A Hotel-Chain’s Marketing Coup in a Crisis

Summary

The Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC) ingeniously repurposed its hotels as paid quarantine facilities for returning expatriates during the pandemic, demonstrating a successful marketing strategy amidst crisis.

Abstract

In response to the economic downturn in Kerala's tourism sector due to the pandemic, the KTDC transformed its hotels into quarantine facilities. This initiative catered to the influx of expatriates returning to Kerala, offering a comfortable and safe quarantine option for those who could afford it. The KTDC's approach not only ensured adherence to health protocols but also provided psychological support to guests dealing with the stress of the pandemic. The success of this model has inspired private luxury hotels and the houseboat industry to adopt similar strategies, showcasing the potential for innovative marketing to address new consumer needs during challenging times.

Opinions

The KTDC's initiative is seen as a savvy business move, demonstrating that government-owned businesses can exhibit remarkable business acumen.
There is an underlying belief that every crisis presents opportunities for innovation and reinvention of established practices.
The KTDC's managers are credited with abundant common sense for identifying and capitalizing on the demand for paid quarantine facilities.
The success of the KTDC's quarantine facilities underscores the importance of aligning public interest, commercial viability, and private comfort in business strategies.
The text suggests that businesses should adopt a growth mindset to uncover opportunities in crises, rather than merely focusing on survival.
The author posits that true marketing innovation lies in creating solutions for emerging needs, regardless of the business environment.

A Hotel-Chain’s Marketing Coup in a Crisis

It sold hotel rooms as quarantine facilities

Photo credit: www.ktdc.com

It is a truism that every crisis is an opportunity to innovate, to rethink possibilities and to reinvent established practices.

I live in the southern Indian state of Kerala. Tourism is one of the state’s economic engines. The travel and hospitality industries, that depend on tourists, have been badly hit by the pandemic.

With tourist footfalls trickling down to single numbers, many hotels have shut shop. The hotel industry has laid off thousands of employees.

Few credit government- owned businesses with business -related savviness. A hotel-chain owned by the Kerala government, Kerala Tourism Development Corporation ( KTDC ), hit upon a brilliant idea to survive in the present crisis.

Kerala has a large population of expatriates working abroad. Many Keralites also work in other Indian states. The pandemic has forced many of these expatriates to return. The Kerala government has made it mandatory for all the returnees to observe a 14-day quarantine either in their homes or in government facilities.

The KTDC has a fleet of hotels and lodgings in major tourist spots in the state. The KTDC’s managers are government employees. They don’t have fancy MBA degrees. But they seem to be posses abundant common sense. They hit upon the brilliant idea of offering rooms as quarantine facilities to those who could afford paid quarantine.

They sensed that there was a demand for paid quarantine as many expatriates were well off economically. The government’s quarantine facilities were overflowing with people.

The KTDC’s paid quarantine facility has seen good occupancy in its facilities in the capital city of Thiruvananthapuram. Encouraged by the good response, the KTDC wants to replicate the experiment in its other facilities across the state.

The KTDC hotels strictly adhere to the heath protocols and safety precautions. They do not allow the staff to mingle with the guests.They provide three meals a day to the guests who have to collect the food themselves. There are two packages for the guests- a seven-day quarantine and a 14-day quarantine. Those opting for the seven-day quarantine will have to isolate themselves for another week in their homes.

The KTDC also provides psychological counselling to the guests who experienced mental stress because of loss of jobs, separation from families, and fear of infection.

Private hotels were initially hesitant to let their rooms as quarantine facilities. Now some of them, especially the luxury hotels, have followed the KTDCs example. As a ripple effect, the state’s private houseboat industry has also jumped into the quarantine hospitality bandwagon. Many houseboats owners have converted their vessels into quarantine facilities.

By aligning public interest, commercial viability, and private comfort, the KTDC has scored a marketing coup. Its bold experiment to offer hotel rooms as quarantine facilities has proved that marketing offers endless opportunities to survive and flourish even amid an unprecedented crisis.

Businesses need to abandon the survival mindset and embrace the growth mindset to seize hidden opportunities that every crisis provides.

Business acumen sees the possible in the seemingly impossible.

Marketing is not about selling Ferrari cars to billionaires; it is about designing innovative products to satisfy the emerging needs of new consumers, irrespective of whether the business environment is friendly or unfavourable.

Thanks for reading.