subject: Five Internet Sites And Tools That Bed And Breakfast Owners Should Be Using To Get Bums In Beds [print this page] Every bed and breakfast owner faces that little dread that their occupancy will drop off and they'll be left struggling to fill their rooms out of season.
For some this is even a worry during season as accommodation lettings have sky rocketed in the past few years as everyone reaches for that supposed idyllic lifestyle. We know that being the owner of an accommodation establishment is difficult and you need to choose your ways to market carefully as budgets are tight and room rates are not increasing that much.
In fact, recent studies show that in the mid range accommodation market - 2 - 4 star - there is considerable increased competition making it harder for the average B and B to reach profitability.
We've had a good look at the tools available (we handle a number of accommodation establishments and tourism sites) for you to use to help maximise your marketing. Here are our suggestions:
1. Facebook Pages
There are two ways for you to enter the arena on Facebook.
First a personal profile which most B and B owners seem to be using for business, and second, a business page.
We advocate the business page approach as then you get a 'Places' listing which helps with your sites overall ranking. Facebook Pages has now brought in a new look called 'Timeline' and there are some amazing apps you can use to showcase your accommodation eg: Timeline Movie Maker - gives a short but stunning movie of the content on your pages.
Make sure you upload a gallery of photos in your header picture not just one photo of the front or a bedroom (this seems to be the norm). If you're unsure how to do this there are a lot of videos on the internet for you to learn from.Post about what can be found around your B and B as well as in it!
2. Pinterest
This is a great tool that will drive traffic to your website if you use it properly. The idea is that you 'pin' up your photos onto 'boards' that you name and share your accommodation and area visually.
When you set up your profile (you need someone to invite you) make sure it's all in your business name with business logo and website details. When you post a picture on a board ensure that you 'edit' the photo and put the link to your website on each and every one.
There is a free eBook for you to download on Pinterest as we think it will be playing a huge role in SME accommodation this year.
3. A blog
A blog in your website will increase your overall ranking and let's face it, consumers generally book a place to stay from the first page of their search. Get your web master to attach a simple wordpress blog (they are free) to your website and put it in the navigation bar.
All you have to do is write a bit about what's going on around your place, with your guests (loads of great stories there) and pop in a bit of home made video every now and then eg: this is the time we got everyone into the garden for a barbeque, this is Ted and Rosie from Florida.
We write about social media but we also write for our clients Blogs. It's not hard to write 350 words about your passion and stick a photo up. Wordpress allows you to fill in keywords and categories for each post which enhances your sites SEO and increases your chances of being found on the net.
A blog also forms the 'hub' of your online activity as you can link your posts to Facebook so that they appear on your timeline automatically.
4. BnBAir
This is an application you can find on Facebook or just go to www.bnbair.com and list your accommodation establishment for free.
There's a really good video that explains how it works.What we like is that it's a really easy system to use and it's growing hand over fist in terms of traffic and users.
5. Coast Radar (www.coastradar.com) is a site all about beaches.
At the moment they are taking free listings of accommodation but not for long. The site gives insight about beaches all over the world and the 'heroes' of those beaches eg: the b and b owner, the cafe owner, the life guard, the dog walker.
What's great about this site is that if you are near a beach you can contribute to the blog and the site and get your establishments name out to thousands. It works on Google maps drill downs showing what's around the beach in terms of accommodation, eating out, activities etc and as tourism is destination based to a large degree this site is set to rock this year!
If you want more than just a basic free listing they also offer a marketing package for 39/annum which gets you on their social media tools too, giving you the power of their thousands of followers all over the globe!
