Introduction

The report will discuss about UK college marketing in Travel and Tourism assignment. Tourism sector is the most crucial and important business in any economy. Growth and progress of economy largely dependent on the growth of tourism sector in that country (Middleton, & Clarke, 2012). The report will discuss in detail about the various concepts of marketing and how it can be used and applied in travel and tourism industry.

Task 1: Understand the concepts and principles of marketing in the travel and tourism sector

P1.1 Discuss the core concepts of marketing for the travel and tourism sector

Marketing is about identifying the need and want of the segmented and targeted group (Middleton, & Clarke, 2012). The next step is to fulfil the identified needs in order to earn maximum profit. So in order to make profit in travel and tourism industry, it is first important to identify the needs of the customer. The company should adopt various marketing research tools in order to understand the market. Travel and tourism industry is one of the most profitable industries in the present time. World economy has also identifies the importance of this sector and the potential this industry holds. Various developing countries are working to improve the travel and tourism sector in order to uplift their economy because it contributes a lot in the economy of any country. So it is very essential for the betterment for any country (Middleton, & Clarke, 2012).

Travel and tourism sector requires an effective marketing strategy to prosper in any country. This sector requires a planned marketing outline to make it effective. The growth of the tourism depends on effective creation of networks which is also capable of achieving high cooperation.

Tourism marketing is the application of some important principles and techniques used in marketing used in promoting the tourism of a country (Dolnicar & Ring, 2014). The marketing principles adopted by the tourism sector will help them to boost the overall profitability of the travel and tourism companies.

P1.2 Assess the impact of the marketing environment on individual travel and tourism businesses and tourist destinations

Marketing environment can be defined as all the variables or factors of which directly or indirectly affect the business activities. The environment keep changing which means the business activities has to be constantly monitored all the time so that the impact of business can be ascertained. The success and failure of any type of business largely depend on the environment of the business. There are three basic concept of marketing environment which include micro environment, macro environment and the market environment (Dolnicar & Ring, 2014). Therefor a business should not analyses the internal environment but also understand the external factors which impact the overall profitability of the business. Marketing environment impact the business to a large extent because of which the every business give a lot of importance to various factors of Business environment.

A tourism and travel business operating in corner of city can only prosper when they use effective tools of marketing to promote the tourism of the country and various cities and understand the needs of the consumer (Dolnicar & Ring, 2014). This can only be done by adopting various marketing tools which create awareness about the product in the mind of the people and curiosity to explore the new place.

P1.3 Discuss the factors affecting consumer motivation and demand in the travel and tourism sector.

Following are the factors which affect the consumer motivation and demand in the travel and tourism sector: -

1. Global economy: - travel is often interpreted as a luxury and people when earning less or struggling with the life to sustain in the fast moving world, the first thing which they eliminate out is the money or budget for travel (Morrison, 2013). Recently the world saw a major downfall and travel industry is one sector which got affected the most because of this. People in such time wanted to concentrate more on saving which can be used for future endeavours. Travel and tourism is shifted to future plans. In fact world travel and tourism council even claimed that global travel and tourism saw a downfall of almost 5% in 2009 because of the affected economy due to the recession (Morrison, 2013). But once the economy improved so is the condition of tourism industry and there was a substantial growth in this industry.
2. Internet and social media: - these days social media has become a part and parcel of everyone life and people often spent most of their time on social media. Consumer can read and know about any part of the world (Morrison, 2013). There are reviews and opinion option given at various platforms where people can actually express their view about their experience while visiting a certain type of place. In fact people can easily book their ticket and arrange for accommodation by just sitting in front of internet. People can contact any type of travel agency and can also arrange for any mode of transportation very easily and quickly. That is why the first thing people do before travelling to any place is search for that place and gain knowledge about the place. Therefore internet and social media as well can affect consumer’s travel choices. Website like Trip Advisor is making a lot of profit and people value the review given by this website (Chhabra, 2010). The reviews give the clear idea about the place and small things like behaviour of the staff and cleanliness of the place and whether the service provided is worth the money or not. Internet also helps people in gaining all type of information about the destination and people can easily know about it from various social media like Facebook, Twitter and Google.
3. Personal budget: - personal budget is another aspect which impacts the customer decision. No matter what is the condition of economy is, there are few people who still want to travel and explore the world because they have a passion to travel and cannot go without it (Chhabra, 2010).. These types of travellers search for various type of deals online and search for cost effective plans which help them save some money. Many hotels and airlines offer some deals which can save a lot of money. Many website also offer multiple options where the consumer can actually compare various deals. Therefore it is no longer important to be dependent on standard price which is common everywhere and they can easily make choices as per the price and their pocket.

P1.4 Analyse the principles of market segmentation and its uses in marketing planning.

When market segmentation of any company is explored the one thing which come in mind immediately are some crucial questions. The first question is what are the methods to segment the market and understand the nature of target market? Second question which should be asked more often is to understand the basis on which a market is segmented (Anuar et al, 2012). Theoretical wise there are mainly two methods to segment the market which are priori method and post hoc method. The base on which market segmentation is conducted are infinite and unlimited. It can include so many things like product class behaviour, preferences on the basis of product, the attitude of the people, consumer behaviour and brand selection attitude. There are some other factors as well like general attitude of the people towards the environment, demographics, geographic and socioeconomic factors.

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Following are the factors which analyse the uses of marketing segmentation in marketing planning: -

1. Accessibility: - one feature which plays a pivotal role in market segmentation is accessibility (Anuar et al, 2012). A travel and tourism company cannot have an access to the people who are on other corner of the city. Most of the customer will be nearby unless the company is good and quite popular.
2. Identifiable features: - the basic requirement of segmentation is that company can identify the features and factors that act like a basis of common features in a segment (Anuar et al, 2012). There are always a group of customers that has common taste and preferences. It is important that a company can identify those common needs otherwise the company will have to suffer losses and the marketing strategy adopted for the segments fails in a long run.
3. Substantial features: - the segmentation should be done on the basis of important features which are important for the company. The company cannot afford to neglect a single feature than the marketing strategy will fail to get notice among the customers (Xiang & Gretzel, 2010). Market segmentation should always be based on strong needs and wants of people ad this pays an important role in marketing.
4. Affordability: a very important feature of segmentation which is used in marketing planning is the potential of the customer to pay and his or her willingness to pay for a product or service. That is why; high priced goods are targeted to high income group. People are divided or segmented on the basis of income level is a common trend which most of the companies follows and it also plays a major role in marketing strategies (Xiang & Gretzel, 2010). It also helps in developing the pricing which work as competitive advantage for the company.

Task 2: Understand the role of marketing as a management tool in travel and tourism

P2.1 Analyse the importance of strategic marketing planning for a selected travel and tourism business or tourist destination.

Most of the advantages of strategic marketing planning are internally linked directly to the growth and success of the particular business. Following are the benefits of strategic marketing planning: -

1. A strategic marketing plan helps in identifying the direction for the business and the way to reach that direction. It mainly consists of strong goals that divided the business in small segments (Xiang & Gretzel, 2010).
2. Strategy planning help in eliminating all those activities which are unproductive and wastage of time and money. Instead it helps in focusing on more important and major features.
3. Strategic planning help in designing a planned and careful framework which act as dictionary for many functions like budgeting for the firm, fixed course of action and effective customer service.
4. A strategic planning also helps in having a deep knowledge and understanding of target market and also the customer to whom the company is serving. These entire information acts like a strong foundation of a long term decision making (Hall et al, 2012).
5. The economy of various countries is struggling these days. Therefore, companies are spending more time and efforts in a properly formed marketing plan which can make a major difference in an organisation performance.

P2.2 Discuss the relevance of marketing research and market information to managers in the travel and tourism sector.

Marketing research is very important tool to understand the customer taste and preferences. In travel and tourism sector any information on market condition works like a guide for them (Hall et al, 2012). It is very important to understand the customer needs and wants so that the company can prepare it’s offering accordingly. Following is the detailed discussion of relevance of marketing research:-

1. It is as discussed works like a guide and it is essential that before committing to any in plan or investing costs in any function, it is always better to invest the money in research which help in understanding the market well and bring clarity in mind about how to attract more and more customers (Hall et al, 2012).
2. It is also important that the business which is conducting the research should understand the relevance if the research and it should be meaningful. If the data is compiled at one place without any purpose or motive, then the research has a limited value which can further hinder the growth of the business.
3. All the information which is collected from the research should be compared, interpreted or analysed and then a careful conclusion should be drawn out of it.
4. Marketing research should be a planned activity which leads to certain decision making and which also help in devising the marketing strategies.
5. There is huge pool of information which is available in the market. It is essential for all the travel and tourism company to use the information effectively.
6. Marketing research, no doubt is one of the most important task of any business because it help in determining the future course of action. It not only helps in taking effective decisions but it also helps in gaining the competitive advantage over the competitors. The information basically help in the creating a value for the product which offer varied features and an edge over competitors (Pomering et al, 2011).
7. Managers are always expected to extract more and more information and analyse the information so that it can be used effectively in this competitive markets.
8. Research also helps in testing the concepts and the better understanding of the competitors which also help in deciding the future course of action.
9. Research of any nature is crucial and it is not necessary to have a big and elaborate research. Sometimes a small quick research on the internet becomes a major help for people (Pomering et al, 2011).
10. Most of time an elaborate research is very important as it help in understanding the market in a right way. The company many a time outsource this function.

P2.3 Assess the influence of marketing on society

Society and marketing are very work in a same place and marketing cannot take place without the help of society. People can imagine a society without marketing but it is just not possible to have the existence of marketing without society. Marketing is process of management which take place in a business and it involves forecasting, identifying and looking for the ways to satisfy the customer demands (Pomering et al, 2011). There are multiple tools of marketing including advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion and public relations. Many authors and critics claims that the marketing is process which bridges the gap between the consumer and the product or services. Promotion and advertising is the most used and debatable concept of marketing which tries to influence the demand. It has become an inseparable part of people life as people cannot really imagine the life without reading and watching the advertisements and no doubt we hardly notice them or give attention to day to day advertisement but it did leave some imprint on the back of mind of the people especially in the mind of a child or other vulnerable group of thought argues that society is made up of the marketing efforts of the organisation while other group of people feel that marketing makes the society more materialistic (Pomering et al, 2011). It is very important but complex to strike a perfect balance between the two concepts. Business environment also demand that the every step should be taken ethically and all guideline should be followed to divide the work between right or wrong and fair and unfair, and also marketer should give attention to the function which are morally correct.

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Task 3: To understand the role of the marketing mix in the travel and tourism sector

P3.1 Discuss issues in the product, price and place elements of the marketing mix

Marketing mix is a very important aspects of Contract business and the elements of marketing are very crucial for any type of business. Following are the detailed discussion of elements of marketing mix and issues related to it: -

1. Product: it the most important aspect of any business because on the basis of this a company earn profit and progress (Morgan & Pritchard, 2013). When product is sold to the customers, it brings money in the firm which takes the firm forward. Whether there is manufacturing of product or there is resale of the product, under both circumstances the company have to determine the features which will catch the attention of the people. So before introducing any product or service in the market there are certain issue which should be immediately addressed. These issues are target market for whom the product is produced, expectation of the consumer from the product, competitive edge over the competitors and also unique selling point of the customer and it also include a plan on the basis of which the product will be positioned within the market (Pomering et al, 2011). Answers to these issues are very important and the company should address these issues as soon as possible because it helps in determining the future course of action.
2. Price: another important aspect of the business is its price on the basis of which a product is sold. Many companies adopt multiple pricing strategies and it is important to give attention to cover the cost effectively, unless the company wanted to attract more and more customers. The worth of any product and service is equal to the amount that people are willing to pay. The prices which consumers are ready to pay depend on the feature offered by the product and the pocket of the target market. The competitor pricing should also be considered and all those factors which influence the marketing environment surrounding the product. Effective pricing is the mix of various factors.
3. Place: the place is also very important in marketing mix and it is about a place where the product is made or service is offered to the consumer. The product is usually made at one place and then it is transported at different places in order to make sales. In case of service it is usually being delivered at one place. The places where all the functions of marketing take place, it is important to understand that each product is delivered at the right time and at right place. The place where the product is sold should be accessible to the consumers (Morgan & Pritchard, 2013).
4. Promotion: - a product or service which is successful implies that the benefits of the product or service are communicated effectively to the consumer and target market has the clear idea of the product. Promotion is related to increasing the awareness of the people and also to encourage them to make the purchase of the product and service. Promotional activities for different activities are different and the company chooses various methods to promote the product (Morgan & Pritchard, 2013). The issues of promotion can be promotional campaigns purpose, the right budget for the campaign, legal rules related to what should be communicated and how, the target market and the market environment where all the organisations works.

P3.2 Assess the importance of service sector mix elements to the travel sector

The service sector marketing mix is also known as an extended marketing mix and is also an important and very crucial part of service design. I n travel and tourism industry it all about effective services which make any particular place or company a popular place (Morgan & Pritchard, 2013). The service marketing mix is consisting of seven Ps in comparison to the four Ps of the product marketing mix.

P3.3 Apply the concept of the total tourism product to an individual tourism business – London Gatwick airport

A total tourism product includes all the aspects of travelling right from planning the trip covering various destinations and planning it while keeping in mind about the budget consumer is willing to pay and also about the preference related to the type of destination , consumer is willing to take (Jafari, 2013). It also includes arranging for transportation at various platforms and planning the visit at various destinations around the city. While on the other hand an individual tourism business cover one aspect of tourism like travelling or accommodation and in this case of London Gatwick airport they offer the transportation facilities.

Many travel and tourism business these days have become a one stop solution for all the travel related issues and the consumer just need to express the desire to visit a place, all other work will be arranged by the company (Jafari, 2013).

Task 4: Be able to use the promotional mix in travel and tourism

P4.1 Assess the integrated nature and role of the promotional mix

On the broader basis there are five important aspect of promotional mix. These factors are discussed in detail as follows: -

1. Advertising: it is related to presenting and promoting the goods or services or ideas by a sponsor who can effectively recognise them and deciding the course of action which should be adopted here (Jafari, 2013). Example of advertising are print ads, radio, billboard, direct mail, brochures and many more. It also includes webpages or emails.
2. Personal selling: It is methods which is executed on the personal level and in this people are persuaded to buy the product on personal level and various sales presentation and meetings are concluded. It also involves sales presentation to the customer, sale meeting and training and development incentive program, telemarketing (Jafari, 2013). Personal selling where face to face interaction is involved is the most traditional method of selling.
3. Sales promotion: there is media and also non-media type of marketing communication where people are employed to determine the message to be communicated for short period of time (Goodall & Ashworth, 2013). The message communicated under this method is short lived and for enhancing the sales for a short period of time. In travel and tourism, various schemes are introduced where the various deals are offered to the customer. These deals are discounted deals boost the overall sales.
4. Public relations: it is related to the information of the product to the people in a cashless form. In this awareness of the product is created by communicating the information about product or services to the people and it is very similar to word of mouth promotion (Goodall & Ashworth, 2013). The only difference is that the information is published in newspaper and magazines articles or discussions are made in television and at various platforms.
5. Direct marketing: it is basically is a channel where the advertising allows the business or any other type of organisation to communicate straight with the consumer or people who get affected by the product or services (Rozier & Santos, 2011). The techniques for this used are messaging, email, social media, promotional letters and outdoor advertising.
6. Corporate image: the image of any organisation is very crucial and it is essential to build an image in the mind of the people in general because on the basis of which the product is pitched to the customer (Rozier & Santos, 2011). If the image of the company is good, the consumer buy the product without much thinking but he or she may feel reluctant while buying a product because of bad image.

P4.2 Plan and justify an integrated promotional campaign for the Sheraton Hotel.

An integrated promotional campaign is the medium where activities like direct marketing, email, digital and in-store promotion and various stages of promotional activities are ensured (Fotis et al, 2012). In this it is also ensured that the message reaches to various people.

The Sheraton Hotel has announced a launch of multi-billion dollar campaign which is a marketing campaign in order to highlight the revitalisation of the company and the management wanted to communicate this to people. The company had adopted the logo which is known as rediscover Sheraton and which is introduced with the motive to encourage more and more travellers to come and visit the resort and experience the exquisite services (Fotis et al, 2012). The company was involved in complete company overhaul campaign.  The company wanted to show the world about the huge investment being made at various platforms and the new look of the hotel. The main motive of this campaign is introducing a new trend which is known as “bleisure” which amalgamate both the activities i.e. business and leisure. Every aspect of the new look have focused on new type of social interaction, and also bringing the people together at single platform. The communication message was focused on blurring the line between business and leisure and adopting the solution which focus on the giving the customer a never before experience (Gursoy et al, 2011). (See Here : Travel and Tourism Management )

Conclusion

The report has discussed various aspects of marketing and tourism industry which play an extremely important role in any country (Gursoy et al, 2011). The main focus of the report is to make an understanding about various marketing activities can be used in travel and tourism industry.

References

Middleton, V. T., & Clarke, J. R. 2012. Marketing in travel and tourism. Routledge.

Dolnicar, S., & Ring, A. 2014. Tourism marketing research: Past, present and future. Annals of Tourism Research, 47, 31-47.

Morrison, A. M. 2013. Marketing and managing tourism destinations. Routledge.

Chhabra, D. 2010. Sustainable marketing of cultural and heritage tourism. Routledge, Taylor & Francis.

Anuar, A. N. A., Ahmad, H., Jusoh, H., & Hussain, M. Y. 2012. Understanding the Factors Influencing Formation of Tourist Friendly Destination Concept.Journal of Management & Sustainability, 2(1).

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