In a world of constant, rapid change, Hong Kong-based Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group has managed to stay on course with a quality and consistent approach to brand building, product, service delivery and guest experience.
The consistency in messaging is clearly helped by the fact that the chief marketing officer, Michael Hobson, and his communications counterpart, Jill Kluge, have been with the group for more than 20 years.
Speaking at WIT Hospitality last week, Hobson, who’s been with the group for 22 years, has watched the brand grow from six to 29 hotels with a global spread across Asia, Europe and the US.
Asked how he stayed relevant as a marketing executive, given all the changes brought by technology, he cited four principles – “stay inquisitive, employ people who are better, younger, cleverer than you, hire somebody with more experience than you in a particular field, and read a lot, stay in tune”.
Asked to comment on Expedia’s chief product officer, John Kim’s statement that “the entire advertising ecosystem is being rebuilt around data at the core. Marketing is now an engineering challenge”, Hobson disagreed, saying, “it’s all about the brand, and the brand resides in the guest experience, the product and the service delivery”.
He said the core tenets of what makes a hotel successful remain unchanged.
Michael Hobson, Chief Marketing Officer of MOHG
Instead of focusing on how competitors are getting more creative with their marketing strategies, Hobson said, “What keeps me up at night is focusing on what our hotels are doing at the property level to enhance the guest experience.”
Asked what he felt had been most over-hyped in hospitality marketing, he cited the belief that “digital marketing is a panacea for all hospitality issues”. In the same vein, he said that suggestions that sites like Airbnb would be the demise of the luxury hotel sector were also exaggerated.
He believes the rise of private accommodation just gives rise to new travellers and would not spell the end of luxury hotels.
The group has also stuck to its “I’m A Fan” brand campaign, launched in 2000. He described it as a “brutally simple thought”. Celebrities and influential people are invited to stay in Mandarin Oriental hotels and share their experiences with their large social following.
Members of this ‘Fan Club’ are an international mix of big names, including: Dame Helen Mirren, Sir Peter Blake, Cecilia Bartoli, and Christian Louboutin. By seeking “influential people who have a discerning eye for the best things in life, if they stay with MOHG, it aligns brand with that level of quality”.
The latest multi-million dollar refresh of the “He’s A Fan/She’s A Fan” campaign was launched last September featuring French actress Isabelle Huppert and Chinese actor, singer, model Chen Kun among the new fans. The campaign has of course evolved to a digital age with 40% of advertising now spent online, and Pinterest and Instagram are important platforms for the brand as it keeps reiterating that “brutally simple” thought across all channels.
And while some would argue that product is the marketing – it’s a mantra often quoted by Booking.com and Apple – and you don’t have to do too much marketing, Hobson said you still have to keep pushing the message in a competitive market.
His benchmark for success is brutally simple –“If we are not thought of [in the top three brands] of the ‘luxury consideration’ set, then we haven’t won the game”.
Asked if it was difficult for an “old school” brand like MOHG to embrace innovation, Hobson argued that innovation was not limited to technology.
Instead, MOHG focused on innovating in fields it typically excels at. “We are known for our legendary quality service, that is not negotiable… we have worked with world class interior designers, we were breakthrough with wellness…” and on top of that, MOHG undeniably excels in their dining offerings, with a total of 16 Michelin stars across its properties.
When it comes to customer loyalty, once again, traditional methods prevail. Hobson believes it “comes from the heart, as opposed to just the mind… you have an emotional bond with it”, which is why the hotel group believes loyalty cannot be bought with a “points and promotions mindset”.
For him, the future of luxury travel is a mash-up between “Amazon” and Giovanni Valenti (Chief Concierge of the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong) – making it easy for people to buy and when they stay, have an unforgettable experience.
At a time when hospitality is grappling with digital disruption, Hobson’s emphasis on quality, branding and consistency of customer experience offered plenty of food for thought and a refreshing alternative viewpoint.
