Hotel Marketing Strategies Analysis

This assignment requires an in-depth analysis of the influence different marketing strategies have on hotel performance. It examines key concepts like resources, capabilities, guest satisfaction, and the role of information technology in shaping successful hotel marketing approaches. The focus is on understanding how hotels can leverage various strategies to achieve competitive advantage and enhance overall success.

Running head: CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Contemporary Hotel Marketing
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Executive Summary
Contemporary hotel marketing is much more concentrated on offering greater support for their
customer base through offering wide ranges of products and services depending on the needs of
the target market. The study has discussed the external environment of Sea World Resort Gold
Coast Hotel in Australia. From the analysis it can be found that, the hotel increased tax rate
imposed on luxurious hotel can increase the overall business cost of hotel. However, growing
inclination of people towards family tour can enhance the sales volume of the hotel. The hotel
faces tough competition from the direct competitors like InterContinental Sanctuary Cove Resort
and Royal Pines Resort in its domestic market. The study has also analyzed the internal
environment of the hotel. It has been found that wide service ranges of the hotels attract the
customers. However, lack of global presence can limit the sales volume of the hotel.
The marketing department of the hotel collects valuable information from the human resource,
finance and customer relationship management for developing effective marketing strategies.
Moreover, the study has targeted family members as its customer group. The study has set
effective objectives and goals of the hotel for next 12 months. Moreover, the study will grow its
domestic market by 12% and international family market by 20% with 12 months period. The
action plan of the study demonstrates the strategies and tactic to be taken for fulfilling those
objectives and goals.

2CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction................................................................................................................................3
2.0 Marketing Audit.........................................................................................................................3
2.1 Corporate Connection............................................................................................................3
2.0 Review of Products and Services..........................................................................................4
2.3 External Environment (PESTLE)..........................................................................................5
2.3.1 Political Factor................................................................................................................6
2.3.2 Economic Factor.............................................................................................................6
2.3.3 Social Factor...................................................................................................................6
2.3.4 Technological Factor......................................................................................................7
2.3.5 Legal Factor....................................................................................................................7
2.3.6 Environmental Factor.....................................................................................................7
2.4 Competitive Analysis.............................................................................................................8
2.5 Commercial Partners.............................................................................................................9
2.5 Market and Consumer Research..........................................................................................10
3.0 Internal Environment...............................................................................................................12
3.1 SWOT Analysis...................................................................................................................12
3.2 Internal Research.................................................................................................................13
3.3 Organizational Structure Audit............................................................................................14
3.4 Segmentation and Targeting................................................................................................16

3CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
4.0 Objectives and Goals...............................................................................................................17
4.1 Action Plan: Strategies and Tactics.....................................................................................18
4.2 Resource Requirement.........................................................................................................19
4.3 Evaluation and Contingency Plan........................................................................................20
4.3.1 Key Performance Indicator...........................................................................................20
4.3.2 Priorities........................................................................................................................21
5.0 Conclusion...............................................................................................................................21
References......................................................................................................................................22

4CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
1.0 Introduction
Contemporary hotel marketing deals with effective communication of hotel’s unique
feature among the customers (Espino-Rodríguez & Rodríguez Díaz, 2017). The hotel chosen for
this study is Sea World Resort Gold Coast hotel of Australia. The hotel provides best leisure and
hotel experience to the family travelers through attractive theme parks, luxurious rooms, fine
dining, conference hall, wedding ceremony and others. The study will discuss the corporate
connection of the hotel and review its product and service categories. The study will also assess
the external environment of the hotel through PESTLE analysis, competitive analysis, and
commercial partner analysis and market and consumer researches. Apart from that, the study will
also assess the internal environment of the hotel through SWOT analysis and internal research.
In internal analysis, the study will also examine the organizational structure and segmentation
and targeting analysis. Furthermore, based on the assessment, the study will set the objectives
and goals for the hotel. In this part, the study will frame an action plan with effective strategies
and tactics with resource requirement for achieving the objectives and goals. On the other hand,
the study will also evaluate and set contingency plans for tracking the performance of the
marketing plan.
2.0 Marketing Audit
2.1 Corporate Connection
Corporate Mission
Statement
To bring people together from all cultures, ages and backgrounds for enjoying
their leisure experience and highest theme park standard of quality.

5CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Corporate Vision
Statement
To become the premier facilitator and provider of leisure and vacation
experience in the world
Goals of Hotel  To grow business from international family travelers by 20% for
upcoming 12 month
 To grow domestic family market by 12% in next 12 month
 To get highest Occupancy rate
 To provide best customer service experience from the experienced
and trained hotel staffs
Table 1: Corporate Connection
(Source: Seaworldresort.com.au, 2017)
2.0 Review of Products and Services
Sea World Resort Gold Coast hotel provides excellent experience of family
accommodation to the tourists in the highly decorated hotel rooms. The travelers can avail wide
varieties of rooms in the hotel including deluxe double room, premium king room, family resort
queen room and others. The hotel also offers various packaged deal like Unlimited Sea World
Holiday, VIP theme park package, Pool closure special, family holiday package, dinner and
show package and lot more. The customers can also avail fine dining experience with highly
delicious food items. Furthermore, the hotel also offers conference and even organization for the
business travelers. Apart from that, the customers can also book their wedding hall in this hotel
for getting an overwhelming wedding experience (Seaworldresort.com.au, 2017).
The organization has employed approximately 15000 employees for providing
customized hotel service to the customers. Sea World Resort is located on the Gold Coast in the

6CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
South-East corner of Australian State of Queensland. The organization offers seasonal offerings
to the travelers for effective promotion of the hotel. Apart from that, the organization also
promote its services through social media channels for attractive both domestic as well as
international customers. In the last year, the organization has incorporated special waterfall café
as the special attraction to the tourists (Leonidou et al., 2013).
2.3 External Environment (PESTLE)
PESTLE ANALYSIS OF SEA WORLD RESORT GOLD COAST HOTEL
POLITICAL
FACTOR
 Political stability of Australia has built favorable business condition
 Government support for development of tourism industry fosters
business success of the hotel
 Free trade agreement of Australia can be beneficial for internal
expansion
 Increased tax rate imposed on luxurious hotel can be threat for this
hotel
ECONOMIC
FACTOR
 Growing economic condition of Australia has enhanced the profit
potentiality of the hotel
 Frequent changes in inflation rate can impact of cost of business
operation
 Fluctuation in currency rate can deter the international tourist by
deteriorating the business profit of hotel
SOCIAL FACTOR  Growing inclination of people towards travelling has increased the
scope of hotel business
 High disposable income of people has increased their tendency to
afford luxurious hotel
 Changing consumer demand can be threat for the hotel
TECHNOLOGICAL
FACTOR
 Enhanced technology of Australia has increased the customer
satisfaction level
 Improvement in social and digital media has increased the

7CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
promotional opportunities of the hotel
LEGAL FACTOR  Strict health and safety laws imposed on hotel industry can limit the
business operation
 Strict labor laws of Australia can also be influential on hotel business
ENVIRONMENTAL
FACTOR
 Government restrictions on energy savings can be threat for the hotel
 Restrictions on water savings is also influential on hotel business
 Natural disaster on the country can also hamper hotel business
Table 2: PESTLE Analysis of Sea World Resort Gold Coast Hotel
(Source: Šeric et al., 2015)
2.3.1 Political Factor
According to Luo and Qu (2016), political stability of Australia leads to less frequently
changing government policies and regulations. Therefore, such stable government rules and
regulations improve the business condition ofSea World Resort Gold Coast hotel. On the other
hand, Australian government has huge support towards tourism development has increased the
number of travelers in the hotel. However, Bilgihan and Bujisic (2015) opined that increased the
higher tax imposed on luxurious hotels has increased the cost of business operation of the hotel.
2.3.2 Economic Factor
Yang et al., (2014) pointed out that growing economic condition of Australia has
increased the potentiality of business profit for the hotel. However, frequent changes in inflation
rate often impact of pricing strategy for the hotel, which can deter the customers. Apart from
that, currency fluctuation of the foreign currency often restricts the foreign customers towards
visiting hotel.

8CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
2.3.3 Social Factor
Bharwani et al., (2017) opined that growing inclination of people towards traveling has
increased the sales volume of the hotel. Developed economic condition of Australia has
increased the disposable income of the people, which has increased the tendency of people
towards visiting luxurious hotels.

9CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
2.3.4 Technological Factor
Technological advancement of Australia has helped the hotel in reaching out mass
domestic and international customers for better customer interaction. Furthermore, advancement
in social and digital media has increased the promotional opportunities of the organization.
2.3.5 Legal Factor
According to Martin and Isozaki (2013), strict rules and regulation regarding the health
and safety of the customers has imposed certain limitation of hotel business. Strict labor laws
imposed on hotel industry is also influential on the hotel.
2.3.6 Environmental Factor
As per Baker et al., (2016), government restriction on energy savings and water savings
can impose threat on the hotel business of Sea World Resort Gold Coast hotel. Apart from that,
the natural disasters occurred in the country often deter the customers from visiting the hotel.

10CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
2.4 Competitive Analysis
Factors Sea World Resort Gold
Coast Hotel
Royal Pines Resort
(Competitor 1)
InterContinental
Sanctuary Cove Resort
(Competitor 2)
Competitor
Type
N.A. Direct Direct
Market share 37% Market Share (FY
2015- FY 2016)
33.54% Market Share
(FY 2015- FY 2016)
41.57% Market Share
(FY 2015- FY 2016)
Sales Volume AU $ 7 Billion (FY
2015- FY 2016)
AU 4 Billion (FY 2015-
FY 2016)
AU 8.2 Billion (FY
2015- FY 2016)
Product and
Services
 Luxurious hotel
rooms
 Reservation facility
 Fine dining
 Conference Halls
 Event organizing
plan
 Wedding
arrangement
 Hotel schools
 Banquets and
meetings
 Fine dining
 Fitness competition
 Child programs
 Other recreational
services
 Theaters and
Museum
 Highly luxurious
hotel rooms
 Attractive beach
access
 Indoor outdoor pool
 Shopping facility
 Golf driving range
 Fine dining on sites
 Theaters and
Museum
Basis of
Competition
Affordable prices of
the hotel prices
 Price can be
competitive for Sea
World Resort
 Higher quality and
unique value of
hotel service
Benefits of
Services
 Budget friendly
 Timely services
 Wide ranges of
amenities
 Easy access to
hotel
 Warm behavior of
hotel staff
 Affordable price
 Trustworthy services
 Discounts and
offerings
 Approachable
behavior and attitude
of the hotel staff
 Standard quality of
hotel services and
amenities
 Highly trained hotel
staffs for proper
service delivery
 Quality assurance
 Wide ranges of hotel
amenities
Strength  Affordable price
 High market
penetration options
 Gradually increasing
market shares
 Budget friendly price
for the hotel services
 premium quality of
products and
services
 High quality
services from highly
trained customers
Weakness  Lack of
concentration of
service quality
 Less numbers of
shareholders
 Inefficient customer
service
 Lack of standard in
product and service
quality
 Price is little bit high
 Less promotional
tools
Table 3: Competitor Analysis
(Source: Bruni et al., 2017)

11CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
2.5 Commercial Partners
Sea World Resort sources the best materials from their unique sources of suppliers.
Moreover, the hotel sources the best suppliers for getting supply of best hotel accessories for
better customer service. The needs for unique source of suppliers make the hotel highly
dependent on the suppliers. The hotel also maintains collaborative relationship with the
distributors for getting timely delivery of their supplied hotel equipments (Dedeoğlu & Demirer,
2015). On the other hand, partnership of Sea World Resort with the travel agencies helps the
organization in getting sources of huge customers. Moreover, the hotel gets huge customer
referrals from these travel agencies, which enhances the sales volume of the hotel by enhancing
its customer base (Radojevic et al., 2015).
Furthermore, effective airline partnership of the hotel with airline companies ensures
luxurious and comfortable journey of the customers during travelling. Best partnership of the
hotel with the food suppliers ensures delicious and authentic foods delivered to the customers.
The hotel has also built some promotional partnership with some organization for effectively
promoting its unique attraction to the customers of both domestic and international market
(Patiar & Mia, 2015). Moreover, the hotel has made partnership with Coca-Cola and Streets for
undertaking mutually beneficial marketing and promotional activities for Warner Village Theme
Parks. The hotel has also partnership with some educational partners for providing best
education to the students of tourism course (Chen et al., 2014). Such partnership attracts wide
students groups towards choosing this hotel as their best place of gaining fist hand hotel service
experience. Apart from that, Government partnership of the hotel facilitates in getting some
government support from their business operation (Melián-González & Bulchand-Gidumal,
2016).

12CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
2.5 Market and Consumer Research
Australia has welcomed around 8.7 million international visitors in the year ending
September 2017. It is actually up by 7.4% from the previous years. Recreational travel
comprised of largest share of international inbound tourism in 2016 by 53% (Fraj et al., 2015). In
2014, International passenger traffic to and from Australia has reached record at 34. 9 Million. In
this way, the there is an increasing boom in the hotel sectors for increasing development in the
tourism industry. The hotel sectors have also reached the highest occupancy rate in the last year.
Therefore, Sea World Resort has huge opportunities in enhancing their overall profit through
increasing international inbounds and high occupancy rate of hotels (Assaf & Agbola, 2014).
The success of Sea World Resort is largely dependent on international travelers coming
from the countries in Australia. However, domestic travelers also have significant contribution in
the success of the hotel. Furthermore, the seasonal travelling tendency of both international as
well as domestic travelers also builds the foundation of high occupancy rate of the hotel. Apart
from that, growing industrialization of the world is increasing the business travelers in the hotels.
They are more inclined to travel in international markets for arranging conferences with the
business clients (Benavides-Velasco et al., 2014). Apart from that, such business travelers also
arrange various event shows for their business promotion. Therefore, the demand for even
organizing service of the hotel can be highly popular to those business travelers. In this way, this
customer section is also growing strong in the hotel sectors, which can build the foundation of
success of the hotel. Increasing numbers of family travelers both from domestic as well as
international countries in winter season also forms the success of the hotel (Wu & Ko, 2013).
Therefore, such family travelers around the world are also growing strong among the target
market of the hotel.

13CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
3.0 Internal Environment
3.1 SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis of Sea World Resort Gold Coast Hotel
Strength  High brand recognition of the hotel attracts huge customer groups
 Huge service ranges in the hotel provides unique value to the customers
 Warm and friendly behavior of the hotel staffs build the success of
hotel services
 Technical innovation improves the customer experience
 Various brand ranges from reasonable to aspiration
 Timely delivery of hotel services
Weakness  High brand image can be vulnerable to breakthrough for any small
reasons
 Competition from direct competition in the hotel sectors leads to
reduced market share
 Lack of global presence limits the sales and revenue of the hotel
Opportunities  Growth tourism market and industry can increase the business
opportunity of the hotel
 Increasing foreign tourists arrivals can increase the sales volume of the
hotel
 High brand image can enhance the scope of global expansion
 Novel travelling concepts like medical tourism and eco-tourism can
increase the profit level

14CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Threats  Tough competition from the domestic competitors like Royal Pines
Resort
 InterContinental Sanctuary hamper the market share of the hotel
 Famous international hotels also attracts international travelers
 Economic fluctuation can hamper the tourist
Table 4: SWOT Analysis of Sea World Resort Gold Coast Hotel
(Source: Leonidou et al., 2013)
3.2 Internal Research
While considering the average length of stay of the customers in Sea World Resort, it can
be said that the hotel has 7.5 days average length of stay of the customers (Tanford et al., 2016).
The organization can effectively become aware of such information from the hotel reservation
managers. It is actually calculated by total number of stay divided by total number of reservation
of the hotel. The organization can also gain adequate information regarding the occupancy rate
of the hotel from the front office employees. Such information can assess the perfection of the
rooms and services in the hotel. While assessing the occupancy rate of Sea World Hotel, it has
been found that the hotel has 70% occupancy rate (McManus, 2013). Occupancy rate determines
the demand of hotels among the customers. The assessment of occupancy rate can help the hotel
in determining the level of improvement in the hotel rooms.
A secure and hassle free payment method encourage the customers towards revisiting the
hotel. Moreover, it ensures money security for the customers in their payment method. While
considering the payment method of Sea World Hotel, it can be found that the hotel uses cash
payment, credit card and debit card, personal check, direct billing and others. Such payment

15CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
methods give a secure feeing of money transaction to the customers (Arenoe et al., 2015).
Therefore, such payment methods often contribute in the satisfaction level of the customers. On
the other hand, the hotel can also take the advantage of information regarding its guest
satisfaction survey. The organization can assess such guest satisfaction survey information from
the software tool used in the assessing guest satisfaction survey. Such information can provide
the core needs and demands, likes and dislikes of the customers to be incorporated in the hotel
service (Villarino & Font, 2015). Therefore, the information guest satisfaction can help the hotel
in modification of their service ranges for providing unique value to the customers.
3.3 Organizational Structure Audit
Figure 1: Organizational Chart including Marketing Department of Sea World Resort
(Source: Bazazo et al., 2017)
The marketing department of Sea World Hotel is responsible for reaching out to the
prospects, customers, investors and community for creating an overarching corporate image.

16CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Moreover, the marketing department represents the hotel to the customers in a positive light.
Marketing department looks after the sale, advertisement, promotion, distribution, customer
satisfaction and others of the hotel. Marketing information system facilitates the marketing
department of the organization in timely decision making regarding the marketing activities
(Barber & Deale, 2014). The department effectively interacts with the sales department for
efficiently formulating sales strategy. On the other hand, the marketing department also interacts
with the finance team for deciding upon research, promotion and distribution strategy, which are
to be fit within the financial budget of the hotel. In this way, timely marketing information
facilitates the marketing department in deciding upon the research, promotion and distribution
strategy in effective manner (Galli et al., 2017).
Marketing department of the hotel also interacts with the human resource management
department for gaining effective information about research and development of new product
ideas. Moreover, such information about new product development and product improvement
can help this department towards sharing unique and updated information to the customers for
customer attraction (Jani & Han, 2014). Such information also facilitates the marketing
department in deciding upon the production target and hiring competent sales team for perfectly
interacting with the customers. Selection of competent and ambitious sales team facilitates the
hotels in high level of customer attraction. On the other hand, marketing department of the
organization also interacts with the customer relationship department for setting the strategies for
effective customer relationship (Kim et al., 2013).

17CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
3.4 Segmentation and Targeting
Target Market
 Primary Target Market: Family Travelers (Domestic, International)
Identifying Market Segment
Demographic  Age: 20 to 75
 Gender: M/F
 Income: AU$500 to AU$3000 (monthly)
 Education: Average
 Family Size: 2 to 10
 Status: Nuclear/Joint
Geographic Country State City
Australia, New
Zealand, China,
United Kingdom,
Unites States,
Singapore, Japan,
Malaysia, India
 Domestic: Queensland,
NSW, Victoria,
Tasmania
 International:
Auckland, Wellington,
Christchurch,
Hamilton, Zhejiang,
Jiangsu, Shandong,
California, Florida,
Virginia, England,
Scotland, Wales,
Maharashtra, Tamil
Nadu, West Bengal
 Domestic: Gold
coast, Melbourne,
Sydney, Adelaide,
Brisbane, Perth,
Darwin, Canberra
 International:
Jurong East,
Kampong, London,
Liverpool, NYC,
Washington,
Mumbai, Chennai,
Kolkata, Beijing,
Shanghai, Tianjin
Psychographics  Lifestyle: Office going, Socially aware, self-employed
 Personality: Buying power, accessibility ease
 Interest: Adventure, Explore
Behavioral  Purchasing: Need based, Luxury-seekers, Price-conscious
 Consumption: Enthusiasts, Early adopters, Quality-conscious
Target Market
Family Travelers
Identifying Positioning Strategy
 Clear identity and placement
 Consumers targeted
 Visibility and recognition
 Features with added value
 Luxurious services at lower price

18CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Table 5: Target market Analysis
(Source: Created by Author)
4.0 Objectives and Goals
SMART OBJECTIVES OF SEA WORLD RESORT GOLD COAST HOTEL
SPECIFIC
OBJECTIVES
 To grow business from international family travelers by 20%
 To grow domestic family market by 12%
 To achieve occupancy by 75% in winter season
 To achieve occupancy by 50% in summer season
 To enhance gross sales volume by 38%
MEASURABLE  Growth in both domestic and international market can be easily
tracked
 The occupancy rate of the hotel can be easily tracked
 The gross sales volume of the hotel can be accurately calculated
ACHIEVABLE  Growing both international and domestic family travelers can be
achieved easily
 Increasing occupancy rate is hard but possible to achieve
 Enhancing gross sales volume is achievable with improved hotel
service
REALISTIC  Achieving growth in international and domestic family travelers is
realistic enough with increased customer attraction
 Enhancement of occupancy rate is realistic enough with improved
hotel service
 Reaching 38% increase in gross sales is realistic with gathering more
numbers of customers
TIME BOUND  Objectives will be achieved with 12 months period
Table 6: SMART Objective

19CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
(Source: Created by Author)

20CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
4.1 Action Plan: Strategies and Tactics
Objective
 To grow business from international family travelers by 20% for upcoming 12 months
 To grow domestic family market by 12% in next 12 months
Target Market
 Primary Target Market: Family Travelers (Domestic, International)
Strategies and Tactics
Strategy Activity Priority Resources Timing
Rooms: Features High Medium Low Necessities Months
Deluxe Category: (Modified)
 Deluxe family Queen room
 Deluxe family Quad room
 Deluxe family King room
 Deluxe family Triple room
Simply stunning, offers
spacious and modern view
experience with vibrant
décor, large LCD TV, free
wifi, large bathroom, large
double beds, overlooking to
pool area, facing to sunlight
Quad
room,
Triple
room
Quad room Queen
room
Huge capital,
investors, suppliers,
human resource,
stakeholder
communication,
1 to 10
Months
Premium Category: (Modified)
 Premium Resort double room
 Premium Resort King room
 Premium Broadwater
Offers beautiful
contemporary look and feel,
two double beds, free wifi,
two LCD TVs
Broad-
water
King room double
room
Huge capital,
directors, suppliers,
consultants
1 to 12
Months
Basic Category: (New)
 Basic Double room
 Basic King room
 Basic Queen room
Budget friendly rooms, quite
spacious, LCD TV, free wifi,
single/double bed
Queen
room, King
room
Double
room
Huge capital,
directors, suppliers,
consultants
1 to 12
Months
Extras: Features High Medium Low Necessities Months
 Fountain Garden Dazzling lighting with
different color all along with
change in fountains
Huge capital, media
partners, R&D team
10 months
 Mountain Adventure Alpine skiing, ski jumping,
snowboarding
Huge capital, media
partners, R&D team
3 Months
 Cultural Program Show Traditional entertainment
programs customized for
each guest category
Huge capital, media
partners, R&D team
6 Months
 Scuba Diving Circuit scuba diving,
recreational scuba diving,
free training
Huge capital, media
partners, R&D team
6 Months
High Medium Low Necessities Months
Marketing director,
sales director,
finance director
1 to 10
Months
Premium Category: Competitive pricing (price will be set
in accordance to competitors)
 10% discount for 3 night and 2 days
 20% discount for 6 night and 6 days
Marketing director,
sales director,
finance director
1 to 12
Months
Basic Category: Price penetration (price will be less for
first 12 months and then gradually rise)
 30% discount for 3 night and 2 days
 50% discount for 6 night and 6 days
Marketing director,
sales director,
finance director
1 to 12
Months
High Medium Low Necessities Months
Mountain
skiing
Cultural
Program,
Scuba
Diving
FountainG
arden
Marketing director,
sales director,
finance director
10 months
High Medium Low Necessities Months
Use of online and offline channels: Through online channel such as
OTAs, official website, social medias and offline channel such as voice
reservation services and wholesalers booking will be increased.
Technology to tie: Through property management system, channel
manager, media partner, online reservation website more booking will be
registered.
High Medium Low Necessities Months
Travel Agents
 Partnering with national travel agencies for advertisement in
promotional fliers, annual brochures, radio commercials
Membership Rewards
 Initiating membership programs for rewarding frequent guests
along with loyalty programs for extra upgrades and free
amenities
Online Discounts
 Special rates for smartphone and online bookings, online
discounts during season
Low Season Specials
 Promoting low-season rates and discounts along with zero-
bargain rates
High Medium Low Necessities Months
Publicity
 Use of social media websites, marketing campaign, trade fare,
brand awareness, CSR activities
Public Relation
 Mobile application for Android and iOS, personalized email
alerts, SMS alerts
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__
Table 7: Action Plan

21CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
4.2 Resource Requirement
Resources Points to be considered
Personnel  Recruitment of qualified and experienced candidates through reference,
consultancy agencies and newsletter
 Fresh graduate recruitment from campus drives for staffing
Suppliers  Raw material supplies for infrastructure development and construction
 Materials for catering, lodging and food
R&D team  Necessary for new room category planning and construction
 Added service development strategy including amenities
 Strategic planning for infrastructure development
Strategic
consultants
 Required for designing and development of action plan
 Gaining ideas for resource consumption optimization
Space and Time  Developing milestones for deliverable measurement
 Acquisition of new areas for cultural program, mountain sports and
fountain garden resorts
Consulting and
training
 Service improvement through training sessions for fresh recruiters
 Intra-organizational support for decision making and evaluation
Media Partners  Required for advertisement and promotions
 Creating brand awareness and market penetration
Table 8: Resource Requirement
(Source: Created by Author)

22CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
4.3 Evaluation and Contingency Plan
4.3.1 Key Performance Indicator
Factors Points to be considered
Sales Revenue  Helps in identifying the amount of revenue generated through sales
 Has to be calculated after each quarter
 Based on revenue collected action plan will be revised
 Following is the formula:
 (Total sales for the year) - (Total revenue from customers acquired
through inbound marketing)
Cost Per Lead
(CPL)
 Helps in evaluating customer acquisition cost through integration
 Manpower, technology, software, general overhead, advertising
and marketing are the factors for evaluating CPL
 Budget for each resource category can be revised based on CPL
Return on
investment (ROI)
 Helps in evaluating monthly and annual performance
 Future planning and changes in strategies are to be initiated by
identifying the gap between proposed and projected return
Traffic-to-Lead
Ratio (TLR)
 Website traffic can be evaluated by categorizing the visitors
according to social media, direct and organic
 Indicates own website development through change in design, text,
graphic, form or content
Social Media
Traffic
 Evaluating metrics such as lead conversation and customer
conversion through social media channels
 Allocating resources for social media and its design development
will need to be changed once gap is found
Table 9: KPI of Marketing Plan
(Source: Created by Author)

23CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
4.3.2 Priorities
Considering the key performance indicators, it is definite enough that at certain times
plan will not be working and therefore, priority must be set so that things do not go wrong.
Therefore, the primary priority would be to check the Traffic-to-Lead Ratio (TLR) so that social
media pages can be improvised and redesigned for attracting consumers. This activity will help
in addressing both domestic and international customers at a very short time. Next, personnel
need to be contacted such as directors and managers so that strategic planning can be initiated.
Later, strategic consultants can be contacted so that contingency steps are implemented.
5.0 Conclusion
While concluding, it can be said that Sea World Resort Gold Coast can surely attract
consumers from both domestic and international market. It has been identified that services need
to be extended such as room category and extra services that will add value to international
visitors. On the other hand, the action plan indicates a complete package for the organization by
including entertainment resorts such as cultural, sports and mountaineering. However, it must be
highlighted that the organization needs to allocate huge capital by attracting number of investors.
In the initial year, the amount of sales revenue for the latest services will surely be less than
invested but it is likely the fact that within third year break-even point will be reached. The main
objective being market growth, can surely be addressed by incorporating proper positioning
strategies. Key performance indicators such as customer conversation rate will help in
determining the future growth and organizational stability.

24CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
References
Arenoe, B., van der Rest, J. P. I., & Kattuman, P. (2015). Game theoretic pricing models in hotel
revenue management: An equilibrium choice-based conjoint analysis approach. Tourism
Management, 51, 96-102.
Assaf, A. G., & Agbola, F. W. (2014). Efficiency analysis of the australian accommodation
industry: a bayesian output distance function. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism
Research, 38(1), 116-132.
Baker, M. A., Baker, M. A., Magnini, V. P., & Magnini, V. P. (2016). The evolution of services
marketing, hospitality marketing and building the constituency model for hospitality
marketing. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 28(8), 1510-
1534.
Barber, N. A., & Deale, C. (2014). Tapping mindfulness to shape hotel guests’ sustainable
behavior. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 55(1), 100-114.
Bazazo, I., Alansari, I., Alquraan, H., Alzgaybh, Y., & Masa’deh, R. E. (2017). The Influence of
Total Quality Management, Market Orientation and E-Marketing on Hotel
Performance. International Journal of Business Administration, 8(4), 79.
Benavides-Velasco, C. A., Quintana-García, C., & Marchante-Lara, M. (2014). Total quality
management, corporate social responsibility and performance in the hotel
industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 41, 77-87.

25CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Bharwani, S., Bharwani, S., Talib, P., & Talib, P. (2017). Competencies of hotel general
managers: a conceptual framework. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality
Management, 29(1), 393-418.
Bilgihan, A., & Bujisic, M. (2015). The effect of website features in online relationship
marketing: A case of online hotel booking. Electronic Commerce Research and
Applications, 14(4), 222-232.
Bruni, A., Cassia, F., & Magno, F. (2017). Marketing performance measurement in hotels, travel
agencies and tour operators: a study of current practices. Current Issues in
Tourism, 20(4), 339-345.
Chen, W. Y., Wang, K. C., Luoh, H. F., Shih, J. F., & You, Y. S. (2014). Does a Friendly Hotel
Room Increase Senior Group Package Tourists' Satisfaction? A Field Experiment. Asia
Pacific Journal of Tourism Research, 19(8), 950-970.
Dedeoğlu, B. B., & Demirer, H. (2015). Differences in service quality perceptions of
stakeholders in the hotel industry. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality
Management, 27(1), 130-146.
Espino-Rodríguez, T. F., & Rodríguez Díaz, M. (2017). Make or buy in the hotel marketing
department: transaction costs, financial and relational performance. Tourism &
Management Studies, 13(1), 7-17.
Fraj, E., Matute, J., & Melero, I. (2015). Environmental strategies and organizational
competitiveness in the hotel industry: The role of learning and innovation as determinants
of environmental success. Tourism Management, 46, 30-42.

26CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
Galli, B. J., Kaviani, M. A., Goldfarb, P. S., & Shahmaei, A. (2017). Application of Conjoint
Analysis in Improving the Value of New Product Development: A Hotel Case Study
Analysis. International Journal of Strategic Decision Sciences (IJSDS), 8(2), 11-30.
Jani, D., & Han, H. (2014). Personality, satisfaction, image, ambience, and loyalty: Testing their
relationships in the hotel industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 37,
11-20.
Kim, W. G., Cho, M., & Brymer, R. A. (2013). Determinants affecting comprehensive property-
level hotel performance: The moderating role of hotel type. International Journal of
Hospitality Management, 34, 404-412.
Leonidou, L. C., Leonidou, C. N., Fotiadis, T. A., & Zeriti, A. (2013). Resources and capabilities
as drivers of hotel environmental marketing strategy: Implications for competitive
advantage and performance. Tourism Management, 35, 94-110.
Leonidou, L. C., Leonidou, C. N., Fotiadis, T. A., & Zeriti, A. (2013). Resources and capabilities
as drivers of hotel environmental marketing strategy: Implications for competitive
advantage and performance. Tourism Management, 35, 94-110.
Luo, Z., & Qu, H. (2016). Guest-defined hotel service quality and its impacts on guest
loyalty. Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality & Tourism, 17(3), 311-332.
Martin, D., & Isozaki, M. (2013). Hotel marketing strategies in turbulent times: Path analysis of
strategic decisions. Journal of Business Research, 66(9), 1544-1549.

27CONTEMPORARY HOTEL MARKETING
McManus, L. (2013). Customer accounting and marketing performance measures in the hotel
industry: Evidence from Australia. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 33,
140-152.
Melián-González, S., & Bulchand-Gidumal, J. (2016). A model that connects information
technology and hotel performance. Tourism Management, 53, 30-37.
Patiar, A., & Mia, L. (2015). Drivers of Hotel Departments' Performance: Evidence From
Australia. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 14(3), 316-337.
Radojevic, T., Stanisic, N., & Stanic, N. (2015). Ensuring positive feedback: Factors that
influence customer satisfaction in the contemporary hospitality industry. Tourism
Management, 51, 13-21.
Seaworldresort.com.au. (2017). Seaworldresort.com.au. Retrieved 21 November 2017, from
http://seaworldresort.com.au/
Šeric, M., Gil-Saura, I., & Ozretić-Došen, Đ. (2015). Insights on integrated marketing
communications: implementation and impact in hotel companies. International Journal
of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(5), 958-979.
Tanford, S., Tanford, S., Shoemaker, S., Shoemaker, S., Dinca, A., & Dinca, A. (2016). Back to
the future: progress and trends in hotel loyalty marketing. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management, 28(9), 1937-1967.
Villarino, J., & Font, X. (2015). Sustainability marketing myopia: The lack of persuasiveness in
sustainability communication. Journal of Vacation Marketing, 21(4), 326-335.