GUERRILLA MARKETING FOR IMPROVING PERFORMANCE OF MARKETING OF HOTEL SERVICES IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT
The concept of Guerrilla marketing subsumes a set of different innovative and creative approach to marketing in today’s marketplace warfare. It aims principally at gaining large effect with a small budget through surprise and diffusion effects. Although the instruments are more and more often applied by today’s practitioners, there is barely scientific discussion about the concept. Therefore, this paper describes the evolution, philosophers’, principles of the concept and current understanding of guerrilla marketing among Hotel entrepreneurs in Imo State, as an attempt to gaining attention of a large number of consumers at relatively low cost by means of surprise effect and diffusion effect. The study highlights how different guerrilla instruments like internal, ambient, sensation, viral, buzz marketing try to evoke these effects. The study uses empirical evidence to discuss the application of the GM principles as found in the sample of 40 Hotels in Imo State. The results shows that the Hotel entrepreneurs’ use of guerrilla marketing weapons is consistent with literature, but are not known by some of these academic names. They all agreed that they cannot survive the larger competitors and rough economic life in Nigeria, without resorting to guerrilla marketing. The study recommends Guerrilla Marketing for the marketing of Hotel services in Nigeria. Guerrilla marketing surprises you and is therefore striking. It all comes together in one: “impact”. Guerrilla marketing means impact, and that is what today marketplace needs.

Background of the Study
Marketing is warfare without a gunshot. It is psychological and is fought in the minds of the customers and consumers. The barrage of advertising in TV and magazines, depicting products of various shapes and sizes, prices of all sorts, placed where the products can be found are all before the consumers to look and be attracted to and choose from. Hellish you may say, (Ives, 2004).
Now if marketing is warfare, with whom are we fighting with and with what? The battle strategies and instruments are all explained in the concept of Guerrilla marketing as characterized by surprise-effect, diffusion effect and low-cost effect, working through buzz marketing, viral marketing and word-of-mouth marketing. These mixes make it more attractive and aligned to small and medium size enterprises owners to imbibe and apply in order to survive the attack of bigger established enterprises, (Kotler, et al. 2002)
Tell me; what will a marketer do in today’s globalize market that everything, just everything is changing fast? For instance, before him are price-sensitive customers, new competitors, new distribution channels, new communications channels, the internet, wireless commerce, globalized products, deregulation, privatization and many related others. It is not the markets that are changing, but the technologies that support them: e-commerce, e-mail, mobile phones, fax machines, sales and marketing automation, cable TV, video conferencing. It is of essence that today’s marketer think through these changes and seek for ways and strategies to survive, (Kotler, Jain & Maesnicee, 2002). Thus to survive in Imo State ever changing marketing environment, marketers also have to change their approach, and the strategy that matches these unstable tides is guerrilla marketing.

Guerrilla marketing is a restless marketing philosophy in the sense that it is applied where an enterprise is outnumbered by others in terms of resources, market-share, and funding. This study is to review literatures to establish the nature and definitions of the concept and to investigate the recognition and extent of application among Hotels operators in lmo State Nigeria, and to make recommendations for best practices.
It is amazing that in all the states and cities in Nigerian, Guerrilla marketing can get you anywhere: on your way home from work, in the car, bus and train, on the streets, strolling or relaxing at a café terrace, in front of your house, or at major events. It is like love: you will find it at the moment you do not expect it at all. At the moment you set your eyes on a product no sooner than later you start to think about it and what to do with it. The Guerrilla marketer, thus have what he wants (your attention, interest, desire and action) which results in purchase. Guerrilla marketing distinguishes itself from other promotional tools by its surprise effect and it has become a very popular marketing strategy in current times.

1.2 Statement of the Problem
Today in Imo State, the rate of Hotel construction and establishment is alarming that there is no major road or street in Owerri without three or four hotels, to mention the least. In fact the two major factories here are Hotels and Petrol Filling Stations. This becomes a concern that requires investigating to ascertain the survival and competitive strategies which has enhanced their performance that many more are attracted to invest in this developing tourism haven. There are too many Hotels in Imo State, yet more are being built.
Furthermore, Guerrilla marketing is needed because big businesses are downsizing, decentralizing, relaxation of government regulations on SMEs, affordable technology, and a resolution among many paid employees to be independent of paid employment; people around the world are gravitating to small businesses in record numbers. Opportunities are everywhere, but who has the hinder-sight and tactics to see and take them.
Levinson, (2006) is of the opinion that small businesses are failing in established record numbers due to failure to understand traditional marketing. Guerrilla marketing has been proven in action to work for small businesses around the world. It works because it’s simple to understand, easy to implement and outrageously inexpensive.