Bed & Breakfast Websites
I have just created, what I believe, will be a useful resource and service for Bed & Breakfast owners. After staying at various Bed & Breakfast places over the years, I have observed a few common issues with their online presence.
Usually, the website is woefully constructed. Hardly surprising really, since B&B owners concentrate on their passion and spend comparatively little time promoting their particular brand. Their advertising budget is often quite small which usually means that the website is handmade or substandard. Or, its made with a bed & breakfast website builder or boilerplate template from a website building software. This, in and of itself, doesn't mean that these websites are useless, but In most cases it translates into poor search engine optimization, or SEO.
Advertising usually consists of spending money on directories, which link to their websites, rather than optimizing for local search. Since local search results appear first in the local list of maps, it seems obvious that this might be the best place to be.
I've created a resource so that B&B owners can have a clean and simple website, optimized for local search, and a service that improves local search rank, without having to rely on expensive advertising directories. This seems to me a much easier and more sustainable approach to promoting their Bed & Breakfast.
Here is an example of a site, a Bed & Breakfast in Qualicum Beach, BC that I recently finished, using a free theme and a free booking plugin called Hostel. I've integrated Google Calendar to show unavailable dates, which is also free, of course. Here is the site: http://suiteamourhobbyfarm.com/
The unfortunate part of owning and promoting a bed & breakfast online is that it seems that you do need to be hooked in to a booking system in order for the rates to show up in search. This booking widget is usually paid by commissions taken at the time of each actual booking and usually costs anywhere from 12-20%.
If you have any questions or comments regarding B&B promotion, please let me know.
Recent Comments
12
Hi Al.
I run a booking system for B&Bs; and guesthouses - and have done for about 13 years - so if you need to add a booking engine to your offer, let me know: http://www.easy-bookings.co.uk/
Just a quickie - your order now buttons just show the button image, not a contact/booking form.
All the best, Mark
Hi Mark. Thanks for checking out my new project and clicking through the site. I'm still mucking about with the price points so its not quite finished.
Your online booking system looks to be a good one. Is it available in currencies other than pounds?
I'm trying to offer a service to small 1 or 2 room B&B's who are always looking for inexpensive ways to promote themselves and take bookings. I'll be sure to pass on your system for larger clients.
Best of success!
Hi Al - thanks for that.
Yes, any currency is accepted - you can state which from the control panel. There are many smaller B&Bs; using it just now.
Cheers, Mark
Hey, thanks for your encouragement. It could be a unique way of helping small business people.
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What a wonderful idea! I look forward to hearing more about this venture as you continue to develop it!
Hi. Thanks for your encouragement!
You're welcome! :)