Case Study: Service Marketing Analysis of Thomas Cook's Strategies

This case study delves into the service marketing strategies of Thomas Cook, examining various aspects such as core marketing concepts, the impact of the marketing environment, factors influencing motivation and demand, and customer segmentation. It analyzes Thomas Cook's strategic marketing planning, including planning, implementation, and promotion, as well as the role of marketing research and market information. The study further explores the positive and negative impacts of marketing on society, using Thomas Cook's historical and contemporary approaches as examples. The analysis covers topics like company positioning, goals and strategies, market opportunities, and the importance of defining the target market. The document offers a detailed examination of Thomas Cook's marketing practices, providing insights into their approach to customer engagement and business growth within the tourism sector.

A Study on Service Marketing
Case Analysis of Thomas Cook

Table of Contents
Task 1...............................................................................................................................................3
Answer 1......................................................................................................................................3
Answer 2......................................................................................................................................3
Answer 3......................................................................................................................................4
Answer 4......................................................................................................................................5
Task 2...............................................................................................................................................6
Answer 1......................................................................................................................................6
Answer 2......................................................................................................................................7
Answer 3......................................................................................................................................8
Task 3...............................................................................................................................................9
Answer 1......................................................................................................................................9
Answer 2....................................................................................................................................10
Answer 3....................................................................................................................................11
Task 4.............................................................................................................................................12
Answer 1....................................................................................................................................12
Answer 2....................................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................16

Task 1
Answer 1
The core concept of marketing in travel and tourism sector includes some important ones without
which the tourism sector cannot flourish. The concept or strategy of meeting the needs and
requirements of the customers as well as the advertising of the different tour packages play an
important role. These are some of the core concepts of marketing in this sector and apart from it
multicultural attitude, publicity, online promotion are some of the other ideas or concepts of
marketing in the tourism sector (Munar and Jacobsen 2014). Thomas cook is one of the oldest
travel and tour organizers and is known for its exciting and superior foreign tour packages.
However, with changing time the concept of online promotion can be or should be aptly utilized
by the organization so as to develop their marketing strategy (Blanke and Chiesa 2013). Strategic
management, goal setting is also some of the important concepts of marketing in the tourism
sector. Offering out various lucrative offers and advantage along with the tour package is also a
key concept in this field. An introductory tour package like, the Morocco and Egypt visit during
the summer of 2017 can be well publicized in net along with the concept of direct marketing
which include, text messages and e-mails to potential customers. The concept of mass migration
can also be used in this field that will reflect the multicultural approach of the organization.
Answer 2
The marketing environment of any organization or business can primarily be analyzed by wholly
studying the political, social and other factors of the place. The tour and travel sector of U.K also
comes in consideration in analyzing the impact of it on an individual travel and your company

like, Thomas cook. Thomas cook, being based in U.K the study of tour and travel industry of
U.K is essential in this prospect. The tour and travel sector of U.K is quite flourishing and
therefore it will have a positive impact on Thomas cook. There is quite a hype and enthusiasm
among people in U.K for the various tour packages that are being offered by the various tour
companies in U.K. this eventually creates a good scope for Thomas and cook to launch their
special tour package to Morocco and Egypt in the summer of 2017 (Blanke and Chiesa 2013).
Tourist destinations like, Dubai, Egypt, Morocco during the summer time are quite popular
among the people of U.K and thereby it will create a positive impact on the tour company and
that will further promote their marketing. Morocco and Egypt both are new destinations and
given the market position of U.K it will definitely create a positive impact on Thomas and cook.
Apart from these the social, legal and environmental factors of U.K are quite conducive for the
growth of Thomas and cook. The new tour package will get highlighted by the publicity and
growth of the tourism sector in U.K. Other environmental factors of U.K like likeness of people
to travel, communicate and explore will also put a good impact on Thomas and cook and its tour
packages.
Answer 3
There are several important factors that affect the motivation and demand in the travel and
tourism sector and eventually decide the growth of it. However, the factors like, cheap or
affordable tour packages, reliability of a tourism brand, good and interesting holiday
destinations, new travelling ideas, budget friendly packages and so on can motivate the
customers and can also increase the demand of the people in the travel and tourism sector.
Motivation is related with the emotional needs and requirements and if that is satisfied then it
will help the people to feel motivated about the travel and tourism sector. However factors like,

customized tour packages, new destinations, good tourist guide, interactive tour guides while
visiting places in a new country, good hotel or resort facilities are some of the factors that will
definitely increase the demand of the people or the customers in the tourism sector (Webster and
Ivanov 20014). Thomas cook being an U.K based tour operator, their multicultural attitude and
working approach will also help the tourism sector of U.K to flourish. Some other small factors
like, a good translator can also increase the motivation of the people to travel to new places with
ease and assurance. However some basic factors, like the loyalty, reliability and good reputation
of a travel and tourism brand can help the tour organizer as well as the tourism sector to flourish
and prosper. These basic factors will have a positive impact on the tourism sector of London and
will attract more number of people.
Answer 4
Segmentation generally refers to dividing or segmenting the potential customers, based on some
criteria or factors. Some important principles also come into vogue in the prospect of this
discussion. The principles like providing the customers the best touring experience, reliability,
reasonable tour packages and an after sale service are some of the basic and age old principle or
ethics of the tour organizer (Webster and Ivanov 20014). However, the segmentation of Thomas
and cook is done as per the taste and preferences of the customers or people. The small groups or
segments are all homogenous in nature since all of them have a common interest of travelling.
The groups can be made according to their earning, interest of visiting places, tendency or
frequency of travelling and so on. However all these can be used in the marketing of Thomas and
cook to gain more profit, to match the customer expectations, to gain more customers and so on.
The market segmentation strategy of Thomas and cook also depend on the lifestyle, geographical
region and behavioral factors of the people. These principles and market segmentation can be

used in the marketing plan by understanding the requirements and its successful implementation
in their process of working. Successful implementation of the segmentation strategy can be done
by meeting the taste and preferences of the target group.
Task 2
Answer 1
Strategic marketing planning of Thomas cook is a wide area of discussion and it generally means
the marketing strategies that the managers and also the staffs of Thomas cook go through.
Important factors like, planning, implementation and promotion falls under the strategic
marketing plan of Thomas cook. Planning is done by the senior management about the different
types of tour packages that the company will offer along with how the rate of such packages
would be and so on (Xiang, Magnini and Fesenmaier 2015). Thomas cook has some goof
marketing principles that include good publicity, good reputation in society among the people of
U.K, after sales service to the customers and so on. The marketing planning of Thomas cook is
done by implementing some important strategies like, budget friendly tour packages,
segmentation of the potential customers, targeting the right group of people and so on. In the
process of the strategic marketing planning Thomas cook keep some important factors like, the
expectation of the people, the requirement of the people and so on. Thomas and cook mainly
dwells on some basic factors for their strategic marketing planning which include, company
positioning, goals and strategies, market opportunities and defining the target market (Munar and
Jacobsen 2014). All these are important parts of the strategic planning of Thomas cook and the
management of all these points is done by the senior management department of Thomas and
cook. Company positioning is all about the way of presenting the organization to the people so

that it creates a positive impact on them. Goals and strategies are the aims and targets of Thomas
and cook that they want to achieve. Market opportunities play a crucial role in the strategic
marketing planning of Thomas and cook that shows the company the fields where they can work
hard so as to grand the attraction of the people. Defining a target market in the whole process is
also important since further strategies and policies can be made accordingly or as per the market
opportunities (Munar and Jacobsen 2014). The strategic planning of Thomas cook connects the
management with the customers since it is only for the customers that the planning, policies and
strategies are made. The strategic planning helps the tour organization to understand the
operational cost and the future growth of the organization.
Answer 2
Marketing research and market information are two most vital aspects of market planning since
without these two the management of Thomas cook cannot proceed. However, market research
refers to knowing the current environment and scenario of the market and how the people are
ready for some new launches. The summer tour package to Morocco and Egypt cannot be just
launched without any proper market research and market information. Market research includes
important points like, understanding the preferences of people, understanding the competitors,
understanding the scopes of growth and publicity, understanding the potential group of people,
understanding the policies of competitors, understanding the financial condition of the market
and so on. However, it is when the management of Thomas cook will receive this information,
and then they can start up with their planning and implementation policies (Mok, Sparks and
Kadampully 2013). However, market information is almost similar to that of market research
since it is after a proper market research, some resourceful information is gathered. However
before the introduction of the summer package, this needs to be done so that the organization can

have a rough estimate of the percentage of people who are interest for the tour packages and also
the expectations of the people from the tour package. The managers take this useful data so that
they can be used in the process of making and implementing their business plans.
Answer 3
In today’s time marketing is one of the top strategies of the business forms to attract people.
However, marketing can have both positive and negative impact on the society. It is only due to
marketing that the people in a society gets to know about different new things and also becomes
aware of the recent trend that is in vogue in the society. Marketing helps the people to know
about the positive and negative aspects of the various goods and services that are available in the
market. It is the advertising campaigns and publicity that greatly influences the people in the
society and thereby the flow of business also keeps growing (Mok, Sparks and Kadampully
2013). However at times the society is negatively impacted by the wrong publicity of products
and services. However, Thomas sook in this prospect is one of the oldest tour operators in the
world and their marketing has inspired and motivated people since 2007. Marketing include
catchy and innovative advertisement policies, direct marketing, and online marketing and so on.
All these influence the people in a society and they accordingly use or buy those services or
products. Marketing infuses motivation or allurement of buying or availing a service and
similarly Thomas cook uses this very strategy to influence the people or the society of London
and other countries as well. The society of London is quite affluent and therefore Thomas cook
adopts marketing policies and strategies that will automatically grab the attention of the people
and will also create hype in the society. Modern and contemporary marketing policies use the
strategy of hype or craze among people to influence them and increase their sale (Xiang,
Magnini and Fesenmaier 2015). Thomas cook can use some interesting advertisement strategies

for their summer tour plan to attract more number of people. They can even create interesting
and catchy contents on Egypt and Morocco. However these are the detailed description about the
influence of marketing on the contemporary society.
Task 3
Answer 1
The term marketing mix can be defined as a term which denotes the mixture of important
components of an industry which are namely the product, place, price and promotion. In the
given scenario it has been stated that Thomas Cook is intending to introduce its summer 2017
holiday package in Morocco and Egypt. The marketing mix will support the company in
distributing the restricted assets and will also assist in designing its advertising works keeping in
mind the company rules and regulations. On the other hand there are also different kinds of
problems which might have to be confronted by the executives of the Thomas Cook concerning
the important elements of the marketing mix which are discussed below:
Product- This basically signifies the different kinds of products which are offered by Thomas
Cook in order to attain the requirements of its clients. The current package of the Thomas Cook
which is intended to launch in the year 2017 is in preliminary phase that shows the organization
might levy additional cost at the starting of the production as well as will get better revenue. On
the contrary the same kind of product which might be offered by its competitors at an inferior
cost might impose a great threat to the company.
Price- This component of marketing mix illustrates the amount which the customer will need to
pay for acquiring the product. The most critical problem which the Thomas Cook might have to

face with this regard is that a lot of clients might not buy the expensive tour package and will
like to have some lower base services in that case they might have to face a huge loss.
Promotion- The countries like Egypt and Morocco are facing continuous threat from the
terrorist which might be a very major issue for the Thomas Cook to launch its product within
these two countries. In this type of cases the travellers will not feel protected in these places and
will avoid taking any kind of travelling package for these two places.
Answer 2
The service sector mix elements in connection to assembling of different kinds of components of
service marketing which help the Thomas Cook to converse its product image as well as assist in
providing the message to its customers. In order to facilitate the achievement of the advertising
campaign as well as to get better the dealings of their new tour package summer 2017 to
Morocco and Egypt the organization might take the help of supplementary components of
service mix.
People-Thomas Cook might give proper guidance as well as betterment to its workers in order
that they can secure the position where they will be able to offer the most superior
administrations to its tourists. The coaching program will assist in developing the interaction
aptitudes of the front desk works in order that they can be able to offer the right information to
its customers.
Packaging- The Company might take into account the entire kind of important administrations
as well as facilitate pr-designing of transportation, food along with lodging. In order to interact
the trait of the administrations which the Thomas Cook is planning to provide to its clients.
Partnership- The Company, Thomas Cook might try to get entry with an alliance contract with
the native along with some famous service offerers of both the countries Egypt and Morocco.

The partnership might include the services like holiday homes, conveyance for sightseeing etc to
offer the most superior class of administrations in its summer 2017 tour package. With regard to
this the Thomas Cook might also get an idea concerning the native cultures of both the two
countries and based on they the promotional activities might be take up.
Programming- This service sector alludes to the total time required along with the order of
promotional work. The different kinds of advertisement ought to be pre-planned in order that
they do not partly cover the additional promotional work.
Answer 3
The overall tourism item alludes to an amalgamation of different kinds of amenities provided by
the Thomas Cook to its potential clients in order to develop their understanding. Extensively,
there are two different kinds of travel package provided by the organization, particular and
overall level. With a support of particular level administrations, the Thomas Cook provides
diverse administrations for example like roaming around only. In addition to this, the entire
tourism item assist the firm in offering the entire kind of tour experience to client from the
beginning of the journey at the end. With this regard the company might provide the chance to
get the tickets dome by the company and other different kinds of services. Thomas Cook might
make utilization of the different kinds of advertising mix in order to develop the dealings of the
new travel package summer 2017. The details of these product and services are discussed in
detail below:
Advertising- It assists in product identification as well as image building that result in
augmented dealings. The company might promote the new tour package on TV, transistor, local
papers as well as magazine. Thomas Cook is introducing TV advertisement in find shows to get

the attraction of additional clients. The organization is deploying a message which shows” Leave
it to us you are on holiday”.
Public Relation- Thomas Cook might make use of its constructive association with the local
media of Egypt and Morocco in order to develop its reputation within the selected the target
business sector.
Task 4
Answer 1
Thomas Cook the renowned travel and tourism company is to launch their summer 2017
holidays promotional campaign. In the fast moving, social media loving Gen X and Gen Y
people are attracted to a seamless transition for marketing, as they are fast becoming habituated
in their digital lives. The need for the integrated promotional mix is justified and the reasons are
illustrated in the section bellow, but before we divulge into the details of the promotional mix,
there is a need to understand the nature of the promotional mix of Thomas Cook. The main
marketing mix used is the offers that are provided to the customer and the benefit that the
customer achieves from the deal. Thomas Cook is a company that is trying to uplift its brand
image, making its brand known to the world, creating and building the Brand name. For this to
work there is a need for integrated marketing tactics, so the company uses various methods to
impact more customers and to engage with them better. The need is to make sure that the brand
is the first choice among its consumers, be it for travel deals, packages or for booking flights.
The company believes in using its money in the right method to gain maximum revenue from
their malting strategies. The company has been following a frugal approach, in terms of
marketing, yet they are looking for viral marketing techniques and have been using the latest