Global Marketing Activity
Instructions:
You will submit your completed course project at the end of the course for grading and credit. You do not have to send it in prior to that. Course design is to keep you on track throughout the five-week course. See the assignment page for information about the grading rubric. Do not hesitate to contact your instructor if you have any questions about the project. Completion of this project is a course requirement.
This course project consists of three interrelated parts, each building on a topic that you will cover as you move through the course. Complete each project part as you progress through the course. Wait to submit the project until all parts are complete.
Begin your course project by completing part one on the following page.
Course Project, Part 1: Finding a subject and the 7 P’s
Instructions:
Find a hotel anywhere you choose to be your ‘subject hotel’ throughout the project. To make things easier on yourself, you may want to choose a hotel or brand you are familiar or one that you are able to gain information to complete the project.
Use the acumen you have gained throughout this module to outline a plan that specifies ways you will build or enhance the subjects marketing plan. In many cases you will take liberties based upon the information at your disposal.
The subject hotel I chose is the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Melbourne Beach Oceanfront. The hotel is located in 1665 N. StateRoute A1A Melbourne, Florida, and operates as a member of the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton brand. The hotel touches the Melbourne Beach, and is less that 15 minutes away from the Melbourne International Airport, amongst other amenities.
The plan to enhance the subject’s marketing plan will involve synchronization of the hotel’s price and product offerings between direct and indirect booking channels. The hotel may achieve this through by carefully executing a backend access to real-time price and service availability information to authorized OTAs. That way, customers can always be sure they are getting accurate information, regardless of what booking channel they use.
The enhanced marketing plan would also focus on improving the hotel’s online ratings. Measures to raise ratings include improved service delivery and offering more desirable services to customers; as well as more aggressive promotion exercises, such as through discounts, or even well-communicated corporate social responsibility actions.
In addition, I would introduce a more aggressive use of social media, mobile apps, AI, and Big Data. By tracking the current trends and capturing customer insights and big data available online, the hotel can intelligently attract more clients and generate more sales and profits.
Explore your chosen hotel and look at the key areas within the “7 P’s of Marketing” Price, Promotion, Physical Evidence, People, Product, Process, and Placement.
There could be areas that you are not prepared to answer and
Insert as many rows as needed in the tables below to add steps you will take.
| Promotions: Special offers, advertisements, direct marketing
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| Ongoing promotions and offers | Honors upgrades and benefits – upgraded rooms if available, free breakfast.
The famous DoubleTree chocolate chip cookies. Use loyalty points and money to pay. Double points for select packages. Discounts on advance purchases. Breakfast-included package. AARP/AAA/CAA members save. Free parking offers. |
| What do you see as opportunities they have within the promotions they are running? | Ride on the brand promotions – low advertisement costs.
Direct marketing – utilize big data and AI in marketing. Potential for social media presence and marketing. |
| What else would you want to know about promotions to formulate your opinion of their strategy? | Current reliance on big data and AI, if any.
Assessment of the value and output of each of the current promotion strategies. |
| What nuances do promotions present in a global economy? | Diversity.
Product differentiation. Brand loyalty. Brand recognition. Targeting mobile devices – mobile advertising campaigns. Targeted marketing –using big data and AI to target likely customers. |
| Physical Evidence: Interface, Customer Experience in Technology and booking systems
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| What do you see as opportunities they have within technology?
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Push mobile apps more,
More website optimization – make the website more attractive, responsive, and engaging. Adopting wireless payments – easier and more reliable – no need for branded cards. Utilize Big data and AI. Exploit the point of inspiration to tap more revenue streams. |
| What else would you want to know about technology from the team to formulate your opinion of their strategy?
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How safe is my data?
Finances safety? Confidentiality? |
| What could be some challenges with Technology in a global marketplace? | Data security and privacy issues.
Fraud & phishing. |
| People: Employees, Organizational Culture
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| What do you see as opportunities they have within their teams and people?
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Publicize an attractive organizational culture.
More CSR and Public Relations (PR) campaigns. |
| What else would you want to know about people, culture relationships from others to formulate your opinion of their strategy?
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Is the hotel pushing a good culture among employees internally?
Employee recruitment, training, and remuneration practices. |
| When working globally with people in different cultures and backgrounds must be considered? | Ethics.
Inclusivity. Organizational culture throughout the brand. |
| Product: Design, updates.
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| Current offerings | Main offering – rooms, en suite.
Outdoor pool, access to the beach. Digital keys. Room Service. Fitness center. Business center and meeting rooms. |
| What do you see as opportunities they have within their product? | Riding on the Hilton Brand to improve loyalty and ratings.
Introduce product variations, mix Improve customer service – meals, cleanliness, etc. Improved product offering – introduce services such as transport, pets accommodation, etc. |
| What else would you want to know about product from the team to formulate your opinion of their strategy?
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The firm’s goals that affect its product offering.
Licensing and regulatory requirements influencing services such as pet accommodation.
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| What should be taken into consideration operating globally when considering the product? | Maintaining brand image.
Reliability in quality of products and services. |
| Process: Service Delivery
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Current processes |
Available online or through calls, walk-in booking rare.
Online services available via mobile apps, direct website, or OTA websites. |
| What do you see as opportunities they have within their processes? | Greater adoption of IT –more use of social media, Big Data, AI, and mobile apps.
Flexibility and reliability in using any of the service delivery platforms – all platforms to offer reliable data, e.g. regarding pricing and product availability. |
| What else would you want to know about the processes from the team to formulate your opinion of their strategy? | Ongoing and future Research and Development activities with relation to improving service delivery.
Level of employee training on service delivery. How much access to real-time information do OTAs have? |
| What processes should one be aware of operating globally?
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Emerging trends on service delivery, such as use of Big data, AI.
The risks and opportunities that come with modern technology. |
| Placement: distribution channels, web-based channel, omni-channel
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| Current placement | Booking can be online through the hotel website, through the “Hilton Honors: Book Hotels” mobile apps for both android and apple mobile devices, or through Online Travel Agencies (OTAs).
Booking also available through calls, either directly or via booking channels. |
| What do you see as opportunities they have within placement? | Improving the online experience – more responsive online platforms.
Improving the call contact experience by eradicating the robotic automated responses to calls. Improving the packaging of products – synchronization between direct and indirect channels. |
| What should one be aware within placement when operating globally? | New trends influencing brand visibility, for instance, webpage ranking that determines how visible a webpage is on the search engine, search engine optimization.
Techniques to build an efficient omni-channel. |
Course Project, Part II: A distribution deep dive
Using the information that was introduced during Week 3 – Distribution Systems. Examine the different channels through the point of view of the customer. Capture your learnings on the table and explore the below questions.
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Channel |
Price / Value |
Communication or presentation of information |
Aesthetics / description |
Experience Rating (1-5, 5 being best) |
Overall Effectiveness |
| Direct- Call | Low Value | Presentation seemed robotic, due to use of automatic answering machine | Automatic Answering Machines answer calls initially | 2 | Not very effective |
| Direct- Website | High Value | Excellent presentation, sufficient communication | Online, convenient and time saving | 4.5 | Very effective |
| Direct- Group Booking | High Value | Excellent presentation, sufficient communication | Online, convenient and time saving | 4.5 | Very effective |
| OTA- | Middle Value | Excellent presentation; sufficient communication, may need verification, may direct shoppers to competitors | Convenient and time saving, especially when online and self-booking, may be disloyal to the brand | 3 | Very effective |
| Calling- booking channel | Low or Middle value | Automated Responses often unengaging, may direct shoppers to competitor | Automatic responses may discourage potential customers, may be disloyal to the brand | 2 | Average effectiveness |
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What would your observations, findings and recommendations be to the owners of this hotel? Please use gathered information to support your findings and recommendations. |
| My observations included inconsistencies in pricing and product offering between direct and indirect channels, for instance, on pet policy. I also found online ratings of the hotel to be below the best-ranked hotels in the same class. In addition, the hotel is likely to be underusing utilities such as social media, mobile apps, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Big Data.
I would recommend the hotel undertakes measures to synchronize its price and product offerings between direct and indirect booking channels. The hotel should also put effort in improving its ratings, as most online shoppers are likely to consider the ratings before choosing to stay in the hotel. Additionally, the hotel should adopt more aggressive use of social media, mobile apps, AI, and Big Data. |
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What surprised you the most as you gathered information? Please illustrate your findings. |
| I found adoption of modern marketing techniques rather wanting, especially with regards to the direct channel’s use of Big Data, AI, social media sites, and mobile apps. For instance, the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Melbourne Beach Oceanfront hotel does not seem to have an active Twitter handle, though it appears to be quite active on Facebook, albeit via an unverified account.
Throughout the hotel’s website, I was not notified of an active cookie policy, meaning the firm may not be adequately utilizing AI and Big Data. These two resources are shaping marketing in major ways globally, and may be a key asset in the hotel industry, hence, must not be ignored. The hotel also does not seem keen to market the franchise’s mobile app, the “Hilton Honors: Book Hotel” app, despite the mobile app seeming to have great potential as a key marketing asset for the firm and the franchise as a whole. The app avails info on features and bookings more conveniently, in addition to offering prime features such as digital keys more conveniently. |
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Where did you see inconsistencies within the different channels in customer experience? Which were the most effective? Which were the most ineffective? Why? Given the types of travelers that would use that channel, what is at risk? |
| There are quite a number of inconsistences within different channels.
Some channels offered slightly different prices, especially when it came to OTAs. I observed a price difference of up to $110 for a similar offering among OTAs. Some OTAs offered free cancellation up to the very last day, while some did not. In addition, some OTAs listed pets as acceptable, while the primary site indicated pets were not allowed. The most effective channels turned to be online channels, be they direct or via OTAs, because they are fast, real-time and save time for customers with sufficient tech know-how on navigating websites. The most ineffective channels were through calls, since they involve going through a third party who checks availability for the booking party. Such bookings also often go to an automated answering system first, so are likely to take more time. Such systems may cause some users to lose patience, and they often lack a human touch. |
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What did knowledge did you gain by looking at booking channels, comparing and contrasting, and looking at it through the lens of the customer? Please support your learnings through the information and data you had found. |
| The main means of booking available to customers are either online or through calling. For customers with basic tech know-how, online booking may be the best option, with both the hotel’s website and OTAs sites appearing to offer accurate and real-time information regarding room availability and prices. However, customers not willing to go through the hassle of self-booking may opt for call booking, either directly or through booking agents. The hotel offers an online platform for cancelling reservations through its website, though only some OTAs offer free cancellations. Such platforms may be a good consideration for travelers uncertain of their stay. |
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Given your work on the customer-buying journey, do you believe the team had a good grasp of the customers and their buying-journey to capture the customer’s mindshare or do you feel that is was a product and price driven sale? Taking one of the channels that you felt may have done this poorly, what would you do differently to make it more effective focusing on the ‘point of inspiration’? |
| The subject hotel seems to have largely ignored the customer’s mindshare, rather concentrating on the product and price driven sale. For example, the hotel does not allow pets, meaning it fails to attract all the travelers who may wish to carry their pets along
. There is also the lack of coordinated efforts in organizing and facilitating external activities that customers may wish to engage in during their stay at the hotel. The hotel does not organize transport, nor is there any mention or coordination of activities that visitors may be interested in during their stay. The hotel, however, mentions a few amenities that are in close proximity, including beach and the airport. The hotel also provides free wifi, non-smoking rooms, fitness centers, room service, and business and meeting rooms, which may count as a form of focus on the customer buying journey. Direct channels such as the official website should offer more on the areas identified above. |
Course Project, Part III:
Instructions:
Using the insights you have gained in this course, assess the state of the hotel or brand that you chose to review for this project. Consider some of the following questions as part of your analysis from the point of view of global marketing:
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Taking a look back through your work in parts two and three, what were some of the key observations that you saw as challenges in the current state that could impact them now and in the future? What could you see as the result if they choose to ignore those indicators? |
| Looking back, there are a number of challenges that could affect the current status of Hilton franchise either now or in the future. The first challenge is as a result of lack of effective communication. Since the institution has diverse cultures, there are reported instances of communication misunderstanding that if not addressed, could lead to conflicts within the facility. Another challenge that has been observed within the facility is the use of cost leadership strategy to attract more customers. One disadvantage associated with this model is that it can lead to a higher demand that does not match the current supply that the facility can manage. The future impacts of such a strategy is that it may be challenging for the facility to maintain product quality. If such a challenge is not addressed, the franchise’s quality may be disrupted leading to a massive loss of customers over time.
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| 2. What were three points that you uncovered that you felt the organization was doing well and are key strengths that they should keep doing? If you were to be a prognosticator of the future, do you believe these key points will still be relevant or be more important to customers? How would you want them to elevate these strengths? |
| The use and integration of technology in various sectors is one of the key strengths that I believe the organization possessed. One such technology is OnQ residence Management System which is crucial for the facility as it provides guests with many features. For instance, the digital device ensures that guests are provided with employee or staff observation and direction, room key coding, keeping in touch with employees working from home as well as work order tracking among other attributes. There is also a digital technology in the form of an app called Hilton Honors: Book Hotel. The facility uses the mobile app to ensure that guests are able to access some of their services including booking hotel rooms and reservations from the comfort of their homes, earning rewards as well as exploring various destinations among other uses.
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| 3. Taking the role of the Chief Marketing Officer provide a presentation to share how you would elevate your organizations marketing plan |
| Challenges
Lack of effective communication: This is one of the major challenges that is currently faced by Hilton facility. The company’s key attention is paid on customer satisfaction. As a result, when they fail to satisfy their customers, they receive negative feedback which they do not take positively. The internal employees begin blame games. The facility does not also have a platform where they communicate to their employees, receive feedback and respond to these feedback whether negative or positive. The use of cost leadership strategy: Cost leadership strategy is used by the facility to ensure that customers receive quality but affordable products. However, if this strategy is exploited, or if not properly implemented, it has a number of challenges especially those tied to lack of enough supply to meet up with the rising demand. Also, cost leadership strategy can lead to manipulation of the quality of goods and products being produced. Strengths Integration of technology: The facility has integrated artificial intelligence and big data in some of its operations. One such operation entails the use of OnQ device which provides guests with many features including allowing for effective communication and interaction between guests and employees or staff, providing them with features of the rooms that they are about to book. Also, there is the Hilton mobile app which also helps in providing guests with a lot of information regarding the facility. Current state Company has been successful in using technology to meet the rising demands of their consumers One suggestion is to have a platform where they can receive and respond to consumer feedback to help in improving the quality of services being offered by the facility The mobile app should also be made more useful, it has several features that the facility can use to market its products, its new innovations and new features to customers. Future state Meaningful integration of artificial intelligence and big data into the facility’s operations to improve the services being offered, especially the quality What is relevant The facility uses the IDIC framework which entails Identify, Differentiate, Interact and Customize components. The facility treats customers as being unique and individuals, and the employees tend to maximize the quality of products and services to ensure that all employees have their needs addressed. The Interact component ensures that there is more cost, in an efficient and effective way, which takes care of the cost leadership strategy that has been reported to be a useful strategy being utilized by the facility. The Customize component deals with the overall behavior of the company, including interaction with consumers, feedback to consumers and more generally, communication to consumers. This leads to customer-strategy communication which seems to be lacking within the facility. The use of two-way addressable media has also been highlighted in the lecture readings and their significance towards marketing various products and services that the facility engages in. Some of the media platforms that Hilton franchise can take advantage of to market its products and services include emails, social media platforms, world wide web, texting, fax and voice mails as well as the use of digital videos among others. |