There are two things that I have noticed, time and time again, that innkeepers neglect, and both need to be reviewed at least annually, and the end/beginning of the year is the perfect time to look at them. The first is to evaluate the past year with respect to marketing efforts (using Google Analytics – or other software if you prefer), monthly performance compared to prior years, and performance of specific rooms.

As you consider how to market your property, it should be almost a no-brainer to think about this: who is your guest? Almost, but not quite. But, if you don’t have a picture of the “typical” guest, your marketing message may be aimed at a target market that is different from your “typical” guest. That points up the importance of building your business by marketing to guests who stay with you, not an arbitrary group you think it would be fun to attract.

Where do bed and breakfast guests come from? How do the find you? At the Mid-Atlantic Innkeeping Conference there were some great presentations. One of the special opportunities was to hear from the members of LocalU, a group of nationally recognized experts in local search – who present papers and seminars on local search opportunities. This one was geared toward B&B’s and small lodging properties. Much of the valuable information has been presented in a blog post by Mike Blumenthal, one of the LocalU members, in the form of a survey of members of the public on how they find a bed and breakfast.

As small business owners, it seems we are constantly receiving calls verifying our business information. In the slower season it can be 4-6 calls per day, though it seems to slow down a bit in the busy season. Not long ago, a thread on an online innkeepers’ forum discussed this issue, and it seemed appropriate to discuss it here, as well, for a broader audience. It is the nature of innkeepers to want to be helpful, so verifying business information seems helpful, painless and appropriate.

[Updated, December, 2014] In our previous posts, we’ve talked about organizing a year end review of your bookings and about the information that will help you identify guest booking trends and stronger or weaker performing rooms, providing an outline of the information you can track (or should start tracking) to prepare you for next year’s review. In this concluding post we’ll talk about a year end review of web analytics, specifically emphasizing paid listings.

The first part of this series discussed the sources of information for our year end review. In this post we’ll look at ways you can “drill down” in the information you have to learn more about the year’s performance. If you haven’t been keeping records that will give you the information, we’ll talk about how to get started keeping those records. We’ll look at two different areas for our year end review.

Wouldn’t it be nice to do a year end review of the year’s bookings and see if there are areas that can be improved? As the calendar year draws to a close, our natural tendency is to take a look at how we did this year. But what will give you that information? Most of us will look at total revenue, total number of room nights sold, and perhaps one or two other statistics, and then hope we’re on track and getting better.

Rules, rules rules. Our lives are filled with rules, and many of them are essential to an orderly civilization. Sometimes, though, it seems that even in a hospitality industry, innkeepers can become consumed with the idea that little signs (house rules) around the house can solve their problems. Rules, rules, rules! But I’m on vacation! Most of us have visited a B&B where there were little cards everywhere you turn. Each card has a rule on it.

This isn’t a rant against Google. Really, it isn’t. But it is an interesting customer service lesson for small businesses, taken from large businesses. Most people who are in business can see first hand the value of good customer service. For small businesses, especially those in hospitality, this is particularly true. In the hospitality business, good customer service can lead to good reviews on TripAdvisor or other services. It can also lead to instant gratification when you see the smiles on the faces of your guests/customers, hear the sincerity in their voices when they thank you for the time they’ve spent at your establishment, and promise to return.