Marketing your B&B using social media can be a double-edged sword. Whilst it can do wonders for your business, if you’re not making the right impression, then social media could damage your business irreparably.
What is social media?
Social media isn’t just Facebook and Twitter, although these are the most established platforms. There are all sorts of other social media platforms that you can use to promote your business. Social media is any method in which you and your potential customers can interact online.
It could be Facebook, but it could also be Instagram, Tumblr, Snapchat or one of a multitude of others.
The pros of using social media when marketing your B&B
- You can reach out to new potential visitors.
- You can connect to local events, and those attending them, by joining in with topical conversations.
- It’s a free way to promote your business.
- It’s visual, so you can get creative with the key selling points of your B&B.
Cook a mean full English? Show them. By getting their mouth watering, your posts will have more of an impact.
- It’s very fashionable at the moment.
- It’s versatile. Whether you want to invest some money in paid promotion, promote things to past visitors only, or reach out to a whole new market, social media has the structure in place to do it.
The cons of using social media when marketing your B&B
- Once you start, you have to keep going. It’s a sustained approach that’s going to win you business.
- You could spend a lot of time not making any gains unless you have a strategy and stick to it.
- You may need to develop a thick skin. Comments and feedback aren’t always kind, but most of the time, even the painful ones can be useful feedback. Dealing with these negative comments in an adult and courteous manner, will go a long way to setting you back on the right track.
- You need to be IT literate, or know someone who is that doesn’t mind helping out, if you are going to use social media.
So, if you want to use social media, it can be a very valuable tool, if you use it the right way. It’s worth investing in a short training course to get up to speed with how to use social media if you’re new to it. Then you can read our blog for hints on how to get the most from using social media to market your B&B.
Stewart Hindley & Partners are specialists in securing hospitality finance to enable you to own the B&B or boutique hotel that you’ve been dreaming of. However, we’re in it for the long run so, here in our blog, we also post articles about how to make your B&B a successful and sustainable business.
To speak to one of our advisors about your hospitality finance requirements give us a call on 01488 393040.
