Download OCCUPANCY IN INDIAN HOTELS SEES OPTIMISTIC GROWTH IN

Hospitality
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Occupancy in Indian hotels sees
optimistic growth in 2016
Virendra Teotia, Director, Umrao Hotels & Resorts, expects the Indian hotel industry to sustain its
growth due to improved market sentiments and government initiatives.
IRENE SUSAN EAPEN
rigorously promoting leisure and
MICE and are competing with the
best of the hotels brands in the city.
We have also been awarded as the
Luxury New Hotel, India by World
Hospitality Hotel Awards.”
Hospitality industry in India
The Umrao Hotel & Resort, a luxury
boutique hotel located on National
Highway-8, offers 55 rooms and
suites. “One can also organize
corporate events and meetings. Our
clients come from different sectors
and profile mainly corporates, MICE,
leisure and family travellers,” says
its Director Virendra Teotia. “We are
Virendra anticipates a sustainable
growth in the hospitality Industry in the
country over the years due to improved
market sentiments and various
initiative of the Government including
the Ministry of Tourism. “The Indian
hospitality industry has emerged as
one of the key drivers of growth among
the services sector in India. The growth
from Indian market is consistently
upwards and the occupancy for this
year is above 60% for first half year
and the expected growth for 20162017 is expected to be around 75%.”
Marketing plans
“We are working on our next year’s
marketing plan and look forward
to reach to segments and markets
where we had weak penetration.
We also plan to include promotions
on social and electronic and print
media. We are also working towards
marketing tie-up with different media
sectors.”
Trends in the industry
The rise of the digital age is quickly
transforming
the
way
hotels
communicate with their customers.
“The need for immediacy in social
media has paved the way for all of
the most popular social networks
of today and that’s what trending in
hospitality industry as well.”
PR vs. Advertising: Which is best for
Hospitality Start-Ups?
Jennifer Nagy, President of JLNPR, talks about why PR will be more effective than advertising for
hospitality start-ups.
VW BUREAU
T
here’s a misconception held
by many business owners that
public relations (PR) and advertising
are completely interchangeable (in
terms of the benefits that they offer),
but that isn’t true. Here are five
examples of when using PR will be
more effective than advertising for
hospitality start-ups:
When you need to educate your
audiences
One of the most exciting things about
working in the hospitality industry is
the innovation that you experience
firsthand. The difficult thing about
being the company that is selling an
innovative, new product is that it is
necessary to educate your potential
clients on why this product is
different/better than others available
in the market. Because many of
these products are so technologically
advanced, this can be a very arduous
Voyager’s World > December 2016
process – and a confusing one for
your audiences. That’s where PR
comes in.
When you want to create a stronger
relationship with your target
audience(s)
The public is accustomed to seeing
ads everywhere – and distrusting the
messaging that they see reflected in
these ads. If you want your public(s)
to have a positive impression of
your company and/or products
(and increased trust in purchasing
from you), PR is a better approach;
articles written about your company
by a journalist - an independent thirdparty expert - gives your company
more credibility in the mind of
potential customers. The same
message delivered by an advertising
spokesperson may be ignored by
many potential customers, as most
know that the ethical standards for
advertising are less strict than they
are in journalism.
When you want to sell your product’s
story, not just your product
The inherent nature of a start-up
creates a story angle that will be
of greater interest, and therefore,
you are more likely to secure media
coverage.
As well, PR is more effective at
delivering a story, rather than just
a list of product benefits: “Public
relations executives excel in
storytelling and, typically, present a
perceived problem (i.e. childhood
obesity) and their client’s unique
solution (i.e. a new type of fitness
equipment designed by, and for, preteens),” said Robert Wynne.
When are you are on a budget
Traditional marketing tactics (such as
billboards, TV commercials and radio
ads) are less cost-efficient than PR.
For example, a press release only
needs to be distributed to media
once (if you have a strong angle)
and it will be picked up in numerous
publications, on- and off-line, over
time. This gets your message and
product/service ongoing attention
without an ongoing financial
investment – unlike advertising,
which requires you to continue
paying for the advertisement to earn
ongoing exposure.
To create or maintain your company’s
reputation, especially during a crisis
Establishing and maintaining your
reputation is the essence of PR.
As previously mentioned, having a
journalist write about your company
or product establishes a sense of
credibility with readers/viewers.