Give an alternative

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JBloggs

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We always feel there is no way out. We must cave. The lady who refunded the blackmailer should have given a discount GC for a future stay. We never think of what we should have done until later on, we are caught off guard.
I was unable to get a product today I had ordered two days ago online. They sent me an email letting me know. Then the next email said "What about THIS? Would THIS work? And we will throw in 10% off so it is less than the original item"
WHAT CUSTOMER SERVICE!
I battled it out with a dept store refund this week, took my time and energy and was treated like a thief. Meanwhile this other company is a breath of fresh air! I was PLEASED to do business with them, and will again!
Do you offer alternatives?
If the room their heart is set on it taken do you just say "We have other rooms..." or do you explain the next best thing, and we will do this...(late check out, sparkling cider or something small, something we do for free for our InnRewards guests already?)
 
We can't always offer something HERE but what I can do is give out phone numbers and recommendations for other places to stay (if it's a case of no room at the inn). Special room isn't available? I can't always talk someone into a different room. Maybe with an incentive? I don't know. (Yesterday alone I sent 2 guests to an inexpensive inn on the block. I won't lower my prices $75 so someone can afford to stay here. But other places charge that exact amount so I send the guests along there.)
Guests book for 4+ days and ask for a discount? I offer tickets to get into different attractions. I get them to stay, they get something that costs me less than what they would want for the discount.
We have (twice this week), offered to move a rez to another week given cancellations of various events here due to weather.
Sometimes guests need to make changes to a package. Mostly I can work that out. Not always.
I think the difference sometimes is even tho we may be more nimble than a huge corporation we don't always have the resources to do what the customer wants/demands/thinks they should get. (That's a biggie at breakfast as everyone knows.)
 
I have no alternative - unless there is no long-term in-house. Then I can offer the other queen room and not rent the third room so they have a private bath. I DO do that. If I cannot accommodate I spend time on the phone with them - once I have found out where/what they are coming for - to give them names and numbers of other WVBBA members.
 
I have no alternative - unless there is no long-term in-house. Then I can offer the other queen room and not rent the third room so they have a private bath. I DO do that. If I cannot accommodate I spend time on the phone with them - once I have found out where/what they are coming for - to give them names and numbers of other WVBBA members..
I guess you really have no alternative!
 
Another thing that came to me...perks of being a repeat. In some cases it is a discount. In others it's a giftie of some sort. We are really forgiving of cancellations with repeats. We don't charge them in advance, no deposit, no cancellation fee. (Some of them I don't even have cc info for anymore.)
Not sure if that fits.
 
Dup - I have do idea what happened. Hit send and left - DH was waiting in the car (he does that to me all the time_).
 
Another one I thought of - we have a lot of guests who go from here to other B&B's and then come back. If we know the innkeepers we'll tell them what we served and ask what they served so the guest doesn't get the same thing the whole week.
Guests tonight said, 'Please, anything but blueberry stuffed FT, that's all we've had for a week! It must be THE breakfast.'
 
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