Forecasting has never been a perfect science. And yet, even for small inns and B&Bs, there's nothing more important right now. To get outta here, you'll need to know where you're going. Forecasts are nothing more than roadmaps. Sometimes you'll follow your route exactly as planned. Sometimes you'll discover something new and adjust your course. In 2010, you'll want a good roadmap to guide your inn, even if you don't know yet which detours you may decide to take along the way.
Sure, you went into this business to get away from the rat race. Got that. Don't want all those rules/schmules that the other schmucks have to deal with everyday. Got that. Your guests love you and if they don't, well, you know what they can do. Yeah, got that.
But here's the thing. 2009 was not a good year for our industry.
Don't let that misleading headline on PAII's website fool you into thinking otherwise. There was no occupancy increase in 2009. There was no increase in ADR in 2009. Did. Not. Happen. 2009 was ugly. That 16% increase PAII is talking about? Old news. Old study. Totally irrelevant to today's situation.
2010 won't be a good year either although my own forecast is that the slide will slow considerably. That is not growth, though, and growth is what inns need to get outta here. Inns will sink or float in 2010 as many don't have the capacity to continue to lose money. Oh, you're selling your inn and don't want to really make a whole lot of changes right now? Good luck with that.
Meanwhile back at the ranch. Some inns will succeed in defying the trends and hold their own or even capture more of the market. Some inns will be able to raise room rates, even as 2010 will bring more sliding of ADR nationwide albeit it a slower slide than we saw in 2009.
Who will these inns be? How can you be sure your inn is one of them?
Inns who have held their own in 2009 are working harder than ever just to stay on an even keel. Can they keep that up another year?
Well, yes, they can. They have no choice.
For innkeepers who will not settle for less than exceptional service, it will come naturally to them. For innkeepers who obsess over their online image and adjust their service, amenities, and prices accordingly, success seems second-nature. It's not.
What are they doing that you could be doing? Obsessing. Not obsessing over what is going wrong but obsessing on how they can improve what they're doing.
Oh yeah, and listening. Listening to guests about what they want and need. Listening to other innkeepers about what has worked (and not worked) for them. Listening to their own hearts about what they can and cannot do at their own inn.
Mix those 3 together and you've got success.
So let's start with the obsessing part. If you don't know what is being said about your inn online TODAY, you're not doing all you can to move your inn forward. Checking stats once a month and making changes based on keyword searches is nice. But it's an adjunct to an online strategy and should never be confused with actually being an online strategy.
So what do you need to know online? Everything. Every blog written about your inn. Every mention in print. Every online review. Every piece of information about your inn in every single directory out there. Everything you learn is actionable. And yes, we'll be talking about how to develop actionable plans soon.
And when you've finished with your daily review of what's being said about you, take a look at your neighboring inns. What do guests like about them? What do they complain about? Don't know? Well, then, don't come complaining to me when their parking lot is full and yours isn't. There's always a reason for that. It's your job to know what that reason is - and to respond to it quickly.
Listening to guests? Innkeepers tell me all the time that they listen to their guests everyday when they're talking with them. But when I ask what they do with that information, the results are often startling. Some make changes immediately, based on 1 guest who may never come back and whose opinion may not be shared by regular guests.
Some ignore complaints, taking them as personal insults and dismissing guests who complain as being "hotel people not B&B people" which seems to make them feel better. Doesn't resolve any issues or use the information to grow. But they feel better.
Rarely do I find an innkeeper who makes notes of those complaints or suggestions for improvements. All those lost opportunities.
In 2010, if you want to thrive, you'll need to tighten up all those loose openings. They won't bring more guests and that is the name of the game. Guests. It's all about the guests. What do your guests like and what would they change? Write it down. Review it every month. Compare notes from last month. Make smart changes that impact the guest stay, keeping your budget tight, and bring more guests.
Listening to other innkeepers? Well, that's a mixed bag from what I see. Innkeepers stick together on key issues in their geographic areas, often to their own demise. Restrictive booking policies are just one example of self-defeating behavior by innkeepers who are often afraid to buck the trend. Why do they need 7 day cancellation policies? Because it takes them that long to rebook, they tell me. Guess what? If it stops guests from booking at your inn, you're losing more guests than you'd lose with last minute cancellations. If you can afford that, great. I have a feeling, though, that you can't.
Listening to other innkeepers effectively includes getting on the phone and talking to the inns in your immediate area on a regular basis. Let them know you have openings. Find out if they have openings on days you're already booked - and send them guests when you can. Stop by and talk to them when you're driving by their inn. That 5-minute chat may bring you 1 new guest this month.
Networking online is fabulous and, if done effectively, willl also bring guests. But there is no replacement for local networking as a way to get more business. The number of innkeepers who tell me they NEVER get referrals from local businesses is truly shocking. I have always found the local community to be an abundance of referrals. It works for me because I work it. It can work for you, too. But you'll have to work it.
Give referrals and they'll come back to you. It's a magic formula. Ask for referrals and most will answer the call when they can. So in 2010, give, give, give. Give referrals as much as you can to each of your local competitors and let them know what you're giving and when you're doing it. Help your neighbors in 2010. Every single day. Besides bringing guests, it also brings good karma and that's always a good thing.
And ask for help from your neighbors, too. Over and over again. Dropping brochures in a rack may have worked in the past. Now you need more. You need each and every local business to know who you are and to want to support you. If they don't know you now, make sure they do before spring of 2010 rolls around.
Obsessing and listening, as necessary as they are to staying on top of this game, are the beginning steps not the end. They'll get you moving across the bridge to better days ahead.
Stay tuned and we'll talk about why in 2010 you'll need to market like its 1999. And how to make use of all that info you're going to have after obsessing and listening and listening more.
Oh and can someone please please please tell PAII that there was no 16% increase in occupancy this year? Referring to old successes may look good on the front page. But they're not doing anything for innkeepers who are living with the reality that the old days are gone and are not coming back. New study please. Or at least, let's move that misleading number off the front page. Please. People have work to do. Pretending won't help. And it just looks silly.
