Reference List

References

• Premier Inn, Booking Available from http://www.premierinn.com/en/book.action (Accessed  5th February 2014)
• Premier Inn, How can we be greener, http://www.premierinn.com/en/why/green.html(Accessed 5th February 2014)
• Whitbread, Why invest in Whitbread? http://www.whitbread.co.uk/investors/why-invest-in-whitbread/financial-directors-review-2011-2012.html. (Accessed 5th February 2014)
• Premier Inn, Why we're premier, http://www.premierinn.com/en/why.html. (Accessed 5th February 2014)
•  Flickr, Premier Inn Albert Dock http://www.flickr.com/photos/ell-r-brown/10495142184/ (Accessed 12th February 2014)
• Marketing Insight, Relationship Management is strategic, http://www.marketinginsight.ch/marketing/relationship-management-is-strategic/ (Accessed 19th February 2014)
• Whitbread, Property and Suppliers, https://www.whitbread.co.uk/global/property-and-suppliers/property-suppliers.html (Accessed 19th February 2014)  
• Thedrum, Lenny henry feature first radio campaign premier inn, http://www.thedrum.com/news/2011/11/16/lenny-henry-feature-first-radio-campaign-premier-inn (Accessed 03rd March 2014) 
• Retail-digital, Whitbread spends money to make money, http://www.retail-digital.com/consumer_trends/whitbread-spends-money-to-make-money (Accessed 03rd March 2014) 
• Marketing magazine, whitebreads hotel restaurant brands support wateraid, http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/913864/whitbreads-hotel-restaurant-brands-support-wateraid (Accessed 03rd March 2014)

Week Commencing 17th February The Six Markets Model

Six Markets Model
After our initial research and composing both a SWOT and TOWS analysis we decided to look at the six markets model which is based around the impacts that different stakeholders can have on one another.

Recruitment Market
Seb:For the recruitment market, premier inn don't seem to be actively pursuing workers, rather advertising their vacancies in job centres, and websites allowing people with relevant skills and qualifications to apply for the jobs.

Internal Markets
Harrison: For internal markets these are based around Premier inn's employees, so it's crucial they try to maintain high levels of commitment and enthusiasm to maintain a productive workforce. Premier Inn provide large amounts of training for iemployees such as communication skills training to ensure that they communicate with customers correctly and professionally.

Supplier Markets
Tom: The supplier market is a group of firms that produce products that are close substitutes. Premier inn say that they value their suppliers and the key role they play in giving our customers what they want. They also go on to say that they want all relationships to be based on the core principles of sustainability, open and honest communication and fair dealing.

Influence Markets
Harry: The influence markets that affect the Premier Inn include the government and any new laws or legislations that they bring out which could have an effect on how they operate. Another influencer on the Premier Inn is shareholders who they try to keep happy by getting them a return on investment. A final infuencer is the press as it is important that they maintain their positive publicity. 

Referral Markets
Ieuan: This is a method of promoting Premier inn's services to new customers through referrals. Premier Inn try to encourage this through social media where they respond to customers queries, this positive interaction could interest potential new customers. 

References
http://www.marketinginsight.ch/marketing/relationship-management-is-strategic/
https://www.whitbread.co.uk/global/property-and-suppliers/property-suppliers.html

Week Commencing 10th February Producing a SWOT and TOWS analysis

Swot Analysis for The Premier Inn

For our second blog post we are reflecting on our marketing context session where we devised this initial swot between the five of us.

Strengths (Harrison/Ieuan)         High brand visibility through strong advertising featuring Lenny Henry.        Over 650 hotels worldwide which are easily accessible by car.        Cheap hotel rooms.        Largest and fastest growing hotel chain.       High levels of Customer Satisfaction/Feedback.        Highly Advanced Online Reservation System.	Weaknesses (Seb)          Large number of competitors including other hotel chains such as the Holiday inn or even B&Bs.               Struggling to meet customer demands particularly around seasonal breaks or school holidays.         They do not cater for long term stays only short term.
Opportunities (Harry)         Further Global Expansion with more hotels abroad.         Further Eco-Friendly hotels.         Package deals with Airlines?         Partnerships with other hotels.	Threats (Tom)        Bad Press either through the media or social media which portrays a negative image to a large audience.         When the Economy does poorly this greatly affects the hotel sector.

TOWS Analysis including Critical Success Factors

	Threats: ·         Bad Publicity (media/social media. ·         A poor economy affects the hotel sector. ·         Competitors dropping prices.	Opportunities: ·         Global Expansion. ·         Partnerships with other hotels abroad. ·         Developing more Eco-Friendly hotels.
Weaknesses: ·         Large number of competitors. ·         Struggling to meet demand during seasonal periods. ·         Does not offer long term stays.	Ieuan: With premier inn struggling to meet customer demands in peak periods this could result in bad press. However Premier Inn could use this attention to launch a campaign to improve and meet demands, leading to exposure with them therefore offering long terms stays which could increase the number of customers.	Seb: Having more hotels abroad will increase the large number of competitors however this increases the opportunities to partner with other hotel brands and therefor increasing brand awareness.
Strengths: ·         Good Brand Awareness. ·         High levels of customer satisfaction. ·         Highly advanced reservation system	Harrison: If the economy declines then this will affect the premier inn, however due to previous high levels of customer satisfaction and brand awareness this makes it more likely that customers would return.	Tom/Harry: The strong brand awareness in the UK will mean that previous customers could choose an abroad premier inn whilst travelling. As they continue to expand this will therefor increase the brand awareness worldwide.

References

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ell-r-brown/10495142184/

Week Commencing 3rd February Introduction and Information Gathering

The First thing we decided to do was pick our organisation as The Premier Inn which fitted in the sector of Hotels/Holiday Accommodation. The Premier Inn is the current market leader for budget hotels, owned by Whitbread PLC has more than 650 hotels worldwide. Our group is made up of me (Harrison Lewis), Harry Leeves, Ieuan Marlowe, Seb Reilly and Tom Lindley. We are researching different areas looking for information on the various Macro and Micro Environmental factors that affect the Premier Inn.

Harrison:  Technologically in the macro environment it’s important that Premier Inn maintain their highly advanced reservation system as this allows customers to book rooms easily online, whereas in the micro environment it’s important they continue to offer guests Wi-fi, televisions and other appliances to ensure the customer enjoys their stay.

Ieuan/Tom: The politics which affect The Premier Inn, Firstly the Premier Inn opened there first low carbon resort in Tamworth 2008. Premier Inn built this as a direct result of the UK government placing a big emphasis on lowering carbon emissions. This has made the company appear to be operating in the interest of the public and planet, potentially increasing admissions. This particular resort lowers carbon emissions by 70% and saving 60% water compared to other resorts.

Seb/Harry Economically they are strong, with growth at 3.1% in 2012/13, which is higher than the Hotel market sector which only grew at a rate of 2.8%. They operated with profits of £319.2m. This information was found in the Financial Directors Report. The hotel claims to provide comfortable rooms, quality restaurants, a filling breakfast and a family friendly environment. Next we look at the competitors to Premier Inn. Due to the size of the budget hotel market, Premier Inn has various competitors, including Holiday Inn, Etap and Travelodge. Performance wise, Premier Inn seem to be the market leader, as shown by them winning the 2012 Best Budget Hotel Award.

As a result of this research using the information that we have found we can look into producing a SWOT or TOWS analysis and identify Critical Success Factors for the organisation.

References

http://www.premierinn.com/en/book.action

http://www.premierinn.com/en/why/green.html

http://www.whitbread.co.uk/investors/why-invest-in-whitbread/financial-directors-review-2011-2012.html.

http://www.premierinn.com/en/why.html.