ANNOUNCING:
Guest's
Greatest Picks
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We are excited to announce the launch of
Guest's Greatest Picks offering our readers and your fans the opportunity to cast their vote nominating your B&B as the BEST in over 80 categories including our distinguished Inn of the Year award.
It's as Simple as 1-2-3 to start receiving Nominations:
- Place our Vote button on your website.
- Tell your guests, family and friends that you're up for a Nomination and would appreciate their support.
- Receive 1 email per week listing the categories for which your B&B has been nominated.
Positive referrals are the best way to build your business, one satisfied customer at a time. We look forward to supporting your success. Winners will be announced annually in our guidebook, website, newsletters, press affiliates and directly to the voter.
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Developing Business Clientele
at a Small Property
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by Rolf Hammer, 18 year Innkeeping Veteran
Homestead Inn
The former owner/operators of the Homestead Inn for 18
years, Peggy and Rolf Hammer have a lot to share from their experiences
developing a clientele of repeat business travelers. The 15 room property was
founded in 1928 and was the leading property in town for many years, but when
the Hammer's acquired it in 1985, the B&B was tired and offered little in
the way of hospitality besides very low rates. In spite of having no room
phones or food service, two major corporations consistently provided a
surprising number of midweek business travelers: Kimberly Clark and Nestle.
Over the next several years, the Hammer's made substantial
improvements and established the property as a bed and breakfast inn, attractive
to both business AND leisure travelers, with very good results. Through this
process they learned a great deal about how to furnish, market and operate a
small property that satisfies both business travelers and leisure guests. read more...
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Featured B&B Cities:
Powerful Destination Marketing
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Our twice-monthly B&B Travel Newsletter goes out to thousands of opt-in subscribers, recommending cities, things to do, what to eat and so much more. Most importantly, we take great lengths to feature member properties, highlighting your current specials. Our featured destinations are in-depth, helpful and one of the most popular sections of LanierBB.com Our most recent issues featured these International, Canadian and U.S. destinations:
Contact us to consider your area as a Featured Destination and inclusion in an issue of
the B&B Travel Newsletter. We'll get your inn's name in front of
thousands of potential guests who have requested to hear about B&B getaways and specials (we throw in a few recipes for fun). We'd like to know what makes your location special and a few things to do or see that you recommend.
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Ask Marie
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How do I promote Business Services on my website without confusing my regular B&B guest?
- Jamie Logue
Innkeeper
Dear Jamie,
Thank you for contacting me, believe it or not, I have a simple answer for you. Have your website developer create a new page on your website that is 100% dedicated to the Business Traveler. It would be best if you provide your developer with the following components to create this page:
- 500 words (approx.) describing what Business Services you offer and how your bed and breakfast is the ideal lodging option for their next trip. NOTE: Make sure that approximately 2% of the content you write are your keywords (typically "bed and breakfast" and "business travel," you may also want to add in the name of your city, but no more than that).
- Corporate Rates if you choose to create a special price structure for business travelers.
- Special savings and ongoing added value you are offering business travelers, if any.
- 2-3 images that show guests business friendly amenities at your Inn (such as an image of a guestroom with a desk and lamp, an image of a common room where your guest may meet with business associates, and a full hot breakfast they may look forward to). Make sure to label each image so that your website developer knows what to name the image in their programming.
- A list of keywords that describe your business services for the website developer to place in your Page Source (example: fax, wireless internet, desk, cable and so forth).
- The website address your developer should assign to the new page (for example: www.mybedandbreakfast.com/businesstravelers).
- Your Contact Information and/or automatic reservation capability on this page (your web developer should already know how to set this up, but you want to make sure it happens, even if as simple as a way for the customer to call and email you).
While this might sound like a lot to compile, it really should not take you more than a few hours to write the words, gather the images, create a few specials, and email off to your developer. This step will provide search engines like Google with information they need to identify you as a business lodging option while delivering the business traveler with a clear understanding of how your B&B is going to suit their needs.
Best of luck, please do email me when you get this page up and running, it would be my pleasure to take a look and give you some constructive feedback.
All my best,
Marie Lanier
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Need to speak with a Lanier staff member?
Please contact us by email:
lanier@travelguides.com
or by phone:
707-763-0271 (USA and Canada)
001-707-780-3338 (International)
We look forward to helping you in any way we can. - The Lanier Team
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Yesterday I presented at CABBI in Monterey, California on the subject of Creating and Maximizing your Niche Marketing. If you were unable to attend or are not located in California and would like to learn more about this subject, please take a look at these similar Articles at your convenience (all stored in our Innkeepers' Article Archive):
- "Theming your Inn to Increase Occupancy"
- "Marketing a Couple's Getaway"
- "Skiing Inn to More Profits"
- "B&B Market Niche Definition"
The week before last Marie and I were the keynote speakers at The Seminar at Sea, presenting topics including Social Networking, Destination Marketing, How to be Green and Profiting from your Floor Space. If you would like Marie or myself to present a 1 - 2 hour workshop at your local association, complimentary for all B&B Associations, please contact our Association Liaison, Jane Asher, by email at: jasher@travelguides.com
Creative marketing does pay off and often times it's simpler than one would think. A little time and even less money, and you've expanded your reach to more guests, more often.
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Business Search
for Guests
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Update your LanierBB.com listing by checking off our Business Amenity category if it applies to your Inn.
Guests are defining their searches by Amenities and nearby Attractions, make sure you're included by checking off those Amenities that are relevant to your Inn:
- Antiques
- Architecture
- Beach/Shoreline
- Business Services
- Colleges/Universities
- Diet/Vegetarian
- Education
- Family Friendly
- Farm Activities
- Golf
- Gourmet Food
- Green
- Handicapped Accessible
- Historic Inn
- Jacuzzi/Hot Tub Available
- Landmarks/Historic Sites
- Museums/Galleries/ Theatres
- National Parks
- Outdoor Setting
- Outdoor Sports
- Pet Friendly
- Romance
- Smoking Permitted
- Spa Services on Premises
- Specialty Items for Purchase
- Specialty Services
- Sports Arena
- Summer Sports
- Theme/Amusement
Parks - Weddings/Reunions
- Winery
- Winter Sports
Click here to log-in with your ID# 666999666 and check-off your Amenities today.
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