Tourism figures throughout the Covid epidemic have been dire wherever you are in the world, but don’t despair, it’s temporary! People are desperate to travel, so how are you going to make them choose to come and stay with you?
Here are 10 Tips to getting heads in beds:
1. Identify your USP
What’s your Unique Selling Point? What makes your place special, different, unique? If you don’t have a USP then why should anyone book with you? This is one of the most fundamental selling tools, so give it careful thought and create a USP.
2. Enhance the Guest Experience
To get people to book with you, you need to offer something more than just a bed? Work out your target market and provide them with enticements that go above and beyond what they need and expect. For business travellers it could be a dedicated workspace and super-fast WiFi, for tourists it could be toys like canoes and surf boards, guided walks, home-cooked meals, or invitations to local events.
3. Get some Wow Factor
If guests want “home from home” they’ll stay at home! Give them some Wow Factor! This may come simply by the location, but can easily be achieved with bold décor, like this triptych of huge prints from Print Hang Love. Watch the interview with Interior Designer about how to get Wow Factor, which I will post here soon!
4. Be active on social media
Now that you have worked out your USP and enhanced the Guest Experience, shout about it and get noticed. If social media is not your thing, at least get onto Instagram and post pretty pictures of your place and link your Instagram to Facebook, so they appear on both.
5. Change up your Airbnb profile
You should change your Airbnb profile regularly, even by a few words, because Airbnb notice how active you are and put you higher on the listings.
6. Create some Special Offers
Getting people into your accommodation, even at half price, revives the energy of a place and is the start of good things to come and gets recent positive reviews.
7. Look at your Pricing and Commission paid to Airbnb
In Nov 202 Airbnb issued a directive stating that hosts in most countries will now be paying the full 15% commission, with the guest paying nothing over the listed price. There are exceptions, e.g. South Africa remains on the split fee of 3% paid by the host and 14% paid by the guest. For a detailed explanation email me carrieh@iafrica.com and I’ll send you a breakdown of this complicated issue.
8. Do a Fresh Eyes Inspection on your own accommodation
Sign up for the do-it-yourself Fresh Eyes Inspection videos, which take you room by room and open up your eyes to how it could be improved. You may think it’s perfect, but after 18 years of inspecting guest houses, I can assure you it’s not! You just don’t see what’s in front of you because it’s too familiar. The course does what it says; gives you Fresh Eyes to make your establishment the best it can be and better than the competition.
9. Revive your Photos
Now that you’ve identified your USP, improved the Guest Experience and have added some Wow Factor, it’s time for new and better photos. Your pics must look enticing, like this beach vibe terrace at Barrel and Branch. Your images are one of your most important selling tools.
10. Contact Previous Guests
Entice former guests to come back. Contact every previous guest and offer them an incentive to book again. They might not be coming your way, but maybe their friends are, so ask them to circulate your offer to their besties.
GOOD LUCK.
FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME FOR USP AND WOW FACTOR IDEAS.