We just gone through the sales and training process. The new owners asked for one month after closing for training - we agreed to one week before closing and two weeks after, with the two weeks after limited to 20 hours per week. That time has just concluded; we innsat for the new owners this past weekend while they attended their daughter's graduation.
It was both too much time and not enough time. Some types of knowledge were not easily transferable because of the way the new owners are set up - different business structure, and they are outsourcing the website and the accounting. We did both ourselves, so we were not really able to help much other than give them all the passwords and historic information and a cheat sheet for when all the taxes are due. They are also using a different online booking system and credit card processing system so my ability to help there is limited.
We did train on housekeeping, cooking, shopping, laundry; introduced the new owner around town; transferred all the email, social media, and blog accounts and showed how to use each; talked about marketing (online and print) and association membership. It's a lot of stuff to handle, though, and if the new owner has questions now we are generally available.
When we bought the inn, we took one week of training from the previous owner and that was plenty. I mostly found out what not to do and I was happy to see the last of her. We kept things status quo but within six months had made several changes to how the inn functioned. That was back in the day, though - no social media, no online bookings, and she was hardly involved in any town stuff. It's different now.
Whatever you can work out, it has to be good for both you and the previous owner. Forcing someone to stick around when they just want to bail won't work, and keeping someone too involved won't be good for you. For me, anyway, it is hard to leave it, but I already know and feel in my heart that it's not my business any more and I can sleep at night with that..
Interesting the advice we are giving to someone else here on the forum about to close on an inn is to sit tight and see how things are done before making
mistakes changes.
I know your inn, and i know the success it has been, and the innkeepers creating that success and running things top notch. It is strange to me that they would change the entire online process from the get go (including the SEO on a very valuable established website design). I cannot even imagine doing that!
For most of us, yourself included, the p.o.'s had index cards if we were lucky (we weren't). So it is a brand new world!
I also think attitude is everything, me wanting to help vs wanting to bail when a new owner seems to know it all.
PS Please let me know if you have given THIS GEM, our forum to the new innkeepers. It would be hard not to, but it would also play into what I post. I am a fan of you and your inn. I better shut up posthaste.
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