Marketing Strategies for the Milestone Hotel: A Comprehensive Analysis

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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
LO1: Explain the role of marketing and how it interrelates with other functional units in a
hospitality organisation (P1, P2)......................................................................................................3
LO2: Compare ways in which hospitality organisations use elements of the marketing mix (7Ps)
to achieve overall business objectives (P3).....................................................................................7
LO 3: Develop a basic marketing plan to meet marketing objectives for a hospitality organisation
(P4)................................................................................................................................................10
Vision and mission of The MileStone Hotel:............................................................................10
Objectives..................................................................................................................................11
Situational analysis....................................................................................................................11
Marketing strategy.....................................................................................................................11
Segmentation and selection of target market.............................................................................12
Marketing mix...........................................................................................................................13
Action plan.................................................................................................................................14
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................14
References......................................................................................................................................15
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
Introduction
Among the number of 5 star hotels situated in London, The MileStone Hotel is one of the
reputed figures. The hotel is not only a 5 star hotel but also one of the important Grade 2 listed
hotels it in London. The organisation started the performing as a hotel in 1922 and a part of Red
Carnation Hotels Group. This hotel offers their guest with 44 bedrooms, 6 long-stay apartments
and 12 suites. According to the reviews provided by their customers, the organisation not only
provides best experience to stay over London, but they also provide a specially curate range of
international cuisine.
In this study, different aspects of marketing functions have been focused. Marketing Essentials
that should be developed in the organisation has also been identified here and discussed in the
context of the organisation. The study was also focused on the marketing plan that should be
developed for the organisation in order to obtain betterment in providing services to their
potential and existing customers.
LO1: Explain the role of marketing and how it interrelates with other functional units in a
hospitality organisation (P1, P2)
Key roles and responsibilities: Marketing functions focused on the roles and responsibilities
that are ideal for placing a product or service to its desired market. In case of the mentioned
organisation, product planning, marketing research and further development of the product along
with the sales and marketing planning has been developed in this research in order to determine
the marketing function (Lopes, 2016). On the other hand, the marketing function of the
organisation will also help to place the product or the services to the target market segment.
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
The marketing function also helps the organisation to growth and development towards its
business. In case of the mentioned organisation, it has been seen that the marketing function is
consisted of a number of stages such as management of strategy, developing the market research,
enhancing the sales and marketing of the product or services, and producing them towards the
target market. Marketing plan of The MileStone Hotel has been developed in order to promote
the growth of the organisation, as well as it helps to develop other roles that have been
mentioned below.
Developing marketing strategies: A marketing strategy is one of the crucial element of the
marketing structures of the organisation as the organisation always proceed with their marketing
strategies for produce a product or service to the determined market segment (Kim et al. 2015).
The specification of the organisation into the hospitality market of London can be determined
through the defined marketing strategy. On the other hand, the strategy also helps to reach a new
market and develop a new channel of distribution. As for example, it can be cited that, the
mentioned organisation, The MileStone Hotel is trying to provide their customers with the charm
of old London environment and the taste of international cuisine at the same time.
Market research: One of the key responsibilities of the organisation is to develop a market
research properly so that the marketing strategy can be set according to the objectives and goals
are the organisation. In the context of the mentioned organisation, the market research is
necessary for understanding the needs and demands of the customers. The market research can
also help the organisation to find any kind of loopholes that are existing into the present strategy
of the organization (Kotler et al. 2017). Moreover, in order to increase their business into The
Other continents or in the other European countries, the market research will help the
organisation.
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
Internal development of product: It has been seen that the responsibility of the marketing team
is consisted of the responsibilities regarding the development of new product and selling them
into their target market. However, in order to develop new service or product the organisation
needs to have a proper budget and they should concentrate on the marketing contents and
promotional events.
Relationship between the roles and responsibilities of marketing with wider organisational
context
The major role of marketing is that it helps to aid the organisation in sourcing and identifying the
possible and successful products and services of the organisation for the market and, most
importantly, helps in the promotion of the brand. Milestone Hotel that deals with providing
hospitality services to the public needs to have a strong marketing structure and plan. According
to Tzokas, et al., (2015), the marketing department can only run smoothly and significantly if it
gets proper assistance form the other departments of the organisation. The marketing department
will be insignificant without the help and assistance form the other essential departments of the
organisation.
Interrelationship significance
The effective and essential interrelation between the marketing team and other departments plays
a crucial role to enhance the sustainability of the business of Milestone Hotels and also helps
them in an effective growth. The interrelationship between the marketing department and the
other departments results in strong performance and influence the overall performance of the
company (Cheng and Rashid, 2015). The marketing functions must be backed up by all other
departments in a proper manner to run the marketing processes smoothly.
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
For instance, the backing up of departments like the HR department, financial department and
sales team will eventually influence Milestone Hotel to initiate a marketing plan. The marketing
team has the main goal of enhancing the profitability of the company, hence the participation and
coordination of other departments will play a huge role to influence the marketing process.
Therefore, it will be a difficult task for the marketing team of Milestone Hotel to perform
effectively without a proper functioning process.
Roles of marketing department with other department
The roles played by other departments of Milestone Hotel in influencing the marketing process
are analysed below.
Financial Department
The finance department of Milestone Hotel plays a prominent role in the marketing process. The
roles and assistance provided by the finance department are as follows.
The financial department determines the budget that is to be assigned for promotion.
The financial department is also responsible for the fiscal control of the company, that
assigns the revenue target and expense control for the marketing department (Tan, 2017).
HR Department
The Human Resource department of Milestone Hotels plays the vital role of detecting and
assigning the proper human resource for marketing. Following are the ways by which the HR
Department helps in marketing by assigning the correct employee for marketing.
The department conducts a market study that helps in the development of innovation in
marketing strategy (Boella, 2017).
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
The department also takes the responsibility to provide required training to the marketing
personnel.
Sales Department
The sales department is responsible for determining the pricing strategy of the hotel. Following
are the ways in which it helps the marketing process.
The sales department takes the decision of when to give discounts and rewards to
customers which helps in the marketing of the hotel (Kimes, 2016).
The sales department is also related to the growth goals of the company which creates a
basis for the marketing process.
LO2: Compare ways in which hospitality organisations use elements of the marketing mix
(7Ps) to achieve overall business objectives (P3)
The marketing mix is one of the primary concepts in the field of business management, and it
can be seen that this concept is an essential part of the marketing strategy of an
organisation.Mohammad (2015) opined that the 7Ps marketing mix is comprised of seven
different factors such as price, products, promotions, places, people, process and physical
evidence. These factors are necessary to be evaluated in order to devise a proper marketing plan,
because these factors practically checks the business environment of an organisation, which
naturally affects the most optimized form of a marketing plan of that organisation (Loo and
Leung, 2018). In this case, a marketing mix of The Milestone Hotel in the UK market will be
conducted, and its situations will be evaluated by comparing it with the various other hotel and
hospitality organisation that are operating in the market of the UK. In this comparative marketing
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
mix, Bulgari Hotel will be considered as the hospitality organisation to be compared with The
Milestone Hotel in terms of the various factors conseder in the 7Ps marketing mix.
Product: As both the hotels ofThe Milestone Hotel and Bulgari Hotel are lodging institutions,
they operate in the same hospitality industry, and their products are similar in nature. Moreover,
both of them are 5-star hotels, which make both of them, belong to the highest class among the
hotels in the world. However, Dileep and Mathew (2017) opined that there are some distinctive
differences in the style of serving their customers. As The Milestone Hotel is an older hotel with
a rich heritage, it gives off a certain traditional gothic vibe. The managements ofThe Milestone
Hotel focuses less on the number of rooms, which is 62, and more on delivering excellent quality
service and person-to-person caretaking, which makes clients feel a homely atmosphere in it. On
the other hand, the Bulgari Hotel has about 85 rooms, and is considered to be a prime example of
the modern architecture, and they deliver modernized and systematic services augmented with
modern technologies, which makes things convenient for their customers.
Price: The prices of both the hotels are rather high for middle-class customers and even for some
high-class customers, as both of these hotels are among the list of the top hotels in the entire
Europe. However, Salman et al. (2017) argued that since Bulgari Hotel has adopted the approach
of targeting only the richest customers by raising room rent prices and making themselves look
more aristocratic, it has caused Bulgari Hotel to become the costliest hotel in the entire London.
On the other hand,The Milestone Hotel has adopted the marketing approach to the clients who
like the old gothic style of rooms, and they have maintained the room rent price of their hotel at a
fairly reasonable level, which has significantly contributed to their business success.
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
Place: Since both of the hospitality organisations are located in London, which is one of the
richest cities of Europe, These two organisations both has the seamless advantages regarding the
location of their hospitality organisation. However,Almsary, Talib and Abdulameer (2018) stated
that there are some differences in the choice of their hotel locations, and this difference mainly
stems from their choices regarding the emphasised or highlighted tourist attractions in the
London. For instance,The Milestone Hotel is located in the middle of both the Kensington
Gardens and Hyde Park, which indicates that their management wishes to emphasise the theme
of gothic aristocracy in their hotel services. On the contrary, Bulgari hotel is located in the
vicinity of Hyde Park and Harrods, which indicates that it aims to utilise a combination between
the heritage attractions and modern conveniences.
Promotion: The current researches regarding the hospitality market in the UK shows that
Bulgari Hotel has been using the social media and digital advertisement systems to the maximum
extent possible. This has granted them with an increase in the sales figure by approximately 35%
within the year span of 2012-2017 despite their relatively high room rent rate than the other 5-
star hotels in London. On the other hand, Ahmad, Idris and Ibrahim (2018) opined that The
Milestone Hotel has been adopting a traditional approach of advertisement, relying equally on
the printed media and the digital platforms for promotional activities, which has allowed them to
increase their sales figure by approximately 28% within 2012-17.
People: As far as the staffs are concerned, The Milestone Hotel and Bulgari Hotel differ by a
considerable extent, and it can be seen that their staffs are differed by a considerable extent. For
instance, Siakalli, Masouras and Papademetriou (2017) stated that the staffs ofThe Milestone
Hotel are specialized for taking care of their clients at a personal level, and this has allowedThe
Milestone Hotel to enhance their reputation as a hotel that delivers the greatest level of customer
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service as well as creates a traditional and homely atmosphere for their clients. On the other
hand, the staffs of Bulgari Hotel are specialized in augmenting customer service with
technological assistances, which increases the modern feel of their hotel.
Process: The process of running the hotel service is important, as it develops the brand name of
the hotel. For instance,The Milestone Hotel adopts the customer-oriented approach, which
involves the staffs visiting the rooms to wake the boarders up instead of using telephones, and
the manager exchanging pleasantries with the clients in the dining hall. However,Lovelock and
Patterson (2015) argued that Bulgari Hotel utilizes the modern process instead, using digital
alarms, video calling connections with reception desk and all other technological conveniences.
Physical Evidences: The physical evidences of a hotel are a must, since not having it renders
their hospitality service useless (Usman, Sobari and Wathani, 2017). BothThe Milestone Hotel
and Bulgari Hotel have physical presences as 5-star hotel buildings in the central London, and
their managements also have business plans to expand into other locations as hotel chains.
LO 3: Develop a basic marketing plan to meet marketing objectives for a hospitality
organisation (P4)
Vision and mission of The MileStone Hotel:
The vision of the organisation is to provide services without any fault to their customers at every
turn
Mission of the organisation is stating that they are one of the perfectly located hotels opposite
Kensington Palace and Garden. They are ready to provide rich Furnishing, premium services and
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MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR THE MILESTONE HOTEL
outstanding cuisine for their guests. The organisation also tries to provide the best efforts for
making their guests feel cosy and comfortable at the hotel.
Objectives
To provide their consumers with better services
To make their customers feel comfortable
To be one of the iconic attractions of London
To promote the hospitality industry
Situational analysis
The situational analysis of the mentioned organisation, The MileStone Hotel will help to
understand the factors that are affecting internally the business (Oskam and Boswijk, 2016.).
Therefore, a SWOT analysis has been conducted to identify those factors.
Strength Weaknesses
Good reputation in the hospitality
industry of London
Experience in customer handling
Effective customer relationship
Lack of global market share
Lack of flexibility
High level of debts
Opportunities Threats
Chances of expansion in
international market
Focus on research and development
Chances of presence in the budget
hotel segment
Political instability due to Brexit
Changes in the microeconomic
climate
Low Key talent
Marketing strategy
Some competitive advantage is there that help the mentioned organisation, The MileStone Hotel
to develop their marketing strategy. Those factors have been mentioned below:
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Strong financial elements: Being one of the important and repeated hotels in the hospitality
industries of London, the organisation has benefits of financial development that help them to
develop their marketing strategy.
Reputation in the hospitality industry: As the organisation is one of the important and old 5
star hotels of London, they have been able to develop a strong brand image as well as a good
reputation in the hospitality industry of London (Gursoy, 2018). For developing their brand and
marketing strategy ,this element can help them.
Usage of Technology: For attracting and retaining their customers into the international
expansion, the organisation have been selected the usage of Technology. Therefore, they have
collaborated with online portals of hospitality; such as MakeMyTrip and it has been proven that
the use of internet and online booking system has helped to develop their market expansion.
Old English charm: For developing their marketing strategy, the organisation has succeeded to
retain their old English charm. Moreover, they have been successfully promoted these elements
for building their brand image and their place in the international hospitality industry as well as
in the domestic sector (Semeradova and Vávrová, 2016).
Segmentation and selection of target market
By evaluating the segmentation targeting and positioning of The MileStone Hotel, it can be
stated that the organisation have decided to divide their market according to the characteristics of
specific consumer groups.
They have decided to use the Geographic segmentation where people that comes to London for a
specific travel purpose or business purpose, has been targeted as the potential consumer groups.
According to the demographic segmentation, the organisation target individuals that can afford
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