Marketing and Sales in Hospitality Management PDF

GROUP 7 MARKETING AND SALES IN HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT SUB TOPIC 1: SALES STRATEGIES AND TECHNIQUES SUB TOPIC 2: BRANDING AND POSITIONING IN HOSPITALITY Objectives: To obtain knowledge in attracting and retaining guests To expertise in increasing revenue To be proficient in building brand loyal...

GROUP 7 MARKETING AND SALES IN HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT SUB TOPIC 1: SALES STRATEGIES AND TECHNIQUES SUB TOPIC 2: BRANDING AND POSITIONING IN HOSPITALITY Objectives: To obtain knowledge in attracting and retaining guests To expertise in increasing revenue To be proficient in building brand loyalty To understand the consumer’s behavior To utilize multiple channels To obtain knowledge in enhancing customer’s experience To be able to analyze the competition in the hospitality industry To adapt sustainability and ethical practices in the hospitality industry 12th May Sales Strategies and Techniques In the hospitality sector, sales strategies are essential for increasing revenue, establishing client loyalty, and maintaining a competitive advantage. These methods seek to attract and convert potential clients into bookings, with technology playing an important part in increasing the success of these efforts. Using current tools and data, businesses in hospitality may improve operations, personalize guest experiences, and enhance sales processes. Sales Strategies in Hospitality : 1. Target Market Segmentation 2. Personalized Guest Experiences 3. Upselling and Cross-Selling 4 Loyalty Programs 5 Partnerships and Corporate Sales 6. Seasonal Promotions and Discounts Sales Techniques in Hospitality: 1. Loyalty program 2. Influencer partnership 3. Virtual tour augmented reality (AR) 4. User generated content 5.Geo-Targeted ads 6. Sustainability Initiatives  Importants of Sales Strategies Give your team direction and focus - Strategic clarity can help your sales reps and managers understand which goals and activities to prioritize. This can lead to improved productivity and outcomes. Ensure consistent messaging - Your sales strategy can help your team deliver a consistent message to prospects, partners, and customers. This can increase both trust and effectiveness.  Importants of Sales Strategies Optimize opportunities - Strong sales strategies will help you target the right prospects and customize your approach. This can help your team make the most of every sales opportunity. Improve resource allocation - Your sales strategy outlines your priorities and resources. In turn, this can help your sales team use their time, effort, and other resources more efficiently, boosting your team's ability to focus on high- potential deals.  Sales Strategies Types: The customer is the most important element to consider when choosing your business's sales strategy. Once you've addressed their needs, you can start thinking about your sales team. Your sales strategy should offer a framework that attracts and engages prospects while simultaneously enabling your team to build relationships. Prospects' and teams' needs and interests vary, so your sales strategy shouldn't be one-size-fits-all. Every sales org should draw up the type of sales strategy that works best for its priorities. Here are some frameworks you can reference when putting yours together. Sales Strategies Types: Outbound Sales Strategy -Companies often base their sales strategy on the seller, relying on cold prospecting and manual data entry, resulting in inefficient sales pipelines and disjointed buyer experiences. Inbound Sales Strategy - Inbound sales strategies are a modern sales methodology that connects sales teams' activities to buyer actions, capturing seller and buyer data to monitor pipelines and coach salespeople. Consultative selling - prioritizes building relationships, trust, product knowledge, active listening, and balancing questions with insights to establish a connection, offering the right product based on that relationship.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 1. Identify a problem and solve it - Focus on outcomes in communication with clients, like promoting a CRM system to boost customer base and improve sales, marketing, and customer service teams. 2. Understand your product - Firsthand experience with a product enhances discussions, allowing customers to understand its features, onboarding process, and potential to solve their problems.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 3. Price appropriately- To maintain competitive pricing, set it low to avoid negative impressions, high to justify value, research competitors, and explain superior value if unsuitable. 4. Know your customer - Identify your target audience, such as private schools, manufacturing companies, or local hospitals, and research their specific business situations for meaningful conversations and strengthening connections.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 5. Align with your customer's needs - Customers have unique goals and concerns, and sales discussions may require going beyond standard offerings. Expressing willingness to accommodate requests and seeking manager approval can satisfy customers. 6.Don't sell what isn't needed - Successful selling involves offering valuable goods in exchange for money, but if product doesn't meet expectations, understand customer's situation, suggest alternative products, and recommend suitable company.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 7. Build a relationship - Maintain regular communication with clients, making notes and following up on critical issues, to avoid prolonged silences and remind them of their contact for questions or purchases. 8. Articulate a clear sales message - Develop a clear sales pitch by practicing, revising, identifying improvement areas, and interacting with unfamiliar customers, taking notes and adjusting approach as needed.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 9. Ask intelligent questions - promoting critical thinking, and providing specific details to ensure your product or service meets their needs and potentially leads to future sales. 10. Offer a free trial or demonstration - Customize product demonstrations to explain benefits, address challenges like admissions tracking, and offer a free trial. Offer customer support during trial period.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 11. Create a sense of urgency -Focus on reasons to buy, like discounts, product testing, or price changes, rather than product need, to encourage time-sensitive purchases and aid customers in making informed decisions. 12. Spend more time selling - Utilize sales team administrators to free up time for customer interactions, nurture relationships through cold calls, brainstorm, and offer new products or services if clients don't meet their goals.  14 selling strategies to try: by: Indeed editorial 13. Start a referral program - The referral program rewards current customers and attracts new ones by offering discount options on cherished products, allowing loyal customers to enjoy lower prices with management's consent. 14.Show credibility - Trust and clear hotel brand positioning are crucial for customer collaboration and loyalty in the competitive hospitality industry.  Importance to have effective selling strategies Whether you're new to sales, considering it for the future or a seasoned professional, some common practices are used to facilitate the process of exchanging goods for money. These selling strategies may help you: Present your product with confidence Expand and retain your customer base Drive sales and increase commissions Qualify for promotions Reliable techniques are just as important to salespeople as motivation, patience and resilience. With a targeted approach to connecting with your ideal customer, you may be able to increase sales conversations and advance more quickly through your career. Branding and Positioning Branding and positioning are crucial in the hospitality industry for creating a unique identity and standing out in a competitive market. Traditionally, these methods were used through word-of-mouth, travel agents, and print advertisements. However, the digital age has transformed these methods, focusing on the entire guest experience from the hotel's design to check- out, including the quality of service and amenities offered.  Branding is the process of creating a distinct brand that reflects the standards, culture, and unique qualities of a business. It encompasses everything from the name, logo, and design aesthetics to the overall mood for interaction andcustomerexperience.Brandingconsistof: Logo and Visual Identity: A flamboyant, memorable logo, color schemes, and visual design that is consistent across all platforms. Will make the company easily identifiable and allow customers to quickly identify it. Brand Story: It reflects the business values, mission, and the core of what makes your brand unique, generating loyalty and engagement among your customers. Guest Experience: The service quality, ambiance, and overall experience a guest has that aligns with the brand. Emotional Appeal: Businesses may connect with guests emotionally by building an outstanding, family-friendly, adventure-driven brand and understanding their needs, values, and emotions. Reputation Management: Handling reviews, guest feedback, and public relations in a way that aligns with the brand image.  Positioning refers to how a hospitality brand is perceived in the industry and in the perspective of the customers. It's about finding a unique selling proposition (USP) that differentiates your brandfromcompetitors.Thisinvolves: Target Audience: Choosing your ideal consumer (luxury vacationers, budget- conscioustourists,eco-friendlyvisitors)andmodifyingservicestotheirdemands. Competitive Advantage: Understanding what differentiates your company. This couldincludelocation,servicequality,affordability,orauniqueproductlikewellness getawaysorculturalactivities. MarketFit:Ensuringthatthebrand'spositioningisconsistentwiththedemandsof the local or global market. A boutique hotel in a popular tourist destination, for example,maymarketitselfonpersonalizedattentionandlocalcharm.  Importants of branding and positioning Branding and Positioning in Hospitality Market: Strong brand and clear positioning create memorable first impressions. Standout identity and meeting specific needs attract bookings. Branding and positioning build trust and loyalty, attracting repeat guests and word-of-mouth promotion.  Importants of branding and positioning Branding and Positioning in Hospitality Market: Digital branding extends beyond physical hotels to social media, review sites, and website. Positive reviews and engaging content enhance reputation and attract new guests. Instagram feeds showcasing hotel photos attract travelers.  THE POWERFUL VALUE OF POSITIONING There are a few different approaches to take in regards to your brand positioning. These are the things people will associate most with your brand. Here are a few examples: Great customer service Ease of convenience Price-based (budget and value versus high-end luxury) Quality-based There are tons of other approaches to define your brand positioning. Maybe your brand offers a product that simply doesn't exist elsewhere on the market, like industry innovators like Netflix or Tesla. Perhaps your brand is positioned as an advocate for the community.  Getting Started in Branding Branding takes five impressions to remember. Start by choosing your target audience and using buyer personas. Form the visual identity with a slogan and choose colors that represent the brand's tone. Use an agency for branding resources and incorporate branding quickly to ensure effective communication.  TYPES OF BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGIES 1. Customer Service Positioning Strategy - Customer service is crucial for choosing a provider, and companies with strong support systems can justify higher prices and improve customer experience, reducing negative reviews and complaints. 2. Convenience-Based Positioning Strategy- A convenience-based positioning strategy emphasizes a company's product or service's superiority over competitors, leveraging location, accessibility, and support, while justifying higher prices through design and compelling brand stories. 3. Price-Based Positioning Strategy -Price-based positioning strategies attract customers by offering the most affordable option, but may lead to perceived inferiority, economic factors, and price wars in certain industries.  TYPES OF BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGIES 4. Quality-Based Positioning Strategy -Companies prioritize high-quality products through craftsmanship, small-batch production, and sustainable practices, but budget-conscious consumers may opt for less expensive alternatives, necessitating careful buyer personas consideration. 5. Differentiation Strategy - A differentiation positioning strategy highlights a product's unique features compared to competitors. 6. Social Media Positioning Strategy - Digital storytelling in 21st-century brand positioning uses immersive websites, interactive advertisements, and social media narratives to engage consumers and co-create the brand story. 7. Other Positioning Strategies - Positioning strategies aim to establish a brand as a leader, first-of-its-kind, popular option, or problem-solving solution by analyzing target buyers' preferences and behaviors.  CREATING A BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGY 1. Determine your current brand positioning - Understanding your brand's current positioning is crucial for analyzing competition, determining next steps, and identifying target customers, clarifying mission, values, and assessing value proposition. 2. Create a brand essence chart - A brand essence chart helps identify a brand's position, meaning to customers, and unique messaging angle by analyzing attributes, benefits, personality, authority, customer experience, and positioning. 3. Identify your competitors - Competitor analysis, using market research, customer feedback, and social media platforms, helps businesses identify common competitors, inform strategies, and identify areas for improvement in their industry. CREATING A BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGY 4. Conduct competitor research. Wessel emphasizes the significance of thorough competitor research to evaluate your capabilities, ensuring impartial analysis to counter internal biases and enhance market positioning. 5. Identify your unique value proposition.Creating a unique brand involves identifying your strengths and weaknesses, comparing your offerings to competitors, and identifying your unique offerings to position your business effectively. 6. Build a brand positioning framework. A brand positioning framework aids in strategy development by focusing on key messages across touchpoints, including big idea, value proposition, target audience, mission statement, tone of voice, elevator pitch, and message pillars. CREATING A BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGY 7. Create your positioning statement. A brand positioning statement concisely outlines a brand's unique offering, focusing on differentiators, primary benefits, and reasons for need, derived from a value proposition. 8. Evaluate whether your positioning statement works. The brand's effectiveness is ensured by conducting customer feedback after creating a positioning statement, focusing on content and presentation to assess its effectiveness. 9. Establish an emotional connection with prospects and customers. Building personal connections with prospects before sales enhances trust and brand experience, is crucial for effective positioning, shaping perceptions, and establishing a distinctive place in consumers' minds. CREATING A BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGY 10. Reinforce your brand's differentiating qualities during the sales process.A clear brand position should make unique company offerings easily recognizable, and prospects should understand what sets your brand apart during the sales journey. 11. Create value. The primary goal should be to help your prospect solve a problem or overcome a challenge, with your company's offering being a crucial part of that solution. 12. Ensure that customer-facing employees embody your brand.Employees representing customers should reflect the company's core values and brand, ensuring a lighthearted and fun experience in sales conversations, rather than adopting a serious tone.  Examples of hotel brand positioning: 1. The Ritz-Carlton: Luxury Redefined Brand Positioning: The epitome of luxury and personalized service. Target Audience: Affluent travelers seeking unparalleled experiences. Key Elements: Impeccable service, exquisite accommodations, and a timeless elegance. How they do it: The Ritz-Carlton has cultivated a reputation for delivering exceptional service that exceeds guest expectations. Their attention to detail, from personalized amenities to highly trained staff, reinforces their position as the ultimate luxury brand.  Examples of hotel brand positioning: 2. Six Senses: Wellness and Sustainability Brand Positioning: A sanctuary for wellness and sustainable luxury. Target Audience: Discerning travelers seeking holistic experiences and mindful escapes. Key Elements: Spa and wellness programs, eco-friendly practices, and stunning natural settings. How they do it: Six Senses has successfully positioned itself as a leader in wellness and sustainability by offering transformative experiences that connect guests with nature and promote well-being.  Examples of hotel brand positioning: 3. The Ace Hotel: Hip and Independent Brand Positioning: A stylish and affordable boutique hotel for the creative and independent traveler. Target Audience: Young, trend-conscious travelers seeking a vibrant and social atmosphere. Key Elements: Contemporary design, local partnerships, and a strong emphasis on music and culture. How they do it: Ace Hotels have cultivated a cult-like following by creating spaces that feel like living rooms rather than traditional hotel lobbies. Their focus on local art, music, and food has made them a favorite among young, independent travelers.  Examples of hotel brand positioning: 4. Four Seasons: Ultimate Luxury and Service Brand Positioning: A global leader in luxury hospitality offering unparalleled service and comfort. Target Audience: Discerning travelers seeking the highest level of luxury and personalized attention. Key Elements: Consistent service excellence, world-class amenities, and prime locations. How they do it: Four Seasons have built a reputation for flawless execution and exceeding guest expectations. Their commitment to training and employee development ensures that every guest feels pampered and valued.  Examples of hotel brand positioning: 5. The Hoxton: Affordable Chic Brand Positioning: A stylish and affordable hotel with a focus on social spaces and local experiences. Target Audience: Budget-conscious travelers seeking a trendy and vibrant atmosphere. Key Elements: Stylish design, communal areas, and a strong emphasis on local culture. How they do it: The Hoxton has successfully combined affordability with style by creating hotels that feel like hip hangouts rather than traditional accommodations. Their focus on social spaces and local partnerships has made them a popular choice for young travelers. These are just a few examples of strong hotel brand positioning. By clearly defining your target audience, understanding your unique selling proposition, and creating a compelling brand story, you can build a powerful brand that resonates with guests and drives business growth. THANK YOU!!