What is sales and marketing in the hotel industry?

A sales consultant is an important figure in the hotel business. In that business, there are two definitions for the sale of a tourist product or service – personal and corporate sales. And this is a part of sales and marketing.

Personal selling is understood as the direct contact of a hotel company with one or a group of potential buyers in order to sell the services provided to them. Personal selling is an expensive but highly effective way of selling and includes: searching for potential buyers or customers, organizing a presentation of services for them, negotiating and completing the sale – concluding a contract for the provision of services.

Corporate selling means selling services through intermediaries. For example, several hotels use the services of a single sales representative who brings their services to the attention of potential buyers. The idea behind such a sale is that an individual hotel may not have the opportunity to explore an important market for it, and the sales staff of an intermediary firm representing the whole chain can recommend and sell all the hotels of this chain (not necessarily a hotel chain) in a particular tourist market.

While sales and marketing are closely related, they are two distinct business functions. It is important to understand the differences between them and their relationship.

Marketing means having:

– the right product;

– in the right place;

– at the right time;

– at the right price and with the confidence that the buyer knows about the existence of this product.

Selling means obtaining, through personal contact, a buyer’s decision to purchase a product or service. That meets his needs or the business goals of the organization.

The product of hotel services is unique and diverse. It can be material (lunch at a restaurant). And it can also be a service (cleanliness of the room) or a combination of both.

Characteristics of the tourism product

A hotel product is a set of things that can be offered on the market to the attention of the consumer for purchase, use or consumption. It includes physical objects, services, places, organizations, and ideas. For example, the formation of a general impression for a tourist or a businessman about staying in a hotel begins long before the start of the trip and contains ideas about visas, travel methods, features of national culture, cuisine, entertainment, etc.

The variety of combinations of a hotel product, however, as well as a tourist product, is limited only by the possibilities of creative imagination. If the hotel company considers that the options for combinations of its own services have been exhausted, then it is possible to develop new services together with non-competing companies, for example, including restaurant services, car rental, theater ticket, excursion, etc. in the package along with the room.

The specific characteristics of the product affect the behavior during marketing and sales in relation to the price and promotion of the product on the market.

In addition, the tourism product has features that are common to many other products. The concept of the life cycle is as important to product planning and development as it is to sales and marketing. The product life cycle shows that product characteristics such as sales and market placement are not constant. This is typical for any brand, all industries, and sub-sectors of the economy. As well as for specific products and services, new types of products.

There is no specific lifespan for products. Some have a short life with rapid rise and fall, others are in demand for many years and decades.

Product/Service Life Cycle

1. Product development is the period of finding and formulating an idea for a new product. During the development of a new product, sales are at zero, and the company’s investment is growing.
2. Implementation is a period of slow sales growth when the product is introduced to the market. There is no profit at this stage.
3. Growth is a period of rapid product penetration and rising profits.
4. Maturity – a period of deceleration in sales growth, since by this time the product has been accepted by the majority of potential buyers. Profits flatten or decline due to rising marketing costs to protect the product from competitors.
5. Recession – a period when sales and profits fall rapidly.

Not all products in the hospitality industry follow a similar and uniform pattern. Some services can be introduced very quickly and disappear just as quickly. For example, nightclubs tend to have a shorter life cycle with a steeper curve.

In the hotel business, it often happens that some hotels suffer a decline. Major repairs or complete reconstruction allow them to regain their lost attractiveness; a new stage of growth begins.

Marketing is critical in assisting organizations in increasing bookings and revenue. It is the primary means through which hoteliers may reach out to potential clients and communicate their unique selling proposition and brand values.