confidential and proprietary. all rights reserved 2013 ®

Abinash Pradhan // Cara Brown // Graham Gardner // Sally Yee // Shayta Roy // Tania Cruz

01. Executive summary

02. Mission

03. Corporate Objective

04. Marketing Audit

05. Market Overview

06. SWOT analysis

07. Assumptions

08. Marketing strategies and tactics

09. expected results

10. Budget

11. First year implementation program

Topic Areas

• Our guiding corporate objective is to increase profits by 14% year-on-year through 2017.• The boutique hotel market overall is expected to grow by 7% annually through 2017, with an

expected consumer shift towards preferring more "lifestyle" holiday and hotel offerings.• Towards this goal, we have three broad marketing objectives, including:

Increase total revenue while remaining in the "Upper Upscale" market class.Increase brand recognition and 'community' experience association with Kimpton boutiques.Maintain high overall customer satisfaction in our market class.

• Based on qualitative market research we determined that customers seeking community experiences during their hotel stay are the most promising for Kimpton.

• Community segment customers are seeking a hotel that reflects and connects with the history and culture of the destination, congregant branding and storytelling, and unrehearsed interactions with staff.

• Competitors serving the community segment are enhancing personalization and bringing local culture into the hotel in common spaces.

• We face some potential challenges in appealing to the community segment:• Hotel customers broadly are looking for something more predictable. Can our diverse properties

really deliver a community experience consistently?• We have no clear channel communicating to "Community" seekers.• On the other hand, we are positioned to serve the community segment due to our high level of

personalized customer service, our established offerings that build connections between guests and with the staff, and an inclusive culture that enhances our community presence.

executive summary

• We propose to roll out four strategies to capture the community experience seeking segment.Create moments of heightened community experience intensity throughout the duration of the guests' stays.Align the hotel experience with the client’s expectation of the destination by adding authentic touches and facilitating connection with local culture.Deliver consistent, personalized service with a touchpoint that connects the guest with history and the local culture.Define “boutique” with meaning that appeals to the community segment by creating experiential expectations for each property and leveraging the mystique surrounding the word.

• Proposed tactics to actualize these strategies are focused on three key areas:Further market research (quantitative).Social media and online communication, aggregation and guest services.Redesigned experience and service offerings within the hotel spaces.

• The proposed tactics will be rolled out in 5 properties in San Francisco over the next year.• Each tactic will be piloted in the hotel spaces over an initial period of 2 months.• Total cost of these activities is $49,000 in Year 1.• Expected profits of $120,000 in Year 1 in each of the five pilot properties.• If the target is achieved, we propose full rollout of the marketing strategies in at least 60 properties

by Year 3.• Full rollout is expected to cost $3 million and is expected to generate profits of $36 million.

executive summary

To be the best-loved boutique hotel and restaurant company by our employees, guests, owners and communities and genuinely support our co-workers, provide heartfelt care and comfort for our guests, and deliver superior financial returns to our investors.

MISSION

CORPORATE ObjectiveIncrease profits by 14% year-on-year through 2017.

We make extra effort to welcome the gay and lesbian community and we publicize this on our website.

We use word-of-mouth and social media marketing with minimal investment on advertising. We have links to Facebook and Twitter on the bottom corner of our homepage.

We offer a hosted complimentary wine hour to our guests at all properties.

Our website provides information about the city, such as current events.

On our website we provide Insider Tips on places and events that our staff highly recommend to our guests.

The Women inTouch program provides women with wine dinners and other networking events at the hotel and complimentary "ladies night out".

MARKETING AUDIT

The Community SegmentMid-20's to Late-30’s

Travels often, at least twice a year for weekend getaways,  business & leisure

Avoids tourist locations and wants interactions with locals

Prefers "cool", "hip" or "funky" places to stay in "hip" neighborhoods

MARKET OVERVIEW

ConciergeComplimentary happy hourCommon gathering spaces to meet other guests

Touchpoints

Brand & Touchpoints• Congruent branding and storytelling from all touchpoints • Staying in hip neighborhoods, not "tourist" locations• Authentic, historical and reflective; celebrates local culture

Design• Intentional, purposeful, and thoughtful design aesthetics• Home feeling with aspirational, escapist features

Staff & Service• Unrehearsed interactions and conversations with staff • Less people, more personalized attention• Access to insider tips about the location

Common Spaces• Causal spaces that allow for connection

Valuable Connections• Meeting locals and disconnecting from work• Connecting with people with the same values• Access to knowledge about activities inside or outside of the hotel

MARKET OVERVIEW THE COMMUNITY SEGMENT

MARKET OVERVIEWBOUTIQUE TRENDS

Inclusivity vs Exclusivity • Focused on bringing people from the outside in.• Encourage active social spaces and guest engagement. e.g.. Playing pool in the hotel lobby

• Creating memorable social experiences • Designing for a niche audience and making the space accessible will drive

incremental guest and non-guest revenue.• Maintaining a vibrant off and online personality while gradually defining and

managing a new notion of privacy for the 21st century.

Predictive Personalization • Guest data analysis becomes more measurable and cost efficient.• Hoteliers are increasingly able to predict customer behaviors, needs or wants

and tailor precise offers and communications pre, during and post visit with bullet-point cash flow efficiency through the preferred guest communication method.

Who is serving the community segment?

◦ Bringing outside in• Design, Fashion and Social Events • Restaurants / bars • Local arts • Common spaces: pool tables,

• designed lobbies and pools • Music in different areas of the hotel◦ Enhancing personalization• Sharing local events (on calendar) • Sharing experiences on blog• Live feedback through social media

• Customer reviews• Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

◦ Other Boutique Hotels • Joie De Vivre • Thompson• Ace• Morgan Group Hotel◦ Luxury chain Hotel that may

be considered boutique• W Hotel◦ Alternative places to stay

• Airbnb• Upscale Hostel

How are they serving the community segment?

MARKET OVERVIEWBOUTIQUE TRENDS

MARKET OVERVIEWCommon SpacesCommon SpacesCommon SpacesCommon SpacesCommon SpacesCommon Spaces Local CultureLocal CultureLocal CultureLocal CultureLocal Culture PersonalizationPersonalization

Restaurant Bar Wine Hour

Common Kitchen

Pool Pool Table

Local Art Music Events City

Guide Blog Customer Reviews

Social Media

Aggregation

Joie De Vivre X X X X X

Thompson X X X X X X X X XAce X X X X X X

Morgan Group Hotel X X X X X X X

W Hotel X X X X X X X X

AirBnb X X X X X

BOUTIQUE TRENDS

S W

O T

• Number one in customer satisfaction in its upper upscale market class, according to the Market Metrix Hospitality Index.

• A corporate culture of “emotional” engagement with guests. • Kimpton is first in customer emotional attachment among US hotels (89% score).• Established offerings that build connections between guests and with the staff.• An inclusive culture that enhances Kimpton’s community presence.• An acclaimed loyalty program with personalized rewards that foster memorable travel

experiences.

SStrengths delivering what the community segment seeks

• Move towards something more predictable offerings (chains & market).• No clear channel communicating to "Community" seekers.

• Questionable whether diverse properties can consistently deliver a community experience within the brand.

• Unknown whether experiential segmentation is a current practice.

Weaknesses displayedW

• Expected 7% growth in the boutique sector through 2017.• Expected consumer shift from recession bargain hunting habits to a desire for

“lifestyle” experiences.• Trend of guests seeking engagement with hotel properties, not with hotel brands.• Space to define "boutique" hotels as delivering on a community experience.

Foreseen OpportunitiesO

• Growth of Airbnb, which offers real community experiences facilitated by connected locals.

• Growth of “lifestyle hotels” run by large chains, which leverage chains’ economies of scale.

• A trend towards “budget boutique” hotels.• Disruptive technologies such as same-day booking facilitated by apps that could cut

into customer loyalty.• The emergence of health and wellness boutiques that could deliver a community

experience.

Threats to be mitigated T

The word "boutique" - a nebulous term for customers - can be associated with community experience successfully.

Kimpton can consistently create and capture value for 'community' seekers.

Kimpton already caters to 'wonder' and 'harmony' seekers.

'Safety' and 'validation' seekers are likely drawn to chains. Kimpton should not change its niche appeal experience to capture these segments.

Aligning the hotel experience with the customer's expectation of the destination and facilitating connections with local culture will deliver a 'community' experience.

Touchpoints can heighten the 'community' experience while connecting guests to the history and culture of the destination.

StrategyAssumptions

marketing Objectives

• Increase Kimpton boutique brand association with a 'community' experience by 50% within Year 1.

• Promote activities to increase engagement with Kimpton properties by 15% among locals in Kimpton locations.

• Maintain position as number one in customer satisfaction in the market class.• Capture and maintain at least a 90% score each year for "customer emotional

attachment."

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

↑TOTAL REVENUE• Increase overall Occupancy Index by 20% year-on-year through Year 3.

Increase capture of the Community Segment by 50% from Year 1 to Year 3.• Increase average duration of loyal customers'  stays by 15% year-on-year through

Year 3.

BRAND RECOGNITION + 'COMMUNITY' EXPERIENCE

"UPPER UPSCALE" MARKET CLASS

Kimpton Hotels exists to

provide community seekers with inviting, stress free escapism. In so doing, it delivers adventure, harmony

and community. Towards that end, it offers consistent personalized service,

touchpoints of local culture, and opportunities for

connection and interaction.

Positioningstatement

Deliver consistent, personalized service with a touchpoint that connects the guest with history and the local culture.

Create moments of heightened community experience intensity throughout the duration of the guests' stays.

Align the hotel experience with the client’s expectation of the destination by adding authentic touches and facilitating connection with local culture.

Define “boutique” with meaning that appeals to the community segment by creating experiential expectations for each property and leveraging the mystique surrounding the word.

Strategy

COMMUNITY EXPERIENCETOUCH POINTS

1. Reservations2. Arrive

EnterFront Desk Greeting

3. Check In Take Bags Receive Room Key

4. Go to Room 5. Enter Room

Bags arrive6. Settle in

Assessment

7. Sleep 8. Depart

Pack Return Keys Pay the Bill Exit the hotel

Dinner /Happy Hour Breakfast Watch TV Room Service Shower Wake up Venture Out Amenities

ARRIVAL ENTER ROOM TRIP DURATION DEPART

Opportunity Space

ARRIVAL ENTER ROOM TRIP DURATION DEPART

1. Reservations2. Arrive

EnterFront Desk Greeting

3. Check In Take Bags Receive Room Key

4. Go to Room 5. Enter Room

Bags arrive6. Settle in

Assessment

7. Sleep 8. Depart

Pack Return Keys Pay the Bill Exit the hotel

Dinner /Happy Hour Breakfast Watch TV Room Service Shower Wake up Venture Out Amenities

COMMUNITY EXPERIENCETOUCH POINTS

THE ARRIVAL EXPERIENCE

MUSIC INTEGRATION

WEAKNESSESWEAKNESSES

LOCAL TASTEMAKERS

QUANTATIVE STUDY

AUTONOMOUS ADVENTURES

SOCIAL MEDIA AGGREGATOR

INTERACTIVE SOCIAL MEDIA TV

TACTICS

To test assumptions about the community segment that derived from preliminary research.

• Better understand and define the community segment.

Demographic profile and size of segmentFrequency of Kimpton staysTraveling habitsHoliday/business travel spending

• Better understand effectiveness of implemented strategies and tactics.

Social media behaviors

quant study

Timeline: 2 studies over 3 years

FRONT-END VIA POSTANO • Create hotel social media campaigns• Share hotel events and festivities• Showcase social media activity from guests

(Twitter, Instagram)

BACKEND• Increase direct responses to guests'

compliments and complaints. social media aggregator Touchpoints: Website, social media services

Experience: Community Impact: High levels of guest experience and

enhance satisfaction.Timeline: 2-month pilot then full rollout in 5

properties; further rollout in Years 2-3.  

• HistoricalWriters (Jack Kerouac, Amy Tan, Hunter Thompson)Artists (Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin) Architecture (Rick Evans)Barbary Coast

• Food & BeverageMicro-breweriesMicro-roastersStreet foodBest food under $10

• Guests design and share their Moseys based around the tours Kimpton created.

autonomous adventures

Create self guided itineraries based on community segment interests shared on the mobile app and exposed on website under events.

Touchpoints: WebsiteExperience: Community, Adventure

Impact: High engagement for the community segment.

Timeline: 2-month pilot then full rollout in 5 properties; further rollout in Years 2-3.  

WEAKNESSESWEAKNESSES

the arrival experience

Enable Front Desk staff to act as personalized hostess to perform remote check-in via Ipad.

THE INTENTION• To create better welcome and a more homely feel.• To remove a physical barrier (check-in desk) between

the staff and the guest.

Touchpoint: Check-in processExperience: Community, Harmony

Impact: Higher guest perception, Increment in personalize service.

Timeline: 2-month pilot then full rollout in 5 properties; further rollout in Years 2-3.

An visual smart TV interface shown on as guest enter the room that aggregates social media activities, hotel happenings, and local culture information.

THE INTENTION• Meet people who are staying in your hotel.• Live feed for getting together and sharing. • Allow conversations between guest of current events via

TV.interactive social mediaTV

Touchpoint: Room, LobbyExperience: Community

Impact: High interaction between guestsTimeline: 2-month pilot then full rollout in 5

properties; further rollout in Years 2-3.

music integration

Spotify music platform allows users to browse through music and share with community.

• Kimpton curates extensive library of music for weekly rotations.

• Guests have their own Spotify account attached to each room that can be self curated and shared with other guests. The guests will learn about the service on the TV screen.

THE INTENTION • Connect people to the Lobby, the main shared

space, when in their room. • Music becomes a touch point that guests can

experience both during and after their stay.

Touchpoints: Guest Room, Smart TV

Experience: Community, Adventure, Harmony Impact: Enhance of audible memories and

experiences.Timeline: 2-month pilot then full rollout in 5 properties;

further rollout in Years 2-3.

• Initial complimentary flight sample • Wine makers (Local in Sonoma)• Micro-brewed beers• Micro-roasted coffee  • Artisanal cheese makers (Cow Girl Creamery)• Artisanal cocktail mixologists

THE INTENTION• To connect guests with local community and culture.• To attract local Kimpton loyal customers and create

interactions with hometown properties.

local artisans

Bring outside in with hosted local businesses events(2-3 hours) to engage loyal Kimpton guests and community segment.

Touchpoint: Lobby Experience: Community, adventure

Impact: Highly meaningful community experience with local culture.

Timeline 2-month pilot then full rollout in 5 properties; further rollout in Years 2-3.

Expected Results

Full rollout through the third year is expected to cost $3m and is expected to generate profits of $36m.

If this target is achieved in the first year at the five pilotproperties we propose that the strategy be rolled out across all 61 properties.

If the proposed spend of $49,000 on marketing generates the expected profit growth of 14%, it will mean an increase of approximately $120,000 in the operating profit per Kimpton property.

budget

YEAR 1

Quantitative Study $10,000

Social media aggregation 9,600

Hosted mobile checkin 19,000

Spotify 600

Outside-in events 10,000$49,200

Number of properties for trial in Year 1 5

NOTES

Rollout across all of Kimpton properties 61

Total number of properties $600,240

Cost of rolling out marketing plan at all properties

$2,572,457

Expected minimum incremental revenue $257,246

Expected minimum incremental profit 60,094

Implementation program (1st year)

• Two phases in Year 1:1. Pilot2. Full roll out in 5 properties

• Implementation in at least 60 properties by the end of Year 3 if additional investment is made.

Implementation program (1st year)

Pilot Rollout (5 properties)

Research

MonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonthMonth

Activity 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Quntitative Market Research

Social Media Aggregation

Mosey

Hosted Check-In

Spotify

TV System Redesign

Local Tastemakers

Thank you