Flushing Profits down the Toilet

[JBloggs]

Is there some area of your business that you feel is flushing profit down the toilet? What have you done to reconcile this? What changes have you made? Any helpful hints for other innkeepers who may not know there is a better way out there?
What profits have you flushed down the toilet and what did you learn from it?

 

[Don Draper]

PO's had a laundry service...you had to drag the baskets over there, leave for 2 days, then drive back and drag 'em home, then sort everything back into sets. First year here we purchased HE washer/dryer (after hubs did the calcs to make sure the septic could handle it) and I forget the percentage but it's saved us a TON.

 

[JBloggs]

I learned early enough that any print advertising was flushing $ down the toilet for our B&B. The couple times I was involved in print that was supposed bring them in banging our door down, it achieved nothing.
Print ads are always more expensive than say an annual subscription to a B&B directory, so it is something I won't fall prey to again.
Advertising locally/marketing locally is the same, I had a 1000% increase of calls begging for donations (and I already get them by the dozens per month as it is).
Focusing on outside the area and putting all the bang in the online marketing was my early lesson to flushing $ down the loo.

 

[Morticia]

I took this literally...we fixed all of the toilets because they were all running!

 

[gillumhouse]

Newspaper advertising and local advertising is wasted effort and money down a rathole. IF I advertise locally I look at it as "community support" - although the supplement we did 2 years ago brought 3 room nights and a dinner. I put a small ad in the local rag All-school Reunion time because more of this paper go out of town than in.
My print goes in targeted special interest inexpensive ads.
I used to give each guest a split of sparkling cider and a WV hand-blown goblet when they came in from dinner as a gift of the House - now it is special occasions only.

 

[Suzie Q]

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

 

[JBloggs]

I am actually not wanting to debate anyone's cost saving efforts, I was just asking for anyone who cares to - to share something they have found IN THEIR B&B was a waste of hard earned $$.
Anyone who would like to share please do - if you have a question how they saved money, please feel free to ask.

 

[JBloggs]

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result..

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

Facebook is free is it not?
I am actually asking about areas where we felt we wasted money (therefore the flushing down the toilet) analogy. I was not really starting a thread on advertising.

 

[Copperhead]

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result..

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

Facebook is free is it not?
I am actually asking about areas where we felt we wasted money (therefore the flushing down the toilet) analogy. I was not really starting a thread on advertising.
.

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

Facebook is free is it not?
I am actually asking about areas where we felt we wasted money (therefore the flushing down the toilet) analogy. I was not really starting a thread on advertising.

Not to continue the off subject, subject but what remnjava was referring to was the paid advertising on FB, not a fan page (which is free).

 

[Copperhead]

Now back to the subject. When we first started we had central heat/AC throughout and waisted tons of $ in electricity (all electric here). Saw the need to change and put in window units for the AC (we use about 7-8 months of the year) for guest rooms & our private areas thus only cooling rooms as they were needed and at temps the guest could control. That saved us serveral hundred a year.
As I posted on another thread, we have just (Oct./Nov.) changed out all of our units to energy savers: new central system for our first floor (mostly common areas & kitchen, laundry & office spaces); a new central system for our private areas and each guest room now has new split systems. Not only are they more energy efficient they are extremely quiet and no longer have things hanging out the windows. Cost savings - our first month alone saved us over $300 (this being a good steady month of business too).

 

[JBloggs]

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result..

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

Facebook is free is it not?
I am actually asking about areas where we felt we wasted money (therefore the flushing down the toilet) analogy. I was not really starting a thread on advertising.
.

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

Facebook is free is it not?
I am actually asking about areas where we felt we wasted money (therefore the flushing down the toilet) analogy. I was not really starting a thread on advertising.

Not to continue the off subject, subject but what remnjava was referring to was the paid advertising on FB, not a fan page (which is free).
.

I advertised on facebook for a couple of months, 1,000 impressions a day which brought me maybe 4 hits per day. 90% of those went no farther than the main page. No bookings as a result.

Facebook is free is it not?
I am actually asking about areas where we felt we wasted money (therefore the flushing down the toilet) analogy. I was not really starting a thread on advertising.

Not to continue the off subject, subject but what remnjava was referring to was the paid advertising on FB, not a fan page (which is free).

My apologies.

 

[Mini]

We no longer supply bottled water to our guests.
We have made our fresh fruitcups each morning smaller (they were much too big before)
We now use soap dispensers rather than individually wrapped soaps which got used once.
Fake flowers in rooms instead of real.
New energy saving washer and dryer.
Oh and we cut up our credit card (best thing we ever did)

 

[gillumhouse]

I changed from fixing individual fruit dishes to a compote so the guests could pick out the fruit they wanted and leave what they did not care for. It cut down on waste - a lot.

 

[Morticia]

We no longer supply bottled water to our guests.
We have made our fresh fruitcups each morning smaller (they were much too big before)
We now use soap dispensers rather than individually wrapped soaps which got used once.
Fake flowers in rooms instead of real.
New energy saving washer and dryer.
Oh and we cut up our credit card (best thing we ever did).

We changed the dish we serve the fruit in and it was smaller than the one we had before. It looks better AND it saves money.