Hospitality Digital Marketing

This report discusses the environmental analysis of Hilton Hotel, key tools, platforms and channels used by organizations for digital marketing, and a plan for digital marketing activities to support Hilton hotel. It also covers methods to evaluate, monitor and measure digital marketing effectiveness.

Hospitality digital
marketing

Table of Contents
Table of Contents.............................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
LO 1.................................................................................................................................................3
Environmental analysis of Hilton Hotel.................................................................................3
LO 2.................................................................................................................................................5
Key tools, platforms and channels used by organisations......................................................5
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................7
Plan for digital marketing activities to support Hilton hotel..................................................7
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................10
Methods to evaluate, monitor and measure digital marketing effectiveness........................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
In the recent era technology is being highly used by businesses so that they can increase
their digital presence in market and reach to a large number of customers in real time in a cost
effective and measurable manner. Digital marketing help hotels to reach to their potential
customers and provide them detailed information about their services so that a loyal customer
base can be established. Digital marketing also help hotels in tracking the buying habits of their
customers through which changes in their strategies can be made to attract customers and
increase their sales (Adeyinka-Ojo and Abdullah, 2019). In this report Hilton Hotels and Resorts
is taken which is a global brand of full service hotels and is headquartered in Virginia, US. The
company has a widespread presence in 85 countries through its 586 branches having 251,623
rooms so that its customers can be provided with luxurious services enhancing their lodging
experience. In this report the opportunities, challenges and impacts of digital environment on
hotel will be discussed along with the digital tools, platforms and channels which can be used by
it. Further a comparison of its digital and store presence will be done along with methods of
monitoring and measuring its digital marketing will be done in this report.
LO 1
Environmental analysis of Hilton Hotel
Digital marketing is being increasingly used by companies so as to increase their saes and
reach to a large number of customers in a cost and time effective manner. This help them in
reaching to new customers and track the changing needs and wants of customers so that
innovation in their products and services can be brought which can help in attracting more
customers. In order to sustain in the market successfully Hilton which is a global brand in
hospitality industry must analyse its external environment so that so that opportunities and
threats present in the market can be analysed. Following is the external analysis of Hilton so that
external environment related to digital market can be analysed:
 Political: These are the factors related to the political situations of country which are
related to the rules and regulation of ruling government like trade tariffs, tax rates etc.
which affect businesses working in the country. UK is a politically stable country which
means that the rules and regulations of country do not change frequently which benefits
companies as they do not need to make changes in their company structure and norms
due to changing country laws (Bowie and et. al., 2016). Opportunity: As there are no
political restrictions on use of internet in UK and the support of government in
digitisation of economy gives Hilton an opportunity to expand its digital marketing
strategies so as to reach to a large number of customers. Threat: The government might

affect advertisements of company which might lead to a lot of exposure of company
facilities to inform customers about the hotel.
 Economical: These are the factors which are related to economic conditions of market
which depend on purchasing power of people, GDP, interest rates etc.UK is economically
stable which means that the purchasing power of people is high and economy of country
is growing. These help businesses to sell their products and services profitably in the
market. Opportunity: As the economy of UK is strong Hilton can use digital marketing
so as to track the market needs and give its customers most luxurious services which can
help in increasing their satisfaction thereby enhancing brand image of hotel. Threat: The
increased use of digital marketing can increase the cost of Hilton which will lead to
increased price of hotel. This might affect the company sales as customers will find other
alternatives that can provide high quality service at lower price.
 Social: These are the factors which are related to society in which company functions and
operate and are related to the composition of people belonging to different demographics,
culture, religion etc. which affect their spending pattern thereby affecting business
profits. The social factors in UK are favourable for Hilton hotel as people have high
spending power which means that they can afford the services offered by hotel.
Opportunity: Hilton can use digital marketing so as to reach to a large number of
customers and increase their market base. Threat: The taste and preference of customers
keep on changing which are difficult to be tracked even with extensive use of digital
marketing which means that high investment in digital marketing can increase company
costs (Dinis, Breda and Barreiro, 2020).
 Technological: These are related to the increased R&D promoted in country and
advancements in technology which is possible in the country which affect business
growth and expansion. UK is a technologically advanced country which means that
digital marketing can be innovatively used to reach to a large number of customers in the
country. This can help Hilton in expanding its business in UK and gain a competitive
advantage in the market. Opportunity: The increased digital advancement can help
Hilton to use digital marketing in an efficient manner so as to increase the customer base
and increase its sales which can help in enhancing its profits. Threat: As the digital

marketing is being used by all the competitors of Hilton like Marriott, Travelodge etc. it
has lead to an increase in competition for Hilton which affects its business.
 Legal: These are the factors related to law and order of country which affect the functions
and operations of business and set certain legal obligations which are to be followed by
all the businesses in market. UK has strict laws and regulations related to businesses so
that they can work under the legal framework of country. Also the laws of UK help in
increasing the use of digital technology by businesses by supporting the digital platform
expansion and building its infrastructure so that companies can be benefited through
digital techniques. Opportunity: as the UK government support businesses to increase
the use of digital media it can help Hilton in increasing the use of digital marketing so as
to increase its sales. Threat: Hilton needs to follow all the laws about using technology
in an ethical manner by following Data Protection Act, 2018 so that the misuse of
information of its customers and all its stakeholders can be prevented (Filimonau and
Naumova, 2019).
 Environmental: These factors are related to the environment of country which includes
availability of resources, pollution etc. which also affects the businesses working in the
environment. UK has enough resources available for expansion of businesses which can
help Hilton in the growth and expansion of its business. Opportunity: The availability of
resources can help it in providing services and products to its customers this it can
increase its customer base through the use of digital marketing. Threat: With the
increased tourism the depletion of resources will affect the country and will also increase
pollution in the country thus negatively affecting the environment.
LO 2
Key tools, platforms and channels used by organisations
Digital tools and techniques are used by businesses so that they can efficiently reach to a
large number of customers and increase their brand image in market. Digitalisation has become a
new trend which is used in each and every sector so that the processes and operations of
businesses can become easy and systematic. This also helps the customers to easily use digital
media thereby enhancing their convenience and increasing their satisfaction. Following are the
digital media tools which are used by Hilton and one f its competitors Marriott:

Hilton hotel: In order to capture the attention of millennial Hilton use various digital marketing
tools so that its presence in market can be increased and they can increase their sales and profits.
The company spends more than 38% of its revenue on digital marketing so that the attention of
customers can be captured which will help in increasing its sales and building a strong brand
image in market which also help in retaining its existing customer base. Following are some of
the tools used by company:
 Social media: Social media is the strongest digital media platform which can be used by
companies to reach a large number of customers in an efficient and effective manner.
Social media platforms such as Face book, Instagram, Twitter etc. are being used by most
of the customers in the present era which means that the companies need to be active on
this platform so as to reach to a large customer base efficiently. Hilton uses social media
to increase its digital presence and get in touch with its potential customers (Gursoy,
2017).
 SEO: Search engine optimisation which is a process of controlling the quality and
quantity of website traffic by increasing the visibility of a website for web users. Hilton
uses SEO so that the visibility of its website can increase with every search of its
customers which can help in attracting them towards the hotel services and increasing
their sales. This technique help in increasing the brand image of company which is
essential to attract new customers and build a new customer base thereby increasing its
sales.
 Content marketing: This type of marketing involves sharing of materials related to
business such as images, videos, blogs etc. which help in informing in detail about hotel
facilities to customers and increasing their attraction towards company. Thus this tool
also helps in increasing the customer base and building reputation of company. The
information can help in gaining trust of customers and authenticating the services that are
provided by hotel so that they can be attracted to purchase its services (Gustavo, 2019).
Marriott Hotel: This hotel chain is an American diversified hospitality company which provides
lodging facilities to its customers and is the third largest hotel chain in the world. The
headquarters of this chain is located in Maryland, US and it provides highly luxurious facilities
to its customers. With the increase in competition in the market it is important that innovation in

marketing is done so as to increase the attraction of customers and increase in its sales.
Following are some digital marketing tools which are used by Marriott:
 Email marketing: This tool help in reaching to the potential customers directly by
sending them mails about the offers, discounts, new facilities available etc. to their
customers. This help in capturing the attention of potential customers towards the
services of company which can increase the customer base of hotel.
 Google ads: These are one of the most important and effective digital marketing tools as
it help in increasing the digital presence of company on the digital media platform and
attracting the attention of customers. Google is being used by many people all around the
world and increasing the advertisements on Google can help in attracting a large number
of customers (Kriechbaumer and Teare, 2019).
 Social media: This digital is also being increasing used by Marriott to reach to its
prospect as it the most fast and effective way through which a large number of prospects
can be reached in a cost effective manner in real time. Thus social media is being used by
Marriott so that they can be informed about various schemes, discounts and offers that
the company provides from time to time so that people can plan their stay in the hotel.
TASK 3
Plan for digital marketing activities to support Hilton hotel
In order to remain competitive in the market it is important that the companies use digital
marketing so as to reach to their customers and increase their presence in the market which helps
in building their brand image and also help in increasing company sales. It is important that an
effective digital marketing plan is developed by company so that the investments done by
company can be efficiently utilised and the objectives of digital marketing are achieved. This
plan can help the company in gaining a competitive edge in the market and dealing effectively
with competition in the market. Following are the digital marketing tools that are developed by
Hilton hotel so as to achieve its marketing goals:
Luxury business channel
a) Identify the channel: It is the most essential step in developing a digital marketing plan
for company as it will determine the type of its target audience and the ability of channel
to attract the desired type and number of customers. In order to make the luxury business

channel of company effective it is important that high income people are attracted
towards the company so that the luxurious facilities can be efficiently sold to customers.
The customers belonging to this section generally prefer comfort and refreshment
activities so that high value can be created for their money which can help in increasing
their satisfaction and increase company sales (Lanz and Carmichael, 2015). This means
that in order to attract rich class people they need to be attracted through channels which
can give them a detailed idea about the facilities which will be offered by the company.
Content marketing, Google ads, Facebook and twitter can be used by the company to
efficiently attract the customers to this section. These tools can help in attracting
customer belonging to high class section of the society.
b) Developing objective: After selection of marketing channel it is important that objectives
are set which can help in improving the performance of these platforms so that high
profits can be earned by the company. Following are some of the objectives of Hilton:
 To increase its sales by 20% in the next 6 months.
 To increase its customer base by 25% in next 1 year.
 To increase its online presence so that a large number of customer can be reached.
In order to achieve these objectives it is important that Hilton render to its customers high
quality of services and products so that their experience can be enhanced and their goodwill
can be increased. Also it is important that the tastes and preferences of customers are timely
analysed which can help in providing them with services that can give them maximum
satisfaction.
c) Determine target audience: At this step the target audience is determined which can best
suit the luxury segment of the hotel and can help in increasing its sales. The company
focuses on providing high quality services to its customers which means that the main
target audience has high spending power so that they can afford the highest quality of
service which can help in enhancing their experience. This also helps in building a strong
brand image in market (Leite and Azevedo, 2017).
d) Generate integration: At this stage the marketing team of hotel combines the online and
offline marketing channels so that effective results can be achieved. This also help in
attracting a large number of customers through different marketing channels so that a
competitive edge can be gained in the market.

Active holiday seekers
a) Identifying the channels: It is important to select a suitable marketing channel so that the
holiday seekers can be efficiently reached all across the world which can help in
increasing its sales and increase its customer base. Hilton hotel can use a variety of tools
and techniques so that a large number of customers can be reached like by using the
social media platform, through e-mails, advertisement on various channels etc. This can
help in gaining the attention of holiday seekers so that they can enjoy a high quality
vacations which builds strong brand image of company (Litvin, Goldsmith and Pan,
2018).
b) Developing objectives: Hilton hotel then set certain objectives which it intends to achieve
through the marketing strategies so that sales can be increased and profits can be earned
by company. These objectives can help in giving best quality of services to its customers
so that their holiday experience can be enhanced which also help in building string brand
image in the market. This also helps in maintaining healthy and long-term relations with
their customers so that they can be retained for future.
c) Determining target audience: At this stage the target audience is determined so that their
tastes and preferences can be analysed which can help in improving company services so
that customer needs and wants can be efficiently achieved. The company can target thee
young travellers by attracting their attention through offers on rooms, facilities and
services so that they can enjoy their travel at low expenses and having high quality of
accommodation services. Also vacation packages can be launched by Hilton hotel so that
a large number of travellers can be attracted and the overall profitability of company can
increase.
d) Generating integration: At this stage various channels of communication are integrated
by Hilton hotel so that competition can be dealt with in an efficient manner.
Communication can help in building strong relations with customers along with
discovering their new or probable trends so that they can be provided with goods and
services that can help in increasing their staying experience (Minazzi, 2015).

TASK 4
Methods to evaluate, monitor and measure digital marketing effectiveness
In order to determine the effectiveness of digital marketing techniques used by Hilton hotel
it is important that they are evaluated by using effective methods so that improvements can be
made in the digital marketing methods so that company goals can be efficiently achieved. It is
also important as it help in addressing to the changing needs of the market so that a brand image
can be built which helps in attracting a large number of customers. From the above digital
marketing plans which are developed for luxury business division and holiday seekers it can be
said that they need to be evaluated and monitored so that improvements can be made so that
changing customer needs can be efficiently met in an effective manner. Following are some of
the tools which can help in monitoring the digital marketing effectiveness:
 CTR (Click through rate): This method can be used for evaluating the effectiveness of
digital marketing as CTR determines the ratio of users who click on a specific link to the
number of total users who view the page, e-mail or advertisement. This helps in
determining the number of people who actually visit the online site of company which
can help in analysing the effectiveness of company’s digital marketing techniques to
attract the prospect customers. If the numbers of visitors are more then it determines the
success of online marketing in achieving its objectives (Pappas and Bregoli, 2016).
 Questionnaire: Through a questionnaire data and information can be collected from the
customers of Hilton hotel related to their experience which can help in evaluating the
information to determine the effectiveness of digital platform in attracting customers. If
the answers of customers are positive then it means that the hotel is able to provide them
with services which are being promised to them on the digital platform. This help in
gaining trust of customers and retaining them which is important to increase company
sales.
 ROI metrics: This is the most important tools which can help in determining the
effectiveness of digital marketing in achieving its objectives as this evaluates the amount
of profit or loss earned in a year as compared to the investments made by company. If the
ratio is positive which means that the company has earned profits on its investments and
vice versa. This is an effective tool as it gives actual figures to the company on its ability

of using digital marketing in an efficient and effective manner (Saura, Reyes-Menendez
and Palos-Sanchez, 2020).
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be concluded that digital marketing plays an important role in
the success of businesses in the present era which means that various digital marketing platforms
must be used by businesses so as to gain the attention of customers and achieve a competitive
advantage in market. Also it can be said that various external environmental factors affect the
success of digital marketing which must be analysed by company so that they can use digital
platform in the most efficient manner. Further the application of digital marketing requires
development of a plan so that it can be efficiently applied and increase company profitability.
Various tools must be used to evaluate the effectiveness of digital marketing so that
improvements can be made and sales can be increased.

REFERENCES
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