Great article about the power of twitter for small business!

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JBloggs

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[COLOR= rgb(68, 68, 68)]Great article about the power of twitter for small business. Innkeepers in this article. :) [/COLOR]
[COLOR= rgb(68, 68, 68)] [/COLOR][COLOR= rgb(68, 68, 68)]http://t.co/rr2zv86[/COLOR]
 
Interesting the Inn was the one that said they had no time to tweet!
Riki
 
Twitter IS a great marketing tool, and saying you don't have time to tweet is a little rediculous. It's like saying you don't have time to send a text. Twitter pushes information to people. Rather than having them come look for information about you, you can push it right to them. If you have 3 rooms unsold on a Friday, send out a tweet offering them for 25% off, every room you don't sell is money lost. Promote food specials or events or just thank guests for visiting. It's not hard, you're limited to 140 characters so you don't need to write paragraphs.
Also, if you use wordpress for your blog you can get a plugin to automatically post links to your blog posts on twitter, then really you don't have to do anything if you don't want to, the tweets are automatic. Some other blogging platforms may offer similar integration but I'm not familiar with them.
 
Ask yourself, to whom are you tweeting? It's only to individuals that have subscribed to your tweet. These are more than likely former guests. Most of us are so inundated with junk texts and emails, that someone would really really want to know what you have to say about a B&B that they have already visited to subscribe.
Isn't the goal of marketing to increase business and to get NEW guests? Explain to me how providing boring details of your everyday B&B life will do that?
I may be a Twitter-phobe, but I just don't get it.
 
Ask yourself, to whom are you tweeting? It's only to individuals that have subscribed to your tweet. These are more than likely former guests. Most of us are so inundated with junk texts and emails, that someone would really really want to know what you have to say about a B&B that they have already visited to subscribe.
Isn't the goal of marketing to increase business and to get NEW guests? Explain to me how providing boring details of your everyday B&B life will do that?
I may be a Twitter-phobe, but I just don't get it..
Proud Texan said:
I may be a Twitter-phobe, but I just don't get it.
Don't worry, you are not alone in this...
 
Ask yourself, to whom are you tweeting? It's only to individuals that have subscribed to your tweet. These are more than likely former guests. Most of us are so inundated with junk texts and emails, that someone would really really want to know what you have to say about a B&B that they have already visited to subscribe.
Isn't the goal of marketing to increase business and to get NEW guests? Explain to me how providing boring details of your everyday B&B life will do that?
I may be a Twitter-phobe, but I just don't get it..
I am with you on this one. If people don't sign up to follow you...what is the use? half of us don't want most former guests following us anyway. I recenlty set up a twitter account...had deleted an old one because all I was getting is porno crap:-( But now..I have to read through incessant chatter that I care nothing about :-( I will probably be deleting this account soon.
 
Ask yourself, to whom are you tweeting? It's only to individuals that have subscribed to your tweet. These are more than likely former guests. Most of us are so inundated with junk texts and emails, that someone would really really want to know what you have to say about a B&B that they have already visited to subscribe.
Isn't the goal of marketing to increase business and to get NEW guests? Explain to me how providing boring details of your everyday B&B life will do that?
I may be a Twitter-phobe, but I just don't get it..
Twitter is a great way to share information, and you're absolutely right about tweeting boring stuff. You don't want to spam your followers with stuff they don't care about or you'll lose them. A couple things:
You mention followers only being past guests like it's a bad thing. One of the most important types of customers in hospitality are repeat customers. If you're guests are not coming back in the future (maybe several years later but still) then you're doing something wrong. Yes, you absolutely want to get new guests, but you want new guests that will turn into repeat guests.
Rather than provide boring details, offer specials, or packages that give value to your old guests and incite them to return again. You don't have to tweet everyday, you probably shouldn't. A couple times a month is plenty for a B&B, but it's free marketing so you should absolutely do it.
Also, your followers won't just be old guests, people who are interested in B&B's in general may visit your website and see you have an account and follow you.
More importantly twitter is a form of social communication, people who use twitter (younger but ageing crowd) will often tweet things like "Getaway with the boyfriend at Texas Bed & Breakfast!". If you have a twitter account this could be "Getaway with the boyfriend @texasbnb!" where @texasbnb links to your twitter account. All of her friends will see that and you may get some followers out of it. You can even respond and say "Hey thanks Sarah we enjoy your company!". That's great personal customer service.
It can absolutely be a confusing and tricky platform, but when understood and done right it can really help boost your brand.
 
This is mostly an anti twitter group. I love Twitter, I love the snippets of info, as you can see I post them here now and again. It fits well with my innkeeper a.d.d.
I disagree however, Dave, DO post personal stuff, do NOT post only marketing. People hate that! Treat people like people. (Don't post icky personal stuff) and please don't just post links to FB!
I have a whole slough of fascinating people I follow...when you are vulgar, when you spam, when you post only marketing, I won't follow. Be real. That is why the couple in VT have such a great gig, people love THEM, so whatever they post people love it. How do I know of those innkeepers? Twitter. In fact that tweet was via them. You hear and see them ALL OVER THE PLACE (Yes branding, being seen).
 
This is mostly an anti twitter group. I love Twitter, I love the snippets of info, as you can see I post them here now and again. It fits well with my innkeeper a.d.d.
I disagree however, Dave, DO post personal stuff, do NOT post only marketing. People hate that! Treat people like people. (Don't post icky personal stuff) and please don't just post links to FB!
I have a whole slough of fascinating people I follow...when you are vulgar, when you spam, when you post only marketing, I won't follow. Be real. That is why the couple in VT have such a great gig, people love THEM, so whatever they post people love it. How do I know of those innkeepers? Twitter. In fact that tweet was via them. You hear and see them ALL OVER THE PLACE (Yes branding, being seen)..
Joey this is actually a great post and perfect example. I agree completely about being personable and looking back on my post I was more responding to the argument that people don't want to be spammed with every day stuff all day long, which is true. You don't want to tweet 4 or 5 times a day stuff like "Just planted our flowers!" and "Cleaned up the kitchen!". Nobody cares about that. But if you're remodelling, or you have a cool guest in town, or a pic of a delicious dinner meal (people love pics). This IS stuff people like to read, it makes them feel closer to you, so I agree with you. Some people don't want to tweet daily, which is what I meant when I suggested at least tweet a few times a month and offer an incentive to come back to your property.
For anyone interested this is a search of twitter for "Bed & Breakfast" which offers great insight and examples of how it's used to communicate: Twitter search
 
This is mostly an anti twitter group. I love Twitter, I love the snippets of info, as you can see I post them here now and again. It fits well with my innkeeper a.d.d.
I disagree however, Dave, DO post personal stuff, do NOT post only marketing. People hate that! Treat people like people. (Don't post icky personal stuff) and please don't just post links to FB!
I have a whole slough of fascinating people I follow...when you are vulgar, when you spam, when you post only marketing, I won't follow. Be real. That is why the couple in VT have such a great gig, people love THEM, so whatever they post people love it. How do I know of those innkeepers? Twitter. In fact that tweet was via them. You hear and see them ALL OVER THE PLACE (Yes branding, being seen)..
I try and tweet local events, plays, activities so hopefully anyone searching for that event will see my post but I don't think anyone wants to know what cereal i had for breakfast.
 
This is mostly an anti twitter group. I love Twitter, I love the snippets of info, as you can see I post them here now and again. It fits well with my innkeeper a.d.d.
I disagree however, Dave, DO post personal stuff, do NOT post only marketing. People hate that! Treat people like people. (Don't post icky personal stuff) and please don't just post links to FB!
I have a whole slough of fascinating people I follow...when you are vulgar, when you spam, when you post only marketing, I won't follow. Be real. That is why the couple in VT have such a great gig, people love THEM, so whatever they post people love it. How do I know of those innkeepers? Twitter. In fact that tweet was via them. You hear and see them ALL OVER THE PLACE (Yes branding, being seen)..
Joey this is actually a great post and perfect example. I agree completely about being personable and looking back on my post I was more responding to the argument that people don't want to be spammed with every day stuff all day long, which is true. You don't want to tweet 4 or 5 times a day stuff like "Just planted our flowers!" and "Cleaned up the kitchen!". Nobody cares about that. But if you're remodelling, or you have a cool guest in town, or a pic of a delicious dinner meal (people love pics). This IS stuff people like to read, it makes them feel closer to you, so I agree with you. Some people don't want to tweet daily, which is what I meant when I suggested at least tweet a few times a month and offer an incentive to come back to your property.
For anyone interested this is a search of twitter for "Bed & Breakfast" which offers great insight and examples of how it's used to communicate: Twitter search
.
Those who tweet a few times are a month are those we who enjoy twitter do not wish to follow. Just sharing, I am a user as well as a business on twitter, so I see both sides. We can't be twitter pansies. We either are or we aren't.
It is the inn blog mentality, "I have one because they told me I needed to have one" then I let it sit and rot, same with events on a website or specials, yes they are still there from Valentine's day and it is September!
"Don't do it! If you can't do it, if you don't want to learn to do it, if you don't like to do it, then don't do it!" --JB
If however, you want to engage, brand, bring in new guests, more guests, interesting guests, then by all means do it! If you don't know how, then read what we write on here so often and learn how, or hire one of the umpteen "marketing specialists" who hit your inn box daily, and then "just do it!"
shades_smile.gif

 
Twitter works well. The reason why a lot of people don't understand it, is because many look at it similar to facebook.
Tweets are public (unless otherwise set.) They are public and indexable, which means they can be searched through. The power of twitter comes in twitter search. Most twitter uses actually search for terms that they are looking for on twitter search (http://twitter.com/#!/search)
This is where the power is...
If you want to know the gist of what's going on in a particular area, you can just type in a city's name, and see tweets from that area, or tweets that mention that area. Many people search things like "hotel deal," or "cheap hotel in X city" and they find tweets that correspond to what they are looking for.
Twitter works the other way too for business. I set up twitter alerts to alert me when someone tweets anything about staying in Prince Edward Island. I can then respond to the client and offer my services (because it's all public, I don't have to follow a user to tweet them.) I have sold many rooms using this system, and it works well.
You should all try it. It doesn't hurt, and it doesn't take up any time. That's the genius of 140 characters...it's nothing. Use it as a monitoring tool at least.
 
Twitter works well. The reason why a lot of people don't understand it, is because many look at it similar to facebook.
Tweets are public (unless otherwise set.) They are public and indexable, which means they can be searched through. The power of twitter comes in twitter search. Most twitter uses actually search for terms that they are looking for on twitter search (http://twitter.com/#!/search)
This is where the power is...
If you want to know the gist of what's going on in a particular area, you can just type in a city's name, and see tweets from that area, or tweets that mention that area. Many people search things like "hotel deal," or "cheap hotel in X city" and they find tweets that correspond to what they are looking for.
Twitter works the other way too for business. I set up twitter alerts to alert me when someone tweets anything about staying in Prince Edward Island. I can then respond to the client and offer my services (because it's all public, I don't have to follow a user to tweet them.) I have sold many rooms using this system, and it works well.
You should all try it. It doesn't hurt, and it doesn't take up any time. That's the genius of 140 characters...it's nothing. Use it as a monitoring tool at least..
I also have alerts on my town, county, these mountains, etc. I get a digest twice a day and I can read or not read. I find some great events this way, when they are not found anywhere else! I just followed you Sonata. :)
 
Twitter works well. The reason why a lot of people don't understand it, is because many look at it similar to facebook.
Tweets are public (unless otherwise set.) They are public and indexable, which means they can be searched through. The power of twitter comes in twitter search. Most twitter uses actually search for terms that they are looking for on twitter search (http://twitter.com/#!/search)
This is where the power is...
If you want to know the gist of what's going on in a particular area, you can just type in a city's name, and see tweets from that area, or tweets that mention that area. Many people search things like "hotel deal," or "cheap hotel in X city" and they find tweets that correspond to what they are looking for.
Twitter works the other way too for business. I set up twitter alerts to alert me when someone tweets anything about staying in Prince Edward Island. I can then respond to the client and offer my services (because it's all public, I don't have to follow a user to tweet them.) I have sold many rooms using this system, and it works well.
You should all try it. It doesn't hurt, and it doesn't take up any time. That's the genius of 140 characters...it's nothing. Use it as a monitoring tool at least..
I also have alerts on my town, county, these mountains, etc. I get a digest twice a day and I can read or not read. I find some great events this way, when they are not found anywhere else! I just followed you Sonata. :)
.
Joey, Sonatainn isn't my main baby. you should follow @hhhouse instead ;)
Thanks for the advise on Reservation Key as well! :D
 
Twitter works well. The reason why a lot of people don't understand it, is because many look at it similar to facebook.
Tweets are public (unless otherwise set.) They are public and indexable, which means they can be searched through. The power of twitter comes in twitter search. Most twitter uses actually search for terms that they are looking for on twitter search (http://twitter.com/#!/search)
This is where the power is...
If you want to know the gist of what's going on in a particular area, you can just type in a city's name, and see tweets from that area, or tweets that mention that area. Many people search things like "hotel deal," or "cheap hotel in X city" and they find tweets that correspond to what they are looking for.
Twitter works the other way too for business. I set up twitter alerts to alert me when someone tweets anything about staying in Prince Edward Island. I can then respond to the client and offer my services (because it's all public, I don't have to follow a user to tweet them.) I have sold many rooms using this system, and it works well.
You should all try it. It doesn't hurt, and it doesn't take up any time. That's the genius of 140 characters...it's nothing. Use it as a monitoring tool at least..
I also have alerts on my town, county, these mountains, etc. I get a digest twice a day and I can read or not read. I find some great events this way, when they are not found anywhere else! I just followed you Sonata. :)
.
Joey, Sonatainn isn't my main baby. you should follow @hhhouse instead ;)
Thanks for the advise on Reservation Key as well! :D
.
Nice FAQ's page. :)
I need to update ours, I will put it in outlook to remind me this winter.
 
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