by Heather T. | Nov 19, 2024 | Bed and Breakfasts, Lodging, Marketing, Operations, Starting a Business
I’m looking forward to being at the Midwest Inns Association Innkeeping Conference the first week of December.
In advance of that I did a new version of my marketing checklist geared specifically towards Bed and Breakfasts that I hope some people might find helpful.
This list can be a guide for aspiring innkeepers OR for innkeepers that want to up their marketing game a little and maybe explore some things they haven’t thought of or tried prior.
This is meant to be a working document for innkeepers, so you can download this list in Excel, go the file menu and then to “download”. If you use Google docs/drive, you can also make your own copy to edit it by going to the file menu and then “make a copy”.
I know I promised to do “A questions to ask a Inn Broker“, and that’s coming next. In putting together questions, I thought it would be helpful to give some more explanation behind each question and it’s been turning from a short form blog post into a bit of a novel.
by Heather T. | Aug 30, 2024 | Business, Marketing, Observations, Operations, Reputation Management
Back in February of 2020, I wrote a post about a crisis management plan for social media (A Social Media Strategic Plan for Crisis. An Outline for Bed and Breakfasts and Other Businesses) I had written it a few years back for a business client and yesterday did a workshop on Reputation Management and was going to share the checklist I had made up.
In reviewing it, a LOT has changed in just four years (Yikes!), so I updated it with some new information, and wanted to put the new version out there so if it’s useful to anyone, I hope it is of help.
My feeling is that with all the shoot first and ask questions later (i.e. “your business did this” and it’s a hot button for people, but that may not be actually the real story) that goes on in social media and online reviews and discussion, it’s better to be prepared in case something does happen, with the hope it never does, then try to scramble to regroup after the fact.
Please keep in mind the reference links to Facebook and other social links change every few years, but they are up to date as of now. In the future, if a link has moved, it’s best to go into every platform’s help section and search for the topic and you will typically find an updated link.
The Chess Piece
The horse chess piece image speaks to me about this topic because the piece is probably, in my opinion, one of the strongest and can be used the most strategically, and it moves the most unconventionally compared to the other pieces. Many chess players consider it as a key piece in winning a game, but can also be one of the weakest. Because knights are bound by a fixed number of movements, they are particularly vulnerable to traps.
When dealing with an online social media crisis, a business can be the knight that saves itself or it can fall into the trap of handling things not the right way, making things worse OR getting complacent and thinking a crisis has passed and stops monitoring, or stops being prepared to deal with if is not “done”.
You can download the plan in (PDF) Social Media Strategic Plan for Crisis or MSWord Social Media Strategic Plan for Crisis or Google Docs (make a copy or download) Social Media Strategic Plan for Crisis. This is an outline and checklist to be changed, or tweaked as needed, and to customize it to your own business.
by Heather T. | Feb 12, 2024 | Business, Food, Marketing, Observations, Operations, restaurants
Recently there was an article on Eater. “Why not bring takeout containers to restaurants?” and I thought, wow this is such a great idea (not rocket science obviously) but I should start doing this. What a great way to save the environment and, by the way, save our favorite restaurants a few bucks in the bargain.
Which, of course, led to the inevitable 2 AM neurodivergent thought, OH!, how can a restaurant leverage this? There must be restaurants doing this already, and of course, there were and there are. Restaurants give discounts to diners who bring their own dishes (2019) and many more. One thing that I noticed though about the restaurants and other food service operations that offered this is there didn’t seem to be a ton of thought into “targeted” getting people back in the door. Some offered discounts off of a future meal, some off of a current meal, some free refills (for beverages) but not much real upselling.
From a customer funnel point of view, if you want to think about getting repeat customers back in the door, what’s the incentive to get them back in PLUS the incentive to spend more money?
I’d love to see a restaurant out there (and maybe there is, let me know!) who would offer the incentive “BYOC (Bring Your Own Container)” and get a voucher/coupon for a free coffee or tea and our signature dessert.
Why that? Coffee or tea doesn’t cost most to provide and if you created the incentive wisely a signature dessert could cost a few dollars or less to make. Tiramisu is cheap to make, so is a scoop of homemade (or a good prepared) mousse with some flavored whipped cream to zip it up. Dessert has a much higher profit margin on it typically than an entrée or appetizer.
If you just give them a discount or small incentive, it doesn’t do much for repeats, it can help, but what’s the upsell part of it?
If you get them to come in and get drinks, maybe an appetizer and a couple of entrees (make the must order an entrée as part of the small print on the coupon), it’s an incentive to get people in the door and spent money first.
Even if it’s a couple who come in regularly and they bring two takeout containers, give them two vouchers. If you look at it from the perspective of how is any different from giving them a $10 off coupon their next meal, it is different because your incentive is to give them something for free but they have to spend money first. Even without a couple ordering appetizers, if a couple’s tab is a couple of entrees (mid-priced restaurant average) 17.99 X 2, plus a couple of soft drinks (up the take if it’s beer or wine) 2.50 X 2, and the regular check average is $50.00 and you just “gave away” $3.50 in product, when it boils down to it that’s pretty inexpensive marketing. If your price points for your menu items are higher, the ratios are even better.
You actually get three birds with this: promoting eco-friendly practices, saving money on your own to go containers and getting people in the door for repeat dining. Even if you encourage regulars to give them to others, that’s not a bad thing, it increases brand awareness and you get the same result; you get more people in the door and they order the big-ticket items like entrees (and if your waitstaff is good at the in-person upsell, high profitably drinks).
If you are going to try any incentives like this, make sure they contribute to your bottom line.
I’ve seen too many restaurant coupons that just give a discount with no stipulations on use or no incentive to get people to buy more.
So if you create an initiative to bring in customers, track through what you get out of it. Is it a onetime sale, something that will get people to come in many times or something that will make people spend more money because of the incentive itself?
There were a couple of good articles I came across in searching for restaurants that did have to go container incentives that I think would be worth a read.
How can restaurants take advantage of sustainable packaging?
What Are Reusable Food Container Programs?
By the way, my first book just got released on Amazon this weekend in Paperback and on Kindle! Check it out! Finding a Location for your Restaurant: How to Scout the Perfect Location for your Dream of Opening a Restaurant or other Hospitality Business.
by Heather T. | Nov 8, 2023 | Food, Marketing, Observations, Operations, restaurants
A recent inquiry from an individual interested in gaining insights into my approach during restaurant audits inspired this post. While I can’t disclose specific client information due to confidentiality, I can give some examples of things I typically assess when evaluating a restaurant or other hospitality establishment.
It’s important to clarify that this pertains to my private business clients, not those from SCORE mentoring.
Whenever my husband and I dine out or when I’m out with friends or business associates, I tend to analyze various elements of the dining experience, including visuals, menu offerings and design, food quality, food presentation and service. It’s hard for me to turn off the evaluation gerbil wheel in my brain. But at least I’m easy to get along with while dining out because the food has to be really, really bad for me to complain.
I gave some examples of a recent dining experience my husband and I had, highlighting aspects I would typically take note of during a restaurant audit and thought I’d put them into print.
Please note that this covers only the front-of-house visual aspects and doesn’t come close to a comprehensive audit, which includes over 200 touchpoints or the examination of kitchen operations and food quality.
I always encourage owners and managers to “be” a customer and evaluate the space as often as possible. Sit at an empty table for a little while during service or at the end of the bar and just observe.
If you’re paying attention, you can always find room for improvement.
Here are a few things that we noted while dining that could use some TLC to enhance better guest/customer satisfaction, check averages, and tip averages.
Enhanced Specials Promotion:
As we entered the restaurant, we noticed a low-standing sandwich board with the day’s specials. Unfortunately, it wasn’t eye-catching for walk-in customers, and while we visually saw it on entering, we didn’t stop to read it, assuming that the specials would be repeated in some way when we sat down.
Our server and the server who came to take a neighboring tables order didn’t mention the specials without us specifically asking. The specials weren’t visibly posted inside or available in printed form. When we inquired, our server directed us to the board outside. In this scenario, the restaurant missed an opportunity to effectively promote its specials, and the server missed a chance to increase her tip by just verbalizing the specials instead of asking us to get up and walk halfway through the restaurant and around the corner to view them.
Seating Comfort Assessment:
An uncomfortably cold draft from a floor vent under our chair caught our attention. This is why I recommend that owners and managers sit in every seat within the restaurant in all seasons. They should evaluate whether the air conditioning or heating causes discomfort, whether drafts exist, and whether the music volume is excessive in certain areas. Adequate lighting for reading menus is also a key consideration.
Convenience in Restrooms:
Restrooms should have hooks and/or a small table in all-gender bathrooms for patrons to hang their bags or coats. Placing personal items on the floor is often considered unhygienic; in this instance, there was no space on the toilet tank or the narrow sink.
During colder months, having a place to hang coats is particularly appreciated. People may be entering the restrooms while waiting for a table and before they sit down (and may still have their coats on) or after paying the check and preparing to leave.
Safety Concerns in the Kitchen:
It’s important not to have glass drinking glasses in the kitchen on the line. Several times, we observed servers passing glasses of soda directly to line cooks through the pass-through window, and we could see them placed on the line right above the stove area. This practice can lead to accidents, such as glass breaking and falling into food. Proper safety protocols are essential, i.e., using plastic vs glass.
Discreet Refilling:
Refilling ketchup bottles from a #10 can in the dining area can be unappetizing to customers. Although ketchup has a long shelf life, it’s best not to expose the refilling process to patrons. Moreover, maintaining cleanliness and sanitization is crucial for the condiment containers. While many restaurants do this and ketchup has a very long shelf life, A. I don’t want to see it as a customer; I noticed because I notice these things, but most customers do notice and it sticks in their subconscious as an “ewwww” factor. B. I’d question when the last time these refilled bottles were cleaned out totally and sanitized. Our bottle was about ½ full, and my husband’s ketchup and my ketchup from the same bottle were two different colors of red.
Effective Upselling:
Our server missed opportunities for upselling both drinks and desserts. No ask to see if we would like coffee or dessert, just an ask if we wanted the check. Encouraging customers to explore the bar menu or offering dessert options at the end of the meal can significantly increase overall sales and enhance the dining experience.
Adequate Space Between Tables and Chairs:
While maximizing seating capacity is important for revenue, it’s equally crucial to ensure customer comfort and ease of movement. Waitstaff should have ample space to take orders, serve food and drinks, and clear tables without inconveniencing customers.
(If you were wondering about the above photo, this is a perfect example from the restaurant in question; how much room would there be if someone was sitting in the other seat? There is already not enough room to walk between chairs without bumping into the bag).
When laying out a dining room and estimating space, chairs should not pushed into the table but should be pulled out enough as if someone was sitting in each seat, plus some extra space for handbags or backpacks and coats to hang in the winter (especially if there is no coat rack, as in this case).
There is nothing worse for a customer than having to ask people not to just move their “stuff” but to actually have to get up so someone could get out to use the restrooms or to leave.
It’s even worse if you have waitstaff juggling hot food or a tray of drinks. If your dining room layout reminds you at all of a full flight in an airplane with tiny seats, cramped space, etc., you really need to rethink your layout. What you may sacrifice in a seat or two, you will make up in spades from happy waitstaff and repeat customers.
As an owner or manager of a restaurant, most improvements can be gleaned just by taking the time to observe and to ask your staff for suggestions and improvements.
A consult I did a few years ago where we asked the staff for suggestions (and this had never been done before there) resulted in many ideas that saved the owner money, and made the working environment easier to use through flow suggestions and more productive for staff because suggestions were implemented, and staff appreciated the fact that they were listened to.
These observations are not meant to be critical but rather constructive to pinpoint areas where improvement can enhance the return on investment (ROI) and the return on the total investment (ROTI). ROTI can also be Return on Time Investment, which also applies in this case.
by Heather T. | Oct 10, 2023 | Blog, Marketing, Observations
What are rack cards?
Rack cards are tall and narrow, generally measuring 4 inches in width by 9 inches in height. They’re often used to target prospective customers or guests in areas with heavy foot traffic, like tourist kiosks, tradeshows, or conferences.
The point of a rack card is to drive people to your website and to put as much pertinent information about your business in a graphically appealing way for people to pick up and either go directly to your website and/or take it home to investigate further.
What are some of the benefits of rack cards?
The major difference between a rack card and a brochure is that it’s generally cheaper to print a rack card. When people pick up rack cards, they’ll generally keep them around longer, too. Other perks? A rack card professionally designed costs less because it’s one piece of paper, usually double-sided, not three double-sided panels, like a brochure.
The paper they’re printed on is generally heavier (and if you are going with an online or local printer, make sure they use the heaviest paper stock available.) People will pick up a rack card and flip it over, look at both sides for information, and decide if they will keep it. If they pick a brochure or trifold up, they might often put it back, especially at a tradeshow or tourism kiosk when they don’t usually have two hands-free to look through it and open it up.
What are some key things to consider when designing a rack card?
The top half of the rack card is the most important. If you’re thinking of having your rack card displayed through a tourism distribution company to find out where the cards will be distributed, then do a drive-by (if possible) to see what the existing rack cards in those locations look like.
You want to see what kind of rack card holders they have and take some pictures. I’d also pick up other businesses’ rack cards to get ideas and to see what the competition is doing for advertising.
When browsing kiosks, bring a notebook and take photos of the racks. What attracts your attention? What doesn’t work (like the rack cards with names hidden at the bottom behind the rack shelf)?
When designing, keep in mind the top one-third to almost half of the card will only be visible, so make sure your business name and an eye-catching photo or image are at the top; a location for your business helps as well.
Business Branding
I’m a big believer that you should be consistent if you have established colors you’re using for your business. Your business cards, website, or anything you use for advertising. It’s super important to be consistent.
I’ve seen so many rack cards and brochures that don’t even have contact information on them, and that’s completely crazy, but it happens.
New businesses might have a website in development and not have any other branded materials done, they should identify the colors and fonts they like and stick with those. The promotional material should always be an extension of your business. I’d recommend you use two font choices and three colors at most.
If you don’t have a website done yet and you are under the gun to get some print material out, try to leave a bit of white space at the bottom of either the front or back of the rack card where you can print up your website on clear Avery labels and add later to the cards when your website is finished so if you have a ton of printed cards left you can use them up before having to re-print.
Photos
Always try to use photos; line drawings are nice, and they can have their place, but don’t put that line logo, if that’s what you use, in a prominent spot because photos are what drive people and especially what drives people to pick up rack cards.
I suggest businesses use photos that showcase their unique offerings. Try not to use stock images if possible, and if you are going to use them, make sure they are legally bought and not from a free stock photo site.
If using photos of clients or customers, it’s crucial to have permission to use them; a written photo release is highly suggested and imperative if using photos of children.
Before you get your rack cards printed, print out a sample and place it four feet from you, with the bottom half (and maybe a little higher) folded over so you can’t see it. Can you read the text? Are the image and colors eye-catching, or does it have too much detail for text and imagery, and you can’t see clearly what it is or what it represents?
Messaging
Have a headline and a tagline for the front. You really want your rack card to be a driver for people to get online with their smartphones right away or to scan a QR code and go straight to your website.
If using a QR code, make sure it’s static (unless you want to pay a monthly fee) and not dynamic. Static QR codes cannot be edited once created. Dynamic QR codes offer you the flexibility to edit QR code content as many times as you would like but usually require a paid monthly service to use them. Some QR code creator sites offer a free trial to use a static QR code and then charge if you want to edit it, read the fine print.
If you have a nice logo and/or if the logo has your business name clearly visible, go ahead and put it near the top or incorporate it into the photo. In the top part, you can also include a call to action, like “make a reservation” or “call now!“
I’ve seen some great rack cards that say, “Bring in this card and get 10% off”, or “Sign up for our online newsletter and get access to ongoing special offers or discounts.” It’s an incentive for people to take that rack card home too.
It would be best if you honored your promotion whenever that card/code is redeemed, so think through your offer carefully.
Aside from the top messaging, your rack card should include a short paragraph about your business and five to seven bullet points on the back. Make sure there’s plenty of white space. Try not to cram information or use too small a text; you are aiming for easy readability for every age.
Remember to include your business’s name, phone number, address, and website. If you’re active on social media, put a text link to your Facebook page and other social pages. Don’t just say, “Find us on Facebook,” or just put the icon for a social media channel. People want instant gratification, and the way social media channels and handles are, they may find a business with a similar name, not yours and they usually won’t bother searching if it’s not the right one. Put the actual full URL, i.e. facebook.com/janedoeinn or facebook.com/jane-doe-inn.
Try only to put in pricing if you know it’s going to stay the same. It’s OK to include a price range and point readers to your website for more information. However, printing your exact prices may mean you’ll have to incur printing and distribution costs frequently to keep your rack cards up-to-date or have someone insist that your business honor something in print. A price range provides you with more flexibility or putting no pricing at all.
Printing
In terms of printing, make sure you print in a matte finish despite the lure of ‘glossy.’ Tourism centers have exterior light coming in, and the gloss finish causes a reflection. Trade shows are frequently held in very large areas with bright light that can cause reflections.
Once someone picks a rack card, they’ll see your complete design but if it’s in the holder and your card is competing for attention, you’ll get a lot of reflection from natural and fluorescent light that may hamper your chance with that prospective customer.
As mentioned prior, You will also want to invest in a heavy card stock. You will see people in some tourism centers pick up a rack card, and if it flops (because whoever made it wanted it printed on lighter paper to save money) they may put it back. It negatively affects that first impression; if it flops over in the rack card holder itself, people generally won’t pick it up.
Remember to proofread and proofread again and again. If you have staff, ask each person to read it and proof it as well.
Last but not Least
Consider cross-promoting, if there is an associated type business that might send you business or a related business, trade your brochures, rack cards, and business cards with them. Restaurant to Lodging and vice versa. Massage therapists to Body Care stores, Riding and Horse Stables to Tack and Horse supply stores and vice versa, etc.
by Heather T. | Sep 27, 2023 | Business, Marketing, Observations
Logo designed for the Lake Sunapee Chowder Challenge. circa 2009(ish)
(estimated time 2-15+ hours)
-Costs can range from $50-$500+.
Costs and time spent can vary for logos. You can design it yourself, hire a logo designer, or use a freelancer or logo contest site to design it.
What is the logo going to be used for? List all potential uses your business might use a logo for, not just in the start-up phase but down the road. Is it going to be embroidered? Will it be used for large banners at tradeshows?
It’s a good practice to look at any potential logos and shrink them down to a size that might used on your business cards. Can the graphic be seen and interpreted clearly? Can any text on it or incorporated on it be read easily?
How will the logo look in Black and White and Grayscale if the logo is color?
How many colors will you use? Two-color and three-color logos will be more cost-effective than a color using four colors or more. Because personal printers and commercial printers are sometimes going to have different color hues, keep in mind what looks good to you on the web is not necessarily going to be the same colors you see when you print your logo out on your home printer, or you send the logo to a printer to use on your business cards.
When I first designed the Lake Sunapee Chowder Challenge Logo years ago (above), I didn’t know nearly as much about logo design as I do now. If I had designed this now, I would have colorized the kettle and made sure it was the same design style. The fish is more cartoon-oriented, and the kettle (clip art with some modifications) is more 3D with shading. When translated into black and white, there was still enough definition in the uses we were using it for at the time, print advertising, website and Facebook, large banners, and T-shirts, but the kettle, if done in more bold lines vs. shading would have translated even better into black and white, and this would not have translated well if used for an embroidered logo.
For size, always design as large as possible; it’s easy to scale the size down. It’s impossible to take a small logo with a small resolution and enlarge it, as it will become very fuzzy and pixelated.
If you are doing the logo yourself (and it is a good idea to check whether you are using a graphic designer or another service as well.) Before officially putting it into use, check to see if other similar logos exist. Brand confusion and copyright infringement issues can come up; for example, your logo resembles the Harley Davidson logo. Many DIYers and low-cost designers will use stock graphics as the base for logos, which can be fine, but you can also run into brand confusion if the background graphic is used in other logos extensively and a possible copyright claim.
An example is an association that had someone create a logo for them a few years ago and spent a lot of money on it. Neither the association nor the designer did a back image search on it, and it turns out the main graphic used was used in dozens and dozens of other logos prior.
Upload the graphic to https://tineye.com/ and into Google Image Search https://images.google.com/ and see what pops up. This is especially important if you are planning on copyrighting the logo.
The U.S. Copyright Office at the Library of Congress registers copyrights:
https://www.copyright.gov/
Explanation of Copyright vs Trademark
https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/trademark-patent-copyright
If using a logo designer:
1. Make sure you get the logo in multiple sizes (including a large print size) and in as many digital formats as possible: JPEG, TIFF, PNG, Vector, B&W, Grayscale, Bitmap, and GIF (at the minimum). Clarify with the designer that this is being used for print AND digital. Digital only generally translates poorly to many larger sizes you might need for print.
2. Make sure they are giving you the name of the font they used or if you have a font preference (this is a consideration in advance to think about before talking to a designer as you need to provide them with this information up front), is this a font you want to use for other things? Are you going to have to purchase it if it’s not a standard font, and if you want to use it for your website, is it a web-safe font? See https://www.w3schools.com/css/css_font_websafe.asp.
3. Make sure they give you the color codes for the colors used in the logo. HEX codes and RGB codes as if you would want to tie those colors into your other branding (website, print items, etc.) https://negliadesign.com/ask-a-designer/whats-the-difference-between-pms-cmyk-rgb-and-hex/
Some addtional resources:
Should I copyright or trademark my logo?
https://www.shermanip.com/should-i-copyright-or-trademark-my-logo/
14 Of The Best Logo Makers To Design a Logo In 2020
15 Things You Must Know About Logo File Types
Reverse Image Search
Pantone Color Finder
Online RGB Color Picker
(GIMP) GNU Image Manipulation Program (an alternative to Photoshop)
Color Blind Image Simulator
Logo Design Sourcing and Contests
Experienced inexpensive designers/freelancers
Other resources:
