The Hospitality and Tourism Marketing Environment

Literature review

The tourism and hospitality industry appears to be a diverse business industry. The industry has numerous producers, consumers, and suppliers of tourism goods and services. In this same industry, there are quite a number of government agencies, non-governmental agencies, as well as billions of both overseas and domestic tourists (Mattila 2004, p.452). Since tourists mainly aim at consuming tourism products and services, they are always attracted by the nature of the destination. However, the nature of each tourism plant is fragmented while the government and non-governmental controls are ineffective and uncoordinated. However, the persistent visits made by the tourists are enough to moderate the manner and strategies that should be used to control the tourism industry (Back and Parks (2003, p.424).

Each country in the world offers thousands of tourism businesses that are effectively operated. For instance, the renowned Australian tourism destination allowed approximately 46,000 tourism businesses to be operated by both foreigners and domestic citizens or its nationals. Most of these tourism businesses that are operating are medium or small and are autonomously owned and managed by families (Hemmington 2007, p.750). In the whole tourism industry, the justified basis for unity and business agreement that exists is set up within the tourism business associations. These tourism trade linkages have progressed to represent scores of departmental interests. Even at this point, a large number of the commonwealth, state, and local trade associations tend to exist. These tourism bodies usually operate their tourism trade dealings at cross-purpose to each other. In most cases, such organizations are able to represent the desires and want of their members. In fact, literature shows that the organizations ably develop and endorse policies, which appear to support fair tourism business operations (Mattila 2004, p.453). However, none of such organizations has the capacity to enforce real controls.

In the tourism industry, there is a voluntary membership and business affiliates could opt not to support the directions offered by the industry with impunity. The acknowledged and authenticated regulatory responsibility that could be played by tourism trade associations is the policy provision (Vargo & Lusch 2004, p.12).

The encountered problems within the tourism industry are aggravated by the disjointed nature of the state’s control and involvement in tourism activities. Commonwealth organizations, the local government, and state agencies participate in monitoring the approval of tourism growth and development. For example, Hemmington (2007, p.751) asserts that in Tasmania tourism destinations, eight local, state, and federal agencies seem to control the coastal tourism and hospitality administrative matters. Within the New South Wales Victoria perimeter region, the Murray River serves as a tourist attraction destination. Local sources tend to run and supervise this tourism destination. Furthermore, seventeen states and commonwealth bodies take part in the endorsement processes.

The multi-jurisdictional nightmares reported in the tourism industry tend to generate more controversies and confusion over the agencies that ought to and may control an assortment of tourism products, services, and activities. In most tourism destinations, therefore, some gaps have been reported in the legislative control. In others, there are duplications of the control efforts (Vargo & Lusch 2004, p.14). More often, not even a single state authority appears to be able or eager to exercise effective control and management over tourism destinations and allied activities.

According to Back and Parks (2003, p.425), exercising control and power over tourism destinations and activities has been the most complicated challenge that government agencies and the tourism industry faces. In fact, developing the control mechanisms and strategic plans has just proved only to be as successful as the determination to execute them. Besides, in the liberated market systems, such kinds of highly unregulated and diverse industries like the tourism industry are bound to continue defying the intended expansion efforts. Therefore, effectual control and management actions may just take place via the integrated programs, which include the local, state, and federal policies and legislation. That is, the control mechanisms should incorporate the countrywide program. Given that such programs are cited in the environmental movement Act of 1989, it is doubtful whether the commonwealth policy will have them formalized (Hemmington 2007, p.752).

Four Seasons Hotels Incorporation (FSHI)

FSHI is a renowned international luxury tourism and hospitality hotel based in Canada. Currently, Four Seasons Hotel Inc if fully recognized as a five-star hotel offering leisure, travel, and tourism activities. Given that, FSHI is amongst other top-class companies found in the hospitality industry, it uses various marketing strategies and positioning tools to overcome the multifaceted obstacles present in the service industry. Since the tourism and hospitality industry is competitive in nature, the Four Seasons Hotel Inc operators have entrenched their service and business undertakings on emotional intelligence practices.

The management seeks for improved profits performances, employees’ satisfactions, clients’ satisfaction, as well as team performance in to become the market dominant. To realize these, the Four Seasons Hotels Inc recruits and trains qualified staff that is able to improve on the operational performances of the company. These staffs are duty-bound to monitor the quality of services and products delivered to clients. By drawing on the emotional intelligence dimensions, the FSHI staffs make the affiliations between guests and hosts to be more than the customer service encounter. The immediate unit management and frontline staffs create the desirable outlook and better experiences for the guests.

The guest to host transaction

The Four Seasons Hotel Inc tries to generate memorable experiences for the guests. The hosting behaviors in this tourism and hospitality company normally make the visitors have a feeling and bond of friendship. The behaviors of staff reflect hospitality traditions. All visitors are accepted regardless of their possibilities to become regular visitors. In fact, all guests and strangers are potentially treated as friends. All of them are accepted and incorporated into the business systems with fear or favor. The clients are welcomed and gifted with spontaneous and unexpected gifts. The gifts are beyond the formulaic promotional offers that are often given to clients. Since the gifts are ulterior motives, the guests receive them impersonally. The guests at Four Seasons Hotels are made to have a feeling of comfort and wellbeing.

Marketing strategies and tactics

The Four Seasons Hotel makes the emotional guest experiences and traditional hospitality to be the heart of its tourism marketing and commercial hospitality. In fact, the corporation advocates for a business strategy aimed at gaining a competitive advantage via offering services that are unique in quality. According to service marketing literature, Kotler (2003, p.67) suggested that marketing strategies aimed at competing through offering quality service are hardly replicated compared to the competition strategies derived on low pricing. The quality strategy adopted by Four Seasons Hotel is less susceptible to market competition pressures and develops clients that are more loyal.

The marketing approach advocated by the Four Seasons Hotels tends to add improved dimensions. The customary hospitality advertising applied by this company enhances the chances of FSHI to offer good hosting. In fact, even foreigners are bound to become good friends. Within the contexts of trade, this approach claims that friends that are also clients will usually intensify the loyalty levels. Such clients normally become emotionally to the tourism and hospitality services offered by The Four Seasons Hotels Inc, and they will always prolong their associations.

Four Seasons Hotels have been frequently communicating with its friends and clients. The communications usually comply with the special needs of every client, their preferences, their dislikes, and likes. The company management normally sends Christmas cards, wedding anniversary letters, as well as birthday cards that are consistent with the manner in which the clients and friends operate. These marketing tactics avoid corporate outputs and are overly formulaic, which are normally deficient in the personal touch.

Clients are frequently being invited to the special events organized by the company. They are offered exceptional access as honored customers and friends to the corporate events. For this corporation to communicate and build ongoing affiliations with clients, it uses these strategies. They assist in the establishment of special business associations. As a famous company, the Four Seasons Hotels provide their customary visitors with complementary preferential drinks. The frontline staffs normally serve such guests in their respective rooms after dining in the Four Seasons Hotels feasting rooms. Therefore, it is acknowledged that communications at the individual, unit, and corporate levels are made consistently with friends, guests, and clients.

The brand images, advertising messages, and public relations outputs are linked to the obligations and values of the company’s traditional hospitality. The marketing practices adopted by the Four Seasons Hotels Corporation are illustrated through various famous quotes. One of these quotes is, ‘enjoy the living spirit of the Four Seasons Hotels Island home. FSHI is where guests arrive and are received as foreigners. Later on, the guests will go away as treasured friends. However, in other instances, the Four Seasons Hotels name could be drawn on to highlight the prospective affiliations. For example, the names of the modern types of accommodation and attraction such as enjoy the value of your penny and get enough rest are used to reflect on the duties of the host and the customary concept of hospitality.

The management and the frontline staffs serve as the essential marketing or promotional interface with clients and tourists alike. The Four Seasons Hotels staffs serve beyond just being service deliverers. They are recognized as hosts who offer the desired guest experience. They are performing key marketing roles not merely handling complaints and up-selling services and products. They also deliver to the visitors the core products, services as well as other brand values.

Finally, the Four Seasons Hotels Company acknowledges the importance of advertising campaigns. The company builds its product brand image and differentiates its products as well as services from those of other market contenders through media campaigns. It focuses on local area attractions, add-on destinations, personal services, and resort amenities. The Four Seasons Hotels presence is felt in newspapers, magazines, televisions, radios, and online. Now, the company has started to adopt strategic tourism marketing techniques. It makes its presence globally felt through Facebook or other networks. The company offers the essential tourism-marketing guide and conducts in-depth service marketing through carrying out consumers research.

References

Back, K & Parks, SC 2003, “A brand loyalty model involving cognitive, affective, and cognitive brand loyalty and customer satisfaction,” Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research, 27 (4), pp.419–435.

Hemmington, N 2007, “From service to experience: Understanding and defining the hospitality business,” The Service Industries Journal, vol.27 no.6, pp. 747-755.

Kotler, P 2003, A framework for marketing management, Prentice Hall, Oxford.

Mattila, AS 2004, “Consumer behavior research in hospitality and tourism journals,” International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol.23, pp.449–457.

Vargo, SL & Lusch, RF 2004, “Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing,” Journal of Marketing, vol.68 no.1, pp.1–17.