Hotel  

category - Investigating Internet Marketing Strategies among Hotels in Ghana

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Investigating Internet Marketing Strategies among Hotels in Ghana
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bet | 51/66 | Sana | 19.03.2017 | Hajmi | 2,14 Mb. | | #258 |
Hotel
category
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Sample
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Response rate
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N
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%
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N
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%
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1 star
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24
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23.3
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18
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75
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2 star
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35
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33.9
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30
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85
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3 star
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31
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30.1
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28
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90.3
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4 star
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9
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8.7
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8
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88.9
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5 star
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4
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4.0
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3
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75
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Total
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103
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100
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87
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84.50
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Source: field data 2011
Out of the one hundred and three (103) questionnaires that were administered to the one hundred (103) hotels, eighty seven (87) completed questionnaire was obtained representing 84.50%. Out of this there were; eighteen responses from hotel category 1 star, thirty (30) responses from 2 star hotel category, thirty one (31) from 3 star, nine (9) from 4 star and three (3) from 5 star hotel category.
4.8.4 The Questionnaire
The questionnaire is divided into two parts; first demographic information about hotel is asked (Table 4.4), secondly question about the transformation of the five internet marketing mix dimensions are brought (table 4.5)
Part 1. Demographic information of the Respondents
Table 4.4: Demographic information of the respondents
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Section
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Variable
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Related Question (SPSS Name)
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Scale
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Form of answer
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Profile of respondents
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Hotel type
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Hotel Type
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Nominal
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Multi-answer
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Hotel size
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No. of rooms
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Scale
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Multi-answer
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Hotel category
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Hotel star category
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Ordinal
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Multi-answer
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Level of education
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Hotel manager’s level of education
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Ordinal
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Multi-answer
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Hotel location
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Hotel location
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Nominal
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Multi-answer
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Hotel type: According to the Ghana tourism board, hotels can be classified base on the management arrangement and hotels in Ghana mainly fall under the following broad classification; Independent, Chain and Franchise.
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Independent hotels: Independent hotels do not have ownership or management affiliation with other properties. They have no relationship to other hotels regarding policies, procedures, financial obligations, management, accounting among others. They are usually registered as sole proprietor-ship or a private limited company whereby the owner decides on the standards, type of clientele and the tariff. They usually tie up with travel agencies and tour operators to sell their property against commissions
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Chain hotels: Chain hotels are usually two or more hotels that come under the same management. In general, the more centralized the organization the stronger the control over the individual property. Some chains have strong control over the architecture, management and standards of affiliated properties. Other chains only concentrate on advertising, marketing, purchasing.
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Franchise hotel: Franchise is a system in which the franchise owner grants another the right or privilege to merchandise a product or service for a specified return. Franchise Agreement is an agreement under which the owner operates a hotel as a member of chain of hotels, utilizing the brand image, name and goodwill and obtaining for a certain fee some services of marketing and operating nature support from resources of a large hotel as well as benefiting from advertising, sales promotion, technical and financial help.
Hotel size: Hotel size refers to the number of rooms. In this study the various categories on the basis of size are; Small hotel - a hotel with 25 rooms or less, Average hotel- a hotel with 26 to 50 rooms and Large hotels- a hotel with above 50 rooms.
Hotel Category: Ghana Tourist Board classifies hotels based on the quality standards adhered to by the hotels. Adherence to quality standards are signified with the award of ‘stars’. The minimum number of stars is one and maximum is five. Requirements for the granting of stars are consistent to the guidelines provided inside the cover of the Automobile Association (AA) and Royal Automobile Club (RAC). Below are hotel classifications according to stars:
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One Star Hotels: they are small and independently owned with family atmosphere. Services may be provided by the owner on informal basis. They have limited range of facilities and meals are fairly simple.
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Two Star Hotels: they are small to medium sized and offer more extensive facilities than one star hotels. They offer comfortable and well equipped overnight accommodation usually with an en-suite bath/shower room. Staff usually offers more professional presentation than at one star level.
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Three Stars Hotels: These hotels are usually of size to support higher staffing levels and a significantly greater quality and range of facilities than at the lower stars. Public rooms are more spacious and the restaurant also caters for non-residents. All bedrooms are en-suite bathrooms.
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Four Star Hotels: Hotels under this category provide some degree of luxury as well as quality in the furnishings, decor and equipment in every area of the hotel. Staff to guest ratio is high enough to provide services like porterage, 24-hour room service and laundry services. The restaurant demonstrate a serious approach to it cuisine.
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Five Star Hotels: They provide spacious and luxurious accommodation matching the best international standards. The interior designs impresses with its quality and attention to details, comfort and elegance. Services are highly formal, well supervised and flawless in attention to guest needs without being intrusive. The restaurant demonstrates high level of technical skill and produces dishes to the highest international standards. Staff are knowledgeable, helpful, well versed in all aspects of customer care, combining efficiency with courtesy (Brody, 2009).
Level of Education: The level of education is categorized as Diploma, HND, Bachelors, Masters and PhD. The levels of education provided in this study are in accordance to Tertiary education provisions in Ghana.
Hotel Location: Ghana can be divided into three zones; the southern zone which comprise of Greater Accra, Volta, Central and Western: the middle zone comprises of Ashanti, Eastern and Brong Ahafo: the northern zone which comprises of Northern, Upper East and Upper West. In this study respondents are to indicate the location of their facilities according to the ten regions in Ghana
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