Travel and Tourism

Promotion and Sales

 Promotion
Having the right product at
the right price in the right
place is of no use if
consumers are unaware of
it.
The business must have the
right mix of promotional
components to make
customers aware of the
product.
 Promotion is the marketing function that
provides information to customers about the
business and its products and encourages them
to buy.
When Disney marketers ran ads on several television
networks at the same time, they were using a
technique called a roadblock to saturate the market.
They were hoping that few people would miss the
major promotion.
The Right Promotion

If the product price, price, and place are all

wrong, promotion will generally not increase
sales.
But, if these three elements are right, promotion
is the catalyst that can make sales happen.
There are at least four distinct types of
promotion advertising, publicity, sales
promotion, and personal selling.
Advertising
Advertising is the paid communication of
information about products and services.
The one-way communication that takes place
between the seller and the potential customers
is intended to increase sales.
If a hotels managers want to let people know about
the hotels new amenities or low price, they can use
advertisements to communicate this information.
Publicity
Publicity is communication to the public about a business
that is not paid for or controlled by the company.
The public image of a business is critical.
can be improved when firm participates in or sponsors
community events, thereby creating good public relations (PR),
or positive and mutually beneficial relationships with the public.
can try to generate media attention.
For example, an airline might use PR to generate publicity by
flying the families of injured military personnel to visit them. A
news story may be written about the event and mention the
airlines generosity.
Sales Promotion
Sales promotion includes activities or
materials that offer the customer an added
reason to buy.
The activities or materials are intended to
support the efforts of the sales staff.
Sales promotions include trade show booths,
contests, coupons, free trials, catalogs, and
special displays.
Personal Selling
Personal selling is a one-on-one interaction with
potential customers to inform them about products
and services and persuade them to buy.
Personal selling has many advantages.
It provides customers with a chance to see or test a
product firsthand.
The salesperson has the opportunity to answer customers
questions.
Additionally, the salesperson can form a positive
relationship with customers that may bring them back as
repeat buyers.
Mixing it Up
Promotion is one of the marketing mix components.
The product and the customer will drive the choice
of how to mix each of the distinct types of
promotion -- advertising, publicity, sales promotion,
and personal selling.
Maximizing the benefits of promotion and
effectively planning the promotional mix require
knowledge of the businesss target customers.
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The blogs are intended to pass on
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generally works with the marketing
Planning for Promotion
A promotional plan is one component
of a businesss overall marketing
plan.
The promotional plan shapes the
selected types of promotion into a
coordinated effort that persuades the
customer to buy; typically covers a
Promotional Plan
A promotional plan can take many forms and includes the
following steps:
1. Decide on a purpose. Promotion has at least three
purposes informing, reminding, and persuading.
Whether you are providing information about travel and tourism
services or reminding potential customers about the businesss
community involvement, the promotion needs to have a solid
purpose based on measurable goals.
A measurable goal is a statement of desired outcome for which
data can be collected to affirm its accomplishment.
For example, a goal to increase sales by 3% during the first 6
mos of the year is specific enough to be measurable.
2. Design the message.
Based on the purpose of the promotion, you must design a message
that will communicate with the businesss targeted audience.
The message should appeal to the needs and interests of the
targeted customers.
3. Determine the promotional mix and the media to use.
The message can be conveyed through any of the four types of
promotion.
The types of promotion can be used individually or in various
combinations.
The audience, the purpose, the message, and the type of promotion
will be the bases on which you will choose the type of media to use.
The media can include billboards, newspapers, magazines,
television, radio, direct mail, or the internet.
4.Develop a budget.
Before committing to promotional ideas, you must determine costs and create an
overall budget for the promotion.
New business will probably spend as much as 5% of gross revenue.
Once a customer base has been established, the amount spent on promotions may
decrease, especially if the business is operating at or near maximum capacity.
5.Create the specific promotions and schedule them for the year.
Working with professionals is a smart move.
Each type used requires knowledge and skill to ensure the promotion has the intended
impact and fulfills the intended purpose.
6.Measure the effectiveness of each promotion and improve the plan.
Based on the measurable goal for each promotion, data should be collected to assure
that the promotion was worth the time, effort, and money spent.
Feedback can be obtained from customers regarding the promotion. Did they choose
your business as a result of the promotional efforts? Knowing if a promotion was
effective or ineffective is important information as you plan future promotions.
Advertising and Public
Relations
People are bombarded with ads and often ignore much
of the constant tirade, making many ads ineffective.
Finding effective ways to get the message through to
potential customers is a continuous challenge.
Because advertising is paid, nonpersonal
communication with existing and potential customers,
it must be carefully designed to accomplish a specific
goal so that advertising money is not wasted.
The Message and the Media
An advertisement must have a specific intended purpose, such
as to inform, remind, or persuade.
A hotel chains managers may want to inform people that the company is
opening a new location or persuade them to spend their vacations at one of
the chains various properties.
Generally, a theme for the entire promotional campaign is repeated in the
advertisements, no matter what media are used.
For example, an airline may advertise in travel magazines and on the
internet, but the theme will remain consistent.
Most media can be classified into one of four basic types
print, broadcast, electronic, and outdoor.
In print media, for example, an advertisement can be run in a newspaper, a
magazine, the Yellow Pages, a flyer, or a brochure.
Each type of adverising media has pros and cons.
 Advertising Media Pros and Cons
Type of Media Example Pros Cons

Print Newspaper Large readership Short time in front

of customer

Broadcast Television Large audience, Expensive in total;

low cost per requires large
person reached budget
Electronic Internet Easy to measure; Limited audience
often pay only for
click-throughs

Outdoor Billboard Low cost Increasingly

restricted
Media Selection
The selection of the media is based on five factors.
1. Target customer
2. Cost of the media
3. Reach the total number of people who will see the
advertisement.
4. Frequency the total number of times the target audience will
see or hear the advertisement.
5. Lead time the time needed to prepare the advertisement.
The necessary lead time must be built into the promotional plan.
A newspaper ad may be published just a few days after being
prepared, but a TV commercial may take months to produce before
airing.
Design
No matter what media are selected, the form of the
advertisement requires knowledge of the basic principles
of design.
Each moment of a TV commercial must be planned just
as carefully as the layout of a print media ad.
Three of the most effective words in advertisements are new,
easy, and results.
To counter the barrage of usual ads, newer forms of
promotion have been created and introduced.
Company blogs, infomercials, and product sponsorship
and placement on TV programs are examples.
 Scenario
An airlines managers decided to give airline
tickets to a low-income family whose child
needed medical attention in a distant city.
1. Do you think the
An airline employee contacted the family airlines
and arranged for the flight at no cost. managers acted
On the day of the flight, the family was met ethically? Why or
at the airport by a large number of why not?
journalists seeking photographs and more
information about the childs medical needs.
2. Should the
The airlines managers had contacted the airline use a
news mediathinking this was an opportunity familys
for positive publicity about the company. misfortune as an
opprotunity for
Advertising Effectiveness
Advertising is a necessary expense for a
successful business, and the businesss
managers need to know that its advertising funds
are being well spent.
The effectiveness of advertising must be
tracked, in order to determine if the right choices
have been made in selecting the media and the
message for the target customer.
Big-Ticket Items
When people choose a hotel for a business
trip, they make the decision quickly.
Yet when people choose an expensive
purchase, such as a one-month vacation
to another country, it takes long-term
planning and involves a number of steps.
Marketing Research
Can pinpoint the number of target customers in each
of the five stages of the process.
This information helps a company focus its advertising
on the types of promotions that will drive additional
sales of products and services based on the decision-
making stages of its customers.
Advertisemnts can then be designed to motivate the
behavior of the customers, thereby increasing sales.
Built-in Evaluation
Some advertisements have built-in evaluation tools
that provide information on the ads effectiveness.
A special phone number or a coded coupon on such
an ad can provide information to the business about
where the customer received the communication
related to the product or service.
The business can record the number of people who
called the phone number or used the coupon and
then purchased the product or service.
 NuBoard Media is a
company that has
patented a non-residue
adhesive used to attach
plastic bags to the seat
backs in sports venues.
If an airline advertises a
discounted fare on the
The number of people in
seat-back bag and
includes a special fare attendance at the sports
code or phone number, event will also provide
the response rate will information on the reach of
easily determine the
effectiveness of the
the ad.
promotion. This knowledge will help
airline shape future
 Publicity...

Positive publicity can help

raise awareness of a product
or service.
A primary advantage of
publicity is that it is free.
The main disadvantage is that
a business does not have
control over the publicity it
receives, and not all publicity is
positive.
News Releases...
A news release is a short article sent to
members of the media prior to a special
event, in hopes that the event will be
newsworthy enough to generate attention.
To help keep the businesss name in front of
the public in a positive light, the company may
issue news releases, volunteer in community
work projects, and donate to worthy causes.
Grabbing the attention of journalists through a
news release of current happenings within the
business may bring positive publicity.
Public Relations...
Maintaining a positive company image in the community
requires continuous action.
Donations to local charities and volunteering to help
with community events can keep the business in the
public eye.
PR involves publicity, but it is a much broader type of
communication intended to keep the business in a
positive light with the public.
PR can include communication designed to provide damage
control during times of crisis.
Some use questionable ethics to slant public opinion in their
favor; they can focus on one positive aspect of a situation but
do not fully disclose all the facts.
Other companies managers have outright lied to the press.
Unethical behavior and cover-ups will catch up with a company and
cause more harm in the long run.
Promoting the Sale

Sales promotion is self-defining

action oriented and
intended to increase sales
It can involve a host of activities that go
beyond advertising to provide the
customer with motivations and
incentives to take action and buy.
 Offering customers a loyalty program that rewards them for
repeat business or providing them with travel gift certificates
are examples of incentives that promote sales.
A contest, where individuals enter to win an all-expense - paid
vacation at a resort, can be used to gather information about
potential new customers as well as to keep existing
customers interested in returning to the sponsoring business.
Sales promotions can also include special financing opportunities that make it
Incentives easier for the customer to buy.
For example, the ability to finance an expensive cruise at a low interest rate
and pay for it over 6 months or so can make a decision to book the vacation a
bit easier to make.
Touchpoints

At each point that a travel or tourism

business makes contact with customers
whether it be over the internet, by phone, or
at hotel check-in opportunity exists to
increase sales for the business.
Each of these opportunities is a touchpoint
at which the rapport with the customer can
be turned into increased revenue.
If a web site provides the ability to
At each touchpoint, the customer must
rent a car and reserve a hotel room
receive a consistently high standard of
service.
while purchasing an airline ticket,
Mapping out the potential touchpoints and
additional revenue may be generated
actually experiencing them as a customer at this touchpoint.
would can help businesses obtain a If at time of checkout, a hotel guest
customers point-of-view. is invited to make reservations for the
This experience can provide insight for future, additional sales may likewise
offering additional products and services. be obtained.
Each touchpoint is an opportunity
 Nothing happens until someone makes a sale puts sales into
perspective as a major function of marketing.

Making a sale means using knowledge of the businesss

products and services to solve the customers problems.
Sharpening Your
Skills The most important skills for successful salespeople are
the abilities to listen to customers, read their emotional
states, and help them without being aggressive.
Using your eyes and ears and not just your mouth,
during a sales converstion can help you gain insight.
Observe the customers nonverbal communication for
clues as to what they are thinking and feeling.
Body language, such as folded arms or tapping feet, can
indicate anger, disapproval, or nervousness.
According to research, up to 90% of all communication is
nonverbal.
Learning to accurately read customers nonverbal
communication can put a salesperson ahead of the
competition.