The Innkeeper's Resource

Amenities to Zoning: B is for Branding

Greetings from icy New England and one plug for the locals.....Go Pats! 

Speaking of the Patriots, what a great example of branding and the excellence that the brand represents.  The first time ever that an NFL team has gone 18-0 with the possibility of 19-0!

Trying to draw parallels between the small lodging industry and a professional football team is difficult, were it not for the one characteristic that leaders in both categories share...a passion to be the best and to set the standards for the rest of the crowd to emulate.

Having just returned from the Conference of the Mid-Atlantic, where I spoke about "Inn Branding, Market Positioning and the i.guest" let me share a couple of thoughts with you about the importance of branding.

Great brands/inns are about five key ingredients.  Authenticity: what is the experience your inn stands for?  Great brands/inns are about You: you are the face of your inn.  Great brands/inns are about Signature Items: recipes, touches, services that are yours and yours alone.  Great brands/inns are about a Legacy: a place where memories are made and emotional connections are forged.  Great brands/inns are about a Promise: your promise that what you consistently deliver is ensuring the best possible guest experience.

These five ingredients help create your inn's brand and identity and allow you to connect with your guests while creating a strong business.  Why? Because your inn becomes the place to stay when visiting your town or area. You become the sought after destination.

Remember others can deliver a great experience too.  It's important to understand that delivering isn't enough and that someone may be able do it just as well as you.  The difference is that great innkeepers/branders are the leaders and set the tone for their respective marketplaces...and that's you!  Take the lead and let the others follow.

With the exception of the real estate, your inn's brand identity is likely your single largest and most important asset.  Nurture it, cultivate it, care for it...it will take care of you.

More to come in this Innkeeping A to Z series...and more about branding and the importance of the i.guest at the PAII Conference too!

Rick

Amenities to Zoning: A is for Amenties

Amenities:  Attractive extras.  The features that, when taken together, make a B&B attractive to guests or customers.

Above and beyond "attractive extras", the amenities you make available in your bed and breakfast should exceed your guests' expectations and create that ever desirable WOW factor.  Inn amenities transcend soaps and shampoos and include everything from beach chairs to fresh flowers.  Your amenities should be equal to and consistent with your property's level of luxury and should be promoted on your website.  One inn's website I visited recently described their inn as romantic, elegant and tranquil.  The amenities they listed on their room page mentioned irons, ironing boards and hairdryers.  While these items are important and worth mentioning, where is the mention of plush terry robes or over sized soaking tubs complete with bubble bath which are consistent with their romantic, elegant and tranquil message?

Upgrade and refresh your amenities regularly.  A good example is an inn we are familiar with that has recently added a new state of the art coffee machine where guests can brew a freshly made cup of coffee, cappuccino or espresso at any hour.  I believe a guest's impression would be WOW the innkeepers are always thinking of me.  As an aside, the innkeepers are also thinking of themselves because this machine saves them time, something all innkeepers need more of!

Trends are constantly evolving and it pays to keep up with them.  In a recent article from portfolio.com titled "A Watery Grave for Hotel Tub's", whirlpool tubs for two are still high on most guests list of wants when they are planning a romantic getaway but there is a growing trend towards more elaborate and spacious showers. Families understandably still want tubs for the kiddies.  If possible and appropriate, having a good mix of both will definitely cover all your guest's needs and desires.

Quality amenities are important to your property's image and should not be overlooked or skimped upon.  Quality does not necessarily mean expensive.  Many innkeepers who are concerned about the expense and waste of bar soaps and shampoo and lotion bottles are changing to liquid dispensers.  There are high end and attractive dispensers available in the market today and guests will respect your desire to provide them with quality amenities and your concern for the environment.

It would be great to hear about any wonderful new amenity or service you have added to your property and what your guest's reactions were.  Hopefully it was WOW!

Janet

When a Review is not a Review...

With all the discussion about social media, blogging, travel review sites, etc., there's always a fair amount of passion. Most innkeepers either love or hate Tripadvisor. There's very little middle ground. Our feeling at The B&B Team is that innkeepers need to know about, track, and use Travel 2.0 venues as much as they can and as much as they feel it may impact their business positively. However, there's a big difference between "use" and "abuse."

For instance, is there anything wrong with an innkeeper encouraging happy, smiling departing guests from leaving a review at Tripadvisor (or some other site)? Is it any less ethical not to say a thing about reviews to a departing i.guest who had a less than a perfect stay? Is it important and proper to respond adequately to a negative review? How about posing as a happy i.guest and posting a great review about your own property? After all, it's just to get the ball rolling, right? Or what about pretending to be an irate former guest and posting a bogus review blasting your competitor?

In the early days of the public Internet, some enterprising individuals bought hundreds of URL's, including the names of industries and companies, in the belief (well founded in many cases) that someone would pay them a lot of money to buy them. It worked, for a while. There was nothing inherently wrong with being ahead of the competition and buying URLs like "bedandbreakfast.com" that were industry specific. But there was a problem with people buying the names of companies and extorting those companies, in essence, to get their own name back. In the end, because of the ethics and the law that prevailed, some entrepreneurs were denied their hoped-for windfall. A line had been crossed.

In social media, and innkeeping, everyone needs to keep a perspective and remember that there are lines that shouldn't be crossed. This is new territory, so keep a level head and keep the standards high. When a review is not a review, maybe the angel on your shoulder should be louder than the other voice!

Peter

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Strategic Thinking for Innkeepers

When you're in business as we are, you get all kinds of email newsletters on a daily basis. Most of the ones I get are either related to real estate or hospitality, the focus of our business. There are lots of articles that aren't worth much, or aren't relevant to the integrated work we do both in brokerage for the unique lodging industry and hospitality consulting, but some are good.

In the Broker Agent News today was a short piece about Strategic Thinking, and it applies everyone. To really be successful as an innkeeper, you need to consider the consequences of all your decisions, both business and personal. Consider what you can do that enhances your bottom line as well as what enhances your "return on energy." Everything you do as an innkeeper should have an outcome that you can measure either in dollars and cents or in how it "inn-vigorates" you! After all, why did you become an innkeeper? If it does neither, should you be doing it?

So, next time you have a little extra time (yeah, right!), sit down with your partner and make a couple of lists. What things are you doing that add value to your bed & breakfast business? What tasks could be hired out, done away with, or streamlined? And critically, what really gets you fired up? Where does your energy come from? Set your sights, create a plan, and go for! Do you have a secret formula that works for you? Let us hear about it!

Peter