Strategic Marketing Plan Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Marketing Plan for Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge. Answer: Introduction The main objective of the project report is to create a 5 year long plan in order to develop lodge. The owner of the house intends to expand the lodge. The lodge can be expanded only via a well- developed business plan. The lodge can be developed by a good marketing strategy and expanding contacts with customers. Marketing of a product or service is a challenging task. It is important that the marketing of the product should be done in the right manner. The main aim of marketing is to persuade customers into buying a particular product or service. The basic of the project report is that I am in the partnership for Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge with the other two owners. It provides premier accommodation facilities. The lodge is small, so it does not have large marketing budget like other five star hotels of the country. Thus, it is important to find techniques, so that the lodge could compete with the big hotels. Aim of the Study For fulfilling the aim of the study that is to develop marketing plan firstly, we need to understand and determine the current marketing position of the company. We will also need to find out the possible needs and the loopholes that the hotel and its marketing might have. The objective of the project is also to form a new marketing plan that can be applicable to the hotel. Structure of the Project Report The report begins with keeping in mind the theoretical aspect to research different areas of marketing. The theoretical part of report precisely emphasize on marketing concepts. The tourism and hotel aspects are defined in the later part of the project. The project also comprises of the marketing plan of the project and the information that is needed to form it. In the beginning of the project report, the basic information about the marketing plan and how it will be formed will be provided. It will start with the goals and objectives of the research of the project report. The report will also include the methods that were used to find the information regarding the topic. With the help of information gathered the strategic marketing plan for the lodge will be formed. Meaning of Tourism In the present environment, tourism is considered as an important sector contributing to countrys economic growth. It has gained recognition and importance by government in the recent years. Tourism sector comprises of services, functions and allied industries that offers travel and accommodation experience. Tourism is known to travel for pleasure(Alinejad Razaghi, 2012).People have a perspective that tourism is an industry in which people travel and hop around various destinations for different reasons like sightseeing, adventures, shopping and having a trip with friends or family etc.. According to World Tourism Organization, tourism means people travelling and staying in places that they have not seen before and a place that is different from their daily living environment for certain duration of time which can or cannot be for more than 1 year. The reason for staying could be leisure or business or purposes other than these. People have different reasons to travel (Bird, 1992). Marketing Marketing is considered as an activity or a process that consists of functions like creation, communication, delivering and exchange of the goods or services that have a value for the customers or for the society at large. The main objective of conducting marketing is to serve and satisfy the needs of the customer. A consumer buys the product not only with perception of good and its value. Instead, he also buys it for the satisfaction value which the service or the product would give (Keefe, 2004).A business usually uses the marketing function to build the image of the product or service it is offering and to manage the company relationships. The business also does marketing to understand and analyze the customer needs and their demands. In the current situation, the company put a lot of effort in the marketing function to analyze and determine the customer need and also their behavior towards the product or service (Keith, 1960). Marketing mix Marketing mix is an initial and most important part of the marketing function. It is made up of a set of tools that any business can take advantage of to pursue and fulfill the marketing objectives (Grnroos, 1997) . There are four main PS of marketing that stands for: Product- It sees the variety and quality of a product or service (Little, 1975). Place- The price consists of the value of product or service. It also includes discounts, list price or payment period of the good (Borden, 1964). Price- It comprises of factors like where the product or service is being offered, what are the elements included in channels of distribution. Transportation factor is also included here (Yoo, 2000). Promotion - This marketing tool is responsible for carrying out the ways in which the product will be sold. This includes advertising, personal selling, sales promotion and many other ways for promotion of a product or service (Rowley, 1998). The basic reason to carry out the marketing process is to influence and attract the buyers, so that they can use the product or service the company is offering. In order to lure the customers, most of the companies use the four Ps as a mixture so that they can manipulate or influence the demand of their product or services (Boulding, 1994). Marketing Segmentation It is almost impossible to reach out to every consumer. So, to reach and identify the consumer market segmentation is important. Every customer has different needs, attitudes and lifestyles. With the help of market segmentation, companies categorize its target audience into smaller groups. All these groups have certain needs and they segregate the market based on those needs. By segregating market in this manner, needs of customers could be fulfilled in an effective and efficient way. The market can be segmented in many ways (Wedel, 2012). There are four major variables in which the market can be segmented- Geographical Segmentation It involves segregation of customers on the basis of different geographical categories like cities, countries, continent etc. In this manner, company can decide in which unit it has to work or operate. The company needs to take into consideration geographical differences wants of consumers (Wind, 1974). Demographic Segmentation - This segmentation involves segregation of market on the basis of the age, gender, size of the family, income groups, education, occupation, religion, or ethnicity. These factors are the most important factor to segment the groups. The reason behind this is because the customer closely gets linked to such variables. There is also a practical reason behind this because there is more data available for the segmentation process (Plummer, 1974). Psychographic segmentation involves categorization of market into different segments on the basis of lifestyle, social standing, or personality attributes. These customers may belong to same geographical segments. This affects their lifestyles at large and it also affects the buying behavior of the customer (Beane, 1987). Behavioral Segmentation involves segregation of customers on the basis of their intellect, attitudes, etc. towards a service or product. The main benefit of this segmentation is that it utilizes the variables which are associated with the product or service. If a company can predict accurately point at which their consumers may buy their products/services then it becomes easy for company to formulate marketing strategies (Assael, 1976). In the industry of hospitality and tourism, the concept of market segmentation can be applied but the problem is that there are many subgroups. Hotels generally use travel as their market segmentation strategy (Mueller, 2001). But the hotels may utilize market segmentation variables like independent and leisure vacationers, corporate or business clients, etc. By following up these market segmentation variables the hotel can target its customers more effectively and efficiently (Nykiel, 1989). Marketing in Hospitality Industry In the hospitality industry, the main selling element of the hotel is its services. The services are properly designed to fulfill the needs of the business as well as the leisure travelers. According to the marketing mix tools, the hotel can be seen as a product that has to be sold to the consumers who are the travelers or guests. The hotel rooms are varied according to the needs of the consumers. In this industry, the place where the business is being conducted is the key to success. The location of the hotel is an important factor for visitors. They generally examine and choose the location quite carefully according to their needs and requirements. The choice for the hotel by a visitor is affected by factors such as transportation facilities, the access of visitor from airport or the main city. The price of a hotel room also influences the choice of the customer. Pricing of a hotel room also influences the demand and profitability of the business (Morrison M., 1996). The promotion of the hotel can be done by advertising through the hotels website and they can use it for brand identification for the business. Brands assist the business to identify the product or company by its name (DosÃÅ'ˆen, 1998).Marketing in the hotel industry started due to economic and business pressure. The needs of marketing arise to focus on adopting a set of managerial measures with the aim to satisfy the needs of the customers. The major goal to make a marketing plan for a hotel is to attract more and more customers. The hospitality industry is growing at a fast pace and so is the interest of visitors and thus, this gave rise in the competition in the industry. This industry has now grown into a more developed market and the competition between the hotels has reached to the global level and winning the customers is now a tough challenge. Challenges of Hospitality Industry There are many challenges that a hotel industry has to confront and have to overcome while marketing their services (Kusluvan, 2010). Seasonality is one of the challenges. It refers to fluctuation in demand. It is important characteristics that hotels have to take into consideration. The choice of hotel for visitors depends upon the requirements and status of the visitor and may be the day they are visiting. Hotel business is impacted by different months or seasons of the year. As a result, sustaining profitability throughout the year is difficult for majority of hotels (Jolliffe, 2003). Another challenge faced by the industry is that the services the industry offer are intangible. It means that the customer cannot experience the product or service prior to the purchase being made. The intangible nature of the business leads to difficulties in marketing of services as consumers cannot evaluate or judge the quality before experiencing it firsthand. This is the reason that hotels are r equired to provide consumers with accurate and truthful information related to hotels to persuade them for selecting their services (Lovelock, 1983).During the marketing process, the hotel should not raise customer expectation so high that they fail to deliver at the time of service. Internal Marketing Internal marketing is an extended part of promotion activities conducted by the hotel. It is imperative for hotel to comprehend and recognize the importance of customer-employee interaction. Human resource manager in the hotel are using marketing techniques by recruiting more communicative and motivated employees. The main objective for the whole technique is to deliver the service quality by which the customer gets fully satisfied (Ahmed Rafiq, 2003).The success of the hotel is making ensure if the hotel delivers the quality service. The quality service can only be delivered with the help of motivated employees. The objective of internal marketing is to recruit and retain the best employees with exceptional professional skills. The employees play an important role in delivering the promised service. Right attitudes of employees towards their work and customers can be strength and differentiating factor for the hotel. So it is important for the employee to get trained and clearly fa miliar with the culture and regulations with the hotel. An employee needs good guidelines to work. The managers need to make sure that these guidelines are properly delivered and understood by the staff and newly recruited employees (Chu Choi, 2000). The proper training can empower employees. If the employees are not provided with proper training and resources, they may not have a feeling of responsibility. To make employees more responsible and keep them motivated the hotel can reward its employees for the good work (Gronroos, 1985). Channels of Distribution Hospitality industry use channels of distribution to use other distribution channels and then find the customers that are interested and make the booking as much ease as possible. There are different channels of distribution in a hospitality industry. While making the choice of which would be the appropriate channel of distribution, the hotel must keep in mind the target customer (Brown Lee, 2000). The most prominent and effective channel of distribution is to reach directly to the customer. The major benefit of this approach is that there are no intermediaries. The internet also has helped the industry to directly reach the customers. Through the hotel website, a client can directly the room with no intermediaries involved (Olsen Moore, 1998). There is one more channel of distribution that is cost effective that is the referral network. It means that the hotels in the same chain can refer to each other. This approach is useful for the hotels with big chains (Crotts, Buhalis, Marc h, 2000). There are other channels of distribution in the hotel industry. The one is where the hotel uses intermediaries as their channel of distribution. Here, there is no direct mode of communication. These intermediaries can be travel agents or tour operators. Travel agents now are not only making hotel booking, providing ticket and accommodation vouchers and other services, but they are also concerned about overall travelling experience of their customers. The travel agencies can be in collaboration with different hotel services. The customers do not pay for the services but the hotels pay commission to the travel agent for the bookings. Today, the channels of distribution are most affected by the growth of internet. Due to the growth of internet, there is more direct communication between the customer and the hotels. Also the customers have a wide range of choices from which they can choose the hotel suitable for them. Internet has also provided increase in the choice of channel of distri bution through which travelling booking can be made (Buhalis Licata, 2002). There are certain benefits for using different distribution channels. The hotels can reach their target customers in a more effective manner. The channels of distribution also provide global access for the customers. These also help in making advance sales, as the customer has to pay before arrival so that there is confirmed (Buhalis Main, 1998). Marketing plan A marketing plan is a compiled document which is a set of decisions regarding what goals and achievements a company wants to achieve and the follow up plan about how it is going to achieve (Piercy Morgan, 1994). So a market plan is a set of goals that are combined or accompanied by the strategies defining about how the goals will be achieved. The marketing plans can be of two types tactical and strategic. The strategic marketing plan more focuses on long term goals rather than short term ones. These goals have a period of 3 to 5 years. The tactical plans more concentrate on the factors influenced from external environment and opportunities. The tactical plans are generally of period shorter than 1 year (McColl-Kennedy Kiel, 1990). It is important for a hotel too, to have a marketing plan. If the hotel does not have a marketing plan then it could face some possible consequences. The hotel with no marketing plan may not be able to identify the potential opportunity for growth and then loses it (Duke Tucker, 2007). There are various components of marketing. These components give a framework that shows and helps in analyzing of the present situation of the company. They also give the information about the future prospects of the company as well the path that will help in achieving those future goals and objectives. The components of the marketing plan are- Situational analysis A situational analysis is as the word says analyzing the situation of the company at the present point of time. The main objective of situational analysis is to know what the present value of the company is and what are the current marketing conditions or situations. The situational analysis involves both external and internal analysis. The external analysis uses the data that is outside the businesss environment. It includes those factors that are out of the companys control. The internal analysis includes the factors that are inside the company. These factors include sales figure, prices or net profits of the company. The situational analysis helps in finding out the strengths and weakness of the company (Weihrich H., 1982). SWOT Analysis The current situation of the company is determined with the help of situational analysis. The information taken from the situational analysis is used for SWOT analysis. The SWOT analysis stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Also, it is the first stage of marketing planning. It is the combination of both internal and external factors that are determined in the situational analysis. The SWOT analysis needs to be systematic and of wide range. It is important for the SWOT analysis to be productive. The SWOT should be conducted by a certain group of members and not just by one person. SWOT requires brainstorming. It helps in generating new ideas and then a perfect perception can be drawn out (Jackson Erhardt, 2003). Setting goals and marketing objectives The marketing objective answers to the question of where the company sees itself in the future. The setting up of goals is the next step in the market planning process. The goals of a company are the mission statements of the company which it aims to reach in the success. These mission statements are regarding the companies agendas like target markets of the company, product or service the company is providing, sales of the company, etc. The objective of the company must be specific not general, measurable, realistic and carried out in a pre-set specific time period. It is easy to make out and set the marketing objectives if the SWOT analysis is done properly and thoroughly. The financial and marketing of the objectives should be set differently (Sirgy Lee, 1996). Marketing strategy After the analyzing situation, conducting the SWOT analysis and setting the marketing objectives, the marketing strategies are formed. Strategies should be developed keeping in mind organization goals and capabilities and changing marketing conditions. The marketing strategies plan out the actions that are to be executed for achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. The market strategy involves identifying and selecting the market opportunities, choosing the distribution channels, deciding the price and planning the promotion and advertisement strategies for the product or company. A marketing strategy is considered good when it is unique and the reason behind the uniqueness which attracts the buyers. A marketing strategy should include the benefits which the customer will get from that particular product or service (Varadarajan Menon, 1988). Action Plan The action plan is laid out after the marketing strategies are planned and prepared. The action plans made should be specific. They elaborate the marketing strategies in a more detailed way and it draws out what exactly needs to be done. The action plan is created separately for every strategy formed. It gives a description of synchronized functions of marketing in the department of product, its design, pricing of the product, promotion and distribution (Go Whittles, 1992). Monitoring The function of monitoring involves evaluating and checking out if the objectives set for the organization are met by the results. It involves measuring or comparing the results with set standards. This function is important one as it is necessary to see if there is any problem or not and if there is problem, then implementing the alternative plan. The monitoring can be done through evaluation. Evaluation process is carried out annually. It is generally carried out to measure one company progress with another. Another way of monitoring includes measuring the performance in a detailed manner on a daily basis. Monitoring also can be done by evaluating the marketing the conditions. While performing the process of marketing, some possible contingencies may arise. In these cases the managers need to take corrective actions and accommodate the plans accordingly for the future (Jeffrey Hubbard, 1994). Research There are two ways to conduct a research. Quantitative research- This research method focuses on the quantity and analysis of the information. Quantitative research requires collecting the numerical facts and figures and the conclusions are gained from those facts and figures. The research method is used where the large sample group is involved. The results are collected through some special formulas like deviations. The information is generally collected through questionnaire surveys or the secondary source of information. Qualitative Research- This research method involves the quality of a topic. It focuses on the qualitative aspect of the research. The results of the research tell about the quality of the product. This method is used where the sample group is small. The information collected cannot be represented in numeric form and so it is presented theoretically. The information can be derived through observations regarding the topic, detailed interview of the persons etc. Research methods The research is conducted for the objective of gathering information for the detailed part of the project report. In this project report, the qualitative aspect is taken into an account. This method was taken so that every qualitative improvement can be known. If the quantitative method of research would have been conducted then the information included in the project report would have been limited. The qualitative method has also made it possible to get more detailed information. The primary data for this research is collected from the staff and owners of the hotel. The changes in the hotel are done taking the reference of guests who stayed at the lodge. The secondary data is collected with reference of literature available on marketing, hospitality and tour management. In additional, data analysis has been done by means of using some frameworks such as SWOT analysis. Implementation of the research The project report was done for Dawson Mountain Falls Lodge. As the researcher is the partner of the lodge itself so it was easy to conduct the detailed study about the lodge for the project report. Reliability and Validity Reliability of the research refers to how reliable the results of the research are; how dependable the research methods and techniques were. Reliability is also commonly linked to whether results of the research are repeatable. If the research was done for a second time then the results should be the same for the research to be defined as reliable. Validity refers to the integrity of the conclusions that are generated from the research. To ensure reliability of research comprehensive literature review has been done as it helps in in-depth understanding of the concepts related to marketing in the hospitality industry. Strategic Marketing Plan for Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge Background on Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge and Caf is situated at the end of Manaia Road in Egmont National Park on Mount Taranaki. The lodge has 10 guest rooms. The lodge can accommodate up to 24 guests. The lodge was built in 1896. The owner of the lodge is a couple named Sera and Markus. Research In the project, the research consists of the marketing plan which involves; situational analysis, SWOT analysis, goals and objectives for the future prospect of the business, marketing strategy and the action plan. The aim of the research is to prepare a strategic plan for Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge. The report does not contained detailed marketing action but has general marketing plan. It does include qualitative aspect of the report and not the quantitative aspect (Wind, 1974). Situational Analysis The lodge offers number of facilities and tourist attractions. The facility at the lodge consists of- Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge Caf Dawson Falls Visitor Centre Historic power house The other tourist attractions which are quite close enough from the lodge are tracks like Kapuni Loop Track Wilkies Pools Loop track The Ridge Loop Track Hasties Hill Track The main attractions for the tourists staying at the lodge are Envirofur (Possum Factory) Pioneer Village Tawhiti Museum The lodge has 10 rooms with unique specialty in each. There are room for the newlyweds, for youngsters and as well as for the family. Each room has a unique view which adds to the joy of staying at the lodge. It now plans to expand the room capacity to 15 rooms. The view and the peaceful relaxation the environment gives is uniqueness of the product. The breakfast and dining facilities are also available to the customers. It gives joy to owners to serve and ensure to give memorable experience to the guest. Number of visitor pay a visit to the hotel and it shows that the lodge is in a profitable position and well working. It does have competitors but none of the competitors are directly in the competition. The lodge adopt distribution channel like providing the details and booking facility of the lodge on the website. The website consists of all the information regarding activities, types of room and cost of each room and tourist attraction offered by the lodge. Another distribution ch annel adopted by the lodge is Trip Advisor. It is a travel agency providing the travel packages and tour packages to the clients. SWOT Analysis In this analysis the strengths, weakness and opportunities and threats for the lodge are included. Strengths of the lodge are Location Rooms provided by the lodge View and environment No outsourced workforce Owned by the couple Architecture and History of the Lodge Individual service Cost of stay Weakness Marketing Website of the lodge Size of the hotel Season New ideas Caf of the lodge Opportunities Marketing and finding more distribution channels Motivation among employees Fresh ideas More rooms Musical events at the caf Threats Seasonal factors pose a threat to the lodge Lack of sight seeing Opening of new lodge in the area Lack of regular visitors due to lack of choice of visiting Frequent changing staff Marketing objectives The main objective of the lodge is to add up the room capacity. The other short term objective of the lodge is to balance customer flows during the high and low point of the season. The hotel also plans to invite more guests who plan to stay for long. There should be private occasions like musical events to be organized. The long term objectives of the lodge are to attract the new consumer groups and utilize its channel of distribution more adequately. Already adopted marketing strategies The main and only strategy adopted by the lodge to attract the customers or visitors was through the lodges website. The website of the lodge indicates about the recent trends and recreational practices provided near the lodge. The website also tells about the various room facilities given by the lodge. It also promotes its caf and the best season to visit the place. It also provides regular news feeds about the climate, so that the customers who have already or are planning to come can know about the weather conditions and then, plan accordingly. The website does not tell anything about the benefits of visiting the place in the perfect season nor does it tells about the uniqueness of the lodge as compared to others that are been competitors of it. The website does not cover the whole target market and just covers the people who are married or have a family. The lodge through its website needs to reach out the customers who like travelling alone or in group with friends or acquaintances. Another source of income of the lodge is through the caf. But, the lodge does not provide any great facilities in the caf, such that the customer would like to have a visit over there. The lodge needs to make some improvement in that area as well. The improvements can be done by setting up of an occasional theme or just a band performing according to the occasion of the day based on a season or a festival. The website gives the message that Dawson Hills and The Mount Tarnaki National Park is a great place to visit and will relinquish the beaut y with peace. The message is quite nice but not as appealing as it should be. Another message that could be given through website is that, the lodge is a place where when can get inspiration to live and nature and it is not just the place that can be as a getaway trip for family or a honeymoon trip for a couple. The trip can be for a group of friends that wants to enjoy their time of life and mixing with the nature and still not losing the vibe of the modern world. The website can be improved by mentioning the various attractive tourist attractions other than trekking. It should also tell more about the uniqueness of the lodge as compared to the other hotels. The lodge should also describe about the facilities offered in a more detailed manner. It should also focus on the plans it have for the future and the developments that are being done in the nearby area and the lodge. Marketing strategy Firstly, the lodge needs to add up its room capacity. This would take two years at the most. Then we need to attract more and more customers through our website and advertising. The website needs to be updated. More recent customer reviews needs to be included. The website should add more pictures of the beautiful and exciting experience it has provided to the customers. The intermediaries should be told to bring up the new clients. Also the caf offers a limited variety of food. Adding a book section or organizing the musical event on different occasions. The lodge needs to contact local bands for these musical events. The lodge needs to make sure that the marketing channels are providing better results and as well as action plan is implemented properly. Action plans The action plan of the lodge includes- Attracting new customer groups- the lodge needs to attract more customers during different seasons. Updating the website- the website of the lodge needs to be updated with more information and pictures. Customer contact and data- the lodge should record the customer detail and accommodation data so that it is easy to know that how many times a customer has stayed in the hotel and how loyal the customer is. Feedback ask the customers to fill the feedback forms and we can use their feedback as the guidelines of where the lodge is going wrong and how it can go better. Loyal customer programme- the lodge is going to provide a bonus card to the loyal customers who have stayed more than once in the lodge. These cards may include discount on room rate, better room type or free breakfast or lunch and other bonus offers. Internal marketing- It is important to keep the staff of the hotel updated about the key points and changes made in the lodge. They should be involved in different activities carried out in the lodge. This will eventually help them to be motivated and involved with the lodge. The lodge should also entice to prolong the stay of the gold customers for a longer period of time. The lodge can make them stay for a longer period of time by providing them special facilities like a private dinner for the couple in a good setting or a play or a show for gold customers, entwined with the message of thanking them. The lodge can also provide attractive discounts for the gold customers. The lodge can also arrange for additional trekking trip for the gold customers. Another way to attract the customers is to arrange for the travelling facilities. The traveling facility is a best way to attract the customers. The customer would prefer such hotel that would give the facility of a vehicle to roam around and to make the stay a more pleasurable one. The lodge can offer a ride for the tourist from the airport to the lodge and, a guide in the bus can tell all the benefits of the lodge as well as give highlights of the stay. Conclusion The project report is the strategic marketing plan of Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge. The aim of the project was to form a new strategic marketing plan for the lodge. The outcome of the research is good; as it projects that the lodge is in a good condition. The research also provides a framework on how the marketing of the lodge can be done. The outcomes of the research presents that the lodge is in need of updating the facilities it is providing. It also needs to adopt the new approach to reach the larger customer groups. It also needs to update its website. The lodge has many advantages and disadvantages but it still has a potential to do a great work. 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