Malaysia – A successful experiment in social networks and word of mouth among online communities has encouraged Berjaya Hotels & Resorts to increase its marketing activities in the online space as part of its downturn marketing strategy.

Based on the success of the the ‘Love Me Do!’ online competition, Thang Han-Ni, marketing and communications director, says the captive base of fans of the competition, built on the social networking website Facebook, paved the way for  more integrated communications and marketing for the firm.

“We already have a captive audience and that’s through our fantastic tactical effort. In just eight months, we’ve got 10,000 fans.

“I believe this is the time that marketing departments will really have to shine through with more new ideas and it’s about really finding opportunities in these bad times,” she told Advertising + Marketing.

“It’s not the time to shrink or cut back. It’s about finding innovative solutions,” she said added.

Thang admits the group’s A&P is leaning toward the digital and interactive space, “we won’t stop advertising on traditional mediums” because it really depends on who and which international market the company wants to reach.

Interactive ads are mostly hosted on news-websites but there may be a possibility of extending the spreading this to travel blogs.

While the content of blogs is not always predictable the perfect image does not really concern Thang who likes a balanced – “good and bad” – honest view of what the experiences are.

Another aspect that the marketing and communications team will be focusing on this year is structuring the sales-force, described as soldiers to the company, to be more account and client-focused.

“The challenge really is finding a good balance of marketing returns versus prudent cost control and churning out innovative solutions.

“It’s a lot about being different and standing out, knowing the problems and how best to solve them,” Thang said, confirming that one of the things Berjaya Hotels & Resorts can be thankful for is that its creative is in-house and its only marketing and A&P expenditure goes to Red Hot Media who holds the media account.

 

Courtesy from Marketing-Interactive.com