Market Segmentation And Target Marketing Marketing Essay

Published Date: 23 Mar 2015

Introduction

The marketing of leisure particularly public leisure service is new since marketing was developed for selling products profitably, marketing is simple it about understanding the needs of potential customers and understanding the needs of potential customers and responding to them(George, 2004). It all about meeting the needs of our potential customer and making the public know what leisure is about and what leisure services offer to the public and the benefits that one can get in participating in leisure programs. Leisure services and facilities depend on satisfied customers or they go out of business (George, 2004). Example if we offer a leisure program in a particular community and nobody is interested in taking part in that program then we will go out of business. Marketing is not about selling but is concerned with the needs and wants of potential customers. Indeed leisure management itself is essentially a marketing process-meeting the needs and demands of people through leisure opportunities. Marketing influence us all ,the purpose of marketing is not only about marking profit ,but also about customer satisfaction, the quality of the services, the turnover, the range of people, the choice and scope of the programme, the improvement /benefit made and other relevant criteria. (George, 2004).marketing is the important part of leisure services.

Marketing

For many years, marketing was not part of park and recreation profession in the public and nonprofit sector. Agencies hired people to plan and implement programs but no one to tell the public about them. Marketing was left up to the programmer and may have consisted of developing flyer, distributing a brochure or sending out a news release. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

The concept of marketing has changed, marketing in leisure service has moved beyond flyers and brochures to integration of marketing mix, marketing plans, target marketing and market research. Marketing is an innovate area; rarely can an agency attract too many people to use its programs and services. Thus, it is important to know the fundamentals of marketing in order to increase use of programs and services to the desired level. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Definition and history of marketing

Marketing can be defined as the purposeful planning and execution of the pricing, place and promotion of ideas, goods and services to create an exchange of time or resources that result in the satisfaction of individual needs and organizational objectives. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Planning and execution of:

Product

Price

Place

Promotions

Satisfaction of individual needs

And

Organizational objectives

Exchange of time and resources

Figure 1.1 Definition of marketing (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Marketing has not always been defined and executed in this fashion .marketing history can be divided into four eras .this includes the production era, the sales era, the marketing era and the service marketing era. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

1. Production era

The industrial revolution changed how people worked and spent their money. More and more people worked in factories and were able to mass-produce products for consumers. This era focus more on goods than what the consumer wants. The manufacture will buy the goods, put it on the market and the customer will buy the goods .people where able to buy things for the first time, demand often exceed supply. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

2. Sales era

Beginning in the 1930's and during great depression supply exceeded demand for most products. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008). Sales era is a period in history where companies competed with other companies to promote sells and even buy goods. Therefore communication, advertising and branding became more important throughout the country to promote companies to increase the market even today companies are still completing against other companies to gain more popularity to sell their products. (www.blurtit.com). This is even more true for leisure and recreation sectors ,which is still completing with other service providers to gain recognition since it add values and it very beneficial for everyone.

During this era, sales and marketing became synonymous. Also during this time, a lot of advertising was done by people who had virtually no control over the product. This approach is still seen today in many of leisure services agencies where the responsibility of the marketing staff is to sell programs to users without having any input on the programs. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

3. Marketing era

This era which began in the early 1980's, derived from increased completion and saw organizations becoming more responsive to the needs of consumers. Marketing staff studied consumer needs and then developed products to meet that needs. Marketing thus became an important function of product development because it was customer driven rather than product driven. It was also during this era that park and recreation agencies saw the value in marketing and started marketing their programs. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

4. Service marketing era

This era is similar to the marketing era except that it has increased the focus on marketing services and ideas in addition to products. This era even today remains customer focused and the value of services as a product is strongly emphasized. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Goods vs. services

Marketing for all three sectors only became prominent during the marketing and service marketing eras; both eras are very similar with the main difference being a product or service orientation. When looking at the good vs. service, there are four main differences, intangibility, inseparability, heterogeneity or inconsistency and perishability. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Services are considered intangible whereas goods are considered tangible. a tangible goods can be sensed through touch,such as a leisure management textbook, a chair etc. on the other hand ,services are considered intangible .the consumer experiences a service ,such as a dance lesson, but the service cannot be necessarily be physically touched. Second, services and products differ based on the inseparability of services and their creator or producers. Services must be consumed at the place they originate and must be used at the time they are produced. Using the dance lesson example, the lesson must be used when the instructor creates it at the dance studio. Consumers cannot take this service home and use it when they feel like it. Unlike the product u can take it home and use it whenever you feel like it (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008). E.g. television, you can watch TV at any time u want to watch it.

Third, there is more heterogeneity in services than in goods. For example you decided to buy a Toyota yaris car, there are 10 cars on the floor ,each in different color, because the products are homogenous ,there is no need to drive each car in each color to decide which one is the best. The car are standardized, production and assembly are rigidly controlled and inspected before distribution. Which is the opposite with service, the service do not have heterogeneous. The dance lesson will change based on preparation, mood and experience of the instructor, location of facility ect. Since people cannot be totally standardized, services will always have some variability. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Finally, service differ from goods in terms of perishability, services are perishable since they cannot be stored. But the unsold car will always be available for customers in store long after production. Whereas the dance lesson held on Monday for two hours is gone once the lesson time passes.car manufactures can mass-produce their car to sell it for more than a year, but since services is perishable, dance lessons cannot be mass-produced to be used for another time, since it cannot be stored. The recreation profession deals with both goods and services, whether it is selling outdoor equipment or running Birds Park in Durban. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Market segmentation and target marketing

Since people do not have the same needs and wants, enjoy the same things or participate in the same sports or enjoy the same recreational activities. market segmentation and target marketing are needed .Market segmentation is the process of dividing a heterogeneous market into smaller homogenous subgroups that are similar in terms of wants ,needs ,demographic, profiles and they respond to the marketing mix. Target market selects one or two market segments to focus on (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Before one can choose the target market, the market must first be segmented. A market is all the actual or potential buyers of product/services. Market segmentation allows an agency to look at its different markets, their individual needs and the products that meet those needs rather than mass marketing approach, while mass marketing assume that everyone wants the same thing example developing a leisure program without doing proper needs analysis for potential participants but just assume will like the program or that the program will appear to all people .another example, lets say the local community centre in Glenwood offers a trip for youth to Johannesburg that includes transport cost, a single hotel room for the whole week, tickets to watch a match (Soweto derby )and all meals at a cost of R1500 person. In a mass marketing approach the organization would market the trip to the entire youth in the community than focusing on the youth that can afford to go to this trip. Market segmentation is a better use of time and money because efforts are aimed at groups that are most likely to respond (Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008)

Selecting a segmentation strategy

When determining whether to segment a market, it is important to establish whether the market is identifiable, sustainable, accessible and responsive. In a market segment that is identifiable, the people within the segment can be distinguished from the general population, which will reveal the size of the market and its purchasing power or its sustainability. The market should not be so small as to be poor use of resources but not so large as resemble a mass market (Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008)

The market segment should also be accessible. The people within the segment must be able to be reached by distribution and promotion of the product .isolated seniors or homeless people may prove to be difficult groups to access regardless of the value of offering recreation to them. A market segment should also be responsive to the marketing mix. There are two aspects of responsiveness: the ability of the program to meet the needs of the segment to the marketing initiatives .both aspects need to occur for the segment to be viable. The last segmentation criteria for the park and recreation profession is perceived need. Youth at risk, inactive children and low income families are just a few examples of segments that may be excluded based on the other three guidelines but are in need of services provided by the profession and represent a fair portion of the community

(Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008)

Bases of segmentation

Bases of segmentation are ways which a mass market can be segmented into smaller, more homogenous groups. Leisure use five different bases: demographics, geography, psychographics, behavioural characteristics and benefits. The most common base is demographics, this includes, and gender, age, income, ethnicity and race, education, sexual orientation etc. leisure services providers usually use demographics to segment their market. (Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008)

A second segmentation base is geography. this variable consider such factors as geoclusters and proximity, geoclusters or how closely people live to each other, this assume that people who live close to each other in maybe neighbourhood they share many common characteristics, the leisure providers can select market segment based on that .similar to geocluster, proximity identifies how close people are to the service. There is a relationship between proximity to a service and use of that service. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).A person who lives a 10 minutes away from a park is much more likely to use the park than a person who lives one hour away from the park. That is why it is important to provide leisure facilities close to people because no one will be willing to travel miles just to visit park or leisure facilities. (Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008)

Psychographics include personality, motivation and lifestyle or social class variables. Psychographics data can be difficult to gather, yet they can be beneficial if used in conjunction with demographic data. lifestyle variables are particular interest to park and recreation professionals .these variables are a combination of activities such as vacations ,hobbies and entertainment, interests such as family, community and work etc psychographics includes all lifestyle variables that define a person .leisure providers can use psychographics to promote leisure services to certain individuals. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Selecting a target market

Once a market has bee segmented into different groups, target markets must be selected .determining which segments to target will depend on several factors, including resources available and likelihood of the Segment to respond to marketing efforts. There are three basic strategies to selecting a target market: undifferentiated, differentiated, and concentrated strategies. An undifferentiated approach assumes the mass-marketing approach that everyone will be reached by one marketing mix. This approach ignores the different market segments and focuses on all them. The public sector is most likely to use this method because market research skills, time and money limit a better segmentation strategy. Differentiated market segmentation recognizes that market segment require different marketing strategies. A number of segments are identified and specific marketing plans are developed for each segment (Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008)

Concentrated market approach identifies a clearly defined target market and focuses its resources and marketing mix on that particular market .the commercial and non-profit sectors are more likely to use this marketing strategy than the public sector. Many leisure services agencies show their marketing weakness by disregarding market segmentation and target marketing .managers are expected to use limited resources as best as possible and any manager attempt to mass market a product is wasting resources. (Hurd, Barcelona and Meldrum, 2008).We all know that people are different and their interest differs .mass-marketing is the waste of time ,money and energy, by grouping people according to their needs and demands the manager will save money ,time and effort by catering to prime candidates

Marketing mix

Marketing is concerned with providing the right products and services and then forging the best relationships between customers and products and services. The "marketing mix" is the means by which that relationship is expressed. (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Marketing mix -is the integration of product, place (or distribution), pricing and promotion. It is the careful and purposeful combination of these elements that makes marketing effective. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).Marketing mix is divided into four Ps-product, price, place and promotion.

1. Product

The product (including the service) is the basis of all marketing. It is the unit of exchange with client or customer. If it offers the customer satisfaction, he or she may continue to buy it. A product goes to a product life-cycle-phase that products go through from inception to death, including introduction, growth, maturation, saturation and decline. (George Torkildsen, 2004).

It may be thought that the products are facilities (squash and tennis courts) and activities (theatre-going and aerobics).yet in reality, these are the vehicles for getting to the "real" product-experiencing satisfaction through leisure 'participation', this is the unit of exchange with customers. If customers do experience satisfactions or worthwhileness, they will want to 'buy' them again, hence a leisure centre's products are not just the facilities and activities on offer, but the experiences they provide and the relationships with the customers. The leisure product is the satisfying or worthwhile experience derived from participation in or involvement with an activity in a person's time for leisure. Therefore the product is not goods, but the experiencing of satisfactions. Leisure is intangible, until you experience it. The soccer ball not sold today can be sold tomorrow; the stadium seat not sold today can be sold tomorrow. The stadium seat not sold today is lost for ever. Its "sell by" date is in advance of the activity. Leisure cannot be stored, the product is perishable, and also the product is fragile and unpredictable. It is easily damaged. (George Torkildsen, 2004).Sizwe can damage the ball, but can be able to still play with even when damaged, he can be able to kick it ,throw it around etc, but a customer treated rudely at reception, double-booked on the court or unable to get a drink at the bar in reasonable time ,can take her or his custom elsewhere. Leisure behaviour is less predictable than work behaviour .in leisure customers have choice and can fickle! (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Introduction

The product /service are first released to the market. This is a phase where the number of participants is few and marketing is used to convince people to try the service; the main focus is to expose people to the service. This is done through heavy promotion, such as two-for ones deals; buy one get one free etc (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Growth

The product begins to experience rapid growth in the number of participants as the early customers continue and new customers emerge. During this phase of the life-cycle, there is a heavy reliance on the word of mouth and various promotional efforts to lengthen the growth phase as long as possible. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Maturation

Growth slows in this phase and the products stay in this phase the longest. Most marketing efforts are directed at the mature program because they are solid programs that are still seeing growing numbers. At this stage, different market can be explored and programs modification made, advertising campaign are changed to accommodate this two changes or to simple attracts more people. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Saturation

At the saturation stage, sales level off and number of consumers peaks. Those who are loyal to the products keep purchasing it at a steady rate, this is called brand loyalty. Any people who drop out are replaced by new consumers, thus keeping steady numbers of consumers. Promotional efforts may change to attracts new users and maintain royalty (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Decline

When there is a steady decrease in customers, the products has moved to decline phase. During this stage the decision on what to do with the program need to be made. Program options include petrification, death and extension. If petrification is chosen, the program is left as it is and will phase itself out until there are no more customers. The program can also experience death in that it is simply stopped. The most elaborate response to the decline phase is to use extension strategies that manipulate the product or the target market: market penetration, market development, product development, product replacement and diversification. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Market penetration

When an existing product that has been targeted to a specific market slides into decline phase, market penetration can be used to extend the life of the product. Market penetration leaves the existing product as is and goes deeper into the existing target market. This may mean adjusting the marketing strategies to attract competitors' customers, or using heavy promotion to convince nonusers within the target market to become consumers. Within market penetration, increased promotional effects are used to target people in this market who have the intention to participate but have not yet done so. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Market development

Market development looks for a new market segment for the existing product. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Product development and product replacement

Both product development and replacement are extension strategies for a new product and an existing product. With product development, the old program is replaced by an entirely new program, whereas with replacement, the old program is replaced by an improved version of the same program (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

Diversification

Diversification, the last extension strategy, begins the product life cycle all over again since it introduces a new product to a new market segment. With diversification the decision is made to move in an entirely different direction. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008)

2. Place

The second P in the marketing mix is place, also referred to as distribution. Place is how organizations get the product to the customer. Place may include parks, recreational centers, golf courses, resorts etc. It is not by chance that a business finds itself in a certain section of the community or that certain programs are not offered in selected recreational centers. In depth research is carried out on distribution channels and intensity, community composition, location accessibility and atmosphere (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Distribution channels and intensity

Since parks and recreation is a diverse profession and encompasses the public, nonprofit and commercial sectors, distribution channels vary widely. Distribution channels are either direct or indirect. In direct distribution, a product goes directly from the producer to consumers, whereas an indirect distribution channels has facilitating agent between the producer and the consumers. All those involved in the distributions of products are considered channel members .the public and nonprofit sectors usually have fewer channel members and a more direct distribution route. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Commercial recreation agencies such as resort will also use a direct channel of distribution, for many services such as room nights or meeting and conversion services. The commercial sector may also use an indirect channel of distribution involves wholesalers and retailers. In addition to the channels of distribution, there is intensity to consider within the marketing mix. Intensity of distribution is the "relative availability of a service to the customers". Given the nature of the recreation profession, intensity is a factor regarding both facilities and services. Facility intensity is concerned with such things as the number and location of golf courses, pools, resort rooms and bike trails. For other agencies they also consider the location of facilities. Many large communities, for an example are cognizant of the need to have recreation centers in different neighborhoods, including low-income neighborhoods .service distribution has many of the same concerns regarding the number and variety of programs offered in each location (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Not all service providers in the recreation profession have the same intensity of distribution. Three levels of distribution intensity are used in the leisure profession-intensive, selective and inclusive. Intensive distribution "creates maximum numbers of opportunities to enjoy a program". Parks and playgrounds are prime example of intensive distribution because many communities strive to provide both within a short distance of all residents in a community. Exclusive distributions, where facilities or programs are limited to a select few .an elite golf league, an ice rink ect are examples of exclusive distribution. In the middle of these two intensity levels is selective distribution. Selective distribution assumes that a program can be held at a few location or a few sessions of a program are offered throughout the year at one or two facilities (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Community composition

Understanding the composition of the community is an important element that cannot be emphasized enough, most communities have several neighborhoods ,each with its own characteristics ,people and work and leisure activities .what goes on in a neighborhoods and what is located there will have a tremendous impact on whether it is a good distribution channel. Gaining a clear picture of community composition includes breaking down the city by neighborhood and investigating

What businesses are in the community (industrial, technological or large vs. small businesses),

Overall education of the community and potential workers for the business,

Cost of living,

Economic viability,

Direct and indirect competition in the area for the proposed business (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

These factors will determine if proposal business will succeed or not. A nonprofit organization that provides services for low income people must not choose a highly industrialized neighborhood with people who earn high income.

Location accessibility

Products -facilities, programs, activities-need to be accessible to the people they for. Therefore, the distribution policy should be based on the market search about customers, their homes and work locations, transportation and accessibility factors in addition to the products and prices. It is therefore very important for services and facilities to be placed in locations that customers can get to easily. We need to make the facilities both physically and socially accessible. (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Atmosphere

The last element of place involves the facility itself. The atmosphere or the appearance of the facility and its neighbourhood can attract or eliminate potential customers. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Services may well be available, accessible and at the right price but customers may still not take advantage of the opportunity. This is where promotion and communications come into play. (George Torkildsen, 2004).

3. Pricing

We need to match people's needs with products at a price they are willing to pay. The pricing policy is an important factor in financial planning and in the overall strategy. It is a vital part of marketing. Should we price high and then reduce; price low for quick penetration of the market, price at one rate for all the customers; or offer special rates, discounts and packages? Commercial marketing is profit orientated, therefore price is sensitive. Products must be gauged at the right price to attract customers to buy. (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Pricing is only one factor in making choices. Price may not be as dominant a factor as we may think. Cheapness is one criteria, especially for the financially disadvantaged but not necessarily the only criterion. Rambling, camping, tennis, museums, threatres and athletics for example, are relatively cheap activities but yet they attract only certain small segments of the population. Public tastes can be notoriously fickle. We can offer 'superior' products to enhance quality of life, health and fitness and provide them at no change, yet many will prefer mediocre, expensive, even damaging-to-health alternative products. The truism is that prevention is extremely difficult to sell; yet how easy it is to sells cures! (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Pricing strategies

There are three strategies for setting prices. These strategies including penetration pricing, neutral pricing and skim pricing (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Penetration pricing Setting prices intentionally low to attract new customers, sometimes leads to price wars when other companies must match the low price to stay competitive. This strategy is often used in pubic sectors. Downside of penetration pricing occurs in the non-profit and commercial sectors .the public sector can subsidize programs with tax revenue, but the non profit sector needs to break even and the commercial sector needs to generate a profit. if all three of these sectors offer fitness facilities that complete against each other, the public sectors is most capable of using penetration pricing to lure customers away from commercial and non profit sectors which cannot operate facilities at a deficit. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Rather than setting prices extremely low as in penetration pricing, if an organization sets prices that are not exceptionally low or exceptionally high, it is using a neutral pricing strategy. This middle-of -the road strategy reduces the importance of price in product selection and relies on other things such as quality and customer service to attract customers. although the price is not excessively high, in neutral pricing it is rarely set below the break -even point so revenues still pay for product, thus eliminating the unfair advantage that some some public agencies have with penetration pricing. Spending an hour in a major department store is enough to realize that there is another pricing strategy -skim pricing .the focus of skim pricing is revenue generation with this strategy, products are priced based on what the market bear. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Pricing play a vital role in the marketing mix and lots of factors need to be considered when selecting any price to ensure that the customers can afford to pay the price for services and also to take into account customers from disadvantage communities.

4. Promotion

The last piece of the marketing mix is promotion .promotion communicates the value of the product-it is a mouthpiece of the programs to speak. With parks and recreation in particular, many products are usually services. As discussed, a major difference between the two is tangibility. When a tangible product is promoted, the product can be displayed in advertisements. However a service does not have that luxury. Instead, a benefits approach is taken to make a service seem more tangible .a benefit is anything of value to a consumer, so rather than promoting a service as just a service, it should be promoted as a bundle of benefits that a consumer will receive from the service. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

The promotions mix is the means by which the organization communicates the benefits of its products. This is done through advertising, sales promotions and incentives, personal selling and publicity. to be successful ,the promotions mix should follow the ALDA approach-increase awareness(A),attract interest (I),arouse desire (D),initiate action (A).there are four elements that can be used in promotion which is advertising, sales promotions and incentives, personal selling and publicity(Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Advertising

Advertising is any paid form of communication through the media that is paid for and controlled by the sponsoring agency. This means that an organization buys ad space and has control over what goes into that ad. There are many options for buying media, including TV, radio, newspaper, internet advertising etc. choosing which media to use is not easy since one must consider first the preferences of the target market. Find out what they watch, read or listen to as a group. Media preferences differ significantly by market segments. Also, the type of product dictates what type of media to by. Some products are better suited for certain types of media. Cost is also a media determinant and the one that may be the most influential for parks and recreation agencies. Television ads can be expensive, whereas radio and newspaper ads maybe more affordable, this does not mean that non profit and public sector cannot use TV to advertise their services (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

The last media buying consideration is the message. If the message is easy and short, billboards and newspapers is the perfect option for ads but if the message is complex, then radio or TV might be a better option. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Sales promotions and incentives

Sales promotions and incentives have a financial value to the consumer and are used in the short term to stimulate awareness or lead people to participation. This type of promotion can be categorized as promotional pricing (buy two get one free), free offers (1st lesson free), prices (free t-shirts) and celebrates (local or nations celebrities used as spokespersons or available at events or for autograph signings. sales promotions and incentives are most often used to introduce new programs. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Personal selling

Personal selling -use of direct, face-face discussions to promote a product or service. Leisure is 'sold' largely through people. The public's impression of a service or facility is often made on the flimsiest or small incident with a member of staff. To be effective in personal selling, it is necessary that the person concerned does it with enthusiasm, so that he or she is perceived as being capable, efficient and caring. The function of personal selling involves a two -way communication process and can provide valuable feedback information about existing and potential recreation programmes. If the message does not reach people, there is no point in sending it. And if it reaches people, do they understand it? The message must be relevant to the market and also be expressed in such a way that it attracts, rather than detracts. The media are major vehicle by which managers can communicate their products and services. But the word of mouth and recommendation could be the most successful in that a large proportion of leisure facility users come with friends and like-minded groups of people (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Publicity

Since most local authority leisure services have a minimal promotional budget, this has resulted in many concentrating more on publicity. This normally takes the form of press releases, feature articles and in some instances, a leisure centre may write its own weekly column in the local newspaper. It is a useful method of conveying information to customers, and potential customers, about changes in a programme and informing the community of the results of fixtures in the local leagues and competitions. To keep a facility continually in the public's mind .it is necessary periodically to have general interest stories relating to the facilities in the local newspaper, since not all readers read the arts and sports pages. Coverage of a leisure programme or event or issue can fix an image in the mind of the public. This can be achieved by informing and involving them and keeping them up to date with news .good press coverage will help the public to say that their money on a leisure facility is well spent. (George Torkildsen, 2004).

Public relations

Often the terms public relations and marketing are used interchangeable when in fact they are different yet integrated functions within an organization. Andersen distinguishes the two as follows:

Public relations is mainly a communication tool ,whereas marketing includes communication and the marketing mix

Public relations seeks to influence awareness, and attitudes ,whereas marketing tries to elicit specific behaviours ,such as purchasing ,joining and donating

Public relations does not define the goals of the organisation, where as marketing is intimately involved in defining the mission, customers and services of the organisation (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Given these differences, public relations can be as multifaceted form of communication used to create a positive position image of an organisation for its internal and external publics .internal publics include staff, board members and volunteers, whereas external publics include such group as users ,residents and community members. Public relations primarily deal with internal and external communication media relations and communications relations (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

External and internal communication

External and internal communication promotes understanding and acceptance of the organization .it cannot be assumed that just because people work for the company, they understand what the company does or support company causes, programs and business practices. Internal communications such as newsletters, weekly reports or e-mail lists serve to heighten employees' knowledge about the organisation. External public relations provide information to increase knowledge about what the company does. it is not be confused with advertising ,its consists of information that is more general and addresses the image of the organization as a whole and not just for this group may include newsletters, annual reports brochures ect (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Media relations

The media play a prominent role in shaping public opinion, as such; positive media relations are an important part of public relations. Organisation take three approaches to the media, the reactive approach, proactive approach and the interactive approach. A reactive approach is used to respond to requests from the media for interviews, queries etc. in sport, this may include request for interviews with coaches or players, photo sessions or profiles. A proactive approach occurs when the organization gives the media information in advance of an events or activity hoping to gain publicity. An interactive approach involves developing partnerships and relationships that are mutually beneficial to the agency and the media (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Community relations

The last piece of public relations is puzzle is the relationship of the organization with the community as a whole. Community relations- a positive relationship developed between agency and the community in which it exists that is enhanced by communication, education, provision of services to the community (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).

Conclusion

Marketing is the purposeful planning and execution of the pricing, place, and promotion of ideas, goods and services to create an exchange of time and resources that result in the satisfaction of individual needs and organizational objectives. (Hurd A, Barcelona R.G and Meldrum, J.T 2008).marketing in leisure is vital since the public need to be familiar with the leisure program and the benefits of participating in leisure. Marketing in leisure is more than distribution of flyers but it involved planning, selecting market segmentation, target market and much more. If the public does not understand what is leisure they will regard it as something that have no value and they won't take part in it. It is up to the leisure services providers to market leisure and spread the information to the public. Communication, marketing mix, media play integral part of marketing .marketing is a vital part of any organization and it important for managers to understand marketing in depth because it is the useful tool to achieve organizational objectives .

Reference page

1. Hurd, A; Barcelona, R.J; and Meldrum, JT. (2008) Leisure Services Management. USA: Human Kinetics

2. Torkildsen, G. (2004) Leisure and Recreation Management. USA: Human Kinetics