The Innkeeping Blog

Photo of White Doe Inn courtesy of Jumping Rocks Photography

Have you ever tried to get someone to try something you just knew they would like, but found it hard to convince them?  That’s what I feel our industry has been up against for decades – trying to get travelers to try B&Bs.  There is no question with the sharp growth of the industry in the 80s and 90s and the marketing power of the internet since the mid-90s, millions of travelers have experienced our great product.  We have loyal customers who understand the value of a fantastic B&B stay.  But there are many more travelers out there who have never stayed at a B&B – either because of one of the many “myths” or negative perceptions they might already have, or (according to our own research) staying at a B&B doesn’t even cross their minds as an option when booking travel.  Whatever the reason, we all know in our industry what a fantastic product we have.  With the rise of alternative lodging options and the sincere efforts of hotels to deliver an experience more like ours, we need to press forward and start getting more people to book stays at B&Bs.  Our industry has to start doing something different and fresh to enter the consciousness of the traveler.  We want people spreading the word about B&Bs in ways now possible that were impossible before.  Enter – Better Way to Stay.

PAII wants to get more people talking, Tweeting, Re-Tweeting, status updating, sharing, linking, forwarding and emailing about B&Bs.  We don’t want to build another directory.  We want to get more travelers checking out what the industry already has – some great assets that have been around for years.  I’m talking about the B&B directories, travel sites, state and local association web sites, your web sites, and ultimately clicking the “Book Now” button more and more.  As your industry’s trade association, it’s part of our DNA to want to do this.  We want to create buzz and attention for the great businesses in our marketplace.

For years innkeepers have wanted PAII to build an effective directory of our members.  They figured it would be the silver bullet for membership growth and ultimate stability and success for PAII.   The fact is that the horse is out of the barn on that one – several directories have been around since the mid-90s and are leagues ahead of what we could do from a search engine optimization standpoint.  We don’t want to compete with them – or you, the innkeeper!  Building our own directory – if we were to be effective in the search engines – would mean having us compete with you for premium placement on search result pages.  There are some great B&B directories and association web sites that have been delivering value for years to innkeepers.  We don’t want to compete with them – we want to bring more traffic to them!

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Congrats to the Washington B&B Guild for getting some nice exposure in the Snohomish County Business Journal.  Would love to see more of this around the continent.

Jay

I apologize for the blury photo. The lighting in “Juanita Greenberg’s” in Charleston, South Carolina, wasn’t conducive for taking photos with my BlackBerry. Nevertheless, I wanted to capture this image.

The bottom of the menu says, “No separate checks for parties of 6 or more.” What struck me as unfortunate about that policy is that the time when separate checks are needed MOST is when there is a large group of people. Because it’s challenging for most wait staff to divide a check among several different parties, especially when no one raises their hand to offer to pay for the common appetizers, a no-separate-checks policy prevents the hassle. It’s a policy that is not customer friendly, but rather waiter-friendly. That’s backwards, in my opinion.

The policy should say, “For parties of 6 or more, please let your waiter know in advance if you want separate checks at the table.” Even if the patrons don’t let the waiter know about their wish for separate checks, the waiter should do it anyway. Most people have more plastic than cash in their wallets. It’s not as hard as it used to be to divide a bill among many parties.

And how does this relate to innkeeping? One thing I have certainly learned about innkeeping is how hard it is. Because it can be so hard – mostly due to have a small or no staff and attempting to be everything to the guests – innkeepers often set ground rules. These ground rules are usually stated on the policies page of your web site and/or in the confirmation email sent to guests. And these ground rules often keep you from losing your sanity.

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The day began early again. Now that I had learned the breakfast set up routine, I was able to jump right in at 7 a.m. and contribute. We were expecting thirteen guests for the meal, again spread over three different rooms. I lucked out this week, because we had no crazy or mean guests to serve. Everyone was quite affable. The only one who stuck out a bit was a widow who personified the word “loquacious.” We had quite an eclectic group, including a young couple seeking a little romance, young parents and their 5-month old baby, a widow on her way to a spiritual retreat, an Australian visiting the University of Washington on some official academic business, a gay couple, a non-descript baby boomer couple and a mother and daughter checking out the campus. We served yummy ginger spice pancakes, dusted with powder sugar, with an apple salad. It was my good fortune that the mother and daughter in the Sunrise Chamber didn’t show for breakfast, if you get my drift.

The calm after the storm didn’t last long, as Kristen and I were off to the large suites for some room turning. I cleaned the kitchen top-to-bottom, dusted, vacuumed, put new linens on the bed, and inflated an Aero bed for the incoming guests. I was then given the go-ahead to turn a room by myself. Joyce gave me the Scallop Chamber, which is the largest room in the main house. Here was my opportunity to show Joyce that I was coachable and could take on the monumental task of a thorough cleaning.Lesson number one that I learned: gather and organize what you’re going to need, so you don’t have to make too many trips. The Scallop Chamber is on the third floor, and I discovered that what I needed (if it wasn’t stocked in the housekeeping cabinet and linen closet) could have been on floor two, floor one or the basement. There is definitely a method to the madness of housekeeping. You have to anticipate all that you’re going to need. Working a three-floor house can be exhausting, which motivates you to think wisely about how you approach these kinds of projects. Three or four trips up and down the stairs will have you thinking about efficiency! And, what an appreciation I now have for the laundry chute! Open the little door in the wall…drop the dirty linens…voila! They magically appear in the basement, right where you want it all! Unbelievable. Everyone should be so lucky.

I also learned from Kristen that there are lint rollers, and then there are lint rollers. She uses them on the floor in the bathrooms to pick up hair that the naked eye will usually miss. I asked her, “But how do you deal with a wet floor? Won’t the tape just get wet and stop picking up stuff?” Kristen proceeded to take the next three minutes to explain that not all lint rollers are created equal, and that some will actually continue to pick up hair even when wet! Yes it is true ladies and gentlemen – the perfect lint roller exists (according to Kristen), and I intend to contact the company directly to discuss a formal endorsement with PAII.

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