Lots of talk at present about Tourist Tax and lobbying your local MP’s and councillors so they understand the full implications of this being implemented. How would it effect your business if you were required to pay a tax on all guests who were tourists.
One line of thinking is that not only is this another burden in gathering and passing on the tax to the relevant authority it also creates an unfair playing field. If accommodation providers have to pay a tourist tax, then does it not follow that petrol stations, restaurants etc should also be subjected to this tax?
Interesting reading in this article on tourist tax. http://www.taxationinfonews.com/2012/04/tax-authorities-eye-up-tourist-taxes/
If this is a tax which as a motellier you object to then you should be looking at putting in submissions to local and central Government on the issue. Either individual submissions or local association ones all add to the knowledge of councillors and politicians and possibly prevent the scales tipping too far against accommodation providers.
April 23 2012 | Articles for current moteliers and Changes in Motel Trends and Uncategorized | No Comments »
I have just read the blog post by James Hacon http://t.co/vYqUXQfY on the Hotel . Com survey for guest amenities. The pattern shows a trend as discussed in my blog on 3rd February http://bit.ly/HvMwFs
Good reading but also thought provoking especially one comment from Anna Pollock which stated it can be very difficult to get business services including printers whilst travelling.
I have recently purchased a new printer and following on from Anna’s comment I thought it would be great to have in a motel situation. The printer is an HP wireless 6500A which obviously prints wirelessly so any personal or office computers can print without the need for cables. Great to tidy up that precious office space in a motel. The function which I thought would be more beneficial however is the ability to print via the internet. This means provided someone has the access codes to the printer they can email print jobs to it and voila the printer churns out the required hard copy. This would be a great function to enable you to provide your guests with an easy to use print facility.
I am sure there are other brands which do the same thing or can even provide more facilities but it is food for thought to look for extra functions with technology when purchasing new items and think of ways these can provide an even better experience for your guests.
April 11 2012 | Articles for current moteliers and Changes in Motel Trends and Entering the Motel Industry and Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Research shows a direct correlation between interaction with clients and sales generated.
Jack Daly presents eye-opening research:
• 48% of salespeople never follow up after the first contact with a prospect.
• 25% of salespeople make a 2nd contact and stop.
• 12% of salespeople make a 3rd contact and stop.
• Only 10% of salespeople make more than 3 contacts.
• 80% of sales are made on the 5th to 12th contact.
Figures like this don’t always mean a lot but seeing them after just having undertaken a customer experience they appear very relevant to me. My daughter and her partner have decided to get married in December and so we have been looking at various wedding options. My own interaction with suppliers during this has made me very aware of the necessity for continued contact.
Firstly we started by planning to have the wedding at her partners family farm and hire a Marquee. I approached 4 Marquee hire places physically and 6 through an internet inquiry. All of the internet inquiries were followed up by a return email quoting their prices and maybe attaching a brochure. Most replied within 48 hours however one was very slow both in their initial reply (5 days) and then in a further email after another (4 days).
The ones I visited physically showed varying levels of service from pure disinterest with just a handover of a price brochure to anther who was very helpful with suggestions and advice as to what additional items we would need. A different company had a very nice person but she but seemed to think we wanted to use the cheapest possible options for everything and eventually left us with the feeling of her company planning for the cheapest option rather than fulfilling our own individual wants and needs.
From all of these people I have only had one follow up email from NZ Marquee Events limited. This was sent asking how I was getting on and if there was anything else they could help with. We had however decided to use a venue in the mean time and so I sent back and let them know the change in plan. Within a few days I had an invitation to join the owner on linked in and so they are now a memorable supplier of Marquees for me. Although we are not now a direct potential customer I am certainly a future promoter of their service and product to others and potential user at another time. As for the other people I contacted. I can’t even remember who they were.
The basis of my experience shows just how important it is to listen to your customers needs and follow up with further contact. This will provide advocates for your business which will strengthen and grow it.
April 03 2012 | Uncategorized | 2 Comments »