Between Halloween and Christmas Eve is what retailers refer to as the “buying season” (sometimes known as the silly season), says Yvonne Halling. When everyone is looking for gift ideas, with purses open, ready to spend on their loved ones.
Did you know that Christmas is typically the largest economic stimulus for many nations around the world?
That’s when sales increase dramatically in almost all retail areas.
Despite the many concerns consumers had as a result of the pandemic, in the USA, sales reached about $750 billion during the 2020 festive season gift buying spree.
Simply put – people spend more money in the run up to Christmas, than at any other time in the year, by miles!
And this might surprise you, it’s a huge opportunity for you, too. Plus, you’ll be seen as a lifesaver to your discerning guests.
Here’s how…
You might think that because you run a B&B, guest house or self catering establishment you just sell rooms – and maybe meals – but nothing could be further from the truth.
I’m willing to bet that you actually “sell” other things, even if you’re currently giving them away. (I’ve been in this industry for 25 years and I see this around the world.)
Typical items that B&B owners sell (or often give away) include things such as toiletries, cosmetics, handicrafts, mugs, aprons, local art work, local photography, books by local authors, even your own cookbook. And I’m sure you can think of some more.
What this means is that you too have the ability to take advantage of the “silly season” and stop trying so hard to sell rooms to a public that is otherwise engaged in serious spending on gifts.
Plus, think how hard it can be these days to find interesting gifts that genuinely delight your loved ones.
Your previous guests are going through that right now when they struggle to think of what to buy people on their Christmas list.
So to be a lifesaver for them and make yourself a nice windfall of yearend revenue, let’s look at things a bit differently.
Put yourself in alignment with what your past guests are currently looking for, and it’s probably not your main product – rooms – at the moment, that is.
So how do you sell these items when guests aren’t staying?
Simple!
You set up an online shop! (And trust me, it’s actually very simple. I’ve been helping B&B owners around the world do this for years now. They get great results and they love it! Of course, so do their guests, who are now also their online gift customers.)
In my world, an online shop is a fundamental pillar to the success of your business, because as the past couple of years have shown us, guests can’t always come and stay. And so to avoid you stressing, struggling or even going out of business, should it ever happen again (God forbid) then you’re really going to want a back up plan.
Setting up an online shop is way easier that you might think, and if you can create a Word document, add text and images, you can do this on your website, provided you’ve got admin access to your website (which I strongly recommend anyway – and help B&B owners do all the time).
Paypal is now a highly trusted payment method, and they will take payments for you, and deposit the money into your bank account when a purchase is made.
So once you’ve set it up, you can sit back and relax and watch the orders come in, ready to fulfil on them.
Of course, everything needs marketing, so I’m not suggesting that you do nothing!
The good news is, this marketing is much simpler and easier than you’d imagine, and it’s fun and highly profitable. So that’s a win-win for you and your guests/customers!
Here’s how…
Start with a marketing campaign to your list of past guests, alongside your social media posting campaign, and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at what happens.
After all, Christmas and the festive season for everyone is a time of goodwill, and your guests want to support you if you could just give them the opportunity to buy from you, even if they’re not coming to stay.
And by the way, following this Christmas gift strategy is a wonderful way to keep in touch with your past guests, reminding them to come stay with you again as soon as possible.
Don’t let them down. If you feel you’d like help with getting great results quickly from this strategy, I’m running the latest of my special 5-Day Christmas Cash Booster Workshops, starting on the 29th November.
Previous participants have been thrilled with how well it worked for them – and how much they enjoyed it.
To find out more – including the exciting special festive bonuses that will boost your business all year long (with no extra effort) – click here!
(Of course, the elves are eager and won’t wait long!)
Read this and other great stories in the December 2021 issue of Luxury BnB Magazine.
