This case covers a wide range of situations and circumstances in which strategic marketing decisions were made. This case focuses on a company operating in the hospitality sector (a hotel chain) whose products (accommodations, food and beverages services) constitute a large portion of tourist consumption. The case illuminates what makes Scandic Hotel Chain special and different from its competitors. For example its loyalty programme where members can earn both points and airline kilometres on the same stay. Special attention is devoted to how the case company uses information technology (IT) to identify and differentiate its customers through the relationship ladder in order to sustain a customer centric strategy and develop long lasting relationships with its customers.

The domain of this case is strategic management. Strategically, the case company focuses its intentions in a market and developed a variety of products and programmes to realise those intentions. Essentially, Scandic Hotel Chain operates within a given environment; its marketing strategy deals with the interplay of three forces, known as “the strategic 3 Cs” the customer, the competition and the corporation. Scandic Hotel Chain devised marketing strategies in which it could differentiate itself effectively from its competitors, capitalising on its distinctive strengths to deliver better value to its customers. The case shows that a good strategy is characterised by: a) a clear market definition; b) a good match between corporate strengths and the need and preferences of the market and c) superior performance, relative to the competition. The company put together the strategic 3 Cs to form the marketing triangle. In this regard, marketing strategy is thus an endeavour of the firm to differentiate itself from the competitors using its relatively corporate strengths to better satisfy customer needs, in a given environmental settings. The long-term orientation of this case is demonstrated through among others, its great concern for the environment as environmental changes are more probable in the long run than in the short run.

The Scope of the case

This case is suitable for use in undergraduate and Post graduate courses such as: Strategic Management/Strategic Marketing, Marketing Strategy, Marketing Management, Services Marketing.