Environmental Factors in MarketingThis article will discuss the five environmental factors that influence global and domestic marketing decisions that organizations must make. These five environmental factors are technology, demographics, government, culture and economics. Businesses are affected differently by these factors depending on the industry they operate in and the size of the organization. I will use the Washington Plaza Hotel to illustrate how these environmental factors affect the hotel industry's marketing decisions. The Washington Plaza Hotel is a hotel company located in Washington, DC. They offer services such as accommodation, restaurant, bar, catering and meeting space rental. The Washington Plaza Hotel's primary clientele is government, tourists, non-profit organizations, local businesses, and some business clientele. Now let's see how these environmental factors affect hotel marketing. Environmental Factors That Affect Marketing Technology Technology has created a major impact on the way all organizations market their products and services. With the development of the Internet, businesses are now able to market themselves economically on a global scale. Even small businesses that were unable to capture international markets due to the cost factor can now do so. The Washington Plaza Hotel is no exception. DC's hospitality industry relies heavily on tourism, which makes up a significant portion of its customer base. Many of these tourists who visit the city are of foreign nationality. It is important that Washington Plaza Hotel targets these people when marketing the business. Not only do they target tourists, but they also target international business travelers who come to the city for business trips. The hotel's website, which provides detailed information about the hotel's accommodations and services, is accessible to potential guests from all over the world. Additionally, Washington Plaza Hotel has partnered with web-based travel services such as Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity, etc. in order to capture a greater share of the global market. Before the existence of the Internet, the global market was not easily accessible. Technology has the greatest impact on marketing for many organizations and certainly for the Washington Plaza Hotel as well as the hospitality industry itself. Demographics Demographics are another environmental factor that plays an important role in Washington Plaza Hotel marketing. This business is service based and guests must check in at the hotel to avail these services..