In the business world, sales of products can be directly influenced by pricing. Therefore, a correct pricing strategy is very important to increase revenue efficiency. Institute for Tourism Studies, Macao (IFT) and Cornell-Nanyang Institute of Hospitality Management (CNI) co-organised an Executive Development Programme in “Strategic Pricing for Hotels: Leveraging Consumer and Marketing Knowledge to Enhance Revenue” on 23 and 24 July to probe into the subject.
The course format involved class discussion, case studies, lecture and simple mathematical analysis. The following topics were discussed:
- What is price and how to change prices
- Components of value and how to improve the perceptions of value in order to earn higher prices
- How to use consumer research to determine consumers’ willingness to pay
- Consumer psychology and decision making and how firms can use this knowledge to make better pricing decisions
- How to understand market positioning and the competitive framework within which the firm operates
Dr. Shoemaker is the Donald Hubbs Distinguished Professor and Associate Dean of Research of the University of Houston’s Conrad Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management. He holds a PhD from Cornell University in the School of Hotel Administration. Dr. Shoemaker teaches Strategic Pricing for Hotels: Leveraging Consumer and Marketing Knowledge to Enhance Revenue, Customer Relationship Management and Frequency Marketing, Strategic Marketing for Hotels and Restaurants, and Customer Attitudes and Behaviours. His research interests include the antecedents and consequences of consumer loyalty, loyalty programs, and strategic pricing and revenue management.
Prior to moving to the University of Houston, Dr. Shoemaker taught at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Courses taught include strategy, basic statistics, consumer behaviour, research methods, multivariate statistics, and services marketing. His research has won numerous awards, and has appeared in the Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management, Journal of Travel Research, Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administrative Quarterly, International Journal of Hospitality Management, International Gaming and Wagering Business, Journal of Restaurant and Foodservice Marketing, and Harvard Business School Case Study. He has also published two textbooks on hospitality marketing and is currently working on a third textbook for Prentice Hall with a working title of Pricing and Revenue Management in Service Industry.
This is the third Executive Development Programme (EDP) co-hosted by the IFT and CNI. In March 2008, IFT and CNI co-organised a two-day EDP on “Revenue Management”. These programmes have received great support from the industry. Senior executives from over 20 establishments from the hotel, tourism, finance and education sectors participated in the programmes.
To provide more diversified training to the industry, IFT and CNI co-organised the EDP to allow the participants to learn techniques in increasing revenue by better understanding customers’ consumption behaviour and how to incorporate pricing decisions into the overall strategy of the firm.