Firms and consumers have been severely damaged by the Covidscourge.

At the other side,

businesses had able to create and manage connections with important market participants by
redefining existing manufacturing, distribution, and even product creation processes. But at the
contrary end, customers have been compelled to alter their purchasing, shopping, consumption,
and travel habits temporarily or permanently. This novel circumstance, triggered by the Covid-
19 epidemic, has significant consequences for businesses. Indeed, it compelled them to swiftly
rearrange their processes and operations in order to continue operating their companies,
resulting in new kinds of product and service innovation to meet a new need. Additionally, it
resulted in significant changes in how businesses maintain connections and interact with their
customers, and most importantly, it resulted in significant consumer changes (Maria, Simoni,
Pedeliento, & Galvagno, 2021).

Marketing strategy is the marketing reasoning through which a business seeks to build
customer value and establish these lucrative partnerships. The business determines which
clients and how they will be served. It defines the whole market, then splits everything into
tiny sectors, determines its most assuring sectors, and concentrates on servicing and pleasing
these segments' clients (Kotler, Armstrong, & Opresnik, 2020).

Marketing, according to Kotler, is the process through which businesses create value
for their people and community, leading to solid client connections that generate value for the
business (Kotler P. R., 2014). However, marketing's meaning has changed through time and
now puts a premium on the production of value for consumers and society. According to the
most current definition of marketing, "marketing is the activity, collection of institutions, and
procedures for developing, conveying, delivering, and exchanging solutions that are valuable
to consumers, partnerships, and the public in general" (American Marketing Association,
2021).

Businesses must be customer-centric to compete in today's competitive environment. They

must acquire clients from rivals and then retain and expand them via superior value delivery.
However, before a business can satisfy customers, firstly should comprehend their
requirements and desires. As a result, effective marketing requires in-depth consumer study
(Kotler P. R., 2014). Today's businesses realize how they could not appeal to every customer
in the market, or certainly not in the same manner. Buyers are much too numerous, dispersed,
and unique regarding overall interests and purchasing habits. Additionally, the
organizations themselves vary significantly in order to adequately service various parts of the

1
Pranay Rathi 1976325
market. Rather than that, like any prudent marketer, a business must determine which segments
of the market it can serve most effectively and financially. It must develop customer-centric
marketing strategies that focus on developing the appropriate connections with the appropriate
customers. Thus, the majority of businesses have deviated against widespread marketing and
forward with target marketing, which entails identifying market groups, narrowing them down
to one or more, and devising goods and marketing campaigns suited to each segment (Kotler,
Armstrong, & Opresnik, 2020).

The four primary phases are involved in developing a customer-centric marketing strategy. The
firm picks the consumers it will service in the initial and second phases. Segmentation is the
method of marketing that helps to analyse a market in order to concentrate marketing efforts
on smaller categories of customers that exhibit unique features or behaviours and may need
customized marketing tactics or mixtures. The organization separates the market in such a
multitude of methods and then creates profiles for each segment. Market target (or targeting)
is reviewing the viability of each market segment and choosing one or more to penetrate. The
next two phases need the business to establish a business model outlining how it will provide
value for its target consumers. Differentiation is the process of distinguishing an
organization's marketplace offerings from that of rivals in order to produce higher consumer
value. Positioning is ensuring that a market offering occupies a distinct, desired, and
differentiated space in the thoughts of target customers in comparison to rival items. (Kotler,
Armstrong, & Opresnik, 2020).

When discussing marketing, the term "mix" comprises of four mains Ps. 4P's marketing can
assist any business to attract more consumers and offer them the highest level of satisfaction,
which in turn increases the company's profit margins (Thabit & Raewf, 2018). The four pillars
of Jerome McCarthy's thesis are product, pricing, promotion, and place. For a product to get to
the appropriate client at the right price, each of these four components must be subdivided into
the micro-components. According to McCarthy's 4P approach, the emphasis is on the product.
McCarthy also employed psychiatry and sociology to get a deeper insight into customer
behaviour in order to enhance current marketing tactics at the time.

2
Pranay Rathi 1976325
Customer-driven marketing strategies are winning strategies that can employ to achieve a two-
fold goal such as making the business profitable at the same time making customers loyal and
with this build a strong brand value to the customers. A good customer value maintains the
product's marketability and results in recurrent revenue to both dealer and producer (mbaskool,
2021).

From luxury to mid-market to affordable, the Taj hotel network covers all of India's major
cities and villages with a range of hotel brands. Multitude choices of companies operates under
its eye-catching awning. Full-service premium properties, resorts, and palaces are all part of
Taj's flagship hotel brand. Hotels like as Taj, which are equated with luxury, were aimed at the
most well-heeled and affluent travellers in the world (sufi, 2018). Using the time right there
have been few noticeable changes with Taj hotel in terms of growth and re-evaluating the
strategy. New properties have also been opened and a statement shows that it is planning to
open a couple of more properties by this year. Post covid Taj is attempting to increase the total
population as possible and hence focusing on expansion. it also somehow relates to the same
strategy applied by Indigo by increasing its flight destination getting more people.

Taj Sats also plans to set its foot from air to land now by diversifying its market through
delivery and starting a new brand Anuka (Sinha, 2020). Taj Sats may also again tie-up with Air
India as they have the same main company TATA and they were partners back then which
gives it a new opportunity to expand. Opening up new delivery application Qmin and active
participation in social media. This was new to Taj and to market it they needed a new strategy
and how they would reach their audience as serving food hot in a beautiful environment which
is controlled by the hotel and delivery of food is very different.

Due to covid, the occupancy of restaurants has dropped to straight 50 per cent. To keep business
running Taj also opted to give its beds to covid positive patients till their recovery. They also
brought their banquet price to the bare minimum to hold themselves strong. Despite so many
rules and regulations, Taj managed to keep its customers its priority and which helped them to
prove to their customers the brand loyalty and in return customers also showed a positive
response to it. Taj took a step forward and reached out to the media and showed its sanitation
process and giving customers ensures of a covid free zone (Chen, Han, Bilgihan, & Okumus,
2021).

3
Pranay Rathi 1976325
Expansion of business and diversification was important as everyone could not afford the Taj
luxury so the other sub-brands helped to capture a particular set of audience. for luxury Taj
was there but for the upper and middle class, the brand Vivanta and Gateway were there and
for a more reasonable rate or economy, the Ginger hotel was there to supported it.

Taj has always tried to increase its customer value it could be via their membership and offers
or by their initiatives like the chambers and exclusive place for their members. Taj or any other
brand to stay in the competition should have a few things figured out first to always look for a
new marketing approach or strategy and to have a certain perspective of the brand and mission
and vision. Taj main marketing is from word of mouth it trusts its customers’ loyalty to get
more audience but other than that a strategy that is looked into is STPD and 4Ps of marketing.

S for STPD is segmentation the understanding of the term is been cleared above which helps
understand that Taj has a huge segment and it could be divided into its brands that have been
divided in terms of economic status or in other words willingness to spend of the customer.
Post or during covid the opening of new hotels is to expand its segmentation in the brands.

T would be Targeting the customers according to their stay this could be from a business trip
to a family trip to leisure. On second thought targeting could also be according to the time the
customer is looking to stay with the brand. Taj does have an abundance of hotels and each hotel
have its particular target for e.g. Taj fishermen’s cove in Chennai would be leisure stay as it is
away from the city and it is a resort but Taj wellington mews would be for business travel as it
is near the airport. Giving rooms to covid patients is also targeting customers to make sure their
health is doing good which will give them publicity through media and customers.

P is for positioning this where the property should be put as mentioned above a businessman
would like its hotel near to the airport as it would be more convenient for his travel another
example would be to open a property seeing the location around it, would not make sense to
open a royal, heritage property in goa. The opening of Qmin was a way to expand the position
and reach out to the old customer who is not able to come to the hotel but can enjoy the
experience from their place.

D is for differentiation it focuses on a very deep level with the properties aspects that could be
anything and might also have a story going on behind it. The best example to justify it would
be the Taj heritage property it could be because of how old or how perfect the location and
story it carries with it.

4
Pranay Rathi 1976325
Also, marketing mix would be observed as it helps to give a better understanding in terms of
the 4 Ps. The Product would be what Taj is trying to sell via the hotel it might be the services
or the view or its location or heritage that depends on the Place the property has been located
in and how they Promote it the place would have its significance if the company promotes it in
that manner no point of having a sea-facing hotel if you do not market that out loud. Lastly the
Price they are expecting for this overall experience when it is combined together and given as
a package. Price could also depend on the situation brand and service (mbaskool, 2017).

This all at the end shows Taj’s marketing strategy is focused on customer value gives it a
relation with customer-driven marketing strategy as we know it is interlinked. Having that said
Taj follows Segmentation Targeting Positioning closely in their marketing Strategy. Connected
with STP the marketing mix of 4Ps is also followed and by this we can concur that It's essential
to keep in mind to have a Customer-driven marketing strategy to create more customer value
for the business.

5
Pranay Rathi 1976325
1.American Marketing Association. (2021, may 15). American Marketing Association.
Retrieved from definition of marketing : https://www.ama.org/the-definition-of-
marketing-what-ismarketing

2.Chen, S., Han, X., Bilgihan, A., & Okumus, F. (2021). Customer engagement research in
hospitality and tourism: a systematic review. Journal of Hospitality Marketing &
Management , 871-904.

3.Kotler, P. R. (2014). marketing for hospitality and tourism . Harlow: Pearson education
limited .

4.Kotler, P., Armstrong, G., & Opresnik, M. O. (2020). Principles of Marketing. Harlow:
Pearson.

5.Maria, E. D., Simoni, M., Pedeliento, G., & Galvagno, M. (2021). The long Covid efect in
marketing and consumer research. Italian Journal of Marketing, 297-303.

6.mbaskool. (2017, december 16). Taj Hotels Marketing Strategy & Marketing Mix (4Ps).
Retrieved from mbaskool: https://www.mbaskool.com/marketing-mix/services/17482-
taj-
hotels.html#:~:text=The%20promotional%20and%20advertising%20strategy,be%20l
oyal%20to%20the%20service.

7.mbaskool. (2021, july 18). Customer Value Meaning, Importance, Types, Parameters &
Example. Retrieved from mbaskool: https://www.mbaskool.com/business-
concepts/marketing-and-strategy-terms/1816-customer-value.html

8.Sinha, S. (2020, november 23). Flight food at home: TajSats to start home-delivery of meals.
Retrieved from timesofindia: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-
business/flight-food-at-home-tajsats-to-start-home-delivery-of-meals-enter-non-
aviation-space/articleshow/79363431.cms

9.sufi, T. (2018). A Case Study on Market Segmentation, Positioning and Classification of

Multi-Brand Hotel Chains. uttar pradesh: COPAL Publishing Group.

10.Thabit, T. H., & Raewf, M. (2018). The Evaluation of Marketing Mix Elements: A Case
Study. International Journal of Social Sciences and Educational Studies , 100-109.

6
Pranay Rathi 1976325
 7
Pranay Rathi 1976325