The marketing strategy of Sofitel by Accor

Marketing Blog Project: conclusion

2005-04-28T16:18:00.000+01:00

What I learnt from this project is all the techniques to apply a marketing strategy: Accor is a leader in the worldwide hotel sector. In order to make benefits, they use a lot of commercial or marketing’ techniques,.
With Sofitel, they apply the same strategy. It's really interesting to learn that they created a brand ( So boutiques) only for selling products which could be found in rooms or Sofitel hotels.

The difficulties I had, dealt essentially about the research of information about the marketing techniques. As a matter of fact, we can easily find information concerning the trips, services or hotels and also about the turnover, or the results in general: But it was extremely difficult to find a definition of the strategy.

I really enjoyed this work because of my interest in Sofitel. My father is the human resources director of a Sofitel in Paris; I think he give me the taste for hotelery and of Accor. Moreover, I've worked in the marketing department of Sofitel, what can explained the choice of this project.

In order to improve my search, it would probably be good to ask the different salaries of Accor who work in the marketing department.

Analyze of the first questions...

2005-04-20T10:28:00.000+01:00

I've administrated a survey to 26 persons. They give freely their opinion about the brand Accor, in order me to know if the future product "Suite-hotel luxe" could be a success.
It's time for me to analyze their answer and conclude on the interest of this new service.

How long do you used to stay in a hotel in general?
According to these results, we can easily say that the majority of respondents (65.4%) used to sleep in a hotel during one night and no more than a week-end.
This question should be easy to respond because everyone has responded.

one night 65.4%
A week-end 50%
A week 0%
A month 0%

In which categories of hotel have you ever sleep and how long did your stay last?
When we answer people about their behaviors, it's evident that they don't like to sleep in a high quality hotel. All have answered but per quart, they have ever slept in a one star, two or three stars hotel.
However, it's important to focus the result on one point: long stays are often in a luxury hotel; perhaps for holidays. Contrary to the short stay which concerned the first class of hotel: 60% of people who have answered used to stay one night in a first class hotel and 30% of them used to sleep in a luxury hotel (5% for a first class).

Which brands of Accor do you know?
This question has original responses. For example, I was surprised to learn that 5 people don't associate the brand with its famous hotel.
6 persons didn't want to answer, and throughout the previous analyze, I can concluded that they are not informed too.
7 persons knows Novotel
8 ____________IBIS
6 ____________Sofitel
7_____________Mercure

What is interesting for me is the famousness of Sofitel because the new service will be a luxury Suite-hotel. I have learned with these responses that the luxury concept is appreciated but I've learnt too that, unfortunately, only one person knows Suite-hotel.

Soon on my blog, the result of my survey...

2005-04-16T18:48:00.000+01:00

The survey you have answer will be soon analize; you could see the result and know if Sofitel is a premium brand and if its services are known...
You have to be patient ...
See you on my blog!

Sofitel

2005-04-13T10:29:00.000+01:00

Sofitel, originally uploaded by marie cecile.

It's the logo of the Sofitel shop.
Really designed, you can find again the atmosphere of the brand in... Let's dream of luxury and of Sofitel!

Find a new vision of the luxury ...

2005-04-10T10:00:00.000+01:00

In order to promote their brand and the name of Sofitel, Accor have built a site in which you can buy all that you want and every thing you have ever seen in a Sofitel room!
The name of this on line shop is "So Boutique - Sofitel shopping and Design"and you can visit easily the web site in French or in English.

As the price of one night in a Sofitel hotel, prices are very high but you find again the quality and the unusual design of Sofitel throughout the world.

Product concerned:

food products
bed and room accessories
bathroom elements
decoration objects

I invit you to visit the website in order to understand more the Sofitel differences and what is really this Brand.

I have joined on my blog the logo of the boutique: a reference for Sofitel consumers!!!

Paul Dubrule

2005-04-06T14:40:00.000+01:00

Paul Dubrule, originally uploaded by marie cecile.

He's the foundator of the group,with the creation of the first Novotel in Lille.
The group is proud of his several purchases.

sofitel guest suite

2005-04-05T09:58:00.000+01:00

sofitel guest suite, originally uploaded by marie cecile.

It's a typical example of what can be a continuation at Sofitel: a bed "king size", a mountain of pillow, a feather bed, a furniture with the very purified lines...

A new website for a new life!!

2005-04-04T10:41:00.000+01:00

Sofitel makes new skin to facilitate the reservation on line. The site of the the high-range hotel of Accor offers a relookage and new functionalities. Objective: to exceed the current share of Internet in its sales turnover (3%).

So in 2003, the brand choose to change colors and accessibitlities: a new version of Sofitel.com.
In accordance with the strategy of widening of the line of goods réservable on line, Sofitel.com also makes it possible to hold special or packaged offers.

You can have a look on the new website!!

The birth of Sofitel...

2005-04-04T09:58:00.000+01:00

In fact, Accor, at the beginning was only represented by Novotel. In 1967, Paul Dubrule invented a new concept: to build hotels according to the same model. After developing Novotel, they invented Ibis
But in 1980, the Accor group purchased the brand Sofitel, the leader of the luxury range in France: they had launched a new brand, a luxury brand, where every hotels have their own personality.

Launching Sofitel, the group launch its high-range hotel: not only Novotel, but also Sofitel with its famous "four stars luxate".

Today, Accor search an efficient program for its strategy:

an well-balanced internationalization
an extended patronage
a high quality proposed to the client
a program for development of consumer loyalty

If you want more inforamtion about the new startegy of Accor, you can learn a lot of things in a recent article published by for students.

Welcome !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2005-03-25T15:35:00.000Z

Welcome to my blog !!!

Hi!My name's Marie-Cécile Frange; I'm a student in Le Havre at the ESC Le Havre, in France.

It's my first blog and I want to share my knowledge with you, all around the world.You're welcome to visit and to add your commentaries, but only about the subject I choose!

I have decided to create this blog in order to explain and comment the Accor advertising campains, especially about its luxury hotels: Sofitel.Have a good time, and don't hesitate to share your point of view!!!

"chromatic ring" (cercle chromatique)

2005-03-25T15:05:00.000Z

"chromatic ring" (cercle chromatique), originally uploaded by marie cecile.

How to choose a logo?

2005-03-25T14:20:00.000Z

The marketing team, in a firm like Accor, have to chose an appropriate logo toreveal what the brand is really.

For Sofitel logo, the colors are blue and yellow or, often, gold and purple (it depends the use of the logo: on shirt, on documents...). Moreover, the graphic charter have to express a particular environment: for Sofitel, it's essentially the luxury environment, the confident relation with the consumer, the quality of the service and the french touch.

Why the strategy was to use these colors? and what is the representation, the meaning of that?

To answer, I visit a ot of Web site and I've choose one for you to visit:

www.commentcamarche.net

The objectives of this choice are:

to establish a confident relationship with the brand policy.
to develop the image of the company thanks to graphic elements in order to reinforce its visual identity and to get a feeling of proximity.
to create a coherence between the brand and the image (its visual representation); it's because the firm identity is difused throughout documents, logos, websites,...etc.
To confirm the identity of the firm and to give it a personnality.

Lastly, the colors have an implicit symbolic system. Therefore, it's important to choose them with full knowledge of the facts.

Indeed, the colors influence the behavior of the individuals:

physical: appetite, sleep, temperature of the body, etc.
emotion: feeling of fear, safety, joy, etc.
psychology: dynamism, concentration, etc

To respect the graphic charter, justification of the choice, the logo uses two opposite colors. In order you to understand my explaination, I've joined before the "chromatic ring". The yellox and the blue are perfectly opposited.

How to recognize the brand?

2005-03-23T17:04:00.000Z

How to recognize the brand?, originally uploaded by marie cecile.

This logo was choose with specific colour: blue and gold, luxury colors.
Also, all the colors used for Sofitel hotels are blue end gold.

The marketing strategy of Accor:
In order to design the logo, Accor hotels use all the time the same color

Sofitel Corporate

2005-03-17T11:31:00.000Z

Sofitel, destination “émotions”Sofitel hotels are located all around the world for business or holiday vacations.
The prestige of these establishment has made Sofitel an international name, recognize by all the useful consumers.

In order to reinforce its strategy, every Sofitel is unique, "revealing the soul of the destination with a “story” that affords guests new and memorable experiences throughout their stay."

"Sofitel embodies the French “art de vivre” in the elegance of the interior design, the warmth of the welcome, the sophistication of the services, and the art of exceptional cuisine."

A luxury strategy...

2005-03-17T11:09:00.000Z

Sofitel represents the most level of the Accor offer. To forge its image in the very competing sector of the top-of-the-range hotels, Accor called upon the best specialists: architects of world scale, decorators with the prestigious claws, chiefs rewarded by the most required distinctions...

The techniques is to communicate on that, focusing on this luxury brand. All details must be perfect, all is prepared, all is controlled.

Consumers are invited by Sofitel. They are not obliged to respect the brand: they just have to be useful, to relax and profit.

One of the ad for Sofitel

2005-03-15T10:44:00.000Z

one of the ad for Sofitel
Originally uploaded by marie cecile.

This is a pesentation which is used for presenting the hotel and promote the brand.
It's a way, in the Accor luxury univers, to applicate marketing techniques.

Paradise...

2005-03-11T10:06:00.000Z

Paradise...
Originally uploaded by marie cecile.

Paradisian place ...
One of a criteria of the brand!

the quality...

2005-03-11T10:04:00.000Z

the quality...
Originally uploaded by marie cecile.

One of the criteria of the brand is to reflect luxury in all product proposed.

New-York

2005-03-11T09:59:00.000Z

New-York, originally uploaded by marie cecile.

This hotel is an example of the internationalisation of the brand.
This representation is really important for Accor, a company which began in France with a middle gamme hotel...

One of the hotel...

2005-03-11T09:48:00.000Z

One of the hotel..., originally uploaded by marie cecile.

Welcome in the Sofitel world; this image is often used when the marketing team wants to show people the strenghtness of Sofitel!