Executive Summary
The current research proposal aims at reviewing the marketing strategies used in the hospitality industry on the example of a comparison of the United Kingdom and the United States of America. The purpose of the study is to show that marketing is an imperative aspect of managing the success of companies in the hospitality industry because the sphere is highly competitive. The research incorporates a mixed-methods design, which includes a combination of questionnaires and interviews.
Non-random sampling was used because of the complex character of the study population and the need to include the representatives of both US and UK industries as well as guests (Martínez-Mesa, González-Chica, Duquia, Bonamigo and Bastos, 2016). It is expected to reveal that brand image played an integral role in the shaping of the efforts to attract new customers and retain new ones as related to the hospitality industry.
Introduction
The hospitality industry evolves under the influence of multiple external and internal factors (Bernini and Guizzardi, 2010). These determinants might differ depending on the country in which the business operates. Historical, economic, cultural, and social spheres have their influence on the way the hospitality industry develops (O’Dell, 2010). At the same time, the business of hotels and restaurants continuously encounters various challenges in terms of competitiveness (Schoffstall, 2013). Indeed, the highly competitive business environment of the hospitality sphere exposes it to the search for new marketing strategies to obtain a more significant market share (Dzhandzhugazova et al., 2016).
Therefore, hotels and other entities within the field of hospitality business develop specific marketing strategies that enable obtaining competitive advantages in comparison with other businesses of the same industry (Thomas, 1978). The overall performance of an organization tests the effectiveness of marketing strategies. Under the circumstances of the emerging globalization in the sphere, the influence of geographical positioning and culture-specific elements must be addressed when judging the effectiveness of particular strategies (Ismagilova et al., 2015). This research will compare the effective marketing strategies used in the hotels in two countries, which are the USA and the UK, to explore the similarities and differences.
Research Purpose
The purpose of the study is to compare the utilized effective marketing strategies for hotel businesses in the USA and the UK. The comparison will allow for concluding the influence of the country of business location on the strategic decisions and tool choice. The identification of the dependence of the effectiveness of particular marketing strategies on the country will form a foundation for further investigation of culture-specific and state-specific patterns in the hospitality industry.
Background
The development of hospitality industry entities has had different origins and was conditioned by various factors in different countries over its history (Why is the hospitality industry important, 2018). The specific characteristics of different states imply the variances in their attitude toward managerial decisions and marketing strategies. Historically, in Europe, the development of the hospitality industry incepted more than half a century ago and has its long-established tradition (Bowie and Buttle, 2004).
The long history of sector development impacts the prevalence of small family-based hotels and restaurants. Therefore, UK hotels are mostly limited to local entities with a small number of rooms (Bowie and Buttle, 2004). On the contrary, in the USA, “hotel development coincided with economic and social development in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries” (Bowie and Buttle, 2004, p. 86). Such American hospitality entrepreneurs, like Hilton and Marriott, have created large international hotel chains that not only managed to succeed in the US domestic market but also beneficially penetrate the markets of other countries (Salvioni, 2016).
Such a relatively young American industry demonstrates high-level business achievements and competes with an older European one (Hirschman and Mogford, 2010). Therefore, it is essential to apply academic tools to investigate the extent of similarities and differences between the two designated countries’ hospitality industries.
Rationale
The choice of the topic for the research is determined by insufficient academic attention to the issue of country-specific and culture-specific differences in the application of marketing strategies in the hospitality industry (Ramaseshan, Bejou, Jain, and Mason, 2006).
There is no extensive data available on the similarities and differences between the leading English-speaking countries, the USA and the UK, which are the representatives of two different economic and historical backgrounds (Neeley, 2012). Since the issue of the hospitality business, in general, is frequently addressed in the academic literature, it is vital to narrow the scope of research to more specific problems (Serra-Cantallops, Pena-Miranda, Ramon-Cardona and Martorell-Cunill, 2017). Therefore, the study will concentrate on the accommodation sector of the hospitality industry, namely hotels in the USA and the UK.
Research Questions
The study aims at seeking answers for the following research questions:
- How are effective marketing strategies different in the US and the UK hospitality industry?
The sub-questions include:
What marketing strategies are the most effective for the American hospitality industry?
What marketing strategies are the most effective for the UK hospitality industry?
What are the differences in the application of effective marketing strategies in the USA and the UK?
What are the similarities in the application of effective marketing strategies in the USA and the UK?
- Which challenges do the organizations in the UK and US hospitality industries face?
The sub-questions for the research question above include:
What is the impact of Brexit on the current marketing efforts of UK organizations?
How should companies deal with the arising challenges of Brexit and changes in policies?
What are the most significant threats for large hotel chains in the United States?
How large hotels can deal with the competition from such modern platforms as Airbnb?
Hypothesis
The research seeks to test the following hypothesis:
The utilization of such effective marketing strategies as advertising, branding, and segmentation for hotel businesses is more diverse and frequent in the UK than in the USA due to the long history of the UK small entities and the overall cultural perception of such hotels.
Independent and Dependent Variables
According to the tested hypothesis, the independent variable of the study is marketing strategies. It is relevant to define marketing strategy, which is “an organization’s integrated pattern of decisions” concerning the performance of the entity that predetermines the achievement of its particular objectives” (Morgan et al., 2018, p. 3). They will be addressed from three main domains applicable to the hospitality industry, such as advertising, segmentation, and branding. The marketing strategies will be used to test the dependent variable, which entails performance indicators. The performance indicators used for the study will be the ones that demonstrate the overall effectiveness of the marketing strategies in practice. They will include customer satisfaction, market share, and revenue per room.
Boundaries
The study is exposed to several boundaries that are conditioned by the purpose of the study and the setting, as well as the designated area of research (Nolin, 2011). Since this research aims to compare the effectiveness of marketing strategies in the USA and the UK, the geographical boundary might be addressed. To address this delimitation, the researcher uses online tools for data collection. Also, the study is concentrated primarily on the two countries due to their leading positions in the global hospitality businesses. The study is limited to hotels as the sphere of the hospitality industry because of the demonstrative nature of their performance (Attila, 2016).
Literature Review
The scope of literature available on the investigated topic allows for interpreting the level of research in the designated field. The contemporary tendency of economic globalization sets forward a variety of challenges for businesses, especially those dealing directly with consumers (Erixon, 2018). Such entities are forced to formulate their competitive advantages through the application of creative decision-making, non-standard leadership, and effective marketing strategies (Amadeo, 2019). However, the concepts of hospitality and marketing “are the result of a collection of distinct cultural praxes that are largely excluded by traditional marketing approaches” (Tresidder, 2015, p. 710).
Thus, the relationship between these two concepts is more complicated than in any other industry. The idea behind high-quality hospitality would be different for consumers with diverse cultural, historical, and social backgrounds (Nedelea, Korstanje, and George, 2016). Therefore, the research of the culture-specific and country-oriented marketing strategies is crucial for the development of the hospitality industry in general, and hotels in particular. The literature on hospitality business presents a significant number of marketing strategies that are aimed at the identification of the most productive ways of increasing profitability, customer satisfaction, and share in the market.
In the United Kingdom, the hospitality industry represents an essential component of the economy, with total turnover reaching £98 billion in 2017 (Cotton 2019). The hotel industry has the greatest influence on the industry’s prosperity. With London being the hub for tourism, business conventions, and other major events, the industry is continuously growing and changing to fit the demands of the market (Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, 2019). Apart from London, the overall rates of hotel occupancy in the UK have been increasing, from 66% in 2009 to 76% in 2015 (Cotton 2019). It is forecasted that demand will continue to rise because of inbound tourism, domestic holidays, and other events.
Due to the expected rise in hotel occupancy, marketing strategies within the hospitality industry have never been as important for the UK. Several types of marketing for hospitality and tourism have been implemented to attract clients to UK hotels (Leue, Jung, and Knowles, 2013). The first example of the marketing strategy implemented in the UK is direct mail marketing (Kindervater, 2019). This method implies sending printed leaflets and other pieces of advertisement through the mail. Another example is email marketing, which is a similar strategy; however, all advertisements are being distributed through digital mail.
When discussing the UK context, the current marketing efforts have been greatly challenged by Brexit (Riley, 2019). The withdrawal from the European Union presents some uncertainty for the industry as there is a significant inflow of tourists from Europe to the country every year. This means that hotels may have to change their marketing efforts by offering more affordable and accessible services to which customers will be attracted. Price differentiation is the most common marketing effort that UK hotels and restaurants usually implement.
Advertising is one of the most effective marketing strategies that demonstrate its potential in the age of electronic advancement. Indeed, the majority of organizations within the hospitality industry utilize technologies and online platforms as the basis for their advertisement (Nizam, and Supaat, 2018). Segmentation is also impacted by information technologies and the application of digital marketing strategies (Jain and Yadav, 2017). The hotel performance significantly depends on the effectiveness of the application of the review of customer’s feedback, maintaining the online presence of the entity, and other manifestations of digital marketing (Pelsmackera, van Tilburg and Holthof, 2018).
Brand management is an industry-wide trend, with both hotels and restaurants working on creating an image that would be attractive to potential customers. As mentioned by Kwun (2012), brand management in the hospitality industry makes it possible for companies to gain a competitive advantage because of the ability to create an identity of a brand that would be differentiated from core competitors. This means that brands should be recognizable to the general audience (Kucherenko, 2017). Brand recognition ensures that customers understand the value positioning of the brand and are aware of what an organization has to offer (Troilo, 2015). The hospitality industry has currently entered a new stage of branding efforts targeted at increasing technology use for searching hotel and restaurant locations (Buttle and Maklan, 2019). Brand image should be even more recognizable when it comes to the use of digital media because of the high competition from such platforms as Airbnb (Bearne, 2018).
Methodology
Research Design
For this comparative study, the mixed method incorporating qualitative and quantitative data analysis will be used (Buchholtz, 2019). The reason for choosing possible research methods is associated with the fact that one study design may not provide an in-depth understanding of the topic. The combination of qualitative and quantitative methods in research is expected to provide an all-encompassing look at the study problem because different designs offer different advantage points.
Participants
When studying the topic of marketing within the hospitality industry, it is essential to acquire the perspectives of both industry workers and clients. Thus, the research will incorporate interviews and questionnaires conducted with two different groups of participants. The total sample population is expected to include 100 participants, with the number of individuals being divided equally between the two groups.
Instrument
For the collection of data for the study, such instruments as questionnaires and the follow-up interview will be used. Questionnaires represent the quantitative component of the study, while interviews are expected to provide a more in-depth understanding of the research problem (Schoonenboom and Johnson, 2017). Data will be gathered by distributing surveys among study participants, followed by face-to-face interviews. When completing questionnaires, the participants will respond to multiple-choice questions that are easy to understand and do not require much time. The interviews, however, will take a longer time because they are less structured and need respondents to elaborate on their views on the topic.
Procedure
For this research, it was necessary to find participants with specific characteristics. There should be two groups, one British and one American. Within these groups, it is essential to survey and interview both professionals in the hospitality industry and guests. The potential participants will be contacted at hotels and inquired about their willingness to participate in research. The combination of convenience and snowball sampling will be used in this case because the sample population has particular characteristics and thus cannot be attained through random sampling methods (Alvi, 2016).
Data Analysis
The collected data will be analyzed with the application of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software (SPSS). In the case of interview analysis, a thematic analysis will be used to identify the significant themes shared by the respondents (Nowell, Norris, White, and Moules, 2017). The results obtained from the questionnaires and interviews will be coded. The software will compare the data from the UK hotels and the USA hotels, and the identification of similarities and differences will be possible.
Results
The anticipated results include the revealing of different views provided by participants in the UK and USA contexts. The questionnaires and interviews conducted with research participants are expected to reveal that hotel visitors in the UK and the USA have different expectations of quality service (Mmutle & Shonhe, 2017).
In terms of advertisement, there may not be much difference between the responses of the groups because the global marketing sphere implies the range of similar strategies implemented to attract customers to specific organizations (Frolova, 2014). For example, social media marketing is highly likely to be the most widespread method of advertisement in the hospitality industry (Voorveld, van Noort, Muntinga, and Bronner, 2018). All potential clients of the hospitality industry today have access to the Internet and social media, with hotels and restaurants using this aspect to their advantage (Neirotti, Raguseo, and Paolucci, 2016).
In the light of current economic complications present in both the UK and the USA, there may be some differences in the way organizations approach their marketing to attract customers to hotels and restaurants (Benea, 2014). For the UK, Brexit represents a significant challenge because the country has always enjoyed an inflow of tourists from Europe and the US (Mueller, 2019). It would be interesting to hear the perspective of US travelers on the issue. For the United States, the greatest challenge for marketing the hospitality industry services lies in the abundant competition (Lippo, 2019). Some prestigious hotels are now competing with such platforms as Airbnb, which is a drastic shift in the industry (Glusac, 2019).
Limitations
The research may have some potential limitations during data collection (Brooks, 2018). For example, the sample will only 100 participants from both the US and the UK as well as both clients and workers in the hospitality industry. In addition, the mixed-methods research design is time- and resource-consuming because of the need to implement both qualitative and quantitative research (Tariq and Woodman, 2013). Besides, it is expected to face some challenges associated with the recruitment of participants (Patel, Doku, and Tennakoon, 2003). Since the respondents should be both from the US and the UK, the limitation of the study is associated with non-random sampling methods (Setia, 2016).
Conclusion
This research is interested in revealing the marketing efforts that companies within the hospitality industry use to stay competitive and attract customers. The perspectives of both workers in the industry, as well as hotel and restaurant guests, are expected to reveal the expectation of quality as well as the methods that they deem to be the most successful in terms of marketing. In addition, the challenges that organizations within the industry face when trying to promote their services will also be revealed. In the UK, companies operate within the changes associated with Brexit. The US hotels are currently challenged by the rise in the use of such platforms as Airbnb.
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