Consumer Behaviour Group Project

- Hedonic Value

Submitted To – Prof.Subodh Tagare

Submitted By –
Section D Group 10
Yanshi Chauhan 202031029
Krishna Miniyar 202032066
Vishal Churiwala 202021020
Srinath Gorityala 202032016
Shubham Korde 202032060
Introduction
"Stepping ahead into an uncertain future, the tourist startup ecosystem is preparing for the new
era of travel where everything will be changed and brand-new. Businesses will need to be
prepared today for tomorrow's travelers, and innovation is truly the need of the hour in order
to meet the standard needs of quality.
“Domestic tourism is the future. Unexplored, unexploited destinations have to be
identified and promoted.” − Culture and Tourism Minister Prahlad Patel.
While keeping future in mind and having analyzed the past thoroughly we have decided to
enter hospitability sector and start a hotel in unexplored, unexploited destination called Kashid.

Overview
A Beach town, popular for its white sand and blue seas situated in Konkan region of
Maharashtra, Kashid is the perfect destination for a quiet weekend getaway from Mumbai. A
soothing and calm place in nature's lap, Kashid is mildly enchanting with its quiet environment
and picturesque location. This beach town is known also for its majestic mountains and
whispering Casuarinas. A delightful place for those seeking a serene environment, Kashid is
has a calm shore that stretches to a vast extent and presents with a spellbound appearance.
Kashid's spotless water and clean beach make it one of the most beautiful land sought after
spot. A drive through the area in itself is a great experience. Chaul, which lies near Kashid, has
many Buddhist caves that are of public interest, and also famous churches and temples.
The Korlai Fort is another beautiful attraction here.
Even though this place is close to economic capital it was not
known to many. In recent times, with some infrastructural development and connectivity,
Kashid has been on everyone’s bucket list. In recent survey Kashid has been one of the most
sought tourist attraction in Maharashtra.

Based on either customer need or macro – trend

The most demanding tourism consumer seeks to move away from the big tourist areas, looking
for destinations which are less crowded. Or they choose to stay in big cities with the option of
visiting local points where there is no saturation of tourists. The traveler feels more responsible
for its impact. They are interested in finding tourism products that take into account values as
important today as sustainability, respect for the environment, safety, and even equality. The
demanding traveler wants to be respectful of the destination’s environment and the local
population, and to be able to enjoy his or her journey without feeling worried about
circumstances or threats that endanger his or her well-being or the others'. This is why tourism
focused on rural experiences, connected with nature has become a trend. Tourists not only want
to visit natural environments that have not suffered the urban impact, they also take it as a way
to disconnect from daily routine, to enjoy a few days without stress. Kashid beach is the perfect
gateway in today’s world, here enjoy the nature to its core, feel those sweet breezy winds, soak
into clean ocean, a walk into dense green but friendly jungle, a perfect destination to visit for
any occasion with your family, friends.

Estimate size (is it substantial)

Total number of tourist / visitor arrivals in Kashid during the last annual period was 17,76,687.
Out of the total number of visitors, domestic tourists in Maharashtra accounted for 93%. Total
number of foreign tourist arrivals in Kashid during last annual year was 1,24,368. Amongst
packaged components, majority of people had opted for Travel + Accommodation. Domestic
visitors spend more on accommodation than anything else.Tourism here has significant
potential considering the rich cultural and historical heritage, variety in ecology, terrains and
places of natural beauty spread across. There is a huge tourism potential and as a result
hospitality industry will continue to grow at a substantially higher rate. There are various
contributing factors, including the rising purchasing power of domestic travelers, an increase
in commercial development and foreign tourist arrivals, a growing airline industry and
government-led initiatives aiming to stimulate the sector.
 Customer Choice Process

Understand the customer motivation

The world will never be the same again, and people will explore it a little more cautiously. In
a quest to quench the wanderlust in the post COVID world, people will be stepping out of their
routine, still would not skip on safe behavior. More than before, they would seek for places
that are safe and hospitable. The onus thus is on the hospitality sector to rekindle the confidence
among them and respond to the changing trends of tourism.

What factors (psychological/ sociological) influence the

customers’ choice?
The visitors, local or foreign alike prefers a destination where they can be assured of the safety
standards. Increase in area per cover, partition per table outdoor seating, live cooking for guests
to see every step of food production, use of digital menus, disposable crockery and cutlery
napkins, drive through online food delivery and take outs are going to be the order of the day.
For businesses travelers, hotels may continue to be boarding and lodging places only this time
with strict SOPs for Covid-19, however, leisure travel is going to be resort centric with a lot of
open space. Among this may also be a class of those that might not be feeling explorative
enough but are looking to spend some quality time with friends and family in a protective
environment. The heritage and theme hotels and luxurious resorts may come as their first
preference if provided with the set of other desired facilities.

What’s the trigger?

The new beginning post Covid−19 will have an increased emphasis on the local tourist; foreign
visitors are likely to remain less for some more time. The local guests are more prone to go for
short weekend stays and may return in a higher frequency. The main reason people might want
to travel local is keeping in mind its shorter distance hence making it a safer choice for them.

Who play’s what role in influencing consideration and

choice?
Our research and recent market trend suggest, consumers do not exactly seek to analyse tourism
products by their prices. The traveller will study the tourism options which best suit their needs,
their interests. Such is the change in their attitude in decision making that travellers will not
mind paying more for the product if they are sure this product will bring them the value they
ask for. The consumer demand definitely highlights the evolution that has taken place in the
last years. After decades of tourism focused on the summer season, travellers are looking for
authenticity. They are looking for different destinations, such as areas away from the big tourist
areas, and for products that allow them to live unique experiences, connected to the authenticity
of those different places. Basically, both the destination to visit, and the activities that the
traveller can perform there, are the two key factors of the purchase decision.
 Analyze Competitors

Hospitality and hotel sectors are service related industries. High customer satisfaction is
number one priority and to earn customer’s loyalty, they must provide exceptional service and
high quality. Kashid is located in Konkan region of Maharashtra. With through market
research we have found there is increasing demand for beaches as gateway places and Kashid
was front runner in this regard. This place has a high potential to emerge as one of the biggest
tourist attraction in coming years. As this place is yet not completely explored there is lot of
opportunities available hence we can enjoy the early mover’s advantage and get strong
foothold.
The fellow competitors in market provide various services but are not up to the standard and
the quality that the visitors demand. Having forecasted the future demand we are very well
prepared; with the resources available, to bring the required quality and value to customers.
The threat of new entrants is moderate. There are several barriers to entry, including high
capital costs, stringent regulation, and high differentiation between players in terms of location,
service. Lot of mid-range to low-cost hotels are available and there is heavy competition from
similar competitors in this sector. Hotel services are largely undifferentiated, so it becomes
difficult to differentiate themselves from their competitors. As a result of the wide web-based
competition, the players are cutting prices to attract more and more customers, resulting in a
price war. The two most important factors which give competitive advantage to hotels are
impeccable customer care and efficient operations which will we have our main focus on. The
use of improved technology will allow us to see a dramatic change in both of these areas.
 Resources and Capabilities

• Strategic location

We have land in a Beach town, popular for its white sand and blue seas situated in Konkan
region of Maharashtra, Kashid. Even though this place is close to economic capital it was not
known to many.

In recent times, with some infrastructural development and connectivity, Kashid has been on
everyone’s bucket list. In recent survey Kashid has been one of the most sought tourist
attraction in Maharashtra.

• Human resouces – Chefs

An executive chef is responsible for the consistent preparation of innovative and creative
cuisine of the highest quality, presentation and flavour for the dining rooms, banquets and other
food facilities, resulting in outstanding guest satisfaction.Additionally, they are responsible for
the smooth running of the kitchen and manage areas of profit, stock, wastage control, hygiene
practices and training within the kitchen.

As such, we are in collaboration with Alliance Recruitment Agency to hire the best globally
acclaimed chefs to run the kitchen services.

• Luxury services – Spa

Having a spa creates a competitive advantage and increases the guest experience.

Hotel spas just like the rooms experience periods of high and low demand. At the stage of
high demand you will often see a more profitable treatment has to be denied to guests,
because the treatment room is booked for a low profitable treatment or several short
treatments.

As demand fluctuates and busy and high demand periods can be easily identified, there is a
large opportunity for hoteliers to generate incremental income and profit by implementing
revenue management techniques to their spa product, just as the optimize the revenues of
their hotel rooms.
 Target Segment

• Millennials
The young ones are the ones who have major tourist locations on their list of places to visit.
The Millennials are always ready to travel. When you look around the beach you will mostly
see young people. And as a potential hotelier managing a hotel with a beach view, if we check
resort historical data we will see that most of your guests fall under this category. This group
of people always use any opportunity they get to travel to tourist attraction centres and the
beach is one of their main destinations.

• Families
When it comes to beach vacations especially during school or public holiday seasons,
families are usually among those beach visitors. Most times families find it difficult to create
time for themselves. Either they are busy working schedule, inappropriate travelling time,or
their children are having classes. Families just couldn’t get the right time to be together. So
any time they get the opportunity to travel, they take it and one of the destinations for
families is also the beach. Unlike tourists and young people, families always plan their
travel ahead of time. They book their accommodations on time and also, they plan for the
activities they are going to be engaged with.

• Couples
Last but not least, couples are the commonly found visitors in a hotel with a beach view
especially newly married couples, engaged couples, or people in a serious relationship.
These couples are always looking for where to go to strengthen their love for each other or
planning for their honeymoon trip and the beach is usually a top destination for couples.
 Value Proposition/ Positioning

Value proposition is the promise made to customers to deliver something of value to them. A
powerful value proposition helps customers truly understand the value of your company's
products and services, to see how services benefit them and are their best available option.
We provide best in class hospitality services with beach side dining services to give
memorable experience to tourist and dinner date for couples, Sea Side Pool bar services for
truly sensorial experience and guarantee the very best service for the guests, Pet friendly
services with a range of amenities designed to accommodate pet owners and grooming
services for pets who gets dirty while enjoying themselves, Spas, Hot Tubs, Saunas services
to provide with highest sense of wellness and offer guest a unique experience, 2 and 4-
wheeler Rental services to help guest enjoy and explore the place better, Gaming zone for
children to enjoy and pass time while in hotel, Club and bar services for adults to enjoy and
Rooftop restaurant with a view to mesmerized the guest. We help arrange different services
for guest to make them feel convenient and enjoy their time spend in the hotel and the
destination.
 Driving consideration and choice

Following are the actions we will take to drive consideration and adoption of market offer:-
• Targeting the Right Audience
Many hotels have a variety of customers of different income levels, since they may offer
rooms on the more extravagant side (like the presidential suites) and other rooms that are
often sold at discount prices. These two audiences need to be broken down and targeted
separately.

• Go Above and Beyond in Customer Service Before, During, and After Their Stay
When customers are treated exceptionally well they will be much more likely to share their
experiences with others, leading to more business for you. The first step is ensuring your staff
is hired and trained with a customer-first mentality.

• Be Easily Searchable Online!

So if your hotel isn’t easy to find online, no wonder your bookings are few and far between.
You need to be EVERYWHERE relevant online for potential bookings so people can find
you in the window when they need to book a place to stay.

• Ensure Your Website Is Both Simple and Breathtaking

When overhauling your website, focus on keeping the design and navigation clean, crisp, and
simple. Ensure your hotel photographs are professional, high-res, and displayed in the correct
formats and ratios to work for both desktop and mobile. Keep the language clear and simple,
and ensure the booking process is easy to avoid mid-booking abandonment.

• Build a Customer Loyalty Program

Customer loyalty programs are a wonderful way to ensure customers come back again and
again. These programs are designed to give large discounts and special perks to returning
visitors. Perhaps your program works by allowing guests to earn points and reach certain
levels each year (Gold, Platinum, etc.).

• Commit to regular blog updates on your Website

Hotel blogging is an excellent way for hotels to take advantage of the content marketing
opportunities in today’s digital world. Blogging allows you to provide deep knowledge about
specific elements of your brand offering, detailing your unique selling factors as well as the
attractions of your greater destination.

• Maintain Online Reputation

All your guests – current and future ones are going to check your online ratings and review
prior to deciding on their stay with you, and they’ll be actively comparing you with your
competitors.
It’s critical for any luxury resort marketing team to keep a close eye on your ratings and key
review sites and have a strict plan in place to jump in if (or when) you receive an adverse
review.

• Focus on adding value, not cutting prices

Extra value can be offered in the form of dining credits, free gifts, suite upgrades, late check-
outs, extra concierge services and other perks designed to appeal to travelers seeking superior
customer service—and a hotel that values its own property.