The Role of Global Marketing Strategies in the Competitiveness of the Hospitality Industry in Kenya: A Case of Sarova Group of Hotels

A Project Report Submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfillment to the Requirement for the degree of Masters in Business Administration (MBA).This research report sought to assess the influence of global marketing strategies on the competitiveness of the hospitality industry in Kenya. One of the objectives of the research was to assess how global marketing strategies had influenced the competitiveness of the hospitality industry in Kenya. The second objective of the research was to analyze the effect of economic forces based on Porters’ model on the competitiveness of the industry. The last objective of the research was to examine the challenges against implementing global marketing strategy in the hospitality industry. The research used a descriptive research design. The target population included 300 employees from Sarova Hotels. The sample size that was used was 102 employees. The data collection method that was used in this study was a questionnaire. This study used a stratified random sampling technique. The data was analyzed using SPSS and presented in pie charts, graphs and tables. Correlation analysis was used to determine the extent of the relationship between competitiveness and global marketing strategies. The correlation results between competitive advantage and the independent variables show that competitive advantage is positively correlated with global marketing strategies. This indicated that implementation of global marketing strategies have increased competitiveness. Global positioning, global branding and global advertising were all effective marketing strategies, which indicated that they had a significant influence on competitiveness of the industry. The study further showed that Porter’s economic forces can effectively be used to determine the level of competitiveness within the hospitality industry. The threat of new entrants into the industry posed a significant threat to the level of profitability in the industry. The more suppliers there were in the market the weaker the buyer’s position became in terms of negotiating. Buyer preferences and needs had an impact on the way the organization did business and competition in the industry increased as the number of new entrants increased. The study showed that there are challenges against global marketing that require mitigation in order to successfully market globally. Challenges such as new entrants in the industry increased the level of competitiveness in the industry. The intangibility of services makes it a challenge to effectively market the service. It was also found that competitive intensity greatly affects a firm’s entry and advertising strategy in different markets. It was concluded that global marketing strategies were influenced by competitive pressures and had an impact on the level of competitiveness the firm within the industry. The five forces were effective in analyzing and determining the competitiveness within the industry. It was further concluded that global marketing encountered challenges against it and required mitigation of these challenges for successful implementation. It was recommended that firms in the hospitality industry should employ global marketing strategies to enhance their competitiveness on a global scale. Firms should ensure that their local marketing strategies are successful before embarking on global ones. Competitive pressures should be considered before making decisions on the positioning strategies that are selected. It can also be recommended that Porter’s economic forces be used to judge the level of competitiveness in the hospitality industry. Using global marketing strategies can decrease the level of threats from substitutes. Lower prices from suppliers in competing industries should be taken advantage of by players in the hospitality industry. Buyer behavior should be closely monitored in order to measure a change in their needs and preferences. Lastly, the study recommends that organizations should understand the challenges that face their global marketing efforts in order to be able to mitigate them. Employees should undergo proper use of various global marketing strategies. Additionally, digital and social media should be used in place of other global marketing avenues to effectively reach the target audience desired. Firms should consider shifting from single channel to multiple channel marketing campaigns for global marketing success