7.1 The Basics of Promotion and Marketing
within the Industry
Marketing within the world of
travel and tourism is expensive, elaborate, and extremely prominent and this is
true across various forms of media.
As an individual who is seeking
to work within this field, it is therefore important for you to be able to
understand the marketing and promotion machine that drives the entire industry.
You may not be directly involved in this part, but in most occasions the people
that come to you will do so as a result of some form of marketing that took
place at some point down the line. First, we need to begin by discussing the
basics of marketing and promotion within the industry and like the industry
itself, it does cover different angles and have various aims.
The basic idea behind the
promotion and marketing of this industry is exactly the same as you will find
anywhere else. Your entire aim is to make sure that your product or service is
getting out there in front of those individuals that have been deemed to be
your target market.
Thanks to the Internet and the
ease with which we can learn about new destinations, new flights, hotels, and
things to do it is fair to say that the promotion of the industry has changed
quite considerably. Gone are the days when all people had to go on was the
travel brochure that was available at the travel agent.
Now, we have the ability to
almost go on a virtual tour of a hotel and depending on where you are going you
can even tour the streets thanks to Google. This has led to people within the
marketing side of the industry having to become more focused and concentrated
on what they have to do when trying to alert people to the mere existence of
the destination that they are trying to promote.
If you are indeed involved in
this part of the industry, then there are clearly some basic steps that you
need to take into consideration in order to make the kind of impact that you
are looking for.
Do remember that there is no need
for you to have a marketing degree of any kind in order to get involved with
this because often you will be involved in the implementing of a strategy
rather than creating the strategy on your own.
What makes a location or service
special?
The first thing that often stands
out when you are dealing with the promotion of any location or service is that
the marketing campaign has to tell people why it is so special. Why would
somebody want to use that airline? Why would somebody want to stay at that
hotel? Why would this form of entertainment be so popular for others? What
makes other people go to a certain location?
These are the kinds of questions
that people want to have answered when they are thinking about going to a
location and it is essential that the marketing is able to provide those
answers to give customers some idea as to whether they wish to learn more about
a certain destination.
Who is it for?
Another important point is that
the marketing has to reflect who a service is for or who should be heading to a
certain destination. This can often be seen by the way in which images or text
are used along with certain taglines that make it abundantly clear to whom the
product is aimed. When you are working within the industry, it does mean that
you have to be aware of the marketing for a certain location so you can be
better prepared for the kind of customers that you are going to be dealing
with.
Affordability.
The affordability of a type of
travel, hospitality, or location in general is also something else that should
be covered by the marketing of a destination or service. Of course you want the
marketing to reflect the kind of price bracket that people are looking at
simply because it does make sure that you get the correct customers coming
through the door or contacting you from the get-go. Marketing, and the correct
implementation of the message, will certainly help you to be largely dealing
with those individuals that are more likely to want to spend money and make
full use of your services.
What to expect.
In addition, marketing should
also provide potential customers with a sense of what they should expect when
they go ahead and start to either book or even just plan on using your services
or going to a particular destination. Is it a family destination? Is it a
budget flight company? Is it a 5 star hotel or a hostel? All of these kinds of
messages really should appear on your marketing simply because of the way in
which it directly influences how people will be able to reach a conclusion
about whether or not they wish to proceed any further.
The level of service.
Finally, marketing may also be
the perfect opportunity for you to promote the level and quality of service
that an individual should expect to receive when they spend money with you.
Marketing may describe the quality of the flight and the extras you receive. It
may describe the facilities that a hotel has in place. It may be connected to
how far you will go as a company to provide individuals with the absolute
perfect holiday no matter what their heart desires. In other words, from the
marketing that you put out in the tourism industry, it should be easy for
potential customers to begin to get an understanding as to whether or not they
wish to go ahead and spend money.
Those are the key basic
principles of marketing and promotion within the tourism industry and of course
it could be argued that it is often more specific than this when you go to
certain industries. This is where your understanding of the services and
products that you offer really comes to the fore.
Do remember that on most
occasions you are not going to be involved in the creation of the marketing or
the message that is being put across although you clearly need to be aware of
the aims of the campaigns in the first place.
Remember, there is no guarantee
that you will be involved in the marketing aspect and yet it still has an
impact on the way that you operate within the industry.
7.2 The Size and Scale of Marketing
If we now switch our attention to
the actual size and scale of the marketing that takes place within the industry
this will provide you with a better insight into the machine that is driving
those customers to your door.
Getting exact figures as to how much
money is spent on marketing in a single year is going to be difficult. There
are some ideas out there, although it has to be accepted that they are just
rough figures.
There are estimates that
marketing in the United States reaches around $10 billion each year although
this does appear to cover every aspect of the industry. However, this can only
be an estimate simply because it is impossible for us to piece together the
total sum of money spent on marketing in so many different industries.
The one thing to keep in mind is
that when you have an industry that is worth so much money that it stands to
reason that the amount of money spent on marketing also has to be sky high. In
addition, with there being so much competition out there, no matter the part of
the industry you are working in, then it also means that there is a need for
businesses to spend more money to stay ahead of the competition.
Furthermore, each part of the
industry has to partake in marketing so even if you are working in a small
business the percentage of turnover that is dedicated to marketing can be quite
substantial. However, it is how the budget is used that is key and whenever you
are working within a certain part of the industry, it is important that you are
aware of the message, the market you are aiming for, and what to expect from
the customers as a direct result of the marketing message that was put out
there.
For example
Clearly a small local museum is
going to spend less money on marketing than a major tourist attraction in the
heart of London and yet it is still equally important to both businesses. In
actual fact, it is the way in which the marketing is used that is the key
rather than the amount of money that is spent on it, and this does provide you
more clues as to who you should be targeting when you are 'selling' the
attraction to customers.
If the small tourist attraction
was linked to something to do with mining and its history then clearly your
knowledge has to be very specific and so will the market that it is aiming for.
However, if you worked for the British Museum in London then they still market,
but your knowledge and awareness of who is going to come in through the door
will certainly have to be more varied than before. As a result, the way in
which you go about your business has to change as you can be a fountain of all
knowledge for a small location but this is impossible when dealing with
something on a larger scale.
What we are saying is that the
size and scale of marketing within this industry is vast although there are
more important points to keep in mind when it comes to you and your career.
FACT
Marketing is an essential core business
cost in travel and tourism, not an optional activity.
Source: Educationscotland.gov.uk
7.3 How it Impacts on Your Own Career
If you believe that you are not
actually directly involved in the marketing or promotion of the industry, then
the chances are that you are completely wrong.
In actual fact, people that deal
with customers in some way, shape, or form, will be drawn into the promotion of
something within the industry simply because of the nature of the world in
which you are working.
It is best to look at it from
this perspective. No matter which part of the industry you work in you are already being subjected to talking
to customers about certain locations, products, or services that have been
marketed in their own unique way.
The way in which it impacts on
your own career is rather interesting to note:
It affects your knowledge.
We have stressed time and time
again the importance of knowledge and putting it to the correct use and that
applies even with the marketing. You must be aware of what the marketing is
saying to be able to provide the correct service to your customers or clients.
For example
If the marketing is pushing a
location as being fun for the family then your knowledge has to reflect that,
as it is pointless spending time learning about the romantic nature of a
destination if that is not what is being pushed.
It affects the product or service
you offer.
The marketing behind a product
changes how you put across the product or service that you are involved with,
no matter the industry that we are talking about. The marketing changes your
sales pitch or the questions you deal with as they are all linked together.
It affects how you deal with
customers.
The way in which the marketing
affects how you deal with customers is quite apparent, especially if we refer
back to the example that was given above comparing a small mining museum to the
British Museum. That may be a rather specific example, but you can use the same
principles of comparing and contrasting what a business has to offer and the
scale on which it can offer its products or services across the board. This, in
turn, changes how you deal with customers, as a smaller location will require
more specific knowledge, whereas a larger location deals with more general
questions, so the things you have to handle on a daily basis change.
It affects the type of people you
have to deal with.
As marketing effectively helps
people to understand the type, or quality, of product or service that they
should expect to receive, it does then also alter the kind of people you
generally have to deal with.
For example
You would hardly say that the
same kind of people who frequent the Ritz in London would also stay in a
Premier Inn in London, so the way in which you handle people is going to be all
important. Now, how does this affect your career? In all honesty, it should
make no difference as each individual should be seen as equal no matter how
much money they spend. If you are good at your industry then by all accounts
you should be able to move between establishments, or companies, without there
being any problem whatsoever.
Marketing does make a difference
to your career as you have to take the messages that are put across in the
various campaigns and then make the most of it. It is up to you to correctly
interpret the message and then use it to your advantage to make sure that the
customer before you gets what they want and are happy with the
service or product.
Happy customers turn into happy
returning customers and that is one of the best ways in which you can improve
your career no matter the industry you are operating in.
7.4 Key Methods Used in the Promotion of the
Industry
When it comes to understanding
the key methods that are used when promoting the industry, the one thing that
stands out is the need for it to portray destinations as being absolutely
perfect for certain needs or wants.
The methods that are used are
designed to really push across a particular message to the market that they are
aiming for and it is interesting to look at how two different destinations are
marketed in an attempt to get the money out of your bank account.
We can use an example of marketing
for a trip to the Maldives and a trip to Disney World in Florida. Both are
going to be expensive, but both have two completely different markets that they
are aiming for. Clearly Disney World is going to be aimed at families, and the
Maldives is more of a romantic, honeymoon exotic location.
This is something that is very
apparent in the marketing for both locations.
Any form of promotion for Disney
World is a blend of attracting not only the kids, but also the parents that are
going to have to spend the money to go there. The marketing has characters, it
creates a sense of magical adventure, fun for all the family, and it is all in
wonderful weather and everybody is full of energy.
On the other hand, the Maldives
is marketed as a tropical island with people relaxing on the beach and swimming
in the Indian Ocean. You will very rarely see kids appearing in the media campaigns
and instead there will be a tendency to show couples together just soaking up
the view. It is more laid back, less energetic, and yet still gorgeous and the
weather is divine. In addition, the accommodation is marketed as being
different, which it is, and it is clear that the people that the Maldives is
being promoted to are completely different to that of Disney World.
So, why is that?
Clearly there are different needs
and wants and the marketing that takes place within the industry looks at each
and every destination or location and determines what their target market is
going to be and what they will be looking for when they are there.
The promotion that is associated
with each location may very well cost the same, be produced to the same
standard, but at the end of the day there are completely different reasons and
messages that lie behind the marketing
material.
This is only one example of how
two different locations can use two different marketing approaches in order to
target their market. However, you can also use the same principles and apply it
to anything including airlines. The marketing for the likes of Ryanair is going
to always be different to British Airways, for example, as they are pushing
different things to different people and, it could be argued, a completely
different market entirely.
For you working in the travel and
tourism industry, you have to be aware of the message that is being put out
there by the marketing to then make sure that you are pushing the correct
things to the correct market.
In this module, we have looked at
the promotion and marketing techniques that are used within the industry.
However, it is important to
stress that the exact methods that you may end up using will vary depending on
the location, which is why it is so important for you to get to grips with what
the customers are looking for in order to correctly match them up with
locations that the marketing has deemed to be suitable for them.
In the next module, we will look
at taking marketing further by focusing on social media.
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