Tips for Running a Successful B&B
Running a bed and breakfast is one of the most low-maintenance and fun businesses you can start. It’s a great way to increase your household cashflow without major upfront investments. If you have a spare bedroom, a cozy couch, or even a guest house, you can make a ton of extra money doing temporary rentals and listing on bed-and-breakfast and couch-surfing websites. Check out these tips for running a successful B&B to learn how to set your business apart.
Focus on maintaining previous guest relationships
It is much more expensive to acquire new guests or customers than it is to maintain relationships you’ve already formed with previous guests. To ensure you have a successful bed and breakfast, try to keep up the relationships with previous guests, and try to promote guest loyalty to get them to come for additional stays. Repeat customers are the bread and butter of B&B’s.
Provide amenities
Providing basic amenities similar to those a regular hotel may have can help your guests to feel at home. This brings your bed and breakfast to a whole new level of luxury and comfort. Try to stock things such as extra toothbrushes, toothpaste tubes, combs, shampoo, conditioner, and other items your guests may need. These little touches can make your guests feel well taken care of and comfortable, which can increase their chances of wanting to return for more trips in the future and recommending your bed and breakfast to friends and family.
Be realistic about cleaning fees
Many families who run bed and breakfasts charge separate cleaning fees, especially those that use bigger platforms to sell their rooms. One of the main complaints of frequent B&B stayers is high cleaning fees relative to the nightly rate. To avoid falling into this trap, be sure to price your cleaning fees realistically. While they should cover the costs of cleaning labor and supplies, you shouldn’t aim to make a large profit on the fees. Instead, be mindful that your profits should come from the extras you offer, room service, and the nightly rates, and price things accordingly.
