Marketing and Customer Retention Strategies in the Hospitality Sector

This report provides an in-depth analysis of marketing and customer retention strategies within the hospitality industry, using Marriott International as a case study. It evaluates the benefits of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for both the organization and the wider community, defines various contexts and types of marketing planning, and critically analyzes a generic marketing planning process suitable for hospitality businesses. The report also examines the importance of relationship marketing, the 4C's of marketing (Customer, Cost, Communication, Convenience), and the role of promotional mix and integrated marketing communications in achieving effective customer retention. The CSR initiatives, such as Marriott's Serve 360, are highlighted for their impact on brand reputation, customer loyalty, and talent acquisition. The report concludes by emphasizing the crucial role of strategic marketing and CSR in sustaining competitive advantage and fostering long-term customer relationships in the dynamic hospitality sector. Desklib offers a wealth of resources, including solved assignments and past papers, to support students in their academic pursuits.

MARKETING AND
CUSTOMER RETENTION
IN HOSPITALITY
INDUSTRY
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASKS.............................................................................................................................................3
Evaluating how CSR delivers benefits to organization and wider community......................3
Defining the contexts and types of marketing planning in hospitality business....................6
Critically analysing generic process for marketing planning for hospitality business...........8
Evaluating organizational promotional mix and integrated marketing communications strategy
..............................................................................................................................................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................14
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INTRODUCTION
Marketing is the activity that is performed by companies through which they can promote
the buying and selling products to consumers and other businesses. The activities of marketing
support companies in identifying ideal customers, draw consumer attention and retain greater
number of customers through which the companies can generate higher benefits (ALEXANDRA
TWIN, 2021). customer retention is the ability of an organization through which they can
encourage customers to make purchases from the company again and also supports in avoiding
customer switching to other competitors. Marriott international was founded by J. Willard and
Alice Marriott with the guidance and leadership from their family since 1927. The hotel is
offering powerful portfolio in the industry and have 30 brand with around 7000 and more
properties that are operating in 131 countries and territories which helps customers gaining
valuable experience and expand their operations across the world (About Marriott, 2022). This
report will be discussing about the marketing and customer retention strategies that are followed
by company while operating in hospitality industry. The study will be defining the CSR benefits
that can be availed by companies and community. The types of marketing planning and context
will be defined in the study. The project will outline a marketing planning process that is
followed by companies in hospitality industry. Lastly, the report will be discussing the
promotional mix and integrated marketing communication strategy that must be helpful for
performing the marketing functions and retention strategies in business.
TASKS
Evaluating how CSR delivers benefits to organization and wider community
Corporate social responsibility is a self regulating business model that supports
companies in becoming more socially accountable to itself, to shareholders, and to overall
community. By engaging in CSR, this reflects the operations and activities of business through
which they can enhance the society and environment instead of negatively affecting them
(JASON FERNANDO, 2022). The CSR activities followed by an organization is helpful in
helping society and creating a positive brand image of the company in the industry. Corporate
social responsibility can determine as continuous improvement through which companies can
contribute in economic development by working on the quality of life in workplace and of
community at larger glance. It can be stated as the commitments to improve the community by
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planning and following voluntary business practices that can contribute in corporate resources
and success. However, this also reflects the responsibility towards the stakeholders, employees,
suppliers, customers and society.
Corporate social responsibility is essential as this can encourage companies to plan
initiatives and strategies that can support in performing activities that can derive benefit to the
organization and overall society. The corporate social responsibility in industry reflects the
concern of the company toward the environment (Adzoyi, Blomme and Honyenuga, 2018). The
objective of CSR is to create a positive image of the company within industry though which thy
can get attention of customers as well. As hospitality industry has been operating at larger area
and is offering various services, the hospitality industry is becoming an essential sector of the
economy which holds higher power to create an impact on the industry. Hospitality industry is
creating a large footprint on the economy and this has been influencing profitability of
businesses, people and planet as whole.
Corporate social responsibility is the approach of meeting ethical and non-commercial
responsibilities of businesses which offers benefits to people, planet and supports in generating
economic profits. The CSR activities performed by companies operating in hospitality industry
supports in boosting customer loyalty, contribute in economic development and eliminates social
problems (Amoako and et.al, 2019). There are various benefits which can be driven by
companies in hospitality companies in the industry and some of these benefits are-
 Supports in building brand reputation
 Increases sales
 Higher visibility to investors
 Increases customer loyalty
 Decline in employee turnover
 Reduction in wastage by waste control methods
 Productive workforce
 Environment friendly and energy saving
 Saving operational cost
 Effective financial performance
 Ensure access to capital
 Supports in organizational growth
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 Incline in access to attracting talent and retaining staff
The corporate social responsibility of Marriott international is Serve 360 which is the
approach of company through which they can do and perform good activities in every direction
which will assist the companies in meeting their global responsibility and derive unique
opportunity. This initiative is operating under the 2025 sustainability operations of the company
which focuses on creating positive and sustainable impact where the operations of companies are
performed. This sustainable initiative helps the company in making communities a better place to
live and work. In context of Marriott International is the medium of integrating sustainable
across value chain and mitigate the climate risk through which they can meet their social
responsibility towards the environment which will also build and operate sustainable
environment (Sustainability and social impact, 2019). By the CSR initiatives, this helps the
companies in offering access to opportunity and will ensure workplace readiness as well. These
CSR initiative helps the companies in getting higher access to attracting talent and in retaining
staff which is helpful in retaining staff and in creating a loyal customer base. This supports in
building brand image and reputation of the company through which they can get access to capital
and fresh talent in easier manner.
Importance of CSR
 The CSR initiatives are helpful in evaluating the quality and reputation of hotels through
which they can sustain their competitive position within the industry and maximize the
profitability and brand image of the companies within the industry.
 The companies operating in hospitality industries focusing on employee training and
development tough which they can provide a safe and nurturing workplace scenario
through which the companies can retain greater number of staff and customers in the
workplace.
 The corporate social responsibility of an organization helps the companies in improving
consumer perception of the brand through which brand reputation can also be enhanced
(Chastity Heyward, 2020).
 Such initiatives are also helpful in reflecting the accountability to investors through
which they can attract more investors and manage financial resources.
 The corporate social responsibility plays a crucial role in which the companies can
engage with customers and employees though which they can also enhance the
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competitive position of the organization and meet their responsibility towards the
environment.
Defining the contexts and types of marketing planning in hospitality business
Marketing planning is the process which is used for analysing the current situations and
information about marketing opportunities that support in determining marketing objectives and
developing marketing strategies through which the companies can meet their marketing targets.
It can be defined as the process of organizing and defining the marketing aims of company by
gathering strategies and tactics for meeting those objectives (Fam and et.al, 2021). There are two
types of marketing planning which can be long term and short term marketing. The process of
marketing plan involves planning various strategies and listing actions which will be taken by the
companies in meeting their marketing objectives that will also enhance the competitive position
and efficiency of business.
Relationship marketing
Relationship marketing is a marketing strategy which is the approach of building close
relationship with customers. It can also be stated as customer relationship management (CRM)
which focuses on customer retention, satisfaction ad lifetime customer value. This facet of CRM
emphasis on customer loyalty and long term customer engagement instead of short term goal
through which customer acquisition and individual sales can be managed (Jessica Day, 2021).
The purpose of relationship marketing is to create strong and emotional customer connection
with the brand through which they can lead ongoing business and generate leads. The focus of
relationship marketing in hospitality industry is to form a long term relationship where the
companies focus on increasing customer loyalty and engagement through high quality products
and services. In case of Marriott International, the hotel will be focusing on performing effective
relationship marketing by focusing on their influencer marketing, affiliate marketing, partner
marketing and employee advocacy. The hotel also make effective use of customer data through
which they can delver a personalized customer experience which will be helpful in creating a
loyal customer base.
In case of Marriott international, the hotel follows relationship marketing which focuses
on higher customer lifetime value, reduction in cost used for marketing and advertising and also
creates a stronger organizational alignment for the customers (Frye and et.al., 2020). Talking
about Marriott international, the hotel chain focuses on offering quality customer services
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through which they can enhance their experience that swill support them in building customer
loyalty and encourage their customers in sharing their feedbacks through polls and surveys
which will also help in creating better products and services.
4C's of marketing
This concepts of marketing is Bob Lautherborn which is the framework of focusing on
customers which is essentials for companies. The 4C's of marketing are customer, cost,
communication and convenience. This framework is helpful in understanding consumer wants
and needs, cost to satisfy, convenience to buy and communications. This marketing approach is
seller oriented and is a customer guided approach which is focusing on-
 Customer- This factor of marketing focuses on understanding customer needs and what
an organization can do to meet the needs of customers. This is one of the factor which
focuses on making a products or brand which can meet demands of existing customers by
planning and productions (Han and et.al, 2019). In case of Marriott international, the
company will be focusing on performing consumer surveys and evaluate their website
data insights through which thy can evaluate existing audience wants and needs. This
support the company in planning, producing and marketing the solution.
 Cost- This factor of the marketing strategy defines the cost that needs to be paid by the
customers. The price which is paid by customers is an element of total cost. In context of
Marriott international, the company focuses on creating cost which is affordable, can
meet customer satisfaction and deliver value through which they can meet customer
satisfaction and create a loyal customer base.
 Communication- This factor of the marketing strategy focuses on customer engagement
which can be helpful in building customer interest and derive sales of the company. In
relation to Marriott international, the hotel focuses on making use of social media
platforms through which they can promote the products and services and create a
customer base which will be helpful in converting leads and increasing the sale of the
company (Han, H and et.al, 2018). Marriott also promote their brand and increases their
awareness with the help of creating poll on their social media handles through which they
can gain consumer insight and create a loyal customer base. Such effective
communication strategy is helpful in targeting customers through which companies can
create a customer base which will derive profitable results to the hotel.
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 Convenience- This reflects the purchasing barriers and online sales that has been made
by the companies. This factor plays a valuable role in which the companies must
understand the value of creating an impact on the decision making of customers. In
relation to Marriott International, the hotel focuses on understanding the barriers that are
faced by customers and plan strategies that can be helpful in eliminating the challenges.
Critically analysing generic process for marketing planning for hospitality business
Marketing plan is a layout of all the marketing activities that will be performed by the
companies. This also defines the marketing strategy, promotional activities and advertising
activities that are planned and will be promoted through which they can promote the products
and services of the company (Han, H and et.al, 2019). In case of Marriott international, a
marketing plan is depicted beneath:
Situational analysis
SWOT analysis
Strengths
 Global presence- As Marriott
international is operating in 131
countries, the global presence of the
company is strength for the company
where they can create a loyal customer
base and target larger geographical
area.
Weakness
 Overemphasis on standardization-
The hotel follows system driven
business which creates a systems and
plan of actions which must be followed
by them in the organization. Due to the
stringent adherence to norms has
created a negative impact on the
morale of employees which is also
responsible for creating negative
impact on their performance.
Opportunities
 Focus on personalization- As
customers demands can be unique and
by focusing on personalization of
products and services can bring various
opportunities for Marriott international
Threats
 Higher competition- The hotel is
facing higher competition and this has
been responsible for influencing the
competitive position and profitability of
the company (Hanaysha, 2018). Some
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through which they can create a larger
customer base.
of the competitors, such as- Hilton,
Novotel are some of the competitors
which affects their ability of Marriott to
lead the industry.
Objectives
 To increase the market share by 20% in upcoming 3 years but focusing upon strategic
marketing.
 To evaluate the exploration options and increasing the overall market position of
organisation by three basic points in upcoming 2 years.
 To increase the number of units and infrastructure by 20% in upcoming 5 years for
improving the overall market capture
Strategy
STP
It is a three step model which is used to examine the products or services and the
approach through which an organization communicate the benefits that can be derived by
customers for specific customer segment. A comprehensive study of STP which will be followed
by Marriott International is explained beneath:
Segmentation- segmentation in valves a process of dividing market into smaller
segments so that organisation can easily target its potential customers within the market. In
context to the present market situation the hotel Marriott will be target the customer on two
different bases that include geographical segmentation and behavioral segmentation (Hao and
Chon, 2021). Geographical segmentation will include tourism areas searches China and Norway
where company will target to the destination. The behavioral segmentation will include those
individuals who usually visits at different places such as China and Norway in order to get a
complete extreme weather experience.
Targeting- the targeting will include focusing on the targets and customer segment in the
above section. The company with the customer by offering an appropriate infrastructure that is
available with unique features as well as quality served by the Marriott hotels in other areas
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(Ilyas and et.al, 2021). It help in establishing a different image of the organisation in two
different areas where it can easily achieve the desired results.
Positioning- in context to positioning strategy the company will use appropriate digital
marketing and target the customer by the use of big data analysing the type of customer in
relation to the particular type of facilities the company is going to offer.
Tactics
Extended marketing mix
Marketing mix is the activity which focuses on consumer centric approaches that can
promote the products and services and supports in forming strategic decisions which can be
helpful in promoting the existing products and introducing new products range (WILL KENTON,
2020). The approach of marketing mix focuses on price, place, product, promotion, people,
process and physical evidence. In relation to Marriott International, the extended marketing mix
is discussed below:
 Price- Marriott international is a global company which is targeting upper class,
corporate, families and other travellers where they are offering leisure service that can be
offered by focusing on integrity and excellence. Marriott focuses on offering good food
and services at fair process where the company is operating with premium pricing
strategy and value based pricing strategy through which they can ensure quality customer
services can be delivered for meeting customer expectations. By following value based
and premium pricing strategy, this helps the company in targeting high end customers
that will support in maximizing the profitability of the venture.
 Place- Marriott international is a global hotel chain which is operating in 131 countries,
such as- India, China, Thailand, Mexico, Malaysia, Peru and more. The hotel is operating
in prime locations where the hotel focuses on maintaining quality of the service that are
offered by them. In case of Marriott International, the company is operating on prime
locations which is the strategic decision of the company through which they can attract
more number of customer and generate higher revenues which will also support them in
enhancing the profitability of business venture (Lee and et.al, 2020). The hotel also offers
online reservation facilities through which customers can avail such services.
 Product- Marriott international is one of the giants in hospitality industry and also
manages a diversified portfolio of hotels and resorts. The company have variety of brands
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that are operated under the label of Marriott. The hotel offers luxury, classic premium,
distinctive premium, distinctive luxury and others that assist in meeting the needs of
high-class customers. The hotel chain offers personalized and premium services which
helps the company in meeting the expectation of customers through which they can
create a loyal customer base.
 Promotion- Marriott international has strengthened its position in marketplace globally
by offering innovative incentives to customers and this will also help the company in
creating customer loyalty. The company offers free merchandise, vacations, free gifts
which acts as the medium for creating and maintaining interest of customers that support
the hotel in creating a strong and loyal customer base (Porcu and et.al, 2019). The
company also introduced campaigns through which thy can promote their products and
services that cab be helpful in increasing brand awareness and target specific customer
segment for meeting the objectives of the company.
 People- Marriott values their customer and this is one of the strategy of brand where the
company focuses on meeting their expectation by delivering quality customer experience.
For making business more successful, the hotel also values the employees where
employees are trained regularly and this will also motivate them in delivering outstanding
services and meeting customer expectation.
 Processes- The hotel follows various business process which ensures delivering higher
quality customer service and comfortable stay for customers. In order to meet the
customer demands, the hotel follows a transparent process where customers can also
make online reservations and deliver more user-friendly services.
 Physical evidence- The biggest physical evidence of Marriott International is their hotels
and resorts. The services which are offered by Marriott international are majorly
intangible and such services are responsible for creating a lasting physical experience
(Ruel and Njoku, 2020). Some of the physical objects that are offered by the grand are-
towels, booklets, pens, soaps and other products and services that are given to customers
while staying at the hotel that will enhance their experience and will also support in
increasing customer loyalty with the brand.
Action
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The action plan of organisation includes effective utilisation of the above-mentioned
marketing mix. in context to actions the company will focus on understanding the different
aspects any value eating each and every aspect according to the organisational strategy. It will
help in understanding the market dynamics and taking decisions according to it so that
effectiveness of overall marketing plan can be increased.
Control
Control include focus on monitoring and control process. In contrast to the present action
plan the company will focus on 360 degree feedback approach that help in evaluating each and
every aspect of the overall strategy and the plan (Salem, 2021). It helps in collecting the
information and establishing an appropriate change of control and command that ultimately
benefit to the organisation in regards to the plan.
Evaluating organizational promotional mix and integrated marketing communications strategy
Promotional mix and integrated marketing communication strategies
Promotional mix is the combination of marketing method which involves advertising,
sales, public relations and direct marketing through which the company can meet their marketing
objectives. In context of Marriott International, the company promote their products and services
with the help of advertising trough traditional and modern marketing, public relations and
through direct marketing. The hotel is making use of their website which is well designed and
this helps them in focusing of creating brand awareness’s among customers through digital
mediums. The hotel also creates and promote through user generated content strategy and
collaborate with influencers which is promoted through digital channels such as- Instagram,
Facebook and others through which they can create a significant impact on the customers and
maximize the profitability of organization. This also helps the company in generating higher
leads and revenues.
Integrated marketing communication strategy is the approach that is followed by
marketing department within an organization and leads to interconnected approach. The
strategies which are followed by Marriott International are direct and internet marketing (Yu,
Seo and Hyun, 2021). In relation to Marriott international, the company follows internet
marketing strategies through which they derive benefits from the digital mediums which helps in
attracting customer attention and in driving customer interest. The company influences through
celebrity endorsement through which they can attract customers at larger geographical area.
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