Case Summary

The case is about the Accra Beach Hotel on the Caribbean island of Barbados. The hotel manager got a request from the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) about hosting several cricket teams while the West Indies Cricket Services, which is an important international sporting event. The head of the WICB was asking for a discount for 50 of the 141 rooms of the hotel. Now the sales manager has to decide whether to accept the inquiry or not. One important thing for her to consider is that business people, who are the most important guest group, would be stay away because of the cricket teams. On the other hand would hosting the teams have a publicity effect as the marketing exposure through the Board could be very beneficial for the hotel.

Answer 1 a. Seasonal Cycle: Weather is an important factor causing demand to vary. For example, JulyOctober is a hurricane season in the West Indies. Also, people from North America, Europe and other countries will be more attracted to come to Barbados for a vacation when the weather in their own countries is cold and damp. Business guests demand hotel rooms during the whole year but have a tendency to prefer the month before summer like may and June to do their business. b. Economic Cycle: The phases of the business cycle are characterized by changing employment, industrial productivity, and interest rates. When the economy or business is down, there is less business travel, fewer people attend conferences, and in the process tourism may also be affected. c. Days of the week: Business travelers are more likely to stay on weekdays (Sunday through Thursday nights), while some individual vacationers wish to stay just for the weekends. Occupancy rate at the Accra Beach Hotel (ABH) is highest January through March (nice weather conditions in the Caribbean, unpleasant weather conditions in North America and northern Europe) and lowest in September (peak of hurricane season).

Answer 2 There are mainly three customer segments. They are: a. Business (Corporate) Clients consisting of both local and international. b. Tour Operators c. Individual travelers

Pros of serving several segments: It is not possible to fill up the all available or maximum capacity with a single segment, so having different segments is important to tackle this problem, which helps in utilizing the maximum capacity The tour operators and individual vacationers help to fill up the rooms in the weekends when there are no business travelers.

Cons of serving different segments: The quality may decline when giving services to different segment and when the capacity of the hotel exceeds the optimum capacity Customers of different segments act or behave in different ways and their needs and expectations may clash. For example, normal vacationers dress casually and are out to have a relaxing carefree time, whereas business people tend to dress soberly, bring their laptops to the restaurants and are not out there to have a carefree time. The difference of needs may lead to conflicts.

Answer 3 The key considerations are y The Customer/Guest relations impact: If the deal with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) will upset the loyal customers of the hotel, for instance the corporate customers may not like the noisy environment that will be created by the cricket players. The presence in the hotel of a large group of sportsmen may detract from the experience of the customers which will weaken their bond with the hotel. Marketing Impact: This issue concerns how valuable the publicity will be for the hotel. Will it be positive for the hotel s image, neutral, or negative? Financial Impact: Will the hotel make or lose money on the WICB deal? These concerns about the monetary issues; profit or loss that will result form this deal.

y y

Answer 4 Financial Analysis The issues that are involved over here are the: The revenues received from the WICB booking. The direct costs associated with that booking (in this case, defined simply as breakfast and laundry). The revenues lost due to turning away guests who would have stayed if the hotel were not full due to the presence of the WICB group.