Hugh Taylor from Edwardian Lodges acknowledged that ‘Marketing will not be an elusive artwork, it’s extra a science of figuring out buyer wants and desires and presenting a package deal that solutions these wants’ (1993, pp. 16). I’m going to be investigating the core ideas and ideas of this ‘science’ and the way it applies to the Burj Al Arab Lodge in Dubai. The Burj Al Arab, additionally identified to some as The Burj, is the landmark resort of Dubai with a peak of 300 and twenty one metres and magnificent structure.
It oozes luxurious with its unbelievable services, distinctive service and rich clientele. I’m going to be wanting at how they’ve secured their place in the market and what they’ve finished in the means of advertising and marketing to turn into such an ‘extraordinary’ resort (Jumeirah, 2012). Buyer Wants and Purchaser Behaviour Marketing has turn into extra than simply ‘telling and promoting’ today with it now being understood as additionally satisfying buyer wants (Armstrong & Kotler, pp.
four).
It’s all about figuring out demand, which is outlined as ‘the systematic gathering, recording, Assessment and utilisation of info associated to all elements which have an effect on a enterprise operator’ (Roberts, pp. 82). If a resort operator can’t clearly recognise not solely the buyer’s wants and necessities however the stage of these, how are they ever going to have the ability to make their enterprise profitable? The foremost methodology of figuring out buyer wants is market analysis. There are numerous methods of gathering this analysis comparable to phone surveys, private interviews, visitor remark knowledge, mailed questionnaires and competitor Assessment.
In the means of the Burj Al Arab, after leaving the resort they electronic mail questionnaires to clients and hand out visitor questionnaires (see appendix 1), which asks them to present their particulars and then leaves area for them to put in writing about their expertise at the resort. Buyer care has turn into one of the most necessary components of any enterprise that offers with clients as it’s seen as the finest means of sustaining and creating a worthwhile enterprise, particularly in the case of accommodations the place the whole lot revolves round retaining the clientele completely happy.
On the Expedia web site, a buyer evaluate of The Burj Al Arab acknowledged that ‘the employees at Burj Al Arab was above and past our creativeness of good customer support’ (Expedia, 2011). As soon as potential demand and buyer wants are established, the hospitality operator will achieve the information and understanding of what influences actually exist in purchaser behaviour. Some of these influences are location and accessibility, price, worth and high quality, model and atmosphere, promoting, suggestions and earlier experiences amongst many extra (Roberts, pp. 162-163).
Segmentation, Concentrating on and Positioning When advertising and marketing a product comparable to a resort, one has to grasp that everybody is totally different due to this fact making it unattainable to cater to all their particular person wants. You may both go together with the mass advertising and marketing method, which solely works for the same market the place everybody’s wants are comparable, or undertake market segmentation. That is merely outlined as ‘the separation of teams into extra simply focused segments’ (Roberts, pp. 65). Market focusing on is all about selecting which segmented group will match together with your product.
The market might be segmented with geography, demographics, psychographics and behaviour. Segmenting the market geographically will look at totally different areas and whether or not they’re rich or not for instance. You’ve additionally obtained to look at whether or not your product will match into a selected space. For instance, The Burj Al Arab have focused the right space to start out their luxurious and costly resort as Dubai is usually seen as a rich nation the place the vacationers have rather a lot of cash to spend however the undeniable fact that they’ve chosen the shoreline makes it stand out as no different resort in Dubai is on the seaside.
It’s going to even be the very first thing that boats see once they arrive at the Dubai ports as it’s 321 metres tall (Dubai structure, 2011). Demographics look at the age, gender, race, faith, occupation, training and revenue of the market. For this class, The Burj is focusing on center aged and older of all races who’ve a superb training and a excessive revenue. Psychographics appears to be like at social class, life-style and character due to this fact The Burj is focusing on excessive class people who find themselves on the lookout for a luxurious break with their accomplice. Behavioural segmentation relies on the use of a product.
For instance, The Burj is the kind of resort that folks aspire to remain at throughout some level of their life. The people who keep there are both very rich and keep there frequently, or individuals who plan on going there as soon as for a special day or a deal with. Market positioning is the means that the clients outline the product in the means of its necessary components. For instance, its bodily attributes comparable to if a resort has a spa or a pool, personnel which relies on how good the employees are, location and whether it is conveniently positioned and picture, which is de facto about the merchandise repute and branding.
For the Burj Al Arab, it’s primarily outlined by its bodily attributes comparable to the undeniable fact that it was constructed to resemble a billowing sail of a dhow, which is a kind of Arabian vessel (Dubai Structure, 2011). The structure makes it stand out from all the different buildings in Dubai seeing because it has now turn into a landmark for the nation. It additionally has many options comparable to a spa, a personal seaside and many different attributes like this. The personnel is a really massive half of the resort seeing as there’s a twenty 4 hour butler service and private customers out there (Jumeirah, 2012).
Additionally they delight themselves on their location being proper on the coast but additionally a brief drive away from Dubai’s metropolis centre. Since beginning the resort, The Burj Al Arab has developed and secured and picture of excellence and luxurious for the world to see. Product ‘The hospitality trade has nobody product, somewhat a variety of merchandise that are aimed at attracting totally different clients and for various causes’ (Roberts, pp. 27). When taking aside the product, there are 4 ranges to think about.
First of all the core product which is one other means of saying ‘What’s the purchaser actually shopping for? (Armstrong & Kotler, pp. 220). It’s the centre of the product and what folks instantly search for when in search of a services or products. When wanting at the Burj Al Arab, its core product is the luxurious side of it. In keeping with the Jumeirah Web site, the Burj Al Arab is ‘the world’s most luxurious resort and the final in Arabian hospitality’ (Jumeirah, 2012). That is what folks see when they’re on the lookout for a resort in Dubai.
When wanting at the facilitating merchandise, they’re ‘the companies or items that should be current for the buyer to make use of the core product’ (Scribd, 2011). The Burj Al Arab’s facilitating product is the reception as the clients wouldn’t be capable of entry their resort room if this and the employees weren’t there to help. The supporting product will not be completely crucial in the working of a hospitality outlet however they do Help in attracting the clients. They’re outlined as ‘further merchandise provided so as to add worth to the core product and Help to distinguish it from competitors’ (Scribd, 2011).
The Burj Al Arab’s supporting merchandise can be the six award profitable eating places, the convention and banqueting venues, the butler service for each room, the assawan spa and well being membership, the personal seaside, infinity swimming pools and the limitless entry to the finest water park in Dubai, Wild Wadi (Jumeirah, 2012). The final stage of the product is the augmented product which mixes accessibility, environment and buyer interplay with the core, facilitating and supporting merchandise. The augmented product for the Burj is the design of the resort because it has turn into such a landmark for Dubai in the quick interval of time that it has been there.
It has been described as ‘legendary’ and ‘symbolic’ and one of the most photographed buildings in the world (Emirates, 2011). Professionals in the advertising and marketing enterprise have a vital job to ‘create, keep, defend and improve manufacturers of their services or products (Armstrong & Kotler, pp. 227). You probably have a effectively established and beneficial model, it exhibits belief and reliability inside the firm due to this fact will appeal to extra clients. There are some disadvantages of branding although comparable to the undeniable fact that as the market demand is altering the model and product might turn into quaint and out of date.
The Burj Al Arab is an element of the Jumeirah group who’ve a repute and a consistency to provide top of the range accommodations round the world. Their model is luxurious, which to this point, has been saved intact. In the case of the Burj, there may be at all times the fear that clients will begin to acknowledge the model as top quality but additionally too excessive in price particularly in occasions like the recession the place firms might expertise a discount in the quantity of clients they get (Roberts, pp. 76). The product life cycle is ‘the phases merchandise undergo in relation to price, profitability and demand’.
The first stage is product growth the place the firm initially finds and develops the new product. The subsequent half of it’s the introduction stage the place the new product is launched into the market. This stage takes time and effort as gross sales will usually be gradual and revenue nonexistent attributable to the spending in the product introduction. The progress stage is subsequent, which ought to hopefully consist of fast market acceptance and rising earnings and buyer consciousness. The product will then enter the maturity stage the place the gross sales will decelerate attributable to the product gaining acceptance from potential patrons.
The final stage is the decline when gross sales will fall and earnings will drop attributable to the demand by way of the growing competitors or change in client behaviour. (Roberts, pp. 68-73) (Armstrong & Kotler, pp. 276-283) Worth There are some necessary elements to think about when figuring out the pricing for a resort comparable to whether or not the foremost goal is to extend earnings or to uphold a repute. The resort worth not solely must cowl the room fee and so on however the price of selling the product as effectively.
In the case of The Burj, they’re clearly attempting to make a big revenue however I might say that the foremost cause they worth so extremely is as a result of they need to make it extra of a luxurious product. The pricing technique that they use is status pricing, which is a tactic that evokes a premium product and service and offers off a top quality picture. This occurs in rather a lot of locations, for instance the director of Greens Lawns Lodge and Restaurant stated that ‘regardless of diminished demand for our a la carte menu, we determined that to scale back costs would end in a discount in high quality for the buyer…
To have diminished requirements would have been an unacceptable technique’ (Roberts, pp. 17). This simply exhibits that ‘customers are inclined to equate excessive costs with top quality’ (Lamb, Hair Jr & McDaniel, pp. 19). At the peak time of December, the most cost-effective room you may get is ? 1,099 per evening. One other instance of status pricing is there spa; a basic manicure and pedicure is ? 121 and the romantic moonlight swim, which consists of a therapeutic massage, moonlight swim in personal infinity pool, champagne, roses and monogrammed Burj Al Arab bathtub robes is ? 1,223 (See appendix 2 for different spa packages and pricing).
Place In the case of the precise place, the location is essential to firms whose clients come to them. In keeping with an American hotelier, ‘there’s solely 4 issues to think about when opening a resort: location, location, location and location’ (Roberts, pp. 18). When deciding the location, it’s vital to have in mind the attractiveness, potential demand, accessibility for patrons and presence of opponents in the space. The resort that I’m researching has taken these elements into nice consideration beginning off with the attractiveness of the resort.
They’ve chosen the excellent location with it being located on the shoreline of Dubai surrounded by lovely seashores. In phrases of potential demand, The Burj Al Arab was constructed throughout the creation of the trendy Emirate due to this fact there rather a lot of different luxurious accommodations being constructed at the similar time. The Burj was not constructed as a result of of the reality that there have been no luxurious accommodations in Dubai however as a result of they wished to design one thing that symbolised ‘Dubai’s city transformation’ (Dubai Structure, 2011).
Their accessibility might be seen as somewhat troublesome with it being positioned on a small artifical island off the coast with a bridge connecting the two collectively. Additionally, the solely means for non residents to get into the resort is for them to e-book a desk at one of the resort’s eating places. This might be seen as a good suggestion for safety causes nevertheless it additionally makes it look barely pompous in the means that they won’t simply let anybody in. Taking vacationers into consideration, it’s a quick drive away from the metropolis, which fits in its favour.
The resort is sort of surrounded by opponents providing the similar type of service but that is irrelevant with the undeniable fact that The Burj Al Arab has the finest repute attributable to its seven star ranking and distinctive service and services. The place not solely includes the bodily location although, additionally it is the availability and accessibility. The Burj Al Arab may be very fortunate in that it isn’t only a seasonal resort attributable to Dubai’s climate being excellent all yr spherical. This makes its availability good seeing that there’s nothing stopping clients on this division staying at the resort.
An enormous problem that may are available accessibility is the worth, which may be very excessive due to this fact it can put folks off going there. Promotion The very last thing that’s thought of when making a product is ‘how info associated to the product will likely be communicated and promoted to potential clients’; also called promotions. The cause accommodations do that is to lift buyer consciousness of their service, produce optimistic demand and then keep this demand (Roberts, pp. 31). A method of selling your product is thru promoting.
This implies of promotion isn’t simply used for firms but additionally for lots of non-profit organisations and professionals as effectively to promote their presents to totally different goal markets. The Burj Al Arab has created a variety of adverts in the previous to advertise the resort as ‘luxurious’ (See appendices three & four). These adverts are implying that customers ought to depart their regular lives behind and come and keep at the Burj the place they may expertise an ‘extraordinary’ keep. This kind of promotion known as fantasy because it virtually creates a marvel world round the resort.
One of the strategies used to advertise an organization is thru public relations which is outlined as ‘the deliberate, deliberate and sustained effort to ascertain mutual understanding between an organisation and its public’ (Roberts, pp. 129). Public relations, or PR, is getting used much more now attributable to growing prices of promoting and gross sales promotions. Their means of doing issues in the enterprise is all about creating alternatives to positively promote the services or products for instance by way of memorable occasions, product publicity, company communication and lobbying.
When wanting at the Burj Al Arab, they’ve created rather a lot of media consideration since beginning the firm. For instance, on 31st December 2011 The Burj hosted their first New Years Eve social gathering on the seaside at ? 113 per particular person (Arabian Enterprise, 2011). One thing that’s at present being deliberate is the Chinese language New 12 months celebration at The Burj the place they are going to be holding a particular social gathering on 23rd January. The resort may even be turning purple paying homage to the ‘most necessary celebration in the Chinese language calendar’ (Haute Residing, 2012).
One thing that’s good publicity for The Burj Al Arab is the World Journey Awards the place they’ve acquired ninety nominations in whole and received thirty 5 of them. These embody profitable the ‘World’s Main All Suite Lodge’ eight occasions and the ‘Center East’s Main Lodge’ yearly since 2004 (World Journey Awards, 2012). Conclusion After investigating The Burj Al Arab resort’s buyer wants, purchaser behaviour, goal market, segmentation, positioning, product, place, worth and promotions, I’ve come to the conclusion that they’re glorious at advertising and marketing their product; merely ‘the world’s most luxurious resort’ (Jumeirah, 2012).
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