TRAVEL & TOURISM SECTOR PRESENTED BY SADEKE SMITH COLBOURNE COLLEGE

What is Marketing? Marketing is the sum total of the activities involved in getting products and services from producer to customer. Ensuring the right product is developed at the right time. Promoted at the right time Promoted at the right prices Satisfies the customer

Marketing Challenges The marketing of tourism is different from other industries based off the characteristics of tourism, which includes, Tourist supply cannot be easily change to meet changing taste. This puts increased pressure on planners to make the right development and marketing decisions.

Marketing Challenges cont’d Tourist demand is highly elastic. This means that changes in tourist income will produce proportionately larger change in the demand for tourism. Tourist services are consumed on the spot. This is to say tourism cannot be stored. There is constant pressure to sell every room , every seat, and every ticket everyday because the sale that is lost today is lost forever.

Marketing Challenges cont’d The tourist product is a combination on services. A plane seat, a hotel room , restaurant meals, sight seeing, tours- lack of services in any of these areas can ruin a vacation experience for a tourist. Anyone producer lacks control over tourist satisfaction for the entire vacation.

Developing the promotional plan Promotion consists of the activities undertaken to increase sales. There are various steps in the development of a promotional plan. These are: • Select target audience. • Determine objectives. • Develop an appropriate message. • Select the promotional mix. • Set a budget. • Evaluate the campaign.

MARKET SEGMENTATION A marketer can rarely satisfy everyone in a market! A market segment consists of a large identifiable group within a market, with similar wants, purchasing power, geographical location, buying attitudes, or buying habits. Because the needs, preferences, and behavior of segment members are similar but not identical, Anderson and Narus urge marketers to present flexible market offerings instead of one standard offering to all members of a segment. A flexible market offering consists of the product and service elements that all segment members value, plus options (for an additional charge) that some segment members value. 4/25/2017 Philip Kotler - Marketing Management Millenium Edition, Prentice Hall 2001

Why Segment? Segment Marketing allows a firm to create a more fine-tuned product or service offering and price it appropriately for the target audience. The choice of distribution channels and communications channels becomes much easier, and the firm may find it faces fewer competitors in certain segments. 4/25/2017 Philip Kotler - Marketing Management Millenium Edition, Prentice Hall 2001

Types of Segmentation Geographic Segmentation Geographic segmentation calls for dividing the market into different geographical units such as nations, states, regions, counties, cities, or neighborhoods. Demographic Segmentation In demographic segmentation, the market is divided into groups on the basis of age and other variables such as income, social class and generation (generation x). One reason this is the most popular consumer segmentation method is that consumer wants, preferences, and usage rates are often associated with demographic variables. Another reason is that demographic variables are easier to measure. 4/25/2017 Philip Kotler - Marketing Management Millenium Edition, Prentice Hall 2001

Psychographic Segmentation In psychographic segmentation, buyers are divided into different groups on the basis of lifestyle or personality and values. People within the same demographic group can exhibit very different psychographic profiles. Behavioral Segmentation In behavioral segmentation, buyers are divided into groups on the basis of their knowledge of, attitude toward, use of, or response to a offering Many marketers believe that behavioral variables—occasions, benefits, user status, usage rate, loyalty status, buyer-readiness stage, and attitude—are the best starting points for constructing market segments Philip Kotler - Marketing Management Millenium Edition, Prentice Hall 2001

Key Points to Remember More than developing a good product, pricing it attractively and making it available to the consumer, companies must communicate continuously with their present and potential customers. Communication messages should be consistent with the company’s marketing objectives. Companies must not only ask “How can we reach our customers?” but also “How can our customers reach us?”

Questions every Destination Should Answer Does any one know who we are? Does the market know what we offer? What does our company stand for? What is our record of service? What is our reputation? If these questions cannot be answered, chances are that your communications message is ineffective and needs to be revised.

The Promotion Mix The 4th P in Marketing is Promotion. The Promotion Mix is a company’s total marketing communications program. The Promotion Mix consists of: Advertising Sales Promotion Public Relations Personal Selling

Critical Steps towards Communications Success 1) Identifying the Target Audience - Who is this message for? The Target audience heavily affects the decision on what will be said, how it will be said, when it will be said, where it will be said and who will say it.

Steps cont’d 2) Determining the Communications Objective - What goals we want to achieve In most cases the objective is to get someone to purchase. However getting a sale is the result of a long process of getting the customer to make a decision > Achieving the objective requires several key components: a) Awareness – The communicator must be able to assess how aware the market is about the product, and must respond by developing a means through which awareness will be created – Ad Campaigns, Exhibitions, Brand Visibility (colours, logo etc). Building awareness takes time!

Design the Message 3) Designing the communications message includes the following components: Message Content Message Structure Message Format Message Source

What is a Brand? A brand is an accumulation of characteristics that form a destination’s image and identity. In other words, branding is a promise to the consumer, an expectation of performance and a mark of integrity and reputation (Travis, 2000)

Destination Branding Destination branding is about combining all the attributes associated with the place (i.e. its products, and services from various industries such as agriculture, tourism, sports, arts, investment, technology, education, etc.) under one concept, which expresses a unique identity and personality of the destination and differentiates it from its competition.

Important things to Know 1) Branding creates that first idea about a destination in the consumer’s mind 2) Branding efforts should be based on visitors’ perceptions about the destination 3) A mission and vision are necessary in destination branding 4) A destination brand exists in the mind of the consumer who, if satisfied, remains loyal and does not switch.

Critical Questions > How will we stand out from the crowd? > What do we want to be known for? > How will we stand out from the crowd? > What words do we want to come to mind when people hear our name?

Components of Destination Branding Brand image is a key component in the formation of a clear and recognizable brand identity in the market (Williams et al, 1999). Brand image is related to how the brand is currently perceived by consumers (Aaker, 1996, p. 71). In other words what is the reputation of the brand in the marketplace (Upshaw,1995,).

Cont’d Brand culture - is about the system of values that surround a brand much like the cultural aspects of a people or a country. (Upshaw,1995).

Cont’d Brand character is related to its internal constitution, how it is perceived in terms of integrity, trustworthiness and honesty (Upshaw, 1995). This is also related with the promise of the brand to deliver the experience associated with itsname.

Cont’d Brand personality is the set of human characteristics that are associated with the brand. It includes such characteristics as gender, age, socioeconomic class, as well as human personality traits such as warmth and sentimentality (Aaker, 1996, p. 141). Brand essence or brand soul represents the emotional elements and values of the brand. Essence should be part of a long term positioning that does not change with every communication (http://www.allaboutbranding.com/index.lasso?article=108).

Cont’d Brand identity is how brand strategists want the brand to be perceived. “It is a set of unique brand associations that represent what the brand stands for. These associations imply a promise to customers from organization members. Brand identity should help establish a relationship between the brand and the customer by generating a value proposition involving functional, emotional or self expressive benefits”. (Aaker 1996, p.68)

Destination Brand Benefit Pyramid What is the essential nature and character of the brand? Level 5 What does value mean for the typical repeat visitor? Level 4 What psychological rewards or emotional benefits do people get by visiting this destination? Level 3 What benefits to the visitor result from the destination’s features? Level 2 What are the tangible, verifiable, objective, measurable characteristics of the destination? Level 1 Source: www.humsamf.auc.dk/edu/snf/turisme/brandingopl%E6g.ppt)

Destination Brand Loyalty According to Marconi (2000, p. 62) in his book “Brand Marketing” Consumers decide to remain loyal to the brand based on the following elements: Value (price and quality) Image (brand’s personality and reputation), Convenience and availability, Satisfaction (deliver on the brand promise) Service and Hospitality, Unique past and future experiences Guarantee or Warrantee.

Measuring Brand Success Factors that can be measured and can be indicators of a brand’s success are: 1) Brand name awareness 2) Visitor Perceptions 3) The brand and its identity elements 4) Visitors opinions and attitudes 5) Brand loyalty and traveling behaviors.

Conclusion: Remember the essentials…. When a a decision is made to develop, transform or maintain a brand one should consider the following key points: 1) Understand how visitors perceive the destination and build the brand’s components based on these perceptions 2) Create a vision and a mission for the organization’s branding efforts 3) Create a brand with unique features that differentiate it from the competition

Cont’d 4) Remember… brand is a promise, it is set of strong associations people have with a place, which form their expectations. The brand has to deliver on the expectations to increase its value and create loyal customers. Manage the brand through the right positioning to stimulate and affect consumer’s perceptions and claim a position in their minds. 7) Monitor brand effectiveness

Reference David Aaker. (1996). Building Strong Brands. New York: The Free Press. David Aaker. (1991). Managing Brand Equity: Capitalizing on the value of the brand name. New York: The Free Press. Ramspus Marconi . (2000). The brand marketing book: creating, managing and extending the value of your brand. Chicago: NTC Business Books (in conjunction with the American Marketing Association)