Online Marketing Plan For Villa Bidadari

Prepared by: Linnea Anderson Ranvir Khosla Andrea Krtinic Jenelle Ross Calvin Yiu MRKT 3311 Marketing in a Digital World April 11, 2011

Table of Contents
Executive Summary Background 3 4

Description and Analysis of Key Issues 6 Discussion of Possible Solutions Recommendations Proposed Plan: The Free Plan Paid plans Conclusion Works cited Appendix 10 13 14 18 21 22 24

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Executive Summary
Team BAM has been asked by Margaret Mockler to help her villa, Villa Bidadari, with online promotions. Margaret wishes to at least break even in operating expenses with this plan. The villa is located in Nusa Dua, Bali, and consists of 3 houses plus 1 main house. A stay at each house is priced $200 US per/night, while renting out the entire villa costs $650 US per/night. Nusa Dua is known as a more isolated, luxury resort/hotel destination in Bali. The primary foreign visitors to Bali in 2009 were from Australia (20%), Japan (14%), and China (19%). There are roughly 23 hotels/resorts and 24 villas in Nusa Dua competing against Villa Bidadari with hotels/resorts capturing an estimated 93% of the lodging market. There are no major issues with Villa Bidadaris product, price, or location. The primary issues are from its promotional efforts. The biggest problem is that Villa Bidadari is not listed with enough online agents. Villa Bidadaris current promotional efforts are failing because they cannot be found on current channels when searched using terms normal people would use. Other online promotional problems include the lack of credibility, poor website design/content, no search engine optimization (SEO), and no social media strategy. A SWOT analysis discovered that the most unique strength of Villa Bidadari was that it is operated by Caucasians. The biggest opportunity was growth from Australia tourists. The major weaknesses affecting plan execution include the managements lack of time, capital, and online marketing knowledge. They also suffer many weaknesses in their online promotions but most can be addressed with minimal spending. The biggest threat comes from anticipated growth in competition and battle for market share amongst current competition. Many possible solutions were examined. The most likely possibilities included adding more online agents, display and pay per click advertising, SEO, social media, group purchase sites, geolocation sites, and website redesign. It was determined that the most suitable target market is tourists from English speaking countries and Indonesian wedding planners (who target foreigners). To help Villa Bidadari break even and receive at least 60 bookings for the year, it is recommended that Villa Bidadari increase visibility, position itself as more Caucasian friendly, and improve credibility. To position itself as more Caucasian friendly, it is recommended that Villa Bidadari change the name of the villa and include the owners in its marketing materials. To improve credibility, Villa Bidadari should increase its reviews on websites, make itself look busier, make all web content about the villa consistent, make minor changes to its website, add a social media presence, use group buying promotions, and audit its customer sales tactics. To increase visibility, Villa Bidadari should list with more online agents, make slight changes to their advertised listings, conduct basic SEO, and increase presence with wedding planners. If Villa Bidadari chooses to invest money into their marketing, it is recommended that they add an online booking system to their website, launch a Google Adwords campaign, hire an SEO specialist, and provide incentives for influential bloggers. Page 3 of 29

Background
Current Situation
Margaret Mockler has owned and operated Villa Bidadari in Bali, Indonesia since 2007. She is struggling to generate sales with income equaling 44% of costs. She has promoted the villa online, though most bookings are from personal networks. For this job, Team BAM must help Margaret select a target market and develop a promotional plan using online/offline methods. With this plan, Margaret hopes to at least break-even. Proposed budgets are $200, $500, and $1,000 US dollars.

Basic Information about Villa

Villa Bidadari employs a total of seven people with the exception of occasional part-time staff. The villa charges $200-$250 USD per villa per night (total of 3 villas and 1 main house) or $650-$750 USD per night for the entire property. Services include pick up and transfer to/from the airport and the villa, daily breakfast, fresh towels, a fruit basket, and full daily service.

Basic Information about Nusa Dua

As well as a host of luxury hotels and spas, Nusa Dua is home to the most popular golf course in Bali and the main convention centre on the island. Beaches here are beautifully famous and many water sports activities are available. Nusa Dua is a more isolated area in Bali, where public transport is far from regular. Nusa Dua does not have much of a night-life as it is known more as a place for relaxation with its luxurious 5-star resorts. There are not too many quality restaurants outside of the luxury hotels and most accommodation is luxuriously priced.

Bali Tourism Industry Trends

The following Bali tourism trends were found: Including board, average daily spending by foreign visitors is estimated to be US$74 (Bayes, 2007) Impact from the global financial crisis has negatively impacted Bali tourism business (Tourism Indonesia, November)

Market Size & Share of Foreign Tourist Visits to Bali

Balis main tourists are as follows (Bali Tourism Board, 2010): Australia: 446,042 Japan: 319,473 China: 199,588 South Korea: 123,879 France: 110,241

The English speaking market (Australia, United Kingdom, USA, Canada) brought in 635,856 tourists in 2009 for roughly 29% of the foreign tourist market. Please refer to Table 1 and Page 4 of 29

Figure 1 in the Appendix for a more detailed breakdown of the market size and share of foreign tourist visits to Bali. In terms of growth, Table 1 below presents the countries that showed the most growth for January 2011 compared to January 2010 (Bali Tourism Board, 2011): Table 1 Tourist Visit Growth Rate for Key Growth Countries Visits 59,160 17,102 10,267 11,499 6,983 5,792 % Growth 33% 8% 41% 26% 123% 27%

Australia China Malaysia Russia Singapore USA

Key Competitors
Competitors include all rental lodging in Nusa Dua. Villas are the primary competitor with resorts and hotels the secondary competitor. The estimated competitive market for lodging in Nusa Dua is as follows (Trip Advisor, 2011): Hotels and Resorts: 23 Specialty Lodging/Villas: 24

Based on rates calculated from Trip Advisor (2011), the average price per night for Nusa Dua hotels & resorts is roughly $200-$300 US. Average price for villas is roughly $100-$200 US per night. Please refer to Table 2 in the Appendix for more detailed competitor pricing information. Looking at reviews from Trip Advisor (2011), 4,918 reviews were counted for resorts/hotels versus 369 for villas. Using these review counts, the market share of lodging by category is estimated as follows: Hotels/Resorts Villas = 93% (4,918/ 5,287 reviews) = 7% (369/5,287 reviews)

Based on this information, we can estimate that of the 2.3 million non-Indonesians that visited Bali in 2009 (Bali Tourism Board, 2010), roughly 161,000 of these visitors stayed in villas.

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Description and Analysis of Key Issues

Product Analysis
Compared to many of the competitors, the product offering is not really at a major disadvantage as most of the features offered by the more successful competitors (ex. Villa Kayumanis) are also offered by Villa Bidadari (Trip Advisor, 2011). Some of the key features that Villa Bidadari does not have that others do are hot tub, spa, private restaurant, and private beach. However, based on bookings, there are competitors who are doing better (Holiday Lettings, 2011) than Villa Bidadari that offer the same amenities and higher/similar pricing (ex. Villa Nagasutra, Jasmine Villa). Based on this finding, it is hypothesized that the problem does not lie with the product offering.

Pricing Analysis
Villa Bidadari prices its villas at roughly $200/night for each individual villa and $650/night for the entire property. Compared to the other villas in Nusa Dua, it would be ranked in the higher end of the middle range as the mode villa rental price is about $120-150 per night. However, given the quality of Villa Bidadari, the price of $200 per night is considered fair and does not appear to be a major issue. The only major concern is that Villa Bidadari advertises the rental price of the entire property ($650 US), which may turn off many potential visitors.

Place Analysis
Villa Bidadari is in a very secluded region of Bali, which gives it an entirely different experience compared to the more popular Bali tourist sites (ex. Kuta). Due to this reason, Villa Bidadari is definitely targeting a more niche, long-tail visitor, looking for seclusion and a peaceful getaway. Because most of the villas in Nusa Dua have this same problem, Villa Bidadari is not at a significant disadvantage compared to major competitors offering the same experience. Perhaps one of the key problems with the location is that it is a 20 minute walk to the beach, which may deter some as beachcombing is one of the major activities for Bali visitors.

Promotion Analysis
Based upon analysis of various promotional channels used, it was discovered that the primary issues lie within its promotional tactics. Below are the key issues that need to be addressed:

Use of Online Travel Agents

The primary method that is being used today to book vacations is through online agents (ex. Expedia). To be successful in getting bookings, it is absolutely crucial to have the property listed with as many agents as possible. Most travelers trust booking thru these online agent sites more so than booking directly thru the owner, especially in this case since Indonesia is viewed as a third world country where trust may be an issue. As of this moment, Villa Bidadari can only be booked directly on Agoda and BaliVillaManagement. In terms of online travel agents, these two sites are not that popular and will unlikely generate many bookings for Villa Bidadari. Lack of distribution by online travel agents is the most important issue Villa Bidadari must address. Page 6 of 29

Credibility
Given that most villas are not operated as big name companies, it is absolutely crucial to develop credibility for the villa so that people trust booking the property. As of this moment, Villa Bidadari has difficulty establishing credibility for the following reasons: Villa not talked about on many sites (5 sites in total) Minimal reviews (ex. only 1 review on Trip Advisor, none on Google) Too much availability (only 2 dates booked in next 6 months)

It is necessary for Villa Bidadari to look more popular as people do not want to stay at a place that nobody else wants to go to.

Website Audit
Based upon looking at the Villa Bidadari website, the following problems were identified: o o o o o o o o o Minimal text content, lacks description Layouts are not consistent among webpages Too difficult for customer to get info and book Must call, no email contact No online booking or reservation checking Fails to establish credibility by not linking to other sites (except HolidayLettings) Designs and photos do not properly execute luxurious image of villa No use of testimonials or evidence to prove popularity and quality of villa Fails to deliver updated content Website only available in 1 language, ignores vital non-English markets Provides inconsistent information (ex. price only for whole villa, does not mention price per villa)

If budgetary concerns are an issue, major overhauls to the website can be delayed. However, updating of the information to make it consistent with the info on other channels (ex. Trip Advisor) and adding email contact information is absolutely crucial. The website made by the management company is far superior to the official website. Designs look more luxurious, you can book online, it links to chatting services, layout is easier to use, pictures are more abundant, and information is more complete and detailed. Site functionality is far easier to use and it also utilizes the Facebook like button. The only noted problem with the site is it has a fold and it does not link to other sites Villa Bidadari advertises on. Other than that, the site is done quite well and its layouts and navigation can be replicated if Villa Bidadari decides to upgrade its website.

Advertisements on Other Websites

The following problems were found on other websites that Villa Bidadari advertises with: Trip Advisor o Cannot find villa if search Bali Villa or Nusa Dua Villa Problem is poor word choice as title only says Villa Bidadari Does not state can rent by day, only by the week Lack of reviews 2 different listings, one that has price by week, other by day Official page has 16 pictures, unofficial page has 2 pictures Unofficial page adds no useful info other than review Page 7 of 29

Holidaylettings No major weaknesses. Villa appears first if search Bali Villa or Nusa Dua Villa BedandBreakfastRooms Cannot find villa if search Bali villa or Nusa Dua Villa Can only find if search villa which generates 170 results Cannot book reservations Bali Villa search only yields 2 results, NO NEED to be on premium listing Did not add YouTube video (which is an available option) Agoda Cannot find listing at all Balivillamanagement Does not list price per night Site lists links to sites that promote competitors but not Villa Bidadari Overall, other than on HolidayLettings, it is virtually impossible to find Villa Bidadari on any of the sites it is listed on. Villa Bidadari must put Bali, Nusa Dua, and Villa in all of its listing titles to be found. This is one of the most important mistakes Villa Bidadari made and is the number one reason why the current marketing efforts are not working at all. Solving this problem should triple inquiries given that Villa Bidadari can only be found on one of the five sites it is listed on.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Villa Bidadari is virtually impossible to find using relevant key words the average traveler would search in a search engine for the following reasons: Limited written content on the website Failure to update the website regularly No backlinks directed to the site (top villa sites have over 300 backlinks) (opensiteexplorer.org, 2011) No site submissions to Google, Bing, Yahoo, or Ask Unnamed pictures Inconsistent use of description and headings tags Minimal use of longtail keywords (ex. Bali villa rental Nusa Dua) No use of social media to keep content fresh Non descriptive URL names

Overall, the SEO is very weak and could use lots of improvement as Villa Bidadari does not show up in the first 5 pages. However, if budgetary concerns are an issue, SEO is not a major priority as most people will not be booking through the website.

Social Media
Use of social media is virtually non-existent, with exception of unused Facebook page.

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Miscellaneous Issues
The following issues are problems that were also discovered: Name is difficult to remember for Non-Indonesian speaking people Name may be confused with: o The Bidadari Luxury Villas and Spa o Villa Bidadari located in Seminyak o Bidadari Private Villas & Retreat Inconsistent information across various channels (ex. daily vs. weekly rates) No email address for official Villa Bidadari website

SWOT Analysis
Table 1 below presents a SWOT analysis of Villa Bidadaris Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Table 1 Villa Bidadari SWOT Analysis Strengths
Beautiful villa Strong on HolidayLettings website High profit margins Services and rates are competitive Owned by English speaking ex-pats Weaknesses Limited spacing, not effective for huge groups Not on enough travel agent websites (2 only) Cannot book from official Villa Bidadari website No barriers to entry Minimal reviews about villa found on web Villa Bidadari site not search engine optimized Limited time available from management staff Minimal social media presence Info inconsistently presented on various channels Site does not portray luxurious design Very limited budget Limited marketing knowledge of plan executioner Villa in very isolated area, minimal shopping Management staff not multilingual (English only) Terrorism fears Fears of disease contraction (ex. Legionnaire) Fear of tsunami and earthquake Decline in Japanese tourists (Tourism Indonesia, 2010) Rising oil prices causing higher airfare Supply outstrip demand, Bali hotel occupancy at 55% (www.marketresearch.com, 2011)

Opportunities
Strong Aussie dollar (vs. USD) Growth of Chinese and Australian tourist visits (www.etravelblackboard.com, 2009) Overall Bali tourism market growing from last year (www.marketresearch.com, 2011) Government providing tax refunds to tourists for purchases (www.bernama.com, 2009) Rise of emerging tourism markets (ex. China, India) Threats

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Discussion of Possible Solutions

Only the most relevant pros/cons of each solution are presented. ONLY solutions yet to be effectively used by Villa Bidadari and solutions that fit the budget requirements (ex. no discussion of rebranding) will be discussed.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Pros
If Villa Bidadari can get website traffic organically, it limits spending on online ads and provides a huge visibility advantage for their website. Receiving bookings direct from their site also eliminates commission paid to agents. Also, many of the SEO tactics are fairly easy to implement without professional help and will generate traffic.

Cons
Given Villa Bidadaris budget and minimal website content, it is unlikely they will be able to rank high. Competition for key words (ex. Bali Villa) is fairly high. Competing against management companies and travel agents will be difficult (though not impossible) given that they will likely have more content (due to having more properties) and site updates. Also, upgrading their site and adding more content will be necessary and will further raise the costs. To bring Villa Bidadari to the first page of Google will likely require a minimum of a one-time $1000 US investment plus monthly maintenance costs.

Pay per Click Advertising (PPC)

Pros
PPC is a great way to generate traffic without having to rely on SEO. Using PPC to test the ability of the Villa Bidadari website to convert clicks into bookings is a lower risk investment for testing the efficiency of the website. With the ability to key in on specific search terms and geographic regions, all clickers are potential high quality prospects.

Cons
The main problem with PPC is the cost per click is expensive at a suggested price of $2.50 per click (Google Adwords, 2011) due to high competition for main keywords. Given Villa Bidadaris margins, it is necessary to have a booking rate of over 1/172 clicks to breakeven using PPC. Please refer to PPC Cost Breakdown in the Appendix for calculations.

Online Agents/Affiliates
Pros
Online agents are the primary source for receiving bookings for most lodging providers. These sites have great audience and reach capabilities and operate on a commission based system. Also, being listed on these sites greatly increases credibility of the villa in the eyes of the consumer given that consumers trust these sites due to their brand name.

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Cons
Listing on these sites requires paying a commission (usually 10-25%) for bookings. Also, many of these sites have very strict requirements in order for you to list with them.

Display Advertising
Pros
Display advertising is a viable way for generating visibility and awareness for Villa Bidadari. However, awareness is not the goal and will not provide much help for the Villa given that it does not provide any really unique benefit its competitors dont have. Therefore, paying for impressions will not be used. However, use of PPC based display ads (ex. Facebook) is possible given its return on investment will likely be higher due to its payment structure and excellent target marketing capabilities.

Cons
Facebook ads are costly ($2.50 per click), requiring a booking rate higher than 1/172 to breakeven. Please refer to PPC Cost Breakdown in the Appendix for calculations.

E-Mail Marketing
Pros
This is a very low cost method of online marketing.

Cons
Email marketing is rarely effective unless the mailing list is self generated. In this situation, the client does not have access to this sort of list.

Social Media
Social Networking (ex. Facebook, Twitter)
Pros Pros include: Free to use Allows Villa Bidadari to upload whatever information it sees fit Most of the Villas target market is likely to be on Facebook Twitter is a great way for announcing information to followers Linking social media to the Villa Bidadari website is great for SEO Having lots of Facebook likes and fans and lots of Twitter followers is a great way to build credibility and visibility Great way to address customer questions and problems Great for collecting target market statistics and information (use analytics) Cons Cons include: Unlikely will have big following in initial stages of marketing plan Unlikely to receive immediate bookings Will require daily maintenance to be successful Page 11 of 29

Geolocation (ex. Foursquare, Gowalla)

Pros Pros include: Free to use Having lots of check ins is a great way to build credibility and visibility Customers can write reviews in comments section Does not require much time to maintain Cons Cons include: Tourists may be reluctant to use data charges on cell-phone in Bali

Group Purchasing Sites (ex. Groupon)

Pros These sites are great for encouraging trial and creating brand awareness as most of these sites have a wide audience interested in making purchases. They all operate on a commission basis, requiring no initial investment cost. You also have the option of dictating the minimum number of transactions needed (not true for all sites but most of them) in order for the purchases to be valid, providing safety measures for earning a profit. Most of these sites also rely on members sharing the deals thru social networking, increasing the viral effect of the deal. Cons Purchases on these sites usually are discounted for 30-50% and commission paid to the site is usually at 30-50%. Expect to rent the villa out at 50-75% below listed value. Also, it is unlikely to receive a listing with these sites as most of these sites only offer local deals. However, some of these sites do offer hotel stays and vacation sections on their site.

Website Upgrade/Redesign
Pros A website rebrand can improve the credibility and image of the villa. Making it easier to book and communicate with villa management will also help turn leads into prospects Cons The Villa Bidadari website is not horrible so a rebrand is not necessary. Costs would likely be $500-$1000 US and having a new website is useless if nobody visits it. Focusing more on driving traffic to the current site (which is adequate) would be a more effective use of funds.

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Recommendations
SWOT Analysis Summary
Based on the SWOT analysis, the key growing markets Villa Bidadari can take advantage of are Australian and Chinese tourists. These markets are continuing their growth in 2011 and the rise of their currency to the US dollar will further encourage tourism from both markets. After auditing Villa Bidadaris marketing plan, it was determined that no MAJOR changes are needed as the prices are competitive, the product is competitive, and the location of the villa isnt too much of a problem. The primary weaknesses lied within the promotions due to the fact that finding Villa Bidadari online was almost impossible for the AVERAGE tourist. Minor changes made in this aspect will greatly improve Villa Bidadaris results. One of the unique strengths of Villa Bidadari is that its owned and managed by Caucasians from Westernized countries. This attribute will appeal to many tourists entering a foreign and unfamiliar country as they may perceive this villa as more trustworthy and credible given it is operated by people who speak fluent English, are familiar with a Westerners perspective in Bali, and are more likely to share similar values and experiences.

Objective
The objective is to break even on expenses for July 2011-July 2012 and have at least 60 nights booked for the year (average 5 nights a month), with at least 70 inquiries per month.

Target Market
Based on the SWOT analysis summary, it has been decided that the most suitable target markets are as follows:

Primary Target Market

The primary target market for this plan is tourists from English speaking countries aged 25-50 from middle to upper middle classes. The most likely countries targeted will be Australia, United Kingdom, United States, and Canada, accounting for roughly 29% (Bali Tourism Board, 2010) of the Bali foreign tourism market.

Secondary Target Market

A secondary target market will include Indonesian based wedding planners catering to foreign tourists.

Key Marketing Strategy

To increase customer leads and visits, the following 3 strategies (done in order) are suggested: 1. Position villa as a comfortable, familiar place to go for English speaking tourists 2. Build credibility of Villa Bidadari 3. Increase visibility of Villa Bidadari

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Proposed Plan: The Free Plan

The following plan is the plan Team BAM recommends to Villa Bidadari as it is free to implement. It is suggested that Villa Bidadari implement this plan, gain more customers, and then re-evaluate their marketing strategy after this new set of data is collected. With this data, a more calculated plan can be constructed to limit the risk of capital spending. Based on the audit, it was determined that people are not going to Villa Bidadari because they CANNOT find Villa Bidadari online. This major problem can be solved without spending any money at all. The recommendations below outline tactics to achieve the key marketing strategies without any monetary investment to Villa Bidadari.

Position Villa Bidadari for English Speaking Audience

Change Name of Villa
Changing the name of the villa to a more English sounding name would greatly increase memory with English speaking markets and it would provide a greater perception that the villa was operated by English speaking people. It would also be beneficial as there are 3 villas in Bali with similar names. A legal name change may not be necessary (unless specified by Indonesian law). All that is required is that the general public sees an English Name. If a name change is conducted, it is imperative that the English name is on ALL promotional materials used (ex. travel agent websites, review sites, website).

Include Owners in Marketing Materials

To further increase perception of an ex-pat operated villa, the owners can incorporate themselves into the marketing. Pictures of the owners in the villa can be plastered on all the online channels that allow pictures. For instance, post pictures of the owners in the villa on the villa website, on channels advertised in (Trip Advisor), and on various agent sites (ex. Expedia, Travelocity). The owners can also include their story of why they decided to open up a villa in Bali and how they did it as Westerners in a foreign country on the company website.

Increase Credibility
Increase Villa Reviews
In the online world, credibility is often perceived based on ratings and feedback from others. The more positive reviews you have, the more likely it is that people view you as credible. Villa Bidadari must encourage all visitors to write reviews on various travel (ex. Trip Advisor, Expedia, Travelocity) and directory sites (ex. Google Places, Yelp) offering reviews. An incentive should be offered for guests to do this before they check out. Possible incentives include free meals, discount, future discount, or souvenirs. Also, make it easy for guests to do so by having a computer on hand where they can do it and having the URL in place so that the customer does not have to find the link.

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It was also noticed that there are 2 listings for Villa Bidadari on Trip Advisor. Claim both listings and delete one of them to consolidate reviews and avoid confusion for site visitors. Having more reviews will make the listing appear higher on these review sites.

Make Villa Look Busier

On all travel booking sites, you can see the availability of the villa. With minimal dates booked, potential visitors may be turned off because if nobody is booking the villa, people may perceive something is wrong with it. Therefore, it is recommended that some dates on these calendars be marked as unavailable even if it is not. This will make the villa look busier, providing social proof that others are staying at this villa, giving the perception that nothing is wrong with the villa.

Make All Web Content Consistent

Much of the content on the various online channels currently used are providing inconsistent information. For example, some sites list the price of the villa as $650 per night whereas others list it as $200. It is recommended that both prices are listed. Having all channels include consistent content will improve credibility.

Website Changes
It would be helpful to include the following changes to the website: Add testimonials with pictures of guests (if guests allow) Add company email address (no gmail, hotmail, etc.) in contact page Include more pictures of luxurious shots and if possible, include guests in pictures Add a YouTube tour video of the villa to website to further prove that the villa does exist and is operated by English speaking people Include logos of the other sites advertised on (ex. Expedia, Agoda) to prove that if these sites are your agents, the villa must be 100% legitimate and credible

Social Networking Sites

Social networking sites are great for proving a brand is popular via Facebook likes and Twitter followers. If possible, build a following on both mediums and link these channels to the Villa Bidadari website after a strong following (at least 50 Facebook fans, at least 100 Twitter followers) has been built so the Villa is perceived as popular. Engage Twitter followers with announcements, cool things happening in Bali, and other neat pieces of information they may be interested in.

Group Buying Sites

These sites are great for generating trial due to the discounts offered. There are versions of these sites that cater specifically to travel. This is beneficial for Villa Bidadari given that reviews are severely needed to build credibility and this is a fast way to accomplish this. However, these sites must be used in caution as the product is usually sold at 3050% off and the site usually takes a 30-50% commission. Therefore, expect to receive only 25-50% of the normal selling price. Please refer to Table 4 in Group Buying Sites in the Appendix for a list of these sites.

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Audit Villa Customer Service

It was mentioned that there was difficulty by the villa staff to convert leads (1/15 rate). It is recommended that the villa marketing team audit how the prospects are being communicated with and figure out why the conversion rate is so poor. Once the problems are discovered, a new sales/conversion protocol should be implemented to provide a more persuasive message to the prospect.

Increase Visibility of Villa Bidadari

Increase Number of Online Agents
When booking vacations online, most tourists prefer to book from trusted travel agent websites rather than directly from owners due to the credibility it offers. All the major online travel sites operate as agents and only charge commission. All that needs to be done is a submission form needs to be filled out and certain criteria have to be met. There is nothing to lose (except for commission) for Villa Bidadari to be on these sites as they will greatly increase visibility and credibility, resulting in more leads. Please see Table 3 in the Appendix for a list of all the major sites that cater to various English speaking countries. Please note that aside from these sites, all travel agent sites possible should be applied for given that they are only commission based. It is also absolutely crucial to have the exact same listing across all sites to maintain consistency.

Adjust Title of Current Listings and Monitor Listings

This simple problem is the primary reason why Villa Bidadaris current marketing is failing. Aside from holidayletting.co.uk, it is almost impossible to find Villa Bidadari on the other online sites Villa Bidadari advertises on due to the fact that when people search Bali villa or Nusa Dua villa, Villa Bidadari does not appear due to the fact that the title of Villa Bidadaris listing is only Villa Bidadari. By adding the words Bali Villa or Nusa Dua Villa to the title, which is the most likely search term someone looking for a villa in those regions will search, Villa Bidadari should appear in the listings. To increase search rankings, it is recommended that the following terms are added into the title for these listings. These terms were determined based on popular searched word combinations in relation to Bali Villa on Google (Google Adwords, 2011). Rental, luxury, private, cheap, new, Nusa Dua, Bali

Once these listings are changed, it is imperative that the marketing staff at Villa Bidadari constantly search and monitor these terms on each website it is on to ensure its listing appears (hopefully on the first page).

Basic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Strategies

If capable, it is recommended that the marketing team at Villa Bidadari conduct basic search engine optimization strategies on their website to increase its search rankings. The benefits of basic SEO would increase their website ranking on search engines, providing increased visibility and greater credibility (higher ranked sites are perceived as more credible). Please see Beginner SEO Tactics in the Appendix for basic SEO tactics that the average person can accomplish.

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Wedding Planner Incentives

Find prominent wedding planners in Indonesia that cater to foreigners using sources such as Google and LinkedIn. Wedding planners are a good target because their customers will go with their suggestions. Befriend these planners and offer them a free venue for holding wedding ceremonies. In exchange, wedding planners will book those who just had a wedding at Villa Bidadari a suite to stay at Villa Bidadari. Offer wedding planners a commission if necessary. Using this method, the following goals are meant to be achieved: Build relationship with wedding planners so they refer business in future Receive room rental revenue from the bride/groom Receive reviews from bride/groom to build credibility Strengthen brand as a place for foreigners to enjoy Bali

If this method is successful, it is recommended that advertising targeted specifically to this market is purchased via career social networking sites (ex. LinkedIn) to generate awareness of this promotion.

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Paid Plans
$200 Investment Plan
In addition to utilizing the suggestions to the free plan, the following recommendations can be made with a $200 investment.

Website Booking Software

It is recommended that Villa Bidadari offer the ability to book directly from their website for the following reasons: Add credibility to the villa/website as most bigger companies have this feature Save on commissions paid to agents if can get people to book direct Provide convenience for customers (many prefer to book online, avoid long distance phone calls, save time) Time saving benefits brings convenience to villa operators Allows customers to see villa availability

The software that is recommended is Webervation as it allows for bookings plus many other features. Please look under Webervation Features in the Appendix for features of the Webervation software. The cost of this software is $8.99 USD per month, or if paid for per year, $102.49 USD. For the purpose of this budget, we will assume a cost of $105 USD.

Google Adwords Campaign

This tactic is very risky as Villa Bidadari only has 38 clicks to generate a sale to break even with this method (based on the $95 budget at $2.50 per click). However, it is worth risking because if Villa Bidadari can generate a conversion rate of greater than 1/40 sales per click, Adwords will produce a positive return on investment and prove to be a viable channel for Villa Bidadari to advertise on. It is suggested that this campaign run in April when people begin to plan their summer vacation. It is also suggested that ads be written for target keywords along the lines of Bali Villa Rental, Luxury Bali Villa Rental, or Luxury Private Bali Villa Rental. Table 2 below breaks down how this $200 budget will be allocated. Table 2 Breakdown of $200 Budget Cost $105 $95 $200

Webervation Adwords Campaign Total

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$500 Budget
In addition to the $105 USD for Webervation, it is recommended that Villa Bidadari add the following service:

Advanced Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Advanced SEO tactics will help Villa Bidadari increase their web presence even further. Advanced SEO is recommended for the following reasons: Will generate more unpaid traffic to their website, leading to more leads Will provide more web presence and increased visibility Ranking high on search engines increases brand credibility Advanced SEO will clean up the Villa Bidadari website coding and provide easier functionality for visitors (ex. better tags, friendlier links)

SEO is usually quite expensive. After running a search on E-Lance (2011), a lower cost SEO expert was found at an average job of $368 USD. Please view Table 3 below for a breakdown of the $500 budget. Table 3 Breakdown of $500 Budget Cost Webervation $105 SEO Specialist $368 Total $473

$1000 Budget
In addition to the $105 USD for Webervation, $368 for SEO specialist, and $87 for Google Adwords, it is recommended that Villa Bidadari add the following:

Incentives for Blogger Influentials

With $440, Villa Bidadari can offer two free stays to two influential bloggers with a big audience in Australia. It is suggested that Villa Bidadari contact these bloggers and offer a free stay at the villa (at a cost of $220 US per night to Villa Bidadari). In return, ask the blogger to provide an unbiased review of the villa and post it on their blog. This tactic is recommended for the following reasons: Influencers have a big audience Influencers can persuade their audience based on recommendations Adds value to your SEO if they link to your site If both bloggers combined can generate one booking, Villa Bidadari almost breaks even with this tactic ($650 - $440 - $220 = -$10)

Please look in List of Bloggers in the Appendix for a list of the top bloggers in English speaking markets. Try to search for one from Australia with lots of blog posts about Bali. If this method is successful, it is recommended that advertising targeted specifically to this market is purchased via career social networking sites (ex. LinkedIn) to generate awareness of this promotion.

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Please view Table 4 for a breakdown of the $1000 budget. Table 4 Breakdown of $1000 Budget Cost $105 $368 $87 $440 $1,000

Webervation SEO Specialist Google Adwords Blog Influencer Incentives Total

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Conclusion
Due to the limited number of bookings Villa Bidadari has received since inception, it may be perceived that there are major problems with the marketing at Villa Bidadari. However, this is not really the case as its lack of inquiries/bookings is due to the fact its marketing is not being executed properly. Margaret mentioned that they were receiving a fair amount of inquiries from the Holiday Lettings website. This is primarily because when searching for terms that a normal person would search for when looking for a villa in Bali (ex. Bali Villa) on each of the websites it advertises on, Villa Bidadari only appears on the Holiday Lettings website. By making a simple change to the title of the Villa Bidadari listing (include words such as Bali, Nusa Dua, private, luxury), Villa Bidadari should be able to at least triple its number of inquiries with this minor alteration. Team BAM does not recommend spending any money on marketing until all the recommendations that can be done for free are used. The first thing Villa Bidadari should do is build the brand position of being a Caucasian friendly villa. Afterwards, work on establishing more credibility for the villa. Once these two steps are complete, Villa Bidadari should dramatically increase its visibility. Doing these three things in order should greatly increase the number of bookings for Villa Bidadari. By having everything in order internally and then increasing the number of promotional channels Villa Bidadari is on, inquiries will be flowing in on a regular basis.

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Works Cited
Bali Tourism Board. (2011). On Your Mark, Get Set. Retrieved March 22, 2011, from www.balidiscovery.com: http://www.balidiscovery.com/messages/sendmessage.asp?Id=6834 Bali Tourism Board. (2010). Statistic_Nationality_By_Month_2009. Retrieved March 21, 2011, from balitourismboard.org: http://www.balitourismboard.org/files/Statistic_Nationality_By_Month_2009.pdf Bayes, R. (2007). Beautiful Bali . Travel Weekly Australia , 24-25. Dot Info Tech SEO, Web Design, PHP. (n.d.). Retrieved March 22, 2011, from elance.com: http://www.elance.com/s/guaranteedseo/10183/ Google Adwords. (2011, March 19). Retrieved March 19, 2011, from adwords.google.com: https://adwords.google.com Gretchen. (2009, March 27). 99 best travel blogs. Retrieved March 23, 2011, from travelblogs.com: http://www.travelblogs.com/round-up/99-of-the-best-travel-blogs Holiday Lettings. (2011). Villa rental in Nusa Dua with swimming pool. Retrieved March 17, 2011, from www.holidaylettings.co.uk: http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/rentals/nusadua/84258 Nusa Dua travel guide. (2011). Retrieved March 19, 2011, from Wikitravel.org: http://wikitravel.org/en/Nusa_Dua opensiteexplorer.org. (2011). OSE Link Analysis for www.kayumanis.com. Retrieved March 17, 2011, from opensiteexplorer.org: http://www.opensiteexplorer.org/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.kayumanis.com/a!links Tourism Indonesia. (2010, November 7). The Impacts of Global Financial Crisis to the Indonesians Tourism Receipts. Retrieved March 17, 2011, from www.baliedutours.com: http://www.baliedutours.com/the-impacts-of-global-financial-crisis-to-the-indonesianstourism-receipts.html Tourism Indonesia. (November, 7 2010). The Impacts of Global Financial Crisis to the Indonesians Tourism Receipts. Retrieved 19 2011, March, from Baliedutours.com: http://www.baliedutours.com/the-impacts-of-global-financial-crisis-to-theindonesian%E2%80%99s-tourism-receipts.html Trip Advisor. (2011). Kayumanis Private Villa & Spa at Nusa Dua (Nusa Dua, Indonesia) Villa Reviews. Retrieved March 23, 2011, from tripadvisor.com: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g297698-d572368-ReviewsTrip Advisor. (2011). Nusa Dua Hotels: Read Nusa Dua Hotel Reviews and Compare Prices. Retrieved March 19, 2011, from tripadvisor.com: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g297698Nusa_Dua_Nusa_Dua_Peninsula_Bali-Hotels.html

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Under, E. (2010, November 10). The Impacts of Global Financial Crisis to the Indonesians Tourism Receipts. Retrieved March 12, 2011, from Bali Edut Tours: http://www.baliedutours.com/the-impacts-of-global-financial-crisis-to-theindonesian%E2%80%99s-tourism-receipts.html www.bernama.com. (2009, December 23). Indonesia To Provide Tax Refund For Foreign Visitors . Retrieved March 20, 2011, from bali-holiday.com: http://baliholiday.com/news/?p=1913#more-1913 www.etravelblackboard.com. (2009, December 21). Bali named by Expedia as most luxurious for Australians . Retrieved March 20, 2011, from bali-holiday.com: http://baliholiday.com/news/?p=1909 www.marketresearch.com. (2011, February 3). Indonesia Tourism Report Q1 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from www.marketresearch.com: http://www.marketresearch.com/product/display.asp?productid=6122435

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Appendix
Market Size and Share of Foreign Visits in Bali for 2009
The following table and figure is sourced from the Bali Tourism Board (2009). Table 1 Foreign Visits to Bali in 2009 # Visitors 446,042 319,473 199,588 123,879 110,241 92,898 74,010 74,409 74,678 56,974 22,906 25,025 30,813 579,059 2,229,945 Percentage 20% 14% 9% 6% 5% 4% 3% 3% 3% 3% 1% 1% 1% 26% 100%

Country Australia Japan China South Korean France United Kingdom USA Netherlands Germany Russia Canada Switzerland India Other Total Figure 1

Foreign Visits to Bali in 2009

Australia 20% Australia Japan Other 42% Japan 14% South Korea China France United Kingdom South Korea 6% China 9% Other

UK 4%

France 5%

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Key Competitors
Table 2 Competitor Lodging Prices in Nusa Dua by Category Price per Night $777 300 250 480 175 200

Hotel and Resorts The St. Regis Bali Resort The Laguna Conrad Bali Grand Hyatt Bali Melia Bali Villas & Spa Resort Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa Specialty Lodging/Villas Kayumanis Private Villa and Spa Bali Tropic Resort and Spa Peninsula Beach Resort Tanjung Benoa Bali Desa Suites Villa Bidadari The Villas At Bali Golf And Country Club Villa Diamondstar Hill Bali Desa Boutique Villas Lemongrass Villa Jasmine Villa Frangipani Villa Penthouse Ruby Nusa Dua

$500 150 n/a 150 200 450 100 200 120 120 120 150

PPC Cost Breakdown

The following costs are known: Cost of Ads o Average cost per click on Google Adwords: $2.50 US o Average cost per click on Facebook Advertising: $2.50 US Profit Margin per stay at Villa Bidadari o Price of a stay per night at Villa Bidadari (for entire villa): $650.00 US o Average expenses incurred per nightly stay at Villa Bidadari: $220.00 US o Net Margin per nightly stay at Villa Bidadari = $650-$220 = $430 Breakeven cost of running Google Adwords campaign o Formula = Profit Margin Per Nightly Stay / Average Cost per Click $430.00 / $2.50 172 clicks Summary o Villa Bidadari needs to generate one booking per 172 clicks to its website to earn a profit with Google Adwords

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Online Travel Agents

Table 3 below is a list of all the major online travel agents catering to English speaking markets. These sites also own an umbrella of other sites, whereby receiving a listing on the site below will automatically place your listing in the sites subsidiary sites as well. Table 3 List of Online Travel Agents Link https://secure.needitnow.com/NeedItNow/Admin/NIN_register.asp http://www.asiarooms.com/en/add-hotel https://admin.bookings.org/hotelreg/index.html?lang=en https://joinexpedia.com/ Phone #: 61 7 3170 7979 http://www.hotelclub.com.au/HotelRegForm.asp http://www.hotelscombined.com/Hotelier/Signup.aspx http://www.hotwire.com/enrollment.jsp http://corp.orbitz.com/supplier/contact-us http://www.travelocity.com/mediakit/tvl-contact.html https://supplier.wotif.com/Registration.jsp

Agent Name Needitnow.com Asiarooms.com Booking.com Expedia.com (hotels.com) Flight Centre Head Office hotelclub.com Hotelscombined.au hotwire.com Orbitz.com Travelocity.com Wotif.com

Beginner SEO Tactics

The following are simple SEO tactics that can be implemented to increase search engine rankings for a website: 1. Submit your URL to various search engines www.google.com/addurl/?continue=/addurl http://search.yahoo.com/info/submit.html http://www.bing.com/webmaster/SubmitSitePage.aspx http://www.dmoz.org/add.html submit your site to Ask http://www.alexa.com/siteowners/claim 2. Submit your site to Google Places places.google.com/business 3. Setup an account on various social media sites (ex. Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Gowalla, LinkedIn) Link Villa Bidadari URL to these sites 4. Try to get as many links as you can to your site by submitting your site into various directories Ex. Yelp, Craigslist, Various travel sites 5. Rename all the images on your site with words that include Bali, Villa, Private, Luxury, Nusa Dua 6. Make sure your website content is rich with Bali, Villa, Private, Luxury, Nusa Dua 7. Try to include words Bali, Villa, Private, Luxury, Nusa Dua in meta title and meta description

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Group Buying Sites

Below is a list of group purchase sites. The travel sites are the best bets as it will be unlikely to land a listing with the other group purchase sites. However, they are worth trying as they occasionally do offer hotel stays. Also, some of the sites offer a vacations section, such as Living Social Escapes. Table 4 Group Buying Sites and Contact Info Travel Group Purchase Sites http://www.jetsetter.com/contact-jetsetter [email protected] http://www.tripalertz.com/signup/supplier/ http://www.voyageprive.com/aide/contactForm http://www.tablethotels.com/hoteliers/Selection/en/0/0 Australia http://spreets.com.au/page/for-businesses [email protected] [email protected] http://www.jigocity.com.au/cooperation http://www.saletime.com.au/business.html Canada http://livingsocial.com/getfeatured http://www.groupon.com/merchants/login [email protected] UK http://livingsocial.com/getfeatured [email protected] http://www.cityblossom.com/vendor/register USA http://www.poweredbytippr.com/contact-us/ http://www.crowdsavings.com/get-featured http://www.groupon.com/merchants/login http://livingsocial.com/getfeatured Asia http://outlet.com.sg/ http://deal.com.sg

Jet Setter Snique Away Trip Alertz Voyage Prive Tablet Hotels Spreets Stardeals Deals.com Jigocity Saletime LivingSocial Groupon GoLowDeal Livingsocial Groupon CityBlossom Tippr Crowdsavings Groupon LivingSocial Outlet Deal Singapore

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Webervation Features
Webervation (www.webervation.com) offers the following features: Reservation requests Real-time reservations Availability calendars Availability pushed to group websites Automatic availability uploads via GMS / PMS Custom messages E-mail notifications of new reservations Integration with major statistics programs Ability to sell gift certificates Easily add last minute specials Free phone support Free e-mail support Ability to upsell items and add-on packages

List of Bloggers
When selecting a blogger to approach, it is necessary to evaluate a blogger based on the following first: Does the target audience of the blog fit your targeted audience o Figure this out by reading the blog postings o Figure this out be seeing if the blog content talks about things relevant to Villa Bidadari Does the blog have a big following o Figure this out by searching the URL on www.alexa.com Does the blog review various properties

The following is a list of bloggers taken travelblogs.com (Gretchen, 2009). Please note that this list is not absolute as there are many different bloggers out there. Flashpacking Life Curtis and Lindsie are on a round-the-world flashpacking adventure through Southeast Asia, Australia and Europe. Jamie Sinz Jamie and her boyfriend Nik left their cushy life in America to live abroad in Thailand. They both blog about sojourns around Thailand and other parts of Asia. The Little Travelers Angelina is a gutsy mum whos taken her two young daughters on trips to Japan, Bali, the British Isles and, most recently, Iran. Write Away! Lauren is an award-winning writer with a love for travel and a keen eye for the familiar and unfamiliar. Cool Travel Guide Cool Travel Guide is the blog of Lara Dunston, a professional travel writer who has penned guidebooks for Lonely Planet, Dorling Kindersley and Thumbnail Guides, and written articles for many other publications. She is currently in her third year of perpetual travel with her husband Terry, a writer and photographer.

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Travelvice In December 2005, Craig sold most of his possessions and took off for an extended travel adventure around the world Song of the Open Road Wade has been on the road for the past 8 years, in which time he has visited 25 countries on 5 continents. The Art of Nonconformity Chris Guillebeaus blog is all about living life in an unconventional way. One of his major personal goals is to do as much international travel as possible, and he plans to visit every country in the world. Hobo Traveler Andy is the Hobo Traveler. For the past 11 years, he has traversed the globe endlessly, taking in 77 countries around the world. He has no intention of returning home. The Asian Traveler The Asian Traveler is June, an Asian women on a mission to explore the world. Her blog is a colourful exposition of Asian destinations, well known and little known. The Professional Hobo In 2006, Nora Dunn decided to trade in her comfortable life as a financial planner to travel the world with her partner, Kelly. Their travels have taken them through the United States, Canada, Thailand and Australia, amongst other places. Nomadic Matt Matt turned nomadic halfway through 2006 and has been on the road ever since. Hes planning trips through Asia, Australia, New Zealand and South America, but anything can happen: hes a nomad, after all.

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