We Asked: What percent of total revenues do you spend on advertising? Comment on changes, trends, and effectiveness, please

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Question for our next issue: From quilters to scrapbookers, railfans to bikers, business travelers to pet lovers, kid-friendly accommodations to romantic escapes, what have been your experiences with niche marketing?

"The percentage of my overall revenue spent on advertising doesn't sound like much -- 5% -- but when there's a comma in the number, it sure looks like a lot coming out of my checkbook! The percentages really start adding up when you figure what percent is being spent on maintenance, what percent is linens, what percent for food, for amenities, for utilities, and I don't even want to talk about the mortgage. So that 5% for advertising becomes significant. I'm aware that without spending money on advertising, I won't have 'heads in the beds', but without spending money on linens, those folks won't have any beds to put their heads in, and without maintenance, there won't be any place to put the beds, either. For me, 5% is the Magic Number - 4% doesn't bring in enough people, and 10% is overkill." Sandee Wright, Timberwolf Creek Bed & Breakfast, Maggie Valley, NC

"A specialty at our B&B is fresh eggs from our small flock of hens. Last year we hosted guests in their mid-twenties from Washington, DC. The young woman asked if she could gather the eggs from the hens. A city girl, she had never been around live chickens, let alone gather eggs. She came in from the hen house with a basket full of eggs looking a little puzzled and confused. 'Mrs. Chandler,' she asked, 'Do eggs come from where I think they do?' Trying to keep from laughing, I replied, 'Yes dear, that's why we do not eat the shell.' The next morning she never touched her scrambled eggs!" Dianna Chandler, Grandma's Cottage Bed and Breakfast, Port Republic VA

"The inn I am running now has eight rooms and spends just under $5,000 a year on advertising (we have a 80% occupancy rate). Prior to this I managed an eight-room inn with two apartments; we spent $3,500 a year with a 70% occupancy rate in the same city. Thirty miles from here, I ran a 14-room inn with a 52% occupancy rate that only spent $3,000 a year on advertising for the inn, with an additional $10,000 on advertising for the attached restaurant. In another situation, I managed a 14-room property in a medium-sized resort town (no restaurant). It had a 60% occupancy rate and had spent $7,000 every year for four years prior to my running it. I was there for 18 months, and increased the marketing budget to $11,000. The occupancy rate only rose to 71%, but the gross revenue went up by $140,000. I thought this was a pretty good return on a $4,000 investment!

"As an inn manager, I find that many owners aren't willing to spend enough on advertising and marketing budgets. Some of the owners I worked for never budged on the topic and I finally realized they were happy with their low occupancy rates. Others were interested in increasing their occupancy, but in the end weren't willing to write the check. For these owners I had this solution. (It's risky but if you truly believe in what you are doing, then why not?) I tell them to think of the money spent on "extra" advertising as an advance on my pay. If it pays off (i.e. pays for itself twice over) it won't come out of my pay. If it doesn't pay for itself then it will be deducted from a future paycheck. Then I get to pick and choose where the money is going to go and how much will be spent. So far I haven't had to take any of the advances out of my paycheck! " Lydia Pena Simone, The Inn at Dupont Circle, Washington, DC

"I spend from 5-7% of my gross revenues per year on advertising directly; the cost that is not included is the time spent by the innkeeper and owner keeping track of the advertising. This is difficult." Rosemary Cottages Bed and Breakfast, Inverness, CA