Introduction

The goal of this research paper is to recognize and apply the principles of the marketing planning process, develop contemporary marketing management issues by analysing if the marketing mix of the organisation in this case Marriott Corporation with their Birmingham represented hotel Forest of Arden, A Marriott hotel and Country Club, satisfies their target market’s needs. Threats and opportunities will be detailed from caring a PEST analysis and by recommending marketing mix changes in line with the target markets needs and wants.

Target market and marketing mix

Marriott’s target marketing strategies have been enhanced in its several categories of segmentation through the various brands. The different flagships of Marriott’s brands support the overall target segmentation by the hotel. The various facilities like Marriott’s Hotels and Resorts, Courtyard by Marriott, Renaissance Hotels, Fairfield Inn and several others form the core brands that serve customer needs in the various target market segments according to Marriott.com. Being part of the brand Marriott’s Hotels and Resorts the Forest of Arden focuses on business, leisure or group events. Location can be a way to target a certain market; this hotel is located just 4 miles from Birmingham Airport and International train station within easy access of the M6/M42 and M40 so a great part of their target market is represented by business customers Considering the close proximity to the NEC, UK's largest exhibition centre, another target market is covered by clients, who come to Birmingham for a specific event. As advertised on their website they target golf practitioners as well.(Marriot.com)

Marketing mix in a hotel is an important factor to be considered by its management because they are crucial to the satisfaction of a customer.

Place:
As previously stated the location of just 4 miles from Birmingham Airport and International train station, within easy access of the M6/M42 and M40 is ideal for business customers. Being situated close to the NEC, this location would be good for people who travel with this purpose of visiting the NEC, for that reason they do have different packages created for this target market.
The wide space and location allows the Forest of Arden to be one of the top resorts that have great Golf facilities (Marriott.co.uk) Product

Marriott as a company owns a lot of brands they have more than 8 different resorts, all brands have the same concept but each has its own style so they found a way to make that concept work for different people in different places(Bilgihan 2010). Forest of Arden has a large range of facilities to suit business needs like 1,081 sq m conference and meeting facilities accommodating up to 350 delegates,17 meeting rooms with wired and wireless secure high-speed Internet access, comprehensive meeting facilities complemented by expert catering & audio visual resources, event planning, outdoor barbeque area; 350-seat Marquee for weddings & dinners, team building events available on and off site via dedicated Team Building company Team Spirit. The hotel has copy service, fax service, full-service business centre and messenger service. Customers can also see on the website floor plans and capacity charts. More or less, the same range of facilities is provided by the Forest of Arden for group events such as weddings and social events, as group events is also part of their target market. The Forest of Arden provides some great outdoor and sport facilities like tennis courts and offers golf courses, Fitness classes, Jogging/fitness trail, Mountain biking, trail as part of their activities-considering business clients show usually interest in these types of outdoor activities that is considered a very suitable product for their target market. The hotel has other facilities such as two on-site restaurants, complimentary parking and a concierge desk.
Marriott Rewards – the program that allows members to earn hotel points or airline miles for every dollar spent during each stay is a product used very often by business customers and not only. (Marriott.co.uk)

Promotion:

Marriott’s has been able to develop an online multi-channel system where it can communicate with their guests and meet their needs-Effective Public Relations.
In considering their target market they have promotions dedicated to business customers such as three free options from extras when planning a meeting or event. Another promotion that could be of inters for the business travellers is Park here Fly there, a package which includes one night's accommodation, parking for up to 15 days, as well as transport to and from the airport. The hotel has a whole range of online promotions for Holiday packages; it offers a interesting Family Movie package, and for Golf fans there is a promotion that includes a free dinner plus wine and playing golf for free. As another important part of their target market are clients who come for NEC the hotel offers a VIP package that includes besides usual services a taxi to the NEC and a 20 percent discount voucher at the restaurant. (Marriott.co.uk)

Price
The price versus quality ratio is a key factor in the hospitality industry.
Every Marriott brand has a different price. That's because different brands want to attract different people. Consumers in each segment may be willing to pay a premium price for the tailor-made product. The price of a room depends on many aspects facilities, location, and target market. Marriott’s Forest of Arden offers Senior Discounts and Corporate Discounts from which again the main beneficiary would be the business sector of travellers.(Marriott.co.uk)
Marriott’s has undertaken the move from fixed rates and embrace more dynamic pricing to suit the different market conditions to facilitate effective forecasting and budgeting potential for cost savings as in November of 2003,according to Travel Weekly(2003) Marriott International entered its first merchant deal with Travelocity, an online travel agency. Under the agreement Marriott offers Travelocity clients with a better inventory of rooms to choose from as well as increased pricing flexibility. This strategy will be integrated into its multi-channel online reservation systems to cater to guest reservations.
Providing discounts to guests who will stay longer(Marriott.co.uk)
Marriott's 'Look No Further' best price guarantee-according to Marriot.com offers on the website the guarantee of best price.
Price is advertised on hotel’s website at relatively small rates with the Last Minute Weekend deals.

2. Threats and Opportunities considering a PEST Analysis

Opportunities

* Considering a policy that Marriott follows –antidiscrimination there is a case to say that is a good opportunity as Employers benefit when they are able to attract and retain the best employees, and maximize the potential and the performance of those employees. Discriminatory policies and programs may prevent employers from attracting, recruiting and promoting good employees, and can result in employee frustration, burnout and turnover. Workplace harassment creates conflict between employees, lowers productivity, and can result in the loss of valued employees. A workplace that respects human rights is likely one with fewer conflicts between employees, and higher levels of employee loyalty according to Zeithaml V.A (2006). Another political aspect that can be treated as an opportunity is the fact that Government and in this case the City Council generally supports tourism as it can bring different levels of income for public and private sector. * The eco-friendly attitude and Green actions like recognizing the responsibility of reducing consumption of water, waste and energy has been proved to be one of the best opportunities as the environmental achievements of Marriott-branded hotels in the United Kingdom have led The Sunday Times to rank Marriott International seventh out of 60 on their “Best Green Companies” list and "Best for Employee Environmental Engagement"(Sundaytimes.co.uk). These ethical standards start with Marriott’s top leadership, who reinforce the company's tradition of integrity, honesty, trust, and fairness. Marriott received for the fourth time the Award For World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2011 according to ethisphere.com and Marriott.com/awards * According to SundayTimes.co.uk (8Mar 2011) Marriott UK director of talent acquisition Matthew Ruck says Marriott's training program has helped the chain increase its talent pool. At a time when other companies are cutting back due to the cost of recruitment, Marriott could find itself ahead with the cream of the crop to choose from, and a recruitment program that is already in demand and maturing to a new level that is achieving worldwide interest. The Voyage training program annually accepts what the hotel views as being some of the best graduates on offer in the area of operations, human resources, sales, revenue and finance. It puts them through a rigorous in-house training program that, in some cases, could see new recruits take on management roles in a matter of months. Marriott has, however, altered the way it runs its course to cut out the middle man, so that graduates deal with Marriott every step of the way. It also uses its key staff for training and mentoring to ensure Marriott 'ethics and understanding' are embedded in lessons learned, from forward-facing roles to back-office jobs. This also gives an opportunity to have excellent customer service and good feed-back from customers. * Being seen as one of the Best Companies to work for Along with being the "provider of choice," the hotel chain has the opportunity to become the "employer of choice’’ giving Marriott a worldwide competitive advantage according to Lovelock C. and Wirtz J. (2004) * Technology sophistication, management skills, and integration of resources are key issues when implementing IT decisions- Marriott’s Forest of Arden in this case uses Marriott's unmatched reservation system that manages the booking of more than 355,000 hotel rooms globally. This system delivers Marriott a priceless opportunity to gather information about the characteristics, habits, and preferences of their guests, information that allows Marriott to cross-reference the personal profiles of customers with product preferences. By doing this, the Hotel is able to target incentives and promotions with unprecedented precision and offers distinctive customer service. Guests can use the IP phone's touch screen for voicemail, weather by zip code, airport information, and e-mail. Employees can also use the in-room phones in order to confirm that a room is ready for the next guest. The room attendant enters a code on the phone, which updates the PMS. Finding out right away that a room is ready helps the hotel to accommodate guests who would like to check-in early thus improving customer service. , IT and use of technology is considered a good opportunity as it can increase staff efficiency by providing the ability to communicate and collaborate from anywhere on the property and empower staff members to create personalized guest experiences according to Bilgihan A et al, (2011) * A strong internet presence is very good as different target markets can be approached for instance Forest of Arden uses internet for targeting families or young couples according to their website Marriott.co.uk-Forest of Arden. * The constant investment in facilities considering the hotel has undergone a £5 Million renovation to the lobby, restaurant, conference rooms, bar and all the bedrooms, is an opportunity to show that the care for constant improvement and customer’s needs(Marriott.co.uk)

Threats:

* Social factors such as smoking ban have influenced negatively the majority part of the industry therefore it can be seen as a treat, however it can be argued that by having to cope with this law Hotels such as Forest of Arden have had an opportunity to develop their outdoor facilities according to hotelchatter.com. * General economic and business conditions, which adversely impact the income levels of potential travelers, coupled with a rising lack of confidence in strong markets, can have a negative impact on Marriott International's operations * A downturn in business travel–poor economic conditions is forcing businesses to reduce travel and spend less on travelling; measures travel substitutes like videoconferencing are introduced. * Marriott's brands, especially the luxury brands, are likely to see fewer travelers. * Decrease level of income- there is a fear that the global travel and tourism industry will see a corresponding slowdown in revenue as consumers spend and travel less in the short term * Given that economy travel accommodation is gaining increased penetration in major destination markets, Luxury brands – mid-scale and upscale hotel brands leave Marriott brands vulnerable to global economic downturns. * Competition is likely to intensify * Other major rivals include Hyatt or Hilton.
Recommended marketing mix changes

* The Marriott Corporation identified that the encounters that occur in the first ten minutes of a hotel stay is the most critical so management should focus on their initial encounter and consistent performance throughout the encounter can produce a favorable evaluation * Must be careful to maintain the product distinctiveness in each consumer group and guard its overall image by implementing every ethical strategy that they advertise and by being faithful to their standards. * Price differentials among different brands can be maintained * In order to attract different target markets like families or children Forest of Arden needs to think of more promotional strategies dedicated to them * As the hotel has such great facilities for business travelers little is said about facilities that can accommodate families or a different sector so it is recommended the hotel should rethink or redesign some of their tangible products- finding facilities more appropriate for non-business customers-giving its power as differentiator, changes in the physical environment can be used to reposition the firm or attract new market segments according to Zeithaml V.A (2006) * The outdoor and sporting facilities can be targeted at families with children as well as the courses in Golf or tennis they have * According to Zeithaml V.A (2006) In its ‘’Fit for you’’ program Marriott requires its hotels to include three menu items that fit into diets that are currently popular. Although they have a standard requirement each hotel is encourage to be creative in choosing the particular items and use local variations so that is a difference in product that can be implemented in Forest of Arden’s strategies by using local and interesting products and promoting more the local culture. * For some customers week-end getaways are a form of relaxation and vacation, so a good idea is creating an environment in which the customers will feel comfortable and a good example according to Zeithaml V.A (2006) is a Marriott hotel in California where employees dress casually in the weekend or a Chicago hotel that initiated a ‘’Vacation station’’ program with gifts and games for kids- this kind of promotions will increase the inters of a different market-families. * By acknowledging the treat of decreasing levels of income and the effect that it might have on the hotel profit charts, on times when hotel is not very solicited promotion with relevant low rates can be considered. * The hotel needs to constantly be attentive and analyze strategies and actions that major rivals such as Hyatt might adopt.

Conclusion

Organisations in our era are extremely sensitive - as they must be - to demographic, political, technological and economic developments. An effective marketing program brings together all of the elements of the marketing mix to achieve the organisation's marketing objectives by delivering to customers what they want and need. Thus, the most successful companies will be those that can meet these needs most effectively. Success requires therefor a continuing focus on achieving customer satisfaction and loyalty.