebook.This platform is able to reach the entire target group. Standard hotel uses face book to reach its clients. The hotel has half a million likes. This is expected to rise because of the more pictures that are added daily. The hotel uses face book to get the feedback of customer tastes and preferences to ensure that the customer’s satisfaction is guaranteed. Normaly,for a e marketing to be effective there is need for marketing apostles who will tell others of how good the product or the services of the hotel is. The East village hotel uses face book has referral programs. This is done using Face book like “refer a friend” and wins a chance to have a free meal to the hotel after referring to two friends. The hotel also has shared sharing program with other hotel partners who are florists, caterers so that they can participate in the content creation and vice versa. (Ken, 2010) Twitter. Though it has been considered for the elite, East Village Hotel has developed a hash tag that is used by all income and age groups. The hotel’s tweeter“#standard hotel” has close to a million followers. This has enabled it to reach more customers thereby increasing the number of sales. Pinterest and Instagram .The increased use of image-oriented social networks such as Pinterest and Instagram reflects the value guests place on visual content. Face book users upload some 200,000 photos every single minute to the site and this has seemed to be insufficient. The recent research reveals that when the image quality and quantity is improved, then there would be more customers’ loyalty that will increase the sales in the hotel in the long run. The hotel therefore uses instagram to provide more quality photos to their customers so that they can develop the loyalty. Whatsup.The mobile app used for instant messaging has become very popular in the recent past, standards hotel uses this app to reach out a wide clientele. The app is able to sent photos of the products that are offered in the hotel. This includes the images of the delicacies that are offered. This has contributed to a rise in the customers due to the content marketing that the sup gives to the customers. Interactive online ads. The standard hotel has increased interactivity with the customers. The hotel is able to target all the age groups by the usage of interactive campaigns such as music, graphics and videos. The hotel uses interactive games or quizzes to reach its target audience. The hotel engages its clients and gives them greater involvement. The music and short videos of the foods have caught the attention of many customers since they emphasis the value of the products and the services that the hotel offers. (Ken, 2010) Content Marketing Due to stiff competition from the Ace hotel and the James hotel, Standard hotel has become strategic by using content marketing so as to become unique and also draw the hotels shoppers’ attention.Ordinarily, content marketing involves creation and distribution of valuable and relevant content with an aim of attracting a defined audience. This will ensure that specific information which resonates with a target group is delivered to them thereby drawing them closer to the hotel and its products and services. The hotel uses channels such as YouTube, Twitter, websites, email, mobile apps and Pinterest. These clever marketers use a variety of channels to associate their content to the consumers. (Polevoi, 2013) Establishing the brand. The brand that will be successful will be those that will clearly differentiate what they offer and that they should engage with the consumers. Therefore the hotel often delivers the brand experience consistently. This is done by keeping the content of the advert snackable and presentable in the eyes of the consumers. Normally, this will be fulfilled by putting a 12-30 second videos with bolded text descriptions followed by photos that invoke the emotions and the purchasing urge of the customers. The hotel also includes video in its visual story in its website. (Anonymous, 2014) The hotel uses the videos to describe the décor and the serene environment that the hotel has. The sumptuous foods that it has are also described artistically and this has enabled the customers to actually dash to the hotel to have an experience.Ordinarily, the presence of a strong visual especially with short video snippets which narrates the story of the products will hook the audience and endear the hotel to them. Lastly, the hotel has taken advantage of the guest feedback and stories. This is because they provide the hotel with rich insights into how the hotel customer loyalty is. This is also important for it enables the clients to refer to other customers who increase the products awareness thus a strong brand. According to Porta, clients have a perception the that the reviews and testimonials that are posted by the customers drive up interaction and more contribution of photos and videos The potential customers will use reviews to draw conclusions about value and quality of the products and the services that the hotel offers. The importance of e marketing cannot be trivilialised.The standard hotel is able to get numerous benefits as discussed below. These benefits have propelled the hotel to use emarketing so as to increase the sales, reduce the costs and maximize the profitability of the hotel. (Ken, 2010) I. There is wider prospect reach of clients. With the advancement in technology, every individual is able to access the internet and this has enabled it to become part of people’s life. The presence of the internet has enabled standard hotel to reach its customers through face book, twitter and the whatsup.There is available market in the World Wide Web and therefore this enhances competition with the small amount of money. II. E marketing is a cost-effective approach .Ordinarily, the planned e-marketing campaign has helped standard hotel to reach its target clients at a much lower cost. This is because most individuals have become social and have therefore maximized the use of mobile phones. This makes e marketing cheap since individuals have got the platform already. III. Standard hotel has experienced cost reduction in customer service, transactional costs, digital media channels, and distribution. This is done through the automation of the messages and also the use of electronic media. This has enabled it to rise in the profitability. IV. The hotel is able to do 24/7 marketing which has boosted its client’s base. The clients are able to order for food to be prepared during working hours. This is done even if the hotel is closed. V. There is personalized marketing. Standard hotel has one-on-one marketing which allows the hotel to reach its clients who may need the information concerning the products and services that are offered by the hotel. The e marketing has been made effective because most people carry their mobile phones and their PDAs everywhere they go. This makes the campaigns to be influential and targeted. VI. The Standard hotel has increased interactivity with the customers. The hotel is able to target all the age groups by the usage of interactive campaigns such as music, graphics and videos. The hotel uses interactive games or quizzes to reach its target audience. The hotel engages its clients and gives them greater involvement. VII. The hotel has recorded an increased ability to track results of its sales. The e-marketing has easiened the measurement of how effective the campaigns of the hotel are. The hotel is able to get detailed information about the client’s feedback concerning the advertisement. This is done by the usage of pay per click or pay per action methods. Competitor’s e-marketing engagement practices Bleisure The James hotel which is one of the competitors has a unique e marketing that enables the working class to stay in touch with their work. The customers are able to use their mobile devices to be with work while on vacation so as to add leisure before or after their business trip. As mobile grows even more, so too will this new trend, which presents fresh opportunities for hotels to modify their stories, appealing more succinctly to this type of traveler. The hotel website that is www.jameshotels.com has links that will always ask the customers to login especially when the guests starts to browse or do their jobs online. (Paul, 2012) Twitter. The Pod hotel has created an instant chat about a featured menu the chef prepares. The automatic online chats enable the hotels website to engage many onsite people and provide them with vital information. The messages are instant and this enables the Pod hotel to have an established brand. Celebs in social media. The Pod hotel as a competitor has also been on the competitive advantage to campaign for the hotel. The hotel uses popular musician such as Celine Dionne to testify on face book of how delicacies the foods are. This will enable the followers of the musician to have loyalty towards the hotel that she has attended and this builds the brand of the hotel. (Paul, 2012) The James hotel has beautiful sceneries that enable the customers to use their smart phones to take pictures and post them on social media sites. The customers therefore act like the marketing apostles to advertise the hotel. The hotel has taken advantage of the User-Generated Content (UGC) of the customers to advertise the hotel. With advanced technology, mobile phones have built-in cameras, photo editing software and downloadable social media apps enabling people to create, publish and amplify visually engaging content. (Paul, 2012) The client personas will be identified through creating of a customer profile for the customers. This will enable the creation of customer loyalty towards the company that will always increase the sales of the hotel. The customers who are most likely to buy the products usually share certain characteristics and features. This essentially gives detailed description of the target demographic of the standard hotel.(Polevoi, 2013) The hotel has become vigilant on noticing the age brackets of their customers since this affects their demands. The hotel will target all the age brackets that entail the users of twitter, face book, integral and you tube. The probable customers will be the not only the male and female but also the children, middle aged and the seniors. This is important, because customers in different age groups will respond differently to how your product and services are designed and marketed.(Polevoi, 2013) The competitors who are Ace hotel and The James hotel deal with ages between 25 to 60 years in the awareness. With the advancement in technology, teenagers and even children are now able to access the internet and enable them to sign up and view restaurant websites. Standard hotel is on the competitive advantage since it does not limit the children like its competitor does. (Anonymous, 2014) It is also important for the Hotel to consider the gender of the customers remarkably because of the product preferences. The Standard hotel will meet the needs of all gender, the male and the female. Though their needs and demands are often markedly different, there is the importance of understanding these needs. This is because promotion is involved in the business without addressing these differences; one could end up attracting few customer of either gender.(Polevoi, 2013).The women are usually attracted by the smart décor of the hotel, Standard hotel uses integral to ensure that more photos of the hotel are displayed to this platforms so that to attract more of them. The Standard hotel will target the all levels of income earners and it will tailor their products to ensure that it meets their demands of the people in this group.Normaly, understanding the disposable income of the customers directly influence the e marketing strategies. Low-income families may be drawn to products that help save them money. Customers who are in higher-income brackets may want more marketing that stresses luxury and exclusivity.(Polevoi, 2013).Most people in high income group prefer to use email as their official way of communiation.They also use twitter and face book to check in the progress of the hotel. The standard hotel is at the competitive advantage since it targets all the income level as compared to its competitor Ace hotel and the Pod hotel that target between the ages 25 to 60 years. Finally, the standard hotel targets all the people from every corner of the globe. This is the reason why it has gone global through the e marketing to reach the people in all the location. The hotel uses face book, what sup to send instant messaging to their phones. This will enable the creation f awareness about the hotel to be effective by reaching more people. Ordinarily, the purchasing habits of urban residents often differ from those of people living in rural areas. The residence of people and the types of communities they live in will always affect their purchasing preferences. This is because of the income level and the exposure to the technology. The hotel will use instant messaging services to reach the people in the rural areas as compared to its competitors who maximize the usage of the websites of which people in the rural may not be able to reach.(Porta, 2012) Recommendation The hotel should create contest in the social media so as to ensure that the advertisement of the hotel is enhanced and also ensure that the content of the e marketing is enhanced. This would include Instagram, Face book and Pinterest contests. This will help in promoting hotel and also engaging the potential guests in sharing them both in urban and in the rural. This often includes the count of hotel photos shared within a given period of time. These contents are vital because they also provide exceptional imagery that hotels can use on their websites, and they encourage online sharing. The number of sales will increase in the hotel when the photos are shared extensively. This means that the advertisement of the hotel is effectively done. The hotel should also create a photography lesson in liaison with a professional photographer throughout the year. The best photos will then be used in the websites so that to create the best content in the hotel websites (Anonymous, 2014) The information in the social media should be current. Ordinarily, old and the repetitive information and pictures will always scare the customers online to run away. There is need to use the face book and the instagram to post new photos and new messages to give the customers a new experience and feeling. The information should be changed in the company websites in the span of two days so that to ensure that the products and services are new in the minds of the consumers. The standard hotel provides links to the local maps, public carriage options and limo service. This is aimed to give standard hotel shoppers an opportunity to see themselves in your stories, giving them a feeling of what their experience will be like at the hotel. (Polevoi, 2013) The hotel should publish a gallery featuring all the vital entertainment facilities of the standard hotel with stories that show the sumptuous foods that are prepared by the hotel. The hotel should harmonize the rich visuals and videos with attractive descriptive in the headlines. This will be attracting more clients and it will be evident in the customer traffic. The company should also use the search engine optimization (SEO).This is a vital for it enables the search to be easy for the customers deliberation during this phase enabled photos and videos will ensure that consumers can find you as they search through the pages of choices available to them across travel websites. Ordinarily, the SEO will drive the customers to the hotel website which is www.standardhotel.com.The content of the hotel decors should be presented to the guests with the visual story “above the fold.” Normally, this space of the web page visible on the initial view of the web page without any scrolling. The effectiveness of this strategy will be measured through the customer traffic towards the websites. The hotel should also publish in the platforms beyond the ordinary website such as mobile optimization, social sites and online travel sites.Normaly, about 70% of leisure travelers will change among the devices so as to conduct the same travel related planning. This means that the hotels content should be optimized for both the desktop, tablets and smart phones to win the customers. There is also the need to re use a piece of content across the variety of channels. Same photos can be used artistically to the hotel’s Face book, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest pages – or even your hotel website. This ensures that there is more emphasis of the message. For the standard hotel to be competitive, it should provide the customers with the link in the bleisure.This will enable the customers to use their mobile devices to do their work while on vacation adding leisure before or after their business trip. As mobile grows even more, so too will this new trend, which presents fresh opportunities for hotels to modify their stories, appealing more concisely to the type of customers. The hotel website has links that will always ask the customers to login especially when the guests starts to browse or do their jobs online. This will increase the sales in the long run. The Pod hotel has also been on the competitive advantage to campaign for the hotel. The hotel uses popular musician such as Celine Dionne to testify on face book of how delicacies the foods are. This will enable the followers of the musician to have loyalty towards the hotel that she has attended and this builds the brand of the hotel. Works Cited Anonymous. (2014). digital marketing best practices. Retrieved 2015, from http://www.smartinsights.com/digital-marketing-best-practice/ Csheing, Y. (2010). Digital marketing. Retrieved 2015, from http://www.sas.com/en_us/insights/marketing/digital-marketing.html Ken, P. (2010). Standard hotels. Retrieved 2015, from http://www.standardhotels.com Paul, L. (2012). James hotel. Retrieved 2015, from http://www.jameshotels.com Polevoi, L. (2013, june 18). How to Identify Your Target Audience. Retrieved February 2, 2015 , from http://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/marketing/how-to-identify-your-target-audience/ Porta, M. (2012). How to Define Your Target Market. Retrieved 2015, from http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/06/defining-your-target-market.html Read More