Running a Bed and Breakfast Newsletter July 2008

In this month's newsletter:

 

·         Join Me on Facebook

·         The Costs of Setting Up a B&B

·         New Course Dates

·         B&B Software

·         An Opportunity to Showcase Your B&B on TV And Get Advice From Some Top Designers

·         Marketing Your B&B on eBAY

 

Join Me on Facebook

I have just set up a facebook page for Bed and Breakfast Academy. Click here to join the group with an opportunity to ask questions via the discussion notice board.

The Costs of Setting Up a B&B

Our new Barn Room is now ready and we welcomed our first guests to stay there this weekend. It has been a rush to get it all finished and we are quite exhausted. Whilst Rob has been doing all the physical stuff like fitting blinds, lights and trying to sort out the outside, my focus has been on getting all the furnishings and accessories right.

 

I'd decided to get new headboards as the old ones were an aubergine colour and the room scheme is eau de nil and natural. The beds are zip and link so the headboards need to fit equally well on single beds and when the bed is zipped together as a super king size. I ordered 2 black iron single headboards straight across the top deciding they would be fine.

 

With 2 hours before the guest arriving the headboards turned up. We went to fit them on the bed and realised they woked fine on the single beds but were too wide when it was zipped together - argh. So we have the old headboards in place for now and luckily aubergine and eau de nil actually doesn't clash too horrifically.

 

I visited our local hardware store to get some last minute bits and bobs and very quickly spent £200 on a new  teapot, cups and saucers, mugs, door hooks, grab rail, light bulbs, blind for the bathroom, doormat, corkscrew, guest comment book, hairdryer, illuminated vanity mirror, waste bin.........

 

And it wasn't till I went to put the tea tray in that I realised I had no table to put it on, and when I tried out the bath, nowhere to throw my clothes!

 

When you budget for setting up your B&B you need to sit down and think of everything you might need. I would advise visiting a good B&B and making a list of absolutely everything they have in the rooms down to the hooks on the door and light fittings. It's amazing how quickly it all adds up.

 

And then test the room for several nights yourself - it's not till you're in the bathroom looking for somewhere to hang your dressing gown that you realise you need hooks on the door or that the bedside lamps are too low to allow you to read comfortably in bed.

 

New Course Dates

As the one day course on 4th August is now full I've added an additional One Day Course on Wednesday 6th August. Accomodation is still available. Please let me know if you would like to attend or book online. I also have availability and accommodation on 11th and 12th October 2 day course. Have a look at www.bedandbreakfastacademy.co.uk for more details.

 

I've just had a last minue cancellation for the Setting Up, Marketing and Running a B&B Course this Saturday and Sunday, 12th and 13th July  if you happen to have a free weekend! I have 2 slots and the cost of the cost is £250 per person. Unfortunately I don't have any accommodation available. Alternatively if you just wanted to do Day 1 on the Saturday - How To Set Up a B&B - that is an option and is available for £125 per person. Please call or email me quickly to secure a place

 

B&B Software

Last month I spoke about using online availability and other B&B software. Following the newsletter I was contacted by Paul Grimster of Angelfish Software. I've been trialling Paul's software and have been very impressed by it so far. Here Paul tells us a bit more about what he is offering.

 

"Angelfish Software develop desktop & web products for Guest Houses and B&B’s. Our flagship product, Angelfish B&B Manager, is a desktop accounting and information management system that helps you keep control of your guests, bookings, payments, facilities and expenses, whilst automating daily tasks such as creating invoices, checking turnover and occupancy figures and printing daily arrival/departure schedules. There are comprehensive accounting features, such as monthly summaries of turnover and profit, VAT reports and the ability to export data to Microsoft Excel.

 

Best of all, you can upload your availability information to the internet and within minutes create a live room availability calendar in your own website, customised to fit in with the rest of your site. See for example www.dunardguesthouse.com/availability.aspx.  

 

From here, visitors can instantly assess your availability and either call you directly or make a booking request online. You are notified immediately of any new booking requests and you can process them directly through B&B Manager, or simply pick up the phone and confirm the booking. This service is available on many hotel websites, and visitors are increasingly expecting to see it on Guest House websites as well.

 

Angelfish B&B Manager costs just £125.00, including comprehensive support, free product updates and subscription to the live availability calendar service. With it’s easy to use, Office-style interface, you can be up and running with B&B Manager in minutes, and save hours of time on your accounting and everyday tasks. You can download a fully-functional evaluation version of B&B Manager at www.angelfishsoftware.co.uk.

 

For more details, please call us on 01747 825283 or e-mail support@angelfishsoftware.co.uk. "

An Opportunity to Showcase Your B&B on TV And Get Advice From Some Top Designers

I've been contacted by a production company creating a new series for Channel 4. Please see the details below and contact Philip directly if you are interested.  This really sounds like an excellent opportunity to get free design advice and promote your new B&B. Please mention B&B Academy when you contact Philip.

 

Starting up a B&B? Need some expert help?

Channel 4 are making a glossy new series about the process of setting up B&Bs and hotels. If you're realising your ambition and setting up a B&B (minimum 5 rooms) for the first time, we'd love to hear from you. We'll put you in contact with some of the most established names from the world of boutique hotels to guide you through the process and help make sure everything goes smoothly.

If you'd be interested in taking part, please call Philip on 020 7907 0885 or email philip.mccreery@betty.co.uk .

Marketing your B&B on eBAY

Not many people coming on my courses seem to know that you can buy short breaks away on eBAY. It can be an excellent way to promote your B&B. I'm currently running a eBAY auction to promote my new room. Click Here to have a look.

 

Selling nights on eBAY is not for everyone but it can be a great way of getting your B&B found by people who would otherwise never have heard of you. Here is part of an article I contributed to last year on promoting your B&B this way.

 

“I sell nights at my B&B on eBay at certain times of the year when the B&B is a bit quieter. It’s a great way of filling rooms that would otherwise stand empty.

 

It’s also a great way of getting money up front if you’re having a cashflow problem. So for example, if they bid for a weekend in August in March, I’ll get the money there and then rather than waiting till March.

 

I’ve experimented with selling different types of package, e.g. a night at any time or 2 nights B&B mid week, to see what works best for me.

 

I produce an advert which reflects the style and content of my website and has a link through to my site. This looks very professional and gives people more confidence in what they’re buying.

 

You need to be very specific, when you’re selling a service, that all the terms and conditions are clearly set out in the advert. For example, if you’re willing to sell extra nights at the same price as the winning bid, is there a maximum number of nights? Will you accept eBay winners on Bank Holiday weekends, or in High Season? If people book then cancel what is your policy?

 

All my other marketing targets people who have already decided to come to Shropshire for the weekend, whereas on eBay I’m able to attract people who have just decided they want a short break but haven’t decided where.

 

People come onto eBay looking for a bargain, so when selling a service like mine you’re most likely to make a loss on your regular price. However, what it does do is significantly increase traffic to your website. I really see it as a marketing tool. One eBay guest paid £10 a night less than I normally charge, but they had 2 meals, have already returned (at full price) and have sent 4 of their friends to stay here!

 

I only advertise my B&B infrequently on eBay. I noticed that when I started to advertise more frequently, the value of the average bid went down and some nights didn’t sell at all. I think you need to be a bit careful when you’re selling a service like mine not to advertise too much.

 

It’s a good idea to keep an eye on what other people selling a similar product are doing. How often do they advertise, how much are they selling for, are they being more successful than you? You can learn a lot from other people and improve the way you’re selling.

 

When you’re selling a service, packages seem much more popular. So rather than just selling a night’s B&B, you could offer 2 nights B&B with dinner and a bottle of champagne.

 

Make use of second chance offers. This is where you can offer whatever you’re selling to unsuccessful bidders.”

 

And finally, when guests who have arrived 3 days previously as strangers, give you a big hug as they leave with a tear in their eye, you know you're getting something right! Having worked in IT for years we didn't do hugging, so the first time I was hugged by a near stranger it was a bit of a shock. However I have now got used to it and even quite enjoy it. You do need to be a bit careful though. Here are my tongue in cheek rules for hugging guests.

 

Hugging Guests - the Rules

1. Always wait for the guest to hug you - unprovoked hugging from landladies or landlords would terrify some people - they too may work in IT ( I say that with a big grin on my face and a lot of self depreciation - apologies to all you computer programmers out there )

 

2. If your guests are male/female it's almost always the female who will initiate the first hug. Her husband or partner will stand back until he sees what his wife/partner is going to do and follow suit.

 

3. As a landlady, if the male guest does hug first and then the woman shakes your hand you can guarantee you will not be seeing them as repeat guests.

 

4. If his wife is nowhere around and your male guest tries to initiate physical contact - I suggest a quick sidestep whilst saying "Sorry - I think I hear my phone..."