Are you thinking of opening up your own B&B? Well, who better to seek advice from than B&B owners themselves, who also happen to be our customers! We surveyed all 5000 B&B and small hotel owners we work with to ask: what advice would you give to anyone thinking of opening up a B&B? Below are the most frequent pieces of advice we heard.
“You need to be prepared to work long hours, always have a smile and supply good quality food and drink.”
A smile should be easy when you have your own, successful small business! But, for advice on creating a delicious menu click here.
“Ensure that you get enough staff in right from the very beginning.”
As the saying goes, there’s no I in team, so make sure you have the right people around you to make your business successful. Check out our information on hiring the right staff.
“Make sure you do plenty of research beforehand with regards to location, room rates and who your customer base will be. You will also need to research legislation, insurance, fire regulations ect.”
Comfy bed: check! Hearty breakfast: check! Fire risk assessment filled in: ? Learn what 11 legal matters you need to take care of.
“Don’t underestimate the power of marketing.”
It turns out most of your customers are online! Find out why marketing your property online is so important here.
“You should visit as many B&B’s as you can to note down their best points, you can then implement them yourself. “
Check out Toprooms to find unique and quirky B&B’s to stay at and scope out the competition.
“It’s important to have your own living space that is separate from your guests.”
“Effective time management is essential in order to get all the jobs done, have time to enjoy your guests and have time for yourself.”
It’s much more fun to spend more time with your guests and less time on managing bookings. Find out more information here.
“You need to make sure there is enough demand for you B&B business.”
This is the most exciting bit! Finding the right property and the right location is essential, click here for more information.
“Just do it! Although it’s very hard work, it’s also very rewarding. It’s really interesting meeting to meet so many new faces from all over the world, and actually make a difference to a guest’s holiday.”
See how eviivo can help you manage your time and bookings here.