Are you making the most of each day or just trying to get through it? Accommodation business managers and owners, it's time to seize the day and maximize your bookings during the slow seasons But what happens when your calendar is empty and you're left scrambling for last-minute bookings? Stay tuned to find out...
In this episode, you will be able to:
Get a grip on maximizing the potential of each day and honing your productivity skills.
Gain knowledge about the imperative role of forward-thinking marketing during lean seasons.
Get savvy about designing engaging content that highlights the upcoming slow season's potential.
Enhance your email marketing skills to foster strong relationships with former guests and secure their loyalty.
Dive into the enlightening world of a free masterclass designed to help build a powerful, profitable direct booking sales pipeline.
Your slow season might be just around the corner and the worst thing to happen for you is to come out of this busy period and all of a sudden see an empty calendar stretching before you. Yikes. - Jenn Boyles
The key moments in this episode are:
00:00:08 - Introduction
00:01:37 - Making the Most of Busy Periods
00:02:55 - The Importance of Time and Planning Ahead
I'm Jenn Boyles, your host. I'm thrilled to be here with you today. Have you ever heard the phrase carpe diem? It's Latin for seize the day. And probably the only Latin that I know.
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It was the motto of my high school. I think they put it on everything, which is probably why I remembered it all these years later. But you probably will agree with me. As mottos go, this one is pretty great. Who doesn't want to cease the day?
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Who doesn't want to make the most of every day we have left on this earth? I think that the deeper meaning was probably lost on me as a teenager, as I did live each day to the fullest back then. Unfortunately, that sometimes meant more partying than studying. But now I'm older and wiser, and I am trying to make each day count. So let me ask you, are you living each day to the fullest, or are you just trying to get through each day?
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Perhaps you're in your busy period with bookings and are juggling everything else going on in your life. And I get it. In fact, I had an email from a potential student telling me all the things she has going on right now, and they were all reasons why she couldn't join my Direct Booking Success Success program right now. And I get it. I understand my life gets busy too, with bookings and work and the summer school holidays right now.
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A month or so ago, I had my overseas UK to Canada move in full swing. Now, that was crazy. But you know what else I was doing during that time? I actually invested in working with a new business coach. I was doing some work on my DBS program as well as putting together a new Masterclass for you.
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Now, I know that doing all of that at the same time either makes me really good at multitasking or just plain nuts. But you know why I was doing all of this at the same time? I was seizing the day. I knew that I left all the work stuff until after the move and something else would crop up, take its place. Trying to find the perfect time would never work.
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Why? Because there never is a perfect time. There is only time. And who knows, really, how much you've got left? That's what got me thinking about my old high school motto, carpe diem.
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Because even though I had taken on a lot and I was having to schedule every minute of every day. I knew the outcome would be worth it, and it wouldn't be forever. So let's talk about bookings. This episode is coming out in August, so if summer is your busy season, then I'm sure you are swamped right now with guests and bookings. But you need to be looking ahead.
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Your slow season might be just around the corner and the worst thing to happen for you is to come out of this busy period and all of a sudden see an empty calendar stretching before you. Yikes. Don't put yourself in the position of having to scramble for bookings or thinking you'll have to drop your prices to get some last minute bookings in. That's a horrible feeling. But if this has happened to you, I'm so sorry.
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Because marketing isn't instant selling that's instant, but marketing isn't. Marketing is a longer process and something that needs more long term thought. So let's talk about what you can do now if you do see that empty calendar on the horizon. First off, get back on that marketing horse, because I'm going to guess that if you've been so busy, your marketing might have fallen off. And that's okay if it has, because we're going to fix it now.
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So get back into that marketing frame of mind. Start posting on social media, but instead of posting about what's happening right now, when you're full, start creating and posting content that has to do with when you need bookings. Is there a local event coming up? Can you post something about that? Or even better still, team up with whoever is putting on that event and do some crust postings and crossed promotion?
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If your slow season is the fall but it's actually a great time to visit your local area, then start creating content that is all about the change of seasons and anything else that is local to you. Put on your local expert hat and start telling everyone why that time of year is the perfect time to visit. Another thing to do is to get back to emailing your past guests. These people have stayed before and they've loved it. So why don't you send them an email with all the reasons why they should be coming back during this period?
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Maybe there's something you can add to their stay as an incentive. Not necessarily a discount, but maybe tickets to something local, or a welcome hamper with some seasonal goodies. Or maybe there's an experience that you could offer them. Maybe it's going out in your boat for some fishing or teaching them how to bake an authentic local dish. Think about what your skills are and what you could do that isn't expensive and is something your guests would love.
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If you take anything away from this episode, please look ahead at your calendar and get going on that marketing that will bring in those bookings during the slow times. Another thing you could do is to attend my free masterclass the four step framework for a profitable Direct Booking Success sales engine. Maybe this will be the jump start that will help you get back on that marketing horse. If you've fallen off during this Masterclass, I will cover the top three mistakes everybody makes in their accommodation businesses and why they are costing you major profits, the secrets to getting Direct Booking Success while you sleep, and my four step framework for a profitable business built on Direct Booking Succes. Head to directbookingsuccess.com/Masterclass to sign up.
