Bed and breakfasts aren’t what they used to be. The image of a tiny house or boutique room with questionable decor but a great homemade breakfast has been shaken off. With all the changes in the hospitality market over the years, bed and breakfast promotion has developed and popped up in all shapes and forms, and are now fair competition to hotels.
But hotels, and especially chains, have way more resources for their marketing. Bed and breakfast owners often need to be a bit more creative when promoting their bed and breakfast, at reasonable costs.
No time to waste? Here’s our advice in a nutshell.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Only relying on one target group or channel is a dangerous move — especially now, while the world of travel is being reshaped. If you want to keep fitting in, make sure you look at all the options your BnB offers to travelers, and market these accordingly, through the right channels. And no slacking off: offer just as great of an experience online, as offline. Here are seven ways to put your BnB in the spotlight.
Table of contents
1. Choose the right channel manager
Even though there are several big names in the booking website industry, there are countless other channels and websites you shouldn’t overlook. But how can you possibly be listed on all these websites and keep up with bookings, knowing which room is reserved when and to whom, without having double bookings?
It’s easier than you’d think. With a channel manager, you can easily manage the rates and availability of your rooms across countless websites at the same time. Any changes in availability and prices are automatically made on every travel website. Thanks to the smart GDS, you are globally distributed on the relevant websites and markets. A Global Distribution System is like the middleman between travel agents and your bed and breakfast. A middleman that’ll save you a lot of time, and will put some benefits on top.
Picking a good channel manager and connected GDS system is vital for bed and breakfast owners. It is almost impossible to succeed when you’re not listed on the main travel websites. When looking for a GDS system, look at which markets they are present in, and how those markets match with your target group.
2. Make sure people can find you
Being present on the main booking channels, and then the ones that are specifically important to your target group is the first step. Now make sure your guests can find their way to your bed and breakfast on the World Wide Web without the help of booking websites, too.
Bed and breakfasts are location, location, location. Luckily, with Search Engine Optimization, you can help your future visitors to find you when they’re looking for a stay in your area. With the right keywords on your website, a solid content strategy, and the right settings in the backend of your website, you’re good to go.
If you have the budget, certainly look into paid advertisements on Google as well, to be a step ahead of the competition in the area. SEO is not a little something extra to do, you can be sure that it is the foundation for every business that is taking bed and breakfast marketing seriously.
3. Welcome your guests on your website
The beds are made, the eggs are scrambled and the coffee is ready. It’s a given that you’ll need a website when opening a bed and breakfast, but not just any website. It is becoming increasingly easy to build a website yourself, which is great: especially when starting out, this is a great way of saving money.
But when you really want to grow your bed and breakfast business, view your website as a part of the experience guests have when staying with you. We’re not just talking design and high-quality pictures, but also the user-friendliness of your webpage.
Some people will book through second parties, some will find you directly online, and some will come from a second party website to your website, looking to book directly. You’ll want to make sure your booking process is as smooth if not smoother than through second parties. Any glitches that lead to frustration or confusion can cause your website visitors to change their minds and go for a competitor instead.
4. Don’t underestimate the power of offline marketing
Sure, the internet made planning a trip easier than ever. Months in advance, travelers go looking for the best deal out there and map out their entire trip, down to the place where they’ll try a fancy hipster brunch. But that doesn’t mean that you should completely neglect offline marketing efforts.
More and more (young) travelers are ditching the World Wide Web and want to rely on their instincts and luck when traveling. Spontaneous and spur of the moment decisions: isn’t that what makes a trip worthwhile? For those travelers, try to be visible in relevant spots. From curbside promotion to flyers in restaurants or other more creative forms of marketing: find out where the tourists in your area go, where they pass by, and make sure they can’t miss you.
5. Tell a story, everywhere
Let’s be honest here: unless you’re going for a very specific and elaborate theme in your bed and breakfast, it’s hard to really stand out — if we’re not looking at amenities and facilities at least.
Posting pictures of your rooms or the surroundings on a sunny day is a basic way of filling your website and social media channels but if you think about it: Is that really something you want to see when you are looking for a place to stay for your next holiday? People want to picture themselves in a place, and it will take more than pictures to do that.
Storytelling makes it all the more easier, though. Put a little more effort into the content you’re putting out, and you’ll get a lot back in return. Make a vlog of fun things to do in the area, instead of just posting a picture or poster on your social channels. Take people into the experience! You can also do this by writing blog posts for instance.
Even better, let other people tell these stories. Partner up with micro-influencers or share user-generated content. Make sure your guests know how to find you on social media and enable them to share content from their stay and tag you. Not on Instagram yet? It’s about time.
Make sure your content strategy and tone are consistent across all channels. That even goes for websites where you’re advertising your bed and breakfast. Actually, especially there. Put some personality in your descriptions and stand out from the crowd.
6. Your guests are your best marketing employees
Your guests can make or break your marketing efforts in just a few clicks. Be extremely aware of this! Future visitors who are browsing B&Bs in your area will undoubtedly compare the reviews of you and your competitors.
Don’t just hope your guests will leave a nice review after their stay: actively ask them to do so. Risky? Not if you know you are doing everything to ensure them the best experience. Ask them to review your B&B on channels like Google, TripAdvisor, or Facebook. Again don’t rely on just one, as everyone has a preferred source of reviews.
Asking for reviews should not be perceived as pushy. Keep it real and friendly. Timing is the key here. When someone made an online booking, you can easily send an automated email for a review. But hey, asking your guests to leave a review at the end of their stay, is more effective. If you want to give guests an incentive for their review, offer them a discount code. Even if you didn’t get five stars or perhaps some negative feedback, it’s a chance to show – we are listening, we’ll work on it, and we’d love to show you that.
And don’t just focus on new guests. When thinking about marketing, most people think to reach as many people who haven’t heard of your business and convince them to come take a look. While that’s a big part of it, you shouldn’t overlook the people who have already stayed at your B&B.
Humans are creatures of habit after all, and building valuable relationships with repeat guests is profitable than trying to get new ones. Stay active on social media, create an engaging newsletter that will make them miss the fun and, send personalized deals at the right time.
7. Build valuable partnerships
Even though the hospitality market is highly competitive, you’re not alone. Realizing that there are other businesses in your area that would benefit from a stay from your guests and vice versa, will open a new world of possibilities when it comes to marketing.
Not only can you create package deals, but you can also directly benefit from the reach and audience other businesses have built over time. It also makes it easier for your future guests to plan their trip, which will be highly appreciated by those trying to book a trip on which they can completely shut off their brains and just relax.
Want things to run smoothly?
We offer online and offline solutions for bed and breakfasts like yours to manage everything that’s going on. More bookings, less time: we’re all about efficiency. Discover all our hospitality solutions here.
