Lay My Hat Forum

[tavi]

Haven't had any yet! (returning guests)..but as some of them last summer (our first) mentioned coming back I'm wondering if I should be prepared to offer an automatic discount to them as a "valued" customer. How about a little marketing email to some of them just after Christmas? What do you all think?

Or should I wait to be asked? I'm hoping to raise some of my prices a little next year so I don't want to frighten the potential repeats away.

Of course all this could be wishful thinking and none of them will darken my door again.

[Giddy Goat]

Tavi, after Christmas is a good time to be making contact with past guests IMO - activity peaks at this time. The majority of experienced owners here would agree that valuing your returning guests is of paramount importance.

Having said that, though many here do, I don't offer returning guests a discount in high season - unfortunately we need every penny and even a small discount would represent a bit of a chunk as the property is also quite large. However we make sure our welcome pack is just a little more special to RGs who book at this time.

In shoulder seasons we offer them a 5% discount.

Good luck with your second year!
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"The secret of success is to get up early, work late and strike oil" John D Rockefeller

[KathyG]

I just let them off the security deposit.
Mind you, I wish I hadn't this half term, they left several huge bags of rubbish, a crate of bottles, unwrapped STs in the bins and the place was generally filthy so I don't want them back again anyway.
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Kathy
Waterfront location in Le Faou
"My goal in life is to become as wonderful as my dog thinks I am."

[la vache!]

[Margaret]

We send a thank you email to all guests, offering them a 10% discount at any time and giving them links for reviews. We introduced the discount the year we hiked our prices a lot - it just means that guests pay the same amount for one more year as 10% is usually the increase. We have not decided on next year's prices yet.
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Margaret
www.bavarian-forest-holidays.com
www.bayer-wald-ferien.com
www.border-holidays.co.uk
www.twitter.com/BavarianForest
www.facebook.com/BavarianForestHolidays

[la vache!]

I wish I could increase my prices by 10% every year

[Giddy Goat]

Our average increase over 8 seasons (basing my sums on the peak weeks rate) is 5%. The starting point wasn't unrealistic either as we were very pleased with our bookings for the first (and subsequent) years. As we keep saying though, it all depends on the comparable competition in your area as to what you can realistically charge.
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http://www.facebook.com/Gascony.Magic?ref=ts
"The secret of success is to get up early, work late and strike oil" John D Rockefeller

[joddle]

In our T&Cs we say that people returning will enjoy a discount and seveal ave taken us up on it but on the whole most people are passing through so we would not really expect them to return.
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I don't profess to own anything here apart from my own opinion.

[Windy]

We do the same as Margaret - send an email after the stay with links to (selected i.e. no TA) review sites and our Facebook and twitter accounts and offer a 10% discount. I wish we could increase our prices by 10% this year but we have so much more competition now...

[pepsipuss]

In our first year (2007) we did not start advertising until May so we were very conservative with our prices, preferring to be fully let for peak season than risk voids. It turned out we were seriously underpriced, going by the speed of response, so in 2008 we increased by 35% and still filled reasonably quickly! However going forward from there we have only had minuscule increases taking us from €1900 to €1975 this year. Which means that over the four year period we have had just over 40% in increases but if you consider that we should probably started much, much higher then this reduces considerably!

We are still full for peak weeks and for 2112 we have bitten the bullet and put it to €2100. If it doesn't work then we will drop it back down at the end of January.

Regarding the original question: we do different things depending on who and when. This year we have had two lots of returners. One was in peak season and we would not normally have offered anything off, but there was a two day gap which happened rather by accident prior to their first day and we let them have it for nothing. The other was 2 weeks end Oct-beg Nov when lettings are often hard to come by although this booking did cover UK half term when we are usually let for a week. Lovely German family but there were two toddlers in the group and we had quite a bit of mess and some minor damage - nothing you could charge for but irritating and without which I would have given them last year's prices as we have put up the off-season more than the peak. So in the end I just asked them for €50 more over the whole two weeks to cover the increased utility costs this year. They hope to return again next year and to have a guaranteed two week booking at that time of year is a real bonus so I will probably do the same again pricewise.
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For true domestic harmony it is essential that dogs know their place, which is below all cats


www.villa-rental-andalucia.com
www.bedandbreakfast-andalucia.com

[lasourcetranquille]

[pepsipuss]

[Harborfields]

We are offer the current year's guests "dibs" (aka the right of first refusal) on "their" cottage for "their" week -- in other words, we don't take new bookings until we've heard from the guests who stayed the past season (although there is a deadline).

This year we also offering returning guests the opportunity to book next year's stay at this year's rates, but with an earlier deadline, as an incentive for them to make their commitments sooner rather than later.
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Harborfields Housekeeping Cottages, on the shores of West Boothbay Harbor, Maine
Facebook/Harborfields

[tavi]

Thanks so much everybody for sharing the useful info.

Interesting that you found some rgs left the place a tip on their second year, Kathy. I have been amazed at how clean my guests, so far, have left the apartment. It's almost as if [/i]they were trying to impress me[i] Or was it the damage deposit motivating them?

I'm thinking of putting some of my prices up by 10% (well, I can try it anyway!) and will offer past guests maybe 10% off. (they got introductory discounts last year too).

Am working hard to pitch at the right price bearing in mind the competition but it's difficult to ensure that you're neither too cheap nor too expensive isn't it?

oops-sorry - my italics went a little haywire

[CarolineH]