The Business Challenge
Reach360, Gesture's B2B platform for Tangible Marketing, is positioned to capture significant growth in hospitality—but the company faces a critical go-to-market blind spot.
The strategic hypothesis is sound: hospitality operators hold first-party guest data that is high-value, undermonetized, and ideal for targeted remarketing campaigns. The product is proven. The category—Tangible Marketing—is differentiated from both traditional gifting and digital-only campaigns.
The execution path is fragmented across three fundamentally different buyer segments.
Segment 1: Luxury & Upscale Hotels
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The Pain Point: OTA commissions are eroding direct-booking revenue; guests book through third-party platforms, creating loyalty leakage
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The Opportunity: Use first-party guest data to re-engage repeat guests directly, drive higher-margin direct bookings, reduce OTA dependency
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Decision Structure: CMO or Director of Marketing leads; CFO approves budgets; some revenue-side buy-in required
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Buying Trigger: Peak seasonality planning (summer/holiday prep); contract renewals with current loyalty vendors
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Complexity: Budget cycles are quarterly or annual; approval may require revenue leadership alignment; hotels have existing vendor relationships (loyalty platforms, email providers)
Segment 2: Gaming Properties & Casinos
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The Pain Point: High-value player decay—mass offers misfire; reactivation of lapsed players is expensive and inefficient
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The Opportunity: Targeted, high-touch physical experiences delivered to specific player segments (high-worth lapsed players, tier climbers) drive reactivation and player lifetime value
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Decision Structure: Player Development VP or Casino Marketing owns the decision; Properties VP may have veto power; Finance approves budgets
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Buying Trigger: After poor reinvestment periods (Q4 slump, post-holiday); seasonal player-development campaigns
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Complexity: Gaming budgets are discretionary and reactive; properties are often part of regional consortiums (MGM, Caesars, etc.) or independent; data privacy (player data) is heavily regulated
Segment 3: Destination Tourism Boards & DMOs
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The Pain Point: Destination visitation is flat or declining; marketing budgets are public, scrutinized, and require defensible ROI; competition for tax dollars is fierce
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The Opportunity: Drive measurable visitation and repeat travel through targeted experiences to lapsed visitors; show public, documented ROI (room-night tax impact, visitor spend)
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Decision Structure: DMO Director leads; Board/Executive Director approves budgets; City Finance or Tourism Bureau sets priorities; Properties themselves are a gate—they must participate or the program fails silently
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Buying Trigger: Budget cycles (annual planning); political leadership changes; post-pandemic recovery planning
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Complexity: This is a coalition, not a single buyer. The city approves funding, but properties control execution. Win without property buy-in and the program is hollow. Political dynamics matter; warm introductions through city leadership are non-negotiable.
The Strategic Question
These three segments require fundamentally different value propositions, sales motions, and partnership sequencing.
- Does Reach360 lead with hotels (high probability deals, clear ROI, no political gatekeepers)?
- Or do hotels unlock casinos? Do casinos unlock DMOs?
- How does the political coalition in tourism actually work? What's the right sequencing?
- What messaging resonates with a CMO (efficiency, direct revenue) vs. a Player Development VP (reactivation economics) vs. a DMO Director (public impact and political cover)?
- What's the pricing architecture? A hotel deal looks different from a casino deal from a DMO partnership.
Without clarity on these dynamics, Reach360 risks:
- Misallocating sales effort across non-comparable segments
- Missing anchor partnerships that unlock entire regions (especially in tourism)
- Failing to position category value in each buyer's native language
- Struggling to achieve the revenue velocity needed for $100M ARR by 2027
What Students Will Solve
Unified Challenge: How should Reach360 sequence and position entry into these three hospitality segments? What messaging, buyer engagement, and partnership strategy will move each from awareness to pipeline—and what metrics define success?
All student teams will tackle this problem independently, each producing:
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Segment Prioritization: Which hospitality buyer should we anchor with, and why? What's the strategic sequencing?
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Buyer Committee Mapping: Deep personas by segment—who decides, who influences, who blocks? What are their incentives?
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Competitive Positioning: Who else is competing for these budgets? Where can Reach360 own the frame?
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Tailored Value Props & Messaging: What does the pitch sound like to a hotel CMO vs. a casino player-dev VP vs. a DMO director?
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Segment-Specific Go-to-Market: Sales process, objection handling, partnership playbook, deal structure for each buyer type
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Revenue Model & Success Metrics: CAC/LTV by segment, pricing architecture, MQL→SQL→Close benchmarks, 3-year hospitality projections, KPIs that track real momentum
Why This Project is Ideal for Students
This project offers a practical, real-world challenge that requires multi-faceted analysis—integrating market research, buyer analysis, competitive positioning, financial modeling, and strategic planning. Rather than a theoretical case study, students will work on a live business problem with genuine complexity and stakes.
By tackling this challenge, students will:
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Apply academic knowledge to real strategy work: Translate concepts from consumer behavior, market segmentation, competitive analysis, and business strategy into actionable recommendations for an actual company
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Develop consulting and business development skills: Learn how to conduct primary and secondary research, synthesize findings across multiple dimensions, and translate insights into clear strategic recommendations
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Practice revenue and financial modeling: Build CAC/LTV analysis, pricing architecture, and revenue forecasting—skills directly applicable to roles in consulting, finance, business development, and operations
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Understand buyer decision-making and committee dynamics: Map who influences purchasing decisions in complex B2B environments, understand how different stakeholders assess value, and learn to position solutions in language that resonates with economic buyers vs. champions vs. blockers
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Work cross-functionally with peers: Collaborate with teammates across research, analysis, and strategy, synthesizing multiple perspectives into coherent recommendations—mirroring how real consulting teams operate
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Gain exposure to emerging verticals and market opportunities: Understand how companies evaluate new markets, sequence entry strategy, and differentiate in competitive landscapes
This experience prepares students directly for roles in consulting, marketing strategy, business development, sales leadership, finance, and operations—where understanding buyer economics, competitive positioning, and go-to-market strategy are critical.
