Promoting the Industry

Our goal is to generate great publicity for BedandBreakfast.com members specifically, and for the B&B industry as a whole. In this issue we cover:

Upcoming Publicity for BedandBreakfast.com members
Ask the Pros

Recent Media Coverage

Current and Upcoming Publicity: June and July
We distributed the following press releases in May and June:

6/7/2007: PLANES, TRAINS BUT NO AUTOMOBILES – CAR-FREE MEANS CAREFREE: BedandBreakfast.com says don’t be careless, go car-less this summer

5/22/2007: HOW DOES MY MUSHROOM GROW & OTHER CULINARY ADVENTURES: BedandBreakfast.com scopes out exciting interactive culinary adventures

5/15/2007: BEDANDBREAKFAST.COM MEMBERS OFFER FREE GAS FOR B&B TRAVELERS: B&Bs across America offer relief at the pumps just in time for Memorial Day & summer travel season

We’re currently working on the following press releases for distribution in mid-June through July. If you haven’t already contributed, do so today!

Camp for Adults and Other Over-the-Top packages: Kids get to go to camp; why not adults? We are doing a roundup of B&B camps for adults, along with packages where money is no object, and the list of inclusions will wow both inngoers and the media. We are not looking for standard romance or adventure packages; we want packages that are unusual and unique, ideally with a camp theme or a fabulous week-long itinerary for adults. If you have an offering that qualifies, please send it to Marti@BedandBreakfast.com with all details, rates, and validity dates.

A Guy’s Guide to B&Bs: Men have many misconceptions about B&Bs; this release will define what’s great about B&Bs for guys, and will highlight a few examples of packages and/or amenities (like fishing, geo-caching, kayaking, mountain biking, sports cars for guests’ use, etc.) that appeal to both men and women. Any inns that qualify will be required to offer uncluttered frou-frou free décor that appeal to both sexes. If you feel you have a package and/or property that qualifies, please send details to Marti@BedandBreakfast.com.

Grand Travel: BedandBreakfast.com will send a release covering Grandparent-Grandchild travel, just in time for Grandparents’ Day on September 9. If you offer a package geared toward grandparents or multi-generational travel, please send the details including everything offered, the rate and the date(s) the package is available to Marti@BedandBreakfast.com.

Business Traveler-friendly B&Bs: In talking to a reporter from a major national newspaper recently, it became clear that we still have some work in dispelling myths about B&Bs being business traveler-friendly. We ask that you complete a short survey (five questions) to ascertain statistics and trends about how many B&Bs offer free WiFi and other amenities useful for business travelers that we can share with the media. Click here to take the survey.

Silver-level members and above may post specials; simply log in with your Property ID and password. Select Specials from the table in your Home Base. Enter appropriate offers for Free Gas Promotion and summer  packages. Bronze member? Please click here to upgrade.

Important Reminder: While we include as many members as possible in BedandBreakfast.com press releases, limited space makes it impossible to include everyone. Offers that include a small discount, or are too restrictive or unimaginative will not pique the media’s attention. Please remember to be as creative as possible when designing your specials and packages. Take some time to review other specials on the site, and see which ones appeal to you. Like the media, the editors at BedandBreakfast.com are drawn to creative offers.
      

Ask the Pros: What’s all the talk about photography? Why is it so important?

A: A few years ago on the way to the Bed and Breakfast Inns of Colorado Annual Conference, I struck up a conversation with my airline seatmate. When I told her where I was going, she asked, “What’s the most important thing you tell innkeepers?” My instant answer was: “Good photography is more important than any other marketing tool.”

Good photography is the basis for strengthening every piece of online or printed collateral you use. We’re a visual society. Most people don’t have time to bother with words, and they let pictures tell the story. Your website visitors will quickly move on if they’re not immediately “wowed” by your photos. You pick up brochures with beautiful photos, not those with a collage of miniscule thumbnail photos. Email newsletters are equally strengthened by the quality of your photos. Compelling photography produces reservations—just ask any innkeeper who’s made the switch.

If you attended the Select Registry or PAII conferences recently, the need for good photography was made loud and clear. Yet many innkeepers are either unconvinced of the importance of investing in good photography or simply not making it a marketing priority. Let’s examine and discuss some of these innkeeper fallacies.

Fallacy #1: I know my pictures don’t do my inn justice, but I would rather have my guests be pleasantly surprised when they arrive.
 

Sunset Room, Brampton Inn, Chestertown, MD. Photo credit: Jumping Rocks

Take a careful look at your photos as they appear on the Internet. Are they in focus and correctly exposed? Remember: your pictures are a reflection of the quality of your property. The better their quality – in terms of focus, definition and clarity – the better your look-to-book ratio will be. Check your Web stats for your “bounce” or “click-away” rate; that will give you a good idea of the effectiveness of your website photos. You want photos that allow prospective guests to project themselves into the room.

Fallacy #2: My rooms just don’t photograph well.
The best way to get great photos of your inn is to use an experienced professional photographer who can show you samples of his/her work, both online and in print. To get an idea of what great inn photography looks like, visit Rare Brick and Jumping Rocks Consulting. You'll get a feel for the kind of photography that generates reservations. If you've worked with a terrific photographer, please spread the news – we're building a list of recommended photographers. If you'd like a copy of the list so far, please email Sarah.Stiles@BedandBreakfast.com.

If using a pro is not an option, consider these tips:

• Use digital photos, so you can instantly review them on your computer, and fix what needs changing.

• Turn on all the lights in the room; add supplemental lights if needed.

• Take pictures at different times of the day, then select the images that show off the room in the best light.

• If photographing bathrooms, fill the tubs with bubble bath to make them more inviting.

• Always show the fireplaces with a fire burning, even if you just need to light some crumpled newspapers to get the shot.

• If you are not able to get a great photograph of an entire room, or your whole inn, concentrate on smaller interesting features.

• Shoot guestrooms from different angles, not just a straight shot of the bed.

• Take a careful look at the photos on the websites of other inns, and pay attention to what works and what doesn't. Then apply these lessons to your own pictures.

Photos still not up to par? Maybe the problem is not just the photography! Consider freshening your décor with new curtains, bedspreads, lamps, paint and/or wallpaper. Use fresh flowers, not faded artificial ones. If you can't see the forest for the trees, reduce the clutter that's crept into your rooms over the years.

Fallacy #3: All I need to show are photos of a couple of guest rooms.
You’ll need an excellent exterior photo, shot during different seasons, plus small and large-size photos of every guest room (yes, guests want to see where they’ll be sleeping, so each room should be photographed and displayed on your website). It’s also a good idea to offer shots of things to do around the inn, to remind guests that one night is not enough to fully enjoy your inn and the area.

Guests want to see the grounds, the common areas, the inn's exterior, the innkeepers, and even the pets. Photos of area attractions in different seasons are important as well. Stay focused on the guest's point of view. A close-up image of a garden flower is beautiful but irrelevant. If the inn's gardens are a highlight, then take a photograph of the garden, with a garden chair and a book open on the seat in the foreground, with a glass of iced tea ready to be sipped.

Whether your inn is surrounded by bird-life or wildlife, or located in an urban setting, surrounded by familiar sites, create a sense of place with your photos using those surroundings. Perhaps pumpkins are your thing in the fall. Update your website with seasonal pictures depicting your signature décor.

Woodstock Inn, Independence, MO. Photo Credit: Rare Brick	Run of the River Inn & Refuge, Leavenworth, WA. Photo Credit: Connie Coleman

Your picture can tell such intriguing stories that guests will want to find out more, and the media will too. Whether it’s a newspaper, magazine, TV or online story, your pitches utilizing good photography will always get more attention than words alone.

What’s the story? Look how the Historic Inns of Rockland have used photos by PJ Walter to entice the media to cover their packages and events. Believe it or not, the photo of the pie ladies has generated close to half a million dollars in coverage, including a special show on the Food Network called Pie a la Road.

Recent BedandBreakfast.com Media Coverage
For the fourth year in a row, BedandBreakfast.com’s Tanks a Lot free gas promotion and subsequent release about car-less travel have picked up some great coverage.
 
CNNMoney.com said “BedandBreakfast.com has compiled a list of inns across the U.S. that offer special discounts and packages. Some B&Bs provide room discounts, gas cards, dinner vouchers and money toward a gallon of gas.”

In a story about fuel rebates for summer travelers, USA TODAY, BedandBreakfast.com’s Tanks a Lot promotion was spotlighted, mentioning that many inns offer $25 or more in gas incentives. USA TODAY also named BedandBreakfast.com among the best lodging sites on the web.

Home and Away magazine picked up USA TODAY’S story for AAA members in the Midwest.

We got great feedback from the media on the press release about traveling car-less to B&Bs around the world. That story was picked up in a number of different media, including AOL Money, Yahoo, Forbes.com, the LA Times, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. It was even highlighted on CarfreeUSA, a blog dedicated to car-free travel.

Kiplinger.com re-ran a story about BedandBreakfast.com’s Hot Deals, saying, “To find 11th-hour bed-and-breakfast getaways, sign up for free weekly e-mails from BedandBreakfast.com. Every Wednesday, you'll receive a list of places offering deals of 20% or more off regular rates for the upcoming weekend in the city, state or region you prefer to visit. For instance, on two days' notice you could have recently booked a stay at the Brass Lantern Inn, in Nantucket, Mass., for $113 a night, versus the regular rate of $225 a night.”

The Capital Times and Madison.com, the newspaper of Madison, WI included a story about BedandBreakfast.com’s culinary packages, mentioning Abella Garden Inn, in Arroyo Grande, CA, Munro House Bed and Breakfast in Jonesville, MI, Wolf Creek Farm in Ararat, VA, and Blue Harbor House in Camden, Maine.

A story about saving on lodging deals in the Dallas Morning News mentioned BedandBreakfast.com as a great resource for worldwide B&B listings.

A trip from BedandBreakfast.com was a prize on the wheel for the Wheel of Fortune that aired on Labor Day. Click here to see a clip.

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