Thomas Cook Group: Evaluating Tourism Product & Marketing Mix

This report delves into the marketing mix strategies employed by Thomas Cook Group within the tourism sector, focusing on the traditional four P's (product, price, promotion, and place) and the extended service marketing mix elements (people, process, and physical evidence). It examines the specific challenges and considerations in applying these elements to tourism products, particularly in the context of Thomas Cook Group's summer holiday package for 2018 in destinations like Morocco and Egypt. The report further analyzes the concept of a total tourism product, encompassing all aspects of the traveler's experience from start to finish, and how Thomas Cook Group aims to provide a comprehensive and attractive offering to its customers by facilitating services like airlines, transportation, and accommodation. This analysis highlights the importance of a well-integrated marketing mix in the competitive travel and tourism industry.

MARKETING IN TTM

Marketing mix is one of the most important tool which
is used by marketers of each and every organization. It helps
an entity to determine its products and services. It consists of
four P’s i.e. product, price, promotion and place (Pechlaner
and Volgger, 2012).
TASK 3
3.1

There exist lots of issues while determining these
elements which are explained below:
 Product: It is one of the most important element of this
marketing mix without which other elements do not have any
existence. It is an item through which corporation earn money
from customers. If a firm is selling a product or service than it
has to give full description about it to gain the attention of
public.
Product in tourism marketing are:
Accommodation
Transportation
Attraction
Restaurant
Shopping
Recreation

As Thomas Cook Group is a traveling company and is going
to offer summer holiday package 2018 at very reasonable charges
which can be afforded by every class of customers. Therefore, here,
this package is the product of Thomas Cook Group which attracts
more customers towards it. Before introducing this product in
market Thomas Cook Group has to face several issues which must
be immediately addressed by management. It includes issues like to
whom it should be available, expectations of users, level of
competitive advantage over its competitors, positioning of product
in market, target customers, etc.

 Price: It is another aspect of business which describe about
price of product sale by Thomas Cook Group (Ong, 2012).
Usually, corporations use multiple types of pricing strategies
to attract different types of customers like premium,
skimming, penetration and economy. So, for Thomas Cook
Group should adopt such pricing strategy which will attract a
huge number of people.
Pricing in tourism sector influenced by following factors:
Cost
Demand
Competition
Mode of transport
Destination
Peak and non peak season
Duration

 Place: It tells about the place where the product should be
available or offer to customers. It includes two places first
where the item produced and other where it is offered to
public. Here, only one place is important i.e. the place where
service or product is offered to customers. Here, Thomas Cook
Group is going to offer summer holiday package 2018 at
Morocco and Egypt.
Morocco is a North African country adjoining Atlantic
Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Tourism in Morocco is
developed very well which focused on nation’s coast, history
and culture. Tourism in Egypt is one of the main source of
income to its economy. There are number of tourist places in
Egypt where people often want to visit.

TOURIST ATTRACTIONS OF EGYPT

TOURIST ATTRACTIONS IN MOROCCO

3.2
Service sector mix elements includes three additional
elements to marketing mix i.e. people, process and physical
evidence. These are shown in below figure:

Extended elements of marketing mix are explained as below:
 People: These are persons who can be employees or
customers of corporation (McCabe, 2010). Generally, in
extended marketing mix people means consumers of travel
and tourism Company. These individuals have a great impact
on Thomas Cook Group because customers play a very
important role in this sector.
 Process: It means the method or procedure through which
customers can get maximum benefits of products and services
of Thomas Cook Group. For example, Thomas Cook Group
offers summer holiday package 2018 to its customers then
what will be the process for enjoying full benefits of this
package from starting point to end.

 Physical evidence: It has an important impact on marketing
mix. Work culture of every place affects the behavior of
people. So, if work culture of Thomas Cook Group has a
negative impact on its employees and staff members it will
directly affects the quality of services and products provided
to its customers.
Therefore, from above discussion it is clear that
service marketing mix has a huge impact on travel and
tourism sector. This marking mix focuses more on services
provided to people which are very important in travel and
tourism business. Service industry is fully based on the quality
of service offered to end users. Similarly, Thomas Cook Group
also depends on availing best quality services to its travelers.
Process includes the whole travelling procedure which is
explained by company to its each and every traveler to make
their trip joyful.

3.3
A total tourism product includes all types and aspects
of travelling rights of travelers from starting point to end. It
covers whole trip and various benefits of customers while
having such trip or tour (Nunkoo, Gursoy and Ramkissoon,
2013). It includes all arrangements which are done by travel
and tourism firm which is one of the main source to attract
customers towards its products and services. Thomas Cook
Group also facilitates full or total tourism product to its
customers so that they can enjoy their trip with out any
inconvenience.
As Thomas Cook Group is a tourism and hospitality
industry which offers various products and facilities like
package holiday, hotels and resorts, charter and schedule
passenger airlines and cruise airlines.

Total tourism product is shown in below fig.

So it facilitates all services which is usually used by travelers
while having a tour or trip.
Thomas Cook Group is going to offer summer holiday
package 2018 in most attractive destinations i.e. Morocco and
Egypt where it will offer a total tourism product to its
customers (Morritt and Weinstein, 2012). Here, first of all, this
entity will provide airlines services from their place to tourist
destination to its customers then after lending in Morocco or
Egypt a transportation facility will be provided to take them to
their hotels and resorts. It also provides proper
accommodation facilities at this place. It will also arrange
transportation facility at various platforms these two
destinations. It also offers return airlines or other facility to
their permanent destinations.

Many other travelling agencies do not provide a total
tourism package but this company facilitates a full holiday
package to its consumers which is the main reason of more
customer attraction.

Characteristics of tourism products

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
 McCabe, S., 2010. Marketing communications in tourism and
hospitality. Routledge.
 Morritt, R. and Weinstein, A., 2012. Segmentation strategies for
hospitality managers: Target marketing for competitive advantage.
Routledge.
 Nunkoo, R., Gursoy, D. and Ramkissoon, H., 2013. Developments in
hospitality marketing and management: Social network analysis and
research themes. Journal of Hospitality Marketing &
Management. 22(3). pp.269-288.
 Ong, B.S., 2012. The perceived influence of user reviews in the
hospitality industry. Journal of Hospitality Marketing &
Management. 21(5). pp.463-485.
 Pechlaner, H. and Volgger, M., 2012. How to promote cooperation in
the hospitality industry: Generating practitioner-relevant knowledge
using the GABEK qualitative research strategy. International Journal
of Contemporary Hospitality Management. 24(6). pp.925-945.

THANK YOU