Case Study Report: International Guest House

Executive Summary

 

In this report our team tried to make a marketing plan for the International Guest House(IGH) at Nepal at the request of Rabindra Rawal (the Sales Representative and Tour Organizer for the IGH).

 

The report consists of the following contents :

l  Background Check of the IGH

l  The problem of Late Arrivals

l  Marketing Plan

l  SWOT Analysis

 

At each section our team has worked to provide detailed information analysis and marketing plans. At Background Check, we analyzed strategic benefits of the IGH such as its location, services, website and what attracts travelers. We also analyzed the Problem of Late Arrivals at the point of how it affects the hotel. At Marketing Plan, we recommend the IGH should take our advices at the point of characteristics of visitors by their ages and we especially analyzed about Korean travelers. At last we also did some SWOT Analysis. We looked at the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats that the hotel is currently facing. With our new marketing plan report, we hope your business becomes more prosperous and the IGH should become the most famous hotel at Nepal.

 

 

 

 

Background 

At this section, we will explain the background the IGH. The topic we will be discussing is marketing strategies for 'International Guest House'. First of all, the International Guest House is a hotel located in Kathmandu, Nepal. Its advantage is that it is strategically located in tourist attractions. The IGH is operating at a high price, but it offers a clean and well-decorated room. There is a website developed by the hotel. The site is inviting people to come to the hotel by reminding them of the view of Mount Everest around the hotel, tracking activities, and visiting national parks. Nepal, where this hotel is located, is mountainous and has long been a place that many trekkers want to visit. And it is now a popular tourist attraction for people in Europe, North America and some parts of Asia. That's the advantage of running this hotel. And many tourists are coming to the hotel using the Internet map. And what's noteworthy about hotel marketing is that there are some problems with customers' arrival and reservation through the website, and Mr. Rabindra Rawal the Sales Representative and Tour Organizer for the IGH, contacted us about the problem.

 

 

The Problem of Late Arrivals

The late arrival of customers is a problem in hotel management. Customers arriving later than the hotel check-in time is related to the flight problem and Nepal’s mountainous terrain is very dangerous to operate the plane. In fact, Nepal Airport is the place where the most plane accidents occur in the world. In addition, Nepal’s topography consists of various heights ranging from 60m above sea level to 8,848m above sea level between 150km north and south. Therefore, the climate also varies depending on the region, such as extreme or subtropical. Also, from June to September, it is the rainy season of Kathmandu, and heavy rain is causing a lot of disruptions to the operation of the plane. Due to the factors described earlier, there are many variables until passengers arrive at Nepal Airport. Among the customers who visited the hotel before, there was a delay of 18 hours due to the airline's departure, and when he arrived in Nepal, he spent 6 hours on landing due to the fog. This is often the case. So Mr. Rabindra suggested making a hotel reservation over the Internet. He claimed that we could give customers quick feedback if hotel staff receives real-time reports of customers' arrival. However, he also argued that Internet reservations are not easy to build trust relationships.

 

 

Marketing Plan

 

To implement the marketing plan, our team analyzed some of the criteria for the International Guest House(IGH) itself. First we analyzed the characteristics of the IGH customers by age. Second for the purpose to increase the number of Korean guest, we also analyzed some typical characteristics of Korean. Lastly we also made some review of the hotel’s website and considered future trends in the travel industry.

 

1.      Young people (aged 18 to 25).

One of the biggest characteristics of the Young is that they are usually backpack travelers. Because their luggage is light, they can move faster and stay shorter at one place than the Old whose luggage isn’t light. So the IGH should provide information related to different destinations at Nepal. Another one is that they have small budget, which means they work within the budget so they are relatively less sensitive to the quality than the Old. In other words, they weigh the cost-effectiveness. The final feature is that they use Internet more often than the Old. The Young without the smartphone is unimaginable, so the IGH MUST provide free wi-fi connection. As our team said earlier the Young are more eager to get information so the internet connection is essential.

 

2.      Old people (aged 40 to 60).

The Old of course have different characteristics from the Young. The biggest difference is that they may book their trip through a travel agent and purchase a package deal which includes their flights, hotels, and activities. So if the IGH wants to attract the Old, it must link up with travel agencies. Since the Old are wealthier than the Young, the IGH can offer some fancy activities such as hot air balloon riding. Another typical characteristic is that they stay longer at one place than the Young. A typical vacation for the Old takes about 2 weeks. The longer they stay at one place, the more susceptible they are to the hotel’s service. So the IGH should provide distinctive services.

 

3.      Korean travelers (all ages). As the IGH wanted to attract more Korean travelers regardless of age, our team made further analysis about Korean travelers. The most important point is that Korean travelers often don’t eat well overseas. For example many Korean bring hot chili paste and cup noodles overseas because they are familiar with spicy and salty food. So if the IGH appeal with food that suits the taste of Koreans, it will attract more Korean travelers. The other biggest characteristics of them is they live in so-called “quickly quickly” lifestyle. So it is important that the services of the IGH need to be provided quickly.

 

4.      Review of the hotel’s website

As soon as we access the website of the International Guest House, we can see pictures of the beautiful garden. At the bottom of the picture is a brief introduction of the hotel's history and rooms and the service provided. Guests can conveniently make reservations immediately by selecting a check-in date, check-out date, number of people without having to press any other buttons on the website. They can also use pick-up services at the airport if they enter their flight in the process of booking. There are several banners on the website, and you can check pictures of the garden, rooms, and restaurants by clicking the photo banner, and the map to make it convenient to find the hotel.

 

5.      Future trends in the travel industry.

Travel trends are likely to change significantly, divided before and after Corona. The demand for overseas travel has decreased significantly around the world. The demand for short-distance travel has increased. Therefore, a strategy aimed for domestic travelers will be needed. Many domestic travelers will come if the hotel creates many convenience facilities inside and allows enough healing in the hotel. Overseas travelers would want to travel without encountering as many people as possible. Travelers will prefer cars to public transportation as a means of transportation. Therefore, if the hotel provides a service to rent a rental car cheaply for travelers staying at a hotel, it will attract more tourists.

 

 

SWOT Analysis

 

This section will make a SWOT analysis of the International Guest House. It will first take a look at the strengths and weaknesses of the hotel. Next, it will analyze the opportunities and threats the hotel is currently facing. There will be three elements in each four factors.

Strengths ·         As it is situated near the heart of Thamel, most tourist attractions are easily accessible. ·         The staff are friendly and helpful. ·         It has a lovely, peaceful garden where visitors can relax.

Weaknesses ·         The facilities are slightly outdated and old-fashioned. ·         The WIFI is inaccessible in the rooms; it only works in the main lobby. ·         Hot water is not available in some particular rooms.

Opportunities ·         Nepal is becoming increasingly popular as a tourist destination. Thus, the hotel can attract more guests. ·         People nowadays enjoy posting about their trips on the internet. The hotel can use this as an opportunity to advertise themselves. ·         An increasing number of old people are visiting Nepal. As old people often stay longer at one place than other age groups, the hotel can have guests that stay for a long time.

Threats ·         The spread of COVID-19 has prevented people from taking trips. ·         Many new hotels have been built in Nepal over the years. They have cleaner facilities and faster WIFI connections. ·         Other types of accommodations, such as hostels, motels, and B&Bs, are also becoming popular. They have the merit of being cheap.

 

 

Conclusions

 

The purpose of the report was to make an information analysis of the International Guest House, and to suggest possible marketing plans. To meet this aim, our team divided the report into four main sections: the background check, the problem of late arrivals, the marketing plan, and the SWOT analysis.

In the background section, we discussed several benefits the IGH possesses. One of the benefits was its location, which meant it could attract tourists worldwide. Next, we went through the problem of late arrivals. This was because Nepal’s airport often had delay issues due to its topography. In the next section, we offered several marketing plans the hotel could take. Three plans were about particular guest groups the hotel could target, and two were about the website and future trends. Finally, there was the SWOT analysis. We analyzed the hotel’s internal factors (strengths and weaknesses) and external factors (opportunities and threats).

By referring to this report, we believe the IGH will be able to reinforce its strengths and overcome its weaknesses.