ABSTRACT
Hospitality and tourism industry comprises businesses
involve in the provision of accommodations,
foods, recreational centers for visitors or travelers, comfort and catering services for others. The purpose of this
research was to identify and examine the
benefits to be derived when marketing strategies and concepts are applied
effectively in the hospitality and tourism industry. The research was based on descriptive research design. The research
analyses marketing variables and how they influence customer patronages.
The researcher took into considerations the total population of 80 employees and customers of Royalty Hotels and
Recreations with a sample size of 67
respondents to analyze his data and test hypotheses. Findings revealed that for effective marketing of services
in the hospitality industries, a specific blend of marketing strategies
are required. Some recommendations made include, Royalty Hotels and Recreations,
the operator of the hospitality and tourism industry should apply the marketing concept effectively to have an edge over its
competitors, they should embrace the
concept for a better economic gains to the organization. Experts in the field of marketing should be
employed to ensure effective and efficient application of the marketing
concept. They should provide good quality services to its customers at the price which the customer can
afford.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cover page
Title Page
Certification
Dedication
Acknowledgement
Abstract
Table of Contents
List of Tables
CHAPTER ONE
1.0
Background of the Study
1.1
Statement
of the Problem
1.2 Objective of the Study
1.3
Research
Questions
1.4
Research
Hypothesis
1.5
Significance of the Study
1.6
Scope / Limitation of the Study
1.7
Definition of Terms,
CHAPTER TWO
2.0 Introduction
2.1 Theoretical and Conceptual Overview of Marketing Concept
2.2
The Marketing Concept in Service Marketing -
2.3
An
Overview of Services
2.4
Services Characteristics
2.4.1
Intangibility
of Service
2.4.2
Perishability
of Service
2.4.3
Heterogeneity of Sendee
2.4.4
Inseparability
of Service
2.4.5
Use
of Direct Distribution
2.4.6
Involvement
of Customer in Production
2.5
Natures
and Importance of Services
2.6
Marketing Strategies in the Services Industry:
The
Marketing Mix:
2.6.1
People
as Component of Services Marketing Mix
2.6.2
Process as Component of Services Marketing Mix -
2.6.3
Physical Facility as a Component of Service Marketing Mix
2.7
Relevance
of Marketing Techniques to Service
2.8
Advertising as an Element of Promotional Mix and
it
Effects on Hotel and Tourism -
2.9 Theoretical
Framework
CHAPTER THREE
3.1
Area of the Study
3.2
Research Design
3.3 Population of the Study
3.4 Sample
Determination/Techniques
3.5 Source of
Data
3.6 Method
of Data Collection
3.7 Data
Presentation
CHAPTER FOUR
4.0
Introduction
4.1
Data Presentation and Analysis
4.2
Test
of Hypotheses -
4.3
Discussion
of Findings
CHAPTER FIVE
5.1
Summary
5.2
Conclusion
5.3
Recommendations -
Questionnaire
References
CHAPTER ONE -
INTRODUCTION
1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Marketing is one of the basic
functions facing organization today, be it for profit or not for profit
making. Corporate managers now realize the hidden potentials of marketing as a tool for generating and
maximizing sales and patronages.
Organizations perform the marketing
function either knowingly or unknowingly as they fight to acquire more market shares
(sales volume) and revenues.
Marketing of services is an integral part of marketing. A service is any
activity or benefit one party offer to another that is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything.
Its production may or may not be tied to a physical product. Services
involve action, deed, and performance, services
business covers a wide span from very small operation such as a roadside Motor
Mechanic, Restaurant, and Bar to large businesses such as Hotel,
Tourism, Airlines, etc.
Hotel and tourism are entities that
organize and provide hospitality services to people in the form of accommodation,
meals, leisure, monuments, and showcase of cultural and natural heritage, rental,
communication and recreational
facilities in returns for payment (money). The application of the basic principles of marketing is the same
irrespective of whether one is marketing
tangible or intangible goods for commercial (profit) or noncommercial
(social) organizations. Marketing of services which is sometimes called marketing of professional services cut
across the hospitality and tourism industry etc.
According to Chigozie (2007),
marketing must not be seen narrowly as the task of finding clever ways to sale products or sendees.
According to him many people confuse
marketing with some of its sub - functions such as advertising and selling. Marketing is not the art of selling
what you make but knowing what to
make, it is the art of identifying and understanding customer needs and creating solution that deliver satisfaction to
customers, profit to hotel, fast food, restaurant
operators and tourism business etc.
Hospitality and tourism industry is the
sector that the Federal, State and Local Government pays a lot of attention to,
by a successive government in Nigeria. Various governments seem to recognize the
potentials of hospitality and tourism industry to boost the economy and corporate image
of the country in a variety
of ways. Based on this, marketing in hospitality and tourism world critically
look at the dynamic of the environment encompasses in business, physical (geographical) and governmental policies
environment, (Adeyemo, 2005).
The philosophy of marketing in the
hospitality and tourism industry is customer oriented. Their services are defined
from the customer point of view. Hospitality means to be hospitable; Akwa Ibom
State people in Nigeria by nature are hospitable and accommodating. This quality
should be exhibited in our hospitality and tourism industry, (Nwidum 2007). The
thrust of this research is
designed to examine the strategies for services marketing in the hospitality industries in Akwa Ibom State with
particular reference to Royalty Hotels and Recreations, Eket.
Royalty Hotel and Recreations is a privately
owned establishment which provides or deals on hotels and gathering services. It
is located at 74/76 Eket Oron
Road Eket. Royalty Hotels and Recreations is a top-class hotel offering sophisticated services for both the business and
leisure travelers.
The
hotel is strategically
located in a superb and conducive environment that is easily accessible from
anywhere within the town.
Located in Eket Akwa Ibom State, the hotel's rooms are each
fully equipped with air-conditioning system,
intercom, satellite TV, in house movies, refrigerators etc. The hotel's restaurant offers a delightful choice of
local national and continental
dishes suitable for everyone. Royalty lobby bar and the Sunset bar provide a wonderful pre-dinner
cocktail, light snacks and an unimaginable
relaxation. Royalty Hotels and Recreations is a home of superior service and generous comfort within an environment
of royal elegance. The hotel also features fully equipped conference and
banquet hall and a multipurpose hall with seating capacity of 1000.
Royalty Hotels and Recreations offers
80 spacious guest rooms all beautifully decorated and equipped with modern facilities for ultimate
comfort. The 80 ready rooms include two
Royal Suites and each room is equipped with air-conditioning system, telephone, big screen television with
cable/satellite channels, in-house movies and refrigerator, wireless
internet access etc.
Room Facilities
•
Air conditioning
•
Cable/satellite TV
•
Complimentary toiletries
•
Complimentary newspapers
•
Telephone/Intercom
•
Wake up calls (On Demand)
•
24-hour room service
•
24-hour security
Plasma
TVs
Facilities & Services
•
Business center
•
24 hours' room Service
•
24 hours uninterrupted
Power supply
•
Safe deposit box
•
Banqueting/Conferencing
services
•
Full restaurant services
•
Car hire facilities on request
•
Complementary car wash
services
•
24hrs front desk services
•
Currency Exchange
•
Guests car park
•
Well-equipped fitness center
•
Well-maintained swimming
pool
•
Indoor & Outdoor Bar
•
High-speed internet access
1.1
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Effective marketing strategies have
contributed immensely toward the achievement of post purchase satisfaction on
the side of the consumers who purchase the company's product or services in the market
place. Every organization
which intends to improve on marketing of it products or services
has to create good marketing strategies
for its efficient and effective operations. These strategies if effectively used should
increase the sales volume of it products or services as well as it profitability Nwaizugbo (2004).
In evaluating the activities of the hospitality industries, hotel
and tourism in particular. It has been
observed that the application of the marketing mix concept as a strategy has contributed toward the
success story of the hospitality industries. The specific blend of their
marketing variables such as product, price,
place (distribution), promotion, people, processes and physical evidence has helped to maintain their market shares in the industries over the years.
In spite of the importance of marketing mix
strategies in this sector. Royalty Hotels and Recreations have been experiencing
low customer patronage for so long now as a result of the following;
i
The price of goods and services in Royalty Hotels are very high,
customers can
no more afford them.
ii
The quality of goods and sendees are very poor, not commensurate with
price paid for these goods and services.
iii The sales volume of goods and services
on a daily basis are reducing due to poor quality and lack of patronage by customers.
As a result of the above mentioned problems
the researcher intends to find out if well-tailored marketing strategies can be
a solution to the problems and offer recommendations.
1.2 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The general objective of this study
is to examine the strategy for marketing of services in the hospitality industries in Akwa
Ibom state with particular
1. Ho - Goods and services sold in Royalty Hotels and
Recreations are not costly.
Hi — Goods and services sold in Royalty Hotels
and Recreations are costly.
2. Ho - The quality of goods and services in Royalty
Hotels and Recreations are poor.
Hi - The quality of goods and services in Royalty Hotels and
Recreations are not poor.
3. Ho —
Customers does not derive any satisfaction from the consumption of goods and services they buy from Royalty Hotels and Recreations.
Hi - Customers derived satisfaction from the consumption of goods
and services they buy from Royalty Hotels and
Recreations.
1.5
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This study provides
the following benefit:
(a)
It will unfold whether or not marketing as a philosophy
of modern business has a role to play
in the hospitality industries.
(b)
The study will broaden the researcher's horizon in the
theories, concepts and processes of marketing.
(c)
Hotel managers and proprietors will benefit from it,
because the findings and
suggestions will improve their marketing strategy.
(d)
It is
hoped also that the research report would act as reference materials to those in the marketing and business
research profession. It would be of great value and importance to the
development of the profession as it adds to existing literatures in the field of marketing.
(e)
The research would be useful to other students,
researchers and scholars who might wish to carry out research in this field or relevant ones in the future as it would provide them with the much needed reference materials.
(f)
Other organizations wishing to understand more about marketing of services will find
this work very useful.
1.6 SCOPE / LIMITATION
OF THE STUDY
This research is confined within the research
topic and identified problems. Thus deliberating on theory and application of marketing
strategies as a philosophy to
a hotel /tourism as stated in the statement of the problem and defined
objectives. In conducting this study, the researcher encountered the following:
1. Poor attitude on the
part of respondents. Our respondents were either showing
lukewarm attitude in responding to our questionnaire or did not respond
at all. Therefore, the researchers had to make several contacts and calls to enable him retrieve
some of the questionnaires distributed.
2.
Inability to carry out two or more studies from
respondents in other services industries to compare, if the
practice is the same with what is obtainable in Royalty Hotels and Recreations.
3.
The time allocated for the study was rather too small,
owing to the fact that the
researcher had to combine his official duty and other engagement with project
work. But despite all this the researcher was able to complete the work on
schedule.
DEFINITION OF TERMS,
a. HOTEL: This is a business
outfit where rooms, meals recreation faculties are provided for
people in return for payment.
b. MARKETING:
it is the process
of planning and executing
the conception,
pricing, promotion and distribution of services to create exchanges that
satisfy individual (customer)
and organizational objectives.
c. MARKETING CONCEPT: this is the idea that
business success requires
being customer -oriented rather than product oriented, as such business
must find out the needs and wants of the customers before wading
into production of a product to satisfy them at the same time making profit and out-beating
it competitors.
d. MARKET OFFER:
this is service, which an organization makes available for members of the
public
e. PROMOTION: promotion is an
activity carried out by any organization intended
to increase revenue consequently.
f. TARGET AUDIENCE: this is a set of
fairly homogenous customers whom an
organization want to reach or satisfy with it market offer (service).
g. SERVICE: This is any form of product that is
abstract intangible in nature
and does not result in the ownership of anything. Sometimes it goes
with a physical product.
h. TOURISM: this a business of
providing accommodation, showcasing unique heritage (such as natural, artificial
and cultural heritage) and service for people visiting a place in order to create good impression about the place.
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