Scottish Routes Company Online Marketing

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Table of Contents

Introduction
About the Scottish Routes Company
Current online marketing channels
How the online marketing channel works
Recommendations
Conclusion
Reference List

Introduction

The internet offers a wide range of communication tools that ride on the social dimension of the online experience. The communicative power of the internet has essentially replaced many of the traditional tools, particularly in the world of traditional advertising in print and broadcast media.

Marketing a product via a website requires different strategies that will ensure that clients get the products within the reasonable satisfaction level.

Properly designed online marketing and product distribution management facilitated the success and sustainability in online marketing since it operated within stipulated business laws. This analytical treatise attempts to explicitly review the online marketing platform for the Scottish Routes Company and present suggestions on how to improve the online channel.

About the Scottish Routes Company

Founded in the year 2004, the Scottish Routes Company has become one of the most successful destination management organisations in Scotland. The company has been proactive in offering tailor-made tours for families and corporations across Scotland.

Among the notable tour services offered by the company include scheduled coach tours, ad hoc tours, island holidays, genealogy, chauffeur drive, special interest tours, and tailor made coach tours for small groups.

The company grew over the last decade to offer scheduled tours across Scotland for customer segments such as individuals, friends, whisky clubs, couples, and small corporate groups. The entire business is based on the concept of online marketing.

Current online marketing channels

In order to increase credibility and maintain professionalism, the current online channels for the Scottish Routes Company encompass processes and features that flawlessly facilitate healthy and lifetime relationships between a business and its clients as seen on the company’s website platform.

Among the marketing and sales development elements that are incorporated in the company’s website include trust, reliability, distribution, fair retribution process, and passing accurate information to target tourists (Buhalis, Tjoa, & Jafari 1998; Cheverton 2004).

The website is user friendly and allows customers to choose the tour packages they may want and make orders. Besides, the company has been able to establish a Patagonia system within its website to easily assist the customers view the process of reviewing the services, booking, and purchasing tickets online (Frew 2004).

The main objective and goal of the Scottish Routes Company’s digital marketing strategy is to attract the European market through the tour website and sell tour packages to tourists who have plans of visiting Scotland. The package promises a guide to the best entertainment, cultural and social activities besides showing the actual position and themes of the tourist attraction sites in Scotland.

The tour website has an existing market segment comprising of the citizens of Scotland, who are the majority of its current customers. Apparently, this segment forms the largest bracket of tourism travellers to Scotland since domestic tourism is well developed in this region (Frew 2005).

Through re-branding and increasing website visibility the year 2009, after the takeover, this local market segment and international tourists have increased their use of the touring website (Cone 2011; Buhalis, Tjoa, & Jafari 1998). Since the target market is specific, the success variables for the market share expansion strategy are measured through an increase in sales of its current output.

For instance, through vigorous online marketing, the website registered 130,000 visits during the first quarter of the year 2013. This was achieved through optimisation of the tour website’s search engine, improving on online marketing and using social media.

Mass media services are mainly concerned with generation of modern cultures. Cultural values normally influence whatever values that are generated by mass media. Cultural values normally dictate what consumers would purchase (Fesenmaier, Werthner, & Wober 2006). Customers buy certain signs when they are driven by the implication conveyed.

Moreover, semiotics plays a significant role in the ads because it inspects signs and implications that are conveyed and thus alerts the users about the relevance of the product. “Semiotics can discover hidden implications and evolving cultural codes, hence is important in predicting market trends” (Cheverton 2004, p. 67). The semiotic is the process in which things are identified as signs.

As part of influencing client behaviour positively, marketing strategy, as part of consumer behaviour analysis of the Scottish Routes Company, is aligned to the ideal as perceived by consumers through the creative electronic word of mouth messages (Frew, O’Connor, & Hitz 2003; Buhalis, Tjoa, & Jafari 1998).

How the online marketing channel works

The travelling site’s menu on the Scottish Routes Company website is displayed on the main menu and sent to a customer when he/she books the ticket. The customer has to reply with his or her selections 24 hours before payment. Secondly, the selection of various types of tour packages menu has the option to choose between free automated brochures and magazines of the destination selected.

In case the potential clients want to have additional or different type of free brochures, they have to hit the extra button (Laudon 2004). Finally, the shopping (duty free) items are displayed on the sub menu classified into categories. Beside each item, the price, quantity, and availability are posted at the bottom left page.

The potential customer has the convenience of selecting different tour packages by just a click of the button (Fyall & Leask 2007; Xiang, Kothari, Hu, & Fesenmaier 2007). The website is very easy to use since it allows customers to shop for potential tourism sites, makes online inquiries, and makes payments without having to directly interact with the company’s agent.

The brand of the Scottish Routes Company is presented in the most attractive way with simple but clear messages of pleasant experiences. The touch points include the affordable prices, private safaris, one-on-one conversation with the company agent through an online chat. At the centre of the main menu, a potential client can view different travelling plans with different packages.

These plans are further classified as premium and ordinary. The ordinary option enables travellers to pool and save 30% of the travel costs. Upon selection of a tour package, the plugin displays an automatic cost, availability, and location of the destination site chosen for the premium and ordinary options (Buhalis, Tjoa, & Jafari 1998).

All these categories contain different features that potential customers can use in order to feel more confident when doing online shopping for a tourism site in Scotland, through the Scottish Routes Company website. A unique cookie for the selected tour package is then transferred to all primary and secondary visitors to this site hence broadening the spread information on this website (Marcussen 2006).

Despite the success of the online marketing channel for the Scottish Routes Company, its visibility has not been optimised. Thus, the recommendations discussed below are aimed at improving the Scottish Routes Company’s service visibility.

Recommendations

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Search engine optimisation for the tour website can be achieved through installing plugins that possess extra features like page navigation, thumbnail and customised page numbers. Specifically, this proposed system in Google will consist of a multi tab page that will serve different areas and services to online customers.

The main categories are travelling sites menu, e-newspaper/magazines and brochures for the related accommodations, passenger’s entertainments and shopping (duty free) when in these locations, and a guide on cost for each package (Gretzel, Fesenmeier, Formica, & O’Leary 2006).

When implementing SEO in the Google, it is necessary to revise the algorithms constantly for the search result for the tour website to remain at the top. This can be achieved through revising the content to ensure that all the information in the website pertains directly to the needs of potential clients (Xiang, Kothari, Hu, & Fesenmaier 2007).

Thus, constant blogging on the website and recruiting other independent bloggers to blog about the website will give the Scottish Routes website a competitive advantage in marketing its products (Marcussen 1999).

Proper branding of the tourism products and use of short and catchy keyword will capture the attention of potential clients in search for specific items. However, to minimise the cost of sustainability, the ROI should be updated periodically and new content introduced as per the need for each ‘Pay per Click’ (Xiang, Kothari, Hu, & Fesenmaier 2007). This channel can further be modified to accommodate remodelling.

Every visit to the tour website will leave a cookie on the computer of the visitor. Any future browsing will simply spread this cookie to other users. This will expand the number of persons getting information about the tour website (Mills & Rob 2005).

Social Media Strategy

Social media, especially Facebook and Twitter, have gained popularity among travellers who uses these sites as interaction modules to share travelling culture and exchange ideas. In e-marketing, especially in the destination management sector in Scotland, social media has penetrated the communication environment and currently commands a large following among the users.

Reflectively, Facebook and Tweeter are ideal tools for branding and community following building since culture, economy, and society are highly affected by the digital technology (O’Connor 2004; Bornhorst, Ritchie, & Sheehan 2010).

The use of digital technologies, in the form of social media, will allow the Scottish Routes Company to create an online forum for its customers to interact. Besides, the platform allows users to add content to align to different orientations of the tour services offered by the company such as the scheduled coach tours, ad hoc tours, island holidays, genealogy, chauffeur drive, special interest tours, and tailor made coach tours for small groups.

There is an open perspective which will help in understanding the impact of the digital technology on social media strategy for the Scottish Routes Company (Kennedy & Ehrenberg 2001).

Social media will help the Scottish Routes Company to reach its potential customers by skipping or bypassing the traditional gatekeepers, such as written magazine publishers, and placing them online so that customers can get them directly (Porter 2001).

The objectives of the proposed social media are building a strong a brand and following for the Scottish Routes Company. For instance, in the use of Facebook and Tweeter, the tour website can be promoted by building an interest, location, and need based initiative for the potential customers (Buhalis 2003; Bornhorst, Ritchie, & Sheehan 2010).

Through likes and tweets, the customer base for the tour website will expand substantially over a short period of time. Social media focuses on e-marketing which involves building friendly partnership and working relationship with a market segment without necessarily having physical contact with it (Sheldon 1997).

In fact, the main source of exchanging information and advertising products will be through the creation of two community pages on Facebook and Twitter respectively (Roman & Dimitrios 2008).

Reflectively, the success of e-marketing for the company will be deeply entrenched in the principle of keeping reliable and professional reputation in exchanging ideas and convincing customers in online selling through the community pages (Pike 2008).

Thus, the use of Facebook, Tweeter, trip advisor, trivago, and other social sites will increase the visibility of the Scottish Routes Company website across the Europe and beyond (Morgan, Hastings, & Pritchard 2012).

Social media strategy may also be achieved through designing a flexible online advertising platform. Properly designed online marketing and product distribution management facilitate the success and sustainability in online marketing (Blythe 2006; Baker & Cameron 2008).

To increase credibility and maintain professionalism, the current bomb internet channels of reaching the consumers for the company should be tailored to encompass processes and features that flawlessly facilitate a healthy and a lifetime relationship between the business and its clients in the global online tour magazines such as the Scot Traveller and the Scotland Magazine (Poon 1993; Bornhorst, Ritchie, & Sheehan 2010).

Among the new development elements that the tour website should incorporate include passing accurate information to target audience in such online magazines. Creation of content is extremely essential when dealing with internet marketing communication within the online marketing industry (Nyheim, McFadden, & Connolly 2005).

It is necessary to determine the online behaviour of the target market before selecting the best channel for internet marketing for the Scottish Routes Company website to minimise the issue of changed consumer preference.

Essentially, success of brand and product management depends on a proper alignment of a functional idea into the creation of flexible, involuntary, and quantifiable measurement of perception among the target audience (Buhalis & Schertler 1999).

Thus, through advertising campaigns and promotional strategy that is defined by the nature of the market, the size of the market, and customer preferences, the remodelled website for the Scottish Routes Company should carry out a link reference promotion (Sheldon, Wöber, & Fesenmaier 2001).

The website user with the highest number of referral links is rewarded with a free trip to one of the tourism destinations in Scotland. This will create loyalty among clients.

Customer Relationship Management

Customer relationship management is the first step towards sustainable customer interaction and expansion the distribution channels that attract near markets.

In relation to the Scottish Routes Company, the proposed customer relationship management will involve creation of a live customer support team that will track the activities of the customers while sending service upgrades in the form of a link to the guest computer (WTO 2001; Bornhorst, Ritchie, & Sheehan 2010).

Reflectively, the concept will revolve around a comprehensive review of ‘push and pull’ factors which determine functionality of the website to offer an alternative strong marketing tool in the quest for quality, reliability, and trust among clients. A properly designed mud mapping plan will be crucial in presenting brand knowledge, awareness, penetration strategy and passing information to target audience (Werthner & Klein 1999).

Generally, the catchier an advertisement is, the high chances of uptake. On the other hand, less catchy advertisements may not work well with consumer perception on such brand. Consumer perception is the general evaluation that consumers engage in before deciding to purchase a particular product or service.

Attitudes are direct personal experiences that are influenced by consumers’ personality, advertisement, family and friends. Perceptions are unique ways through which consumers internalise and interpret information about a product (Xiang, Kothari, Hu, & Fesenmaier 2007).

Thus, the online platforms should be modelled to accommodate consumer engagement. This is essential towards winning and maintaining a client, especially in a competitive online market setting where the best offer carries the day.

Conclusion

Creation of content is extremely essential when dealing with internet marketing communication within the destination management industry of Scotland. Since the Scottish Routes Company is relatively new, its website is not comprehensive and the company has to deal with the possibility of changed preference among customers who want to associate with a very dynamic online company.

From the above reflection, the Scottish Routes Company’s online marketing platform functions on a consumer Centricity strategy to tailor its services to the online preference of consumers.

However, the company should carry out content development and intense advertisement in the website to create awareness on its online approaches. Among the possible improvements include intensive search engine optimisation, social media, and customer relationship management.

Reference List

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