MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION


Seven things that will work


in today’s environment 1 A clear brand proposition defi ning


you differently from the competition. 2 An accurate and up-to-date


segmented customer database. 3 An individually targeted customer communication programme offering the right thing to the


right people at the right time. 4 An inclusive and positive team development programme which


shares responsibility and motivation. 5 An up-to-date website that refl ects your character and puts


the customer fi rmly in charge. 6 Developing a special relationship with your local


It’s all in the demographics Thirty years ago, the market was seg- mented into three components. Those three main segments, of course, were the young family market, the grey market, and the young adults (“yuppies”, if you remember the 1980s). Another big benefi t of modern technol- ogy and data quality is the explosion in accurate demographics. We now know that markets are much more segmented than that. Each of the broad ‘age/ lifestage’ categories is broken down into many different groups and types so that really accurate and intrusive communi- cation becomes easy. Understanding exactly which market you should access at which season of the year and for which product is another massive empowerment to the canny operator.


A quality explosion Another of the really big changes over this period has been the quantum improve- ment in quality in almost every sector. Budget hotels offer really excellent value for money, space and solid housekeeping quality for those who just want to use the accommodation for sleeping. The comfort, style and individual character available in the B&B sector has improved enormously. Media-driven market expectations and a big increase in middle-market affl uence have driven standards very much higher. Perhaps most of all, the food offering


from gastro pub to gourmet restaurant seems light years ahead of what it was


ISSUE 1 2011 © cybertrek 2011


“A trip round Butlins shows just how far we’ve come” (above)


like in the 1980s. All of these changes have been driven by increased con- sumer awareness of what is possible and increasing consumer expectations of what should be delivered. It is no accident that decorating and lifestyle, cooking and entertaining programmes are frighteningly popular. They fuel the consumer expectations of ever higher standards in the leisure offering. It mean operators have had to raise their game to an unexpected degree. A trip round Butlins or Warner Leisure Hotels, or even the average holiday home park site, reveals just how far we’ve come since the days of Hi-de-Hi!


Standards and expectations change, core principles don’t In this brave new world of brighter and bet- ter product provision, the game, of course, remains the same – meeting and beating consumer expectations.


In rather the same way that Olympic


performances and records seem to get better and better, the bar keeps being raised on the requirements for success in marketing and operations. It comes down to understanding what your market wants, research- ing what your competitors are offering, fi nding the points of difference that give you an edge and delivering that USP consistently.


market via PR and events. 7 Added value offers that reward loyal, regular customers.


Seven things that will not work 1 Following fashion rather than your


own individual character and style. 2 Management by fear


during the recession. 3 Not listening to your customers’


feedback and ignoring their views. 4 Blanket impersonal emails


and particularly e-newsletters. 5 Self-important communications


that are all about you. 6 Inaccurate data-based communications, even down


to Mr/Mrs/Ms. Get it right! 7 Cheap discount deals that attract people not in your target market; they will never come back and actually spend.


“Fish where the fish are…. and use the right fly” Defi ne your market, locate your mar- ket, excite your market. It remains as true today as it was when I used it as a mar- keting pitch to the Watneys (now Grand Met or Diageo), Whitbread (Travel Inn) or Ladbroke Group (Hilton) in the 1980s. Use the 30-year advances of bet- ter information, cleverer and more affordable technology and above all bet- ter-trained, more-engaged staff to deliver a better-than-expected experience. Then you will own your market. Then you can truly call it yours. ●


Read Leisure Management online leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital 71


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