THE ROLE OF MARKETING IN HOTEL INDUSTRY : Six successful hotel units in Abuja and Jakobstad

Abstract

The hotel business is arguably the most lucrative business within the hospitality industry. This is proven by the astronomical growth rate of the industry. However, in the recent years, the industry has witnessed a high level of competitions which makes hotel owners and managers search for new ways of ensuring success in their business voyages by applying different strategies to yield high occupancy rate of their hotel rooms and concomitantly provides them with good returns on their investment. The purpose of this research work was to analyze the role played by marketing in the development of the hotel industry. The objective of this report was to highlight the importance of marketing in the accommodation business. The aim was also to showcase the impact of marketing in the development of hotel as an industry and how marketing could be used to ensure success in a highly competitive, volatile and diverse industry such as the hospitality industry. The empirical part of this research was conducted with the use of the qualitative research method. A semi-structured interview was conducted among stakeholders in the hotel industry both in Abuja, Nigeria and Jakobstad, Finland. The theoretical framework for this research focused on basic the concepts in hotel management and in the marketing field. The source of data for this research was also taken from secondary data which were provided by authors and scholars both in the field of marketing as well as in the hotel management. Considering the aim of this research and the degree of validity and reliability, great effort was made to ensure the objectivity of the report and conclusion. The result of this report shows that marketing is the life blood on which the success of any hotel outlet depends on.