Digital Marketing Report: Opportunities, Challenges, and Strategies

This report delves into the realm of digital marketing within the hospitality industry, with a particular focus on the global brand Hilton. The report begins by defining digital marketing and its various applications, including social media, websites, and email campaigns. It then explores the opportunities, challenges, and overall impact of digital marketing on the hospitality sector, emphasizing the importance of adapting to evolving technologies and customer expectations. The main body of the report is structured around four key tasks. Task 1 examines the opportunities, challenges and impact of digital marketing on the hospitality industry. Task 2 assesses digital tools, platforms, and channels used by organizations, including Hilton, to maintain an online presence and engage with potential customers. Task 3 presents a plan for organizing digital marketing activities to support Hilton's initiatives in building multi-channel capabilities. Task 4 outlines methods for monitoring, evaluating, and measuring the effectiveness of digital marketing campaigns. The report concludes with a synthesis of the key findings and recommendations for future digital marketing strategies in the hospitality sector. The report emphasizes the importance of adapting to the digital environment to enhance customer experience and maintain competitiveness.

Digital Marketing
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Task 1 ..............................................................................................................................................3
Opportunities, challenges and the impact of digital marketing on the hospitality industry........3
Task 2...............................................................................................................................................6
Digital tools, platforms and channels used by various organisations.........................................6
Task 3...............................................................................................................................................9
Plan for organising digital marketing activities to support Hilton's initiatives of building
multi-channel capabilities in luxury business division and active holiday seekers....................9
Task 4.............................................................................................................................................12
Methods to monitor, evaluate and measure the effectiveness of digital marketing..................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................13
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................14
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INTRODUCTION
Digital marketing can be defined as the process of marketing products and services of a
company using various digital technologies through mobile applications, Internet, display
advertising or any other mediums (Buchanan and et. al., 2018). There are endless options of
carrying out branding for a company through digital marketing including social media, website,
email, video etc. Digital marketing not only makes it easier to create engagement and brand
awareness but also helps in converting new potential buyers into permanent customers who are
loyal to it. This will lead to the customers talking and sharing information about the company's
products. Hilton is a hospitality brand that is globally recognised for providing exceptional
services and a lasting experience to its customers. The brand was founded in 1919 by Conrad
Hilton and is now an international name having nearly 15 different brands across various
markets. The report explains the various opportunities, challenges and impact of the digital
environment in the hospitality industry with a critical assessment of the various digital tools and
channels used by various organisations in the industry. A plan is also provided in order to
organise various activities of digital marketing to help the organisation in building multi channel
capabilities with an evaluation of various digital marketing methods effectively.
MAIN BODY
Task 1
Opportunities, challenges and the impact of digital marketing on the hospitality industry
Digital marketing can be defined as the process of marketing of goods as well as services
by using various digital technologies and involves various tools, channels as well as platforms.
Today, digital marketing is considered to be one of the most powerful forms of marketing which
is a cost effective way of marketing businesses. There are many benefits of digital marketing
such as a digital campaign is easy to measure and adjust to (Chaffey and Ellis-Chadwick, 2019) .
It helps in reaching out to customers globally with a small amount of investment and has low
cost attached to it. Also, there are improved rated of conversion as the customers are only a few
clicks away from buying something.
Opportunities
Evolving technologies in the market have made it necessary for the organisations to adopt
the process of digital marketing in order to sustain in a highly competitive and dynamic
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environment. There are several opportunities that digital marketing has in the market today
which are explained below -
 Expanding social media presence – In today's era, social media is the go-to platform for
people who use internet (Critchlow and et. al., 2016). Digital marketing helps in
expanding the presence of a brand online as social media is a place where people can
share their memories of holidays and tours etc. This holds true in the case of hospitality
firms like Hilton as by opting various techniques it has been able to create a global reach
worldwide.
 User experience – Adopting and implementing various digital marketing methods help
organisations in providing their customers with a lasting user experience. It has been
observed that people who have a good experience on the social media pages as well as
the websites of a particular hospitality organisation, are more likely to make another
purchase for the same since the customers turn to internet to gather information regarding
something specific.
Challenges
Digital marketing is all about market products and services by using the digital
technologies with help of internet, mobile apps and display advertising to reach at large no. of
consumer base. In respective report which conduct study on the presence of Hotel Hilton in
digital world and some challenges faced by them during that process are as follows:
How to track and monitor the multitude of different devices used by customers:
For an organisation it is very much important to track and monitor the multitude of
various devices availed by the consumers that shows the factors contribute in success of them
(Kingsnorth, 2019). In context of Hilton they present digitally in marketplace to reach at large
no. of consumer base. Measuring effectiveness of digital campaign is an integral part of the
engaging, exciting marketing. It is a complex process to measure the success of digital marketing
as in competitive world accessibility on various platforms are very much obligatory and
consumers also uses multiple devices as per their need. so it create problem for Hilton to record
their presence on every digital platform and track consumers experiences on various devices.
Shift from brands and suppliers to customers and their experience of the brand:
In today's competitive world organisation majorly focusing on the enhancing consumers
experience rather than brands and their suppliers (Hanlon, 2019). In context of Hilton they
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record the digital presence at that time faces problem needed to shifted from brands and suppliers
towards consumers in order to provide great experiences to them. As it is very critical to analyse
potential consumers needs and demand to serve them in best manner. So majorly focus on the
consumers sometimes hinders self interest of Hilton in managing activities of suppliers.
Increased security risk:
In digital marketing as more and more information shared online, in which there are lot of
incentives for hackers to get through the security. In context of Hilton consumers pay bills,
submit application with private information and other important kind of documents. In that
regards organisation such as Hilton uses kinds of security to save their websites and information
by good firewall, HTTPS encryption and best antivirus program in order to remain always
competitive in marketplace. So the major challenge is to identify weakness of website and create
measure to reduce risk.
Increasing Ad costs:
Advertising enables in giving exposure that is very much potential for an organisation
but pay more (Chaffey and Ellis-Chadwick, 2019). In context of Hilton to advertise their
products in marketplace have to pay more to networks such as Google and Facebook. To
optimise the best results it is necessary to pay worth money for it to place on the right network.
So it decreases the return on investment and brand value in the marketplace that hinders in
gaining desirable outcomes.
Hence, it is very much important for an organisation to consider respective factors before
digitalise the market to resist pitfalls of digital-marketing in the organisation.
Impact of digital environment on hospitality industry
The impact of technology across various industries has been huge but has primarily
affected the hospitality industry in a very significant way. The major aim of the industry is to
keep transforming and innovating its products and services in order to meet the level of the
digital era (De Pelsmacker, Van Tilburg and Holthof, 2018). Thus, new advancements in
technology and trends have helped in enhancing the hospitality industry and by providing a lot of
opportunities for business. The impact of the digital environment on hospitality industry is
explained below -
 Greater importance to customers – Social media has led to providing the customers
with exceptional experience. Thus, in today's world organisations put in a lot of efforts in
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providing their customers with a lasting experience which means that customers today
are considered to be a primary aspect for any business as they have the power to either
make or break a business. Also, it has become very easy for customers to share their
experiences as well as feedbacks regarding a particular experience they've had
previously with a brand (Girchenko and Ovsiannikova, 2016).
 Mobile Communication – A sudden increase in the use of smartphones has impacted
the way organisations communicate with the customers as they now have their own
travel applications that provide people a lot of options to choose from in a much more
refined way. They also have the opportunity of comparing various available options as
they have access to information such as various package deals, restaurants, interesting
places, cafes etc.
Task 2
Digital tools, platforms and channels used by various organisations
Digital marketing is being used by organisations across industries in order to stay
relevant and competitive in the market. Organisations dealing in the hospitality industry are
increasingly making use of the various platforms of digital marketing to maintain their online
presence. This is done by being actively engaged on various online social media platforms like
Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter etc. The organisations put in a lot of efforts in
identifying various innovative ways of communicating and staying connected with their
customers. In today's era, a large number of customers prefer searching information about hotels
and the services they provide either through their websites or other online platforms like social
media. There are various tools, platforms and channels that can be used by organisations in the
respective industry which can assist them in maintaining their position online, also interact with
various potential customers and attracting them (Heinze and et. al., 2016). Hilton used to market
itself through the process of STP, posting ads about itself and offering various offers earlier that
consumed a lot of times as well as cost. The digital transformation and introduction of various
online tools and platforms has made it easier for it to market itself. Therefore, digital marketing
today has become a major necessity rather than an option. The various tools, platforms and
channels that are used by various hospitality organisations are described below -
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Tools
It is sometimes difficult for organisations in the hospitality industry to keep up with the
demands of the industry as the preferences of customers keep changing frequently. Thus, in order
to stay on a leading position in the market, there are several tools they can use which will make
the tasks simpler (Kannan, 2017). Some digital marketing tools that are used by organisations in
the hospitality industry are explained below - Screen cloud : The tool is a digital marketing app that can prove to be useful for hotels
that have themes or concepts. The tools provides the customers with a digital menu or list
of the services that are offered at the hotel. The process of updating information
regarding different concepts becomes easy when this tool is used. The respective
company uses this tool to update information online. Typsy : Organisations in the hospitality sector consider upgrading the skills of their
employees a priority which has leveraged the usage of this tool wherein online training
can be provided to the professionals by offering various online lessons and courses that
help in enhancing their overall skills in the area of their specialisation.
 Google analytics : Google Analytics is the most commonly used digital marketing tool
that helps organisations in finding out the source through which customers got to know
about or got directed to their websites. This in turn assists them in locating where the
maximum customers are and thus the process of targetting becomes easier. The tool is
used by Hilton and provides information regarding the amount of traffic organisation's
online posts are able to generate.
Platforms
In today's era, digital marketing has become one of the fastest growing concept in the
markets and is used by organisations of various industries in order to promote, maintain
communication with existing customers and generate new ones. There are various online
platforms that can be used by organisations in the hospitality industry which are explained below
-  Facebook : Facebook has been used by various businesses to advertise, promote their
products and services and communicate with the customers to keep them updated and
informed (Gurieva and Arkhipova, 2019). Also, Facebook itself is also working towards
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making constant improvements in order to provide the best possible experience to the
users. Hilton has its own page on Facebook wherein it posts all the updated and new
information to keep the users engaged.
 Instagram : Within a limited period of time, Instagram has made its way to being one of
the most successful and widely used social media and digital marketing platforms world
wide (Parekh, Kapupara and Shah, 2016). Organisations across various industries
including the hospitality industry use this platform to reach out to various customer
segments. The platform helps in targetting the relevant audience and thus increase its
engagement.
 Blogs – Organisations have also been using online bogs as a platform to reach out to
customers and provide them with all the relevant information as they not only help in
attracting a lot of readers who like reading interesting content but also market their
products and services to them. This way more and more people become aware of the
brand and the services it offers thereby increasing the customer base as well as profits for
the same.
Channels
Digital marketing provides customers of a particular brand the ability to interact with it
and provide feedback to its various marketing methods (Digital Marketing: The 7 Essential
Channels, 2020). Online channels help in generating traffic in order to increase sales and profits
of the organisation. There are several channels that organisations in the hospitality sectors can
use and are currently being used by Hilton which are explained below - Email : Strategies like lead generation etc. help organisations in collecting the contact
informations like contact number, name, email address of various customers which also
include the permission of sending them updates and other information by sending email.
Emails are one of the most effective channels of digital marketing and help businesses in
increasing their overall return on investment. Hilton uses this channel to reach out to a
large number of customers and increasing the overall revenue. Own Website : Having one's own official website can serve to be one of the most cost
effective online channels for businesses in the hospitality industry. A website can be an
ideal way for a brand to convey various values and messages that customers find
appealing. Hilton uses its own website as the primary channel of distribution to generate
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sales. Also, websites have become one of the most important channels for communicating
with customers and selling products as well as services to hem.
 Content Writing : Content marketing is also called inbound marketing and refers to the
process of creating content that provides valuable information to the person who visits
either the website or various social media pages (Saura, Palos-Sánchez and Cerdá Suárez,
2017). If the content regarding the brand is knowledgable and answers various queries of
the customers, they are more likely to get convinced. Various organisations in the
hospitality sector use content writing as a channel for marketing themselves digitally.
Task 3
Plan for organising digital marketing activities to support Hilton's initiatives of building multi-
channel capabilities in luxury business division and active holiday seekers
A company management may adopt digital marketing activities in order to support their
plan or multi channel capabilities. Hilton Hotel is organising digital marketing activities in order
to support their multi channel capabilities i.e. luxury business division as well as active holiday
seekers. Explanation of digital marketing activities which adopted by Hilton hotel for these two
channels are given below:-
Development of multi-channel platforms
There are numbers of platforms which a company may adopt in order to promote their
project or plan or activities (Alghizzawi, 2018). In respect of Hilton hotel in order to build multi
channel capabilities for luxury business division as well as active holiday seekers, management
may adopt numbers of digital media channels, from which some are given below:-
 Social Media Marketing: It is one of the mostly use platform by a company in today's
time because through that firm can attract high range of audiences as well as it will also
help them in encouraging to visit at store. In respect of Hilton hotel they can promote
their both sector i.e. luxury business division and active holiday seekers through different
source of social media i.e. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and many more.
Through this they can also target huge audiences as well as it will also help in
communicating with audiences in effective manner.
 Radio advertising: According to this company may conduct advertising through the
different channels of radio because it will also help in attracting huge ratio of customers.
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In respect of respective hotel they can advertise their services related to luxury business
division as well as active holiday seekers. This is so because through it they able to
attract audiences and encourage them to visit at hotel in effective manner.
 Mobile phone advertising: It is consider as advertising methods in which company will
conduct promotional activities through delivering short messages services (SMS). This
will include advertisement content and discount offers so that customers get attracted and
visit to office (Centobelli and et. al., 2016). In respect of Hilton hotel they can adopt this
message in which they can deliver message to all potential and targeted customers about
their segments i.e. luxury business division and active holiday seekers. By reading
message customers want to visit at hotel and try to seek offers.
 Television advertising: It refers to the advertising method according to which company
conduct promotional activities through television. In respect of Hilton hotel they will
advertise about their luxury business division as well as active holiday seekers so that
they can attract more and more audiences.
Digital marketing campaigns planning
Hilton hotel can also conduct digital marketing campaigns planning according to their
channels i.e. luxury business division as well as active holiday seekers, this will include several
stages that are given below:- Defining business in brief- According to this Hilton hotel will briefly define both the
business i.e. luxury business division as well as active holiday seekers. In this they will
also conduct research of market in order to identify competitors of both the sector such as
they will analyse who are competitive hotel which deal in luxury division and active
holiday planning. Through this they will define goal of campaign. Define budget- After deciding the goal management will conduct activities related to
allocation of resources which will based on budget identification (The 6 crucial steps
behind an effective digital marketing campaign, 2020). In this management of Hilton
hotel will identify assets which they needed for campaign of both sector as well as they
will also develop distribution strategies so that they can develop plan accordingly. Define buyer personas- Then in this stage of campaign planning respect hotel
management will evaluate and understand challenges as well as goal so that they can
develop strategies accordingly. Along with this, they will also identify theme and
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keywords related to their sectors i.e. luxury business division and active holiday seekers.
In this stage hotel will also identify marketing tool or channels which help in attracting
more numbers of audiences. Content development- At this stage management of Hilton Hotel will conduct activities
related to create awareness about the sectors i.e. luxury business division as well as active
holiday seekers (Juska, 2017). Through this, respective hotel able to convert their
audiences by attracting them at the campaign related to both the sectors. Implementation- After development of all the strategies related to conducting campaign
Hilton hotel will conduct time planning, do assets creation and develop distribution plan.
Through all these practices Hilton hotel able to implement campaign related to luxury
business division as well as active holiday seekers in effective manner.
 Reporting- It is the last stage of digital marketing campaigns planning in which company
who is conducting campaign will conduct reporting of all activities. In respect of Hilton
hotel at this stage they will conduct activities related to tracking, measuring and adapting
of campaign for promoting their sectors i.e. luxury business division and active holiday
seekers.
Use of omni-channel marketing
Omni channel marketing is considered as an approach which provide end users or
customers with a complete seamless as well as integrated shopping experiences from their first
touch point to last. This means each and every channel work in combined manner to develop a
unified message, image, voice and brand of a firm. Hilton hotel adopt omni channel marketing in
order to ensure that customers are experiencing best facilities when they visit to their web or
page (Khan and Islam, 2017). Along with this, respective hotel also able to advertise or promote
their multi-channel capabilities i.e. luxury business division and active holiday seekers in
effective manner as well as it will also help them in increase brand visibility in respect of these
sectors. Omni channel will be very beneficial for respective hotel because it help in better data
collection, it is cost effective in nature as well as it help in better customer segmentation.
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Task 4
Methods to monitor, evaluate and measure the effectiveness of digital marketing
A lot of businesses are implementing the practice of digital marketing in their systems
which is helping them to work effectively and thereby attain their goals and objectives. They
make use of various tools like promoting, branding, marketing etc. in order to conduct digital
marketing in an effective manner (Stephen, 2016). Also, there are various ways to monitor,
evaluate and measure if the digital marketing is effective or not. Some of them are explained
below -
 Return on Investment – This is one of the most important ways to measure the
effectiveness of digital marketing. This specific measure helps an organisation to know if
the efforts they are putting into promoting digitally are working efficiently and
effectively or not. There is a pre-determined formula for calculating this.
 New Sessions and Bounce Rates – An organisation can also track new sessions on its
website and measure the impact of its various digital marketing campaigns. This measure
helps in getting an idea about how good its assets perform in holding customers for a long
time. On the other hand, bounce rates refers to the percentage of people who visit and
leave a particular website before they go on exploring other areas in it. It is one of the
most important measures in digital marketing that organisations use. A high bounce rate
is of concern for the company.
 Website traffic – Traffic refers to the number of people who visit the website and all
organisations should measure the same in order to get an idea of the popularity and
number of people who visit the website. In order to attract more traffic on the website, a
company should make it attractive by using various colours, attractive images etc. All of
this helps in attracting customers and get an idea of what their area of interest is and what
do they expect from the company (Albee, 2018).
 New visitors, returning visitors and Page views – This is also a way to measure and
evaluate the effectiveness of digital marketing as it gives information regarding how
many visitors have visited the website of the organisation which includes both new as
well as returning customers who return back to the website to purchase some other thing.
They can also set various standards and use omni channels to measure the effectiveness.
Organisations can also measure and evaluate the number of views a particular page on
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their website has which will give them an idea of how the website is performing online
and if it is able to attract a lot of customers as well as keep them engaged and interested
in content that is posted on the same. Thus, there are several ways that can be used in
order to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of digital marketing.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that digital marketing has become an
important as well as a necessary component for any organisation. There are various opportunities
and challenges of digital marketing like enhancing the social media presence and providing
customers with a long lasting experience. This all has led to giving the customers a lot of
importance and also there are a lot of tools that can be used to create and maintain the social
media presence of the brand. Also, there are various techniques of communicating with the
customers and keeping them engaged with the brand like emails, search engine optimisation etc.
The companies in the hospitality sector put in a lot of time as well as effort to identify various
unique and innovative ideas in order to stay connected with their customers as a large number of
customers prefer searching information about anything and everything.
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Online
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<https://www.act-on.com/blog/digital-marketing-7-essential-channels/>.
The 6 crucial steps behind an effective digital marketing campaign. 2020. [Online]. Available
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campaign-2018/>.
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