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DFW Hotel & Casino Marketing Plan August 2010 Final Draft Executive Summary DFW Hotel & Casino is a start-up resort that will offer gambling, restaurants, accommodations, and live entertainment to North Texas residents and out-of-state visitors. The casino market in Texas has been underserved due to prohibitive legal regulations that are now being relaxed. Presently, most Texas residents choosing to gamble must travel to adjoining states. Up to now, this has been a prosperous situation for business owners in neighboring states at the expense of North Texas entrepreneurs.
The DFW Hotel & Casino will enable local investors to capitalize on the enormous gambling market in North Texas, while providing great opportunity for sustainable growth into future periods. Gambling has evolved into a recreational activity and has been successfully integrated with the travel and hospitality sectors in other states. The DFW Hotel & Casino will provide an indigenous entrance into this growing market. The potential to broaden services into related markets in subsequent stages is significant.
DFW Hotel & Casino stands to gain a large portion of the North Texas market by developing a desired service that maximizes its appeal to local residents. The targeted market will no longer need to commute three to four hours to neighboring states. The resort Web site will incorporate disintermediation, allowing DFW Hotel & Casino to maximize profit margins, while developing younger tech savvy customers, which will sustain growth going forward. The resort will also sponsor a number of local events to develop good working relationships with local business and community leaders.
The target market is currently estimated at 100,000 participants, who will spend approximately $2,400,000. 00 annually. The primary target market is older couples with resources to spend and who enjoy travelling. Younger families and singles with an excess of discretionary income will be targeted as a secondary market. The primary competitor in this endeavor will be Choctaw casino in Durant, Oklahoma. Supplemental competition is expected from local theme parks, concert venues, and hotels. Distribution channels will be the experience of the resort service and its employees.
DFW Hotel & Casino will allocate marketing resources across a number of communications modes to reach the primary and secondary target markets. Pricing strategy will provide luxury at an affordable price. The payback period is estimated to be three and a half years, based on net revenues projected at $746,970 per year. The goal of the promotion budget and its integrated marketing campaign will be to increase sales by 5% each year over expected sales of $2,400,000 during the base year. This marketing plan will establish DFW Hotel & Casino as viable in the short-term, with growth options for the business long-term.
Product/Service Description, Situation Analysis DFW Hotel & Casino will be a resort with mystical architecture and lush surroundings. The resort will set upon 50 acres just east of Plano, Texas. Hotel amenities will include: room service; restaurants; casino; lounges and bars; and valet parking. The resort will also include swimming pools; a day spa; and top name entertainment. Many of the residents in the Dallas ??? Fort Worth area enjoy gambling and vacationing at the resorts located in Oklahoma and Louisiana.
The DFW Hotel & Casino will meet the needs of this growing market by combining world class entertainment and “Las Vegas” style casino gambling with the convenience of location here in the Metroplex. Strengths: ??? Located within Collin County, the Hotel and Casino will be easily accessible by its target market. ??? Top name entertainment and a family friendly atmosphere. ??? Potential market is increasing as more people move to the area. Weaknesses: ??? New to the industry; need time to develop consistency of service. ??? Owner has no previous experience in this kind of business. The Casino and Hotel will have no immediate name recognition. Opportunities: ??? Capture much of the gambling tourism market share in North Texas. ??? Possibly expand into recreational and resort facilities. ??? Advertise in neighboring states to take customers from competition. Threats: ??? The neighboring states have established Casinos and Resorts with greater resources and experience. ??? State ordinances may not allow this kind of business in the short term. ??? Potential customers may have limited discretionary income due to the stagnant economic conditions. Target Market
Affluent Mature & Senior Couples and Affluent Young Couples are the primary target markets for the marketing campaign. As secondary market, the following dimensions should be considered: Affluent Mature Singles; Affluent Young Singles; Affluent Families. About 47. 3% of American travelers have at least a moderate interest in casino gambling. The level of interest in casino gambling is highest among the affluent. However, male travelers are more likely to be enthusiast than female travelers. About half of the targeted market has a low to moderate interest in casino gambling associated with an interest in travel.
The target market seeks a vacation experience associated with personal indulgence and is more likely to have pursued sports and learning vacation experiences. As well, the target market is likely to attend sports events enjoy shopping and dining. They are more likely to rely on their own experiences when planning their vacations and if their previous experience was positive, they might return or seek a similar destination. They also consult a large variety of information sources and friends and family, travel agents, the Internet, newspaper and magazine articles, airline reservation systems, newspaper and magazine advertising.
Competitors & Substitutes Choctaw casino, Durant, Oklahoma. 1,500,000,000 annual revenue. 90% of visitors are from the D-FW area. “Las Vegas-style” games and slot machines. Only dinner wine sales. 106 hotel rooms. More than 1,400 gaming machines. Coliseum holds 10,000 people for concerts, rodeos and other events. 14 buses that it owns bring in customers from Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Kansas. 5,000 to 6,000 people patronize the facility each week, about 300,000 annually. Upon market entry, Choctaw will likely highlight the resort aspect of their business as a way to escape the daily stress of life here in the DFW Metroplex.
By marketing themselves as the largest Casino in the area, they will seek to maintain the customer base they have cultivated over the years here in Texas. Choctaw’s strengths are their size, brand recognition, and marketing. Their primary weakness is location. Pricing The pricing strategy of DFW Hotel & Casino will be to provide the quality of luxury vacation service – at an affordable price. The resort will by characterized by high levels of perceived quality, taste, and status with a price just high enough not to be out of consumers’ reach.
Net sales are expected to reach $2,400,000 – based on 100,000 customer services sold for the first year of operations. The average price per service rendered will be $24. In the first year of operations, DFW Hotel & Casino will not be profitable; expenses during the first year will most likely exceed revenues. The monthly sales break-even point is approximately $200,000 (8,333 services), assuming an average per-service revenue of $7. 47, and monthly fixed costs of $33,583. 00. The average per-service variable cost is expected to be $19. 97.
Channels of Distribution DFW Hotel & Casino will be a resort with mystical architecture and lush surroundings. The resort will set on 50 acres of land just east of Plano, Texas. Guest rooms (designed by Al Smith) will feature climate control, cable TV, dual line data port telephone, alarm clock, hair dryer, separate tub/shower, iron and ironing board, bathrobe, and floor-to-ceiling windows with grand views. Hotel amenities will include: Wheelchair access; room service; four restaurants (including a Hard Rock Cafe); casino; lounges; bars; and valet parking.
Promotion To reach the combined target markets (Affluent Mature & Senior Couples, Affluent Young Couples), the promotion plan for DFW Hotel & Casino will allocate marketing resources across the following integrated modes of communication ??? advertising, sales promotion, public relations and publicity, events and experiences, direct marketing, interactive marketing, word-of-mouth marketing, and the sales force. Advertising ??? “Slick” television ads that appeal to the sense of adventure and “getaway”; targeted primarily to Young Affluent Couples.
Print ads in American Association of Retired Persons (A. A. R. P. ) Magazine which promote the resort as a vacation destination for Affluent Mature & Senior Couples. Sales Promotion ??? During the winter months, a discount will be offered on rooms and meals for out-of-state guests. Seniors groups travelling together receive a sales discount on Hotel room prices. In summer months, kids can eat free at the Hotel’s restaurants. Public Relations and Publicity ??? The DFW Hotel & Casino will sponsor area youth sports teams, rotary clubs, and other community organizations.
Invite local news organization to report on the construction and grand opening of the facility, and during the big events held throughout the year. Events and Experiences ??? The Hotel will host “Summer Extravaganza” and “Christmas at DFW”, in coordination with aforementioned sales promotions, to align integrated marketing communications. Plan for a “New Car Exhibition” in autumn, and a “Frank Sinatra Retrospective” concert in spring. Direct and Interactive Marketing ??? Develop mailing lists based on target market demographics and zip code; send out fliers quarterly.
Put up ads online with e-mail providers, search engines, and hotel reservation websites. Word-of-mouth Marketing ??? Post reviews of the resort on area guide websites and in printed materials. Set up a Hotel weblog; update frequently with activities and news about the DFW Hotel & Casino. Personal Selling ??? Station hosts at entrances to each building. Hosts will provide a human face for the Hotel to handle issues with customer service. Have knowledgeable salespeople ready at all times for phone, Internet, or other inquiries about current and future services. The web site address for the resort will be: www. fwhotel. com. The web strategy will be to communicate timely, relevant information to the target markets in a distinctive and uncomplicated manner. DFW Hotel & Casino Promotion Budget For the year 2011 $ % Advertising A. A. R. P Magazine15,314 7. 6 Local Television16,725 8. 3 National Television18,538 9. 2 Online / Internet13,098 6. 5 Marketing Communications Total Advertising63,675 31. 6 Direct Mail / Marketing41,509 20. 6 Sales Promotions39,897 19. 8 Event Marketing30,830 15. 3 Public Relations25,591 12. 7 Total Advertising & Marketing201,500100. 0