Category: Networking

Business travellers are a great source of ongoing bookings for hotels and bed-and-breakfasts. In this blog, we look at how to attract business travellers and why it makes good business sense.

Why should I try to attract business travellers to my hotel?

Business travellers present a fantastic opportunity to hotel owners. Unlike holidaymakers, who often only stay during high season, business travellers need accommodation all year round. If you can become the accommodation of choice when a organisation’s team are working in your local area, you can achieve sustainable levels of occupancy even during low season.

Another advantage of attracting business travellers is that managing one relationship can translate into lots of bookings. Contrast this with holiday bookings, where you have to from scratch with every guest who arrives.

How can I attract business travellers?

To attract business travellers to your hotel, it’s important to market your offering to them in the right way. The marketing you do to attract individuals and families on holiday will not necessarily appeal to your potential business guests. Instead, devote some of your marketing efforts to connecting with businesses.

  1. Adapt and refine your offering

Before you can offer your hotel as the ideal accommodation for business travellers, consider whether it has what a business traveller needs. If it doesn’t, change it! For example, consider offering a streamlined check-in and check-out, so business guests don’t lose valuable time doing paperwork. Be prepared to offer an early breakfast or late dinner to fit in around unusual arrival times. Perhaps you could turn a quiet corner into a dedicated office or meeting space for your business guests. If your internet speeds are slow, invest in an upgrade so business guests can access whatever they need to work during their stay.

  • Create packages

Creating a special package for business travellers makes it easier for procurement managers to see the value you’re offering. Choose the right price point for a room, breakfast and Wi-Fi, maybe with a transport option to connect guests to the station or airport.

  • Target businesses on social media

Once you’re business-traveller ready, it’s time to spread the word! Share dedicated social media posts, not just offering accommodation but highlighting the reasons why your hotel is a great choice for business travellers. You might also consider posting on LinkedIn, the business-to-business social media platform, to connect with the sort of people who might be looking for accommodation for their business travellers.

  • Network

A great way to meet other businesses face to face is to go to networking events. Networking events help you build up your business family, and meet the kind of business owners who might need what you offer.

You could also offer your hotel as a networking venue, giving event attendees the opportunity to see what you have to offer. 

  • Advertise

A carefully placed advert in a business publication could help you attract commercial travellers. And if any businesses have their head office or training centre near your hotel, reach out directly to let them know you’re ready to welcome their employees whenever they’re in the area!

Outsourced support helps hotels attract business travellers

Get Ahead has a strong team of marketing experts who would love to help you increase your occupancy all year round. If you need support with any of the suggestions we’ve made in this blog, we are here to help. We’ll use our marketing expertise to connect you with commercial travellers and gain all the benefits of repeat business.

Explore our site or social media channels to find out more about what Get Ahead has to offer.

Networking is a key part of the franchisee role when you join Get Ahead. It’s an important way of finding new leads and building lasting working relationships.

In this blog, we look at why networking is such an important part of the franchisee role. We also share our tips for successful networking. Let’s take a closer look.

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You know you’re about to make your next career move and you know you want to be your own boss. Perhaps it’s time for more freedom, or perhaps you’d like more flexibility and balance in your life. If this sounds like you, you might be trying to work out whether you’d rather set up on your own, or you’d rather buy a franchise of an established business. 

Let’s take a closer look.

Should I run my own business?

Running your own business is exciting, challenging and rewarding. Successful entrepreneurs have a great business idea and the drive to make it succeed.

When you run your own business, there are many benefits:

  1. You are answerable to no one (except your clients!).
  2. It’s as much freedom as you can have and still be at work.
  3. You can choose how to spend any profits.
  4. You can shape your business as you see fit, and take it in whichever direction you feel it will succeed.
  5. You can create your own business ethos – if you want to see something done differently, you have the freedom to implement it.

But there are downsides as well:

  1. Starting a business from scratch is hard work with a lot of demands on your time.
  2. You need at least basic knowledge of finance, admin, client care, data management, marketing and more.
  3. You might not see any profits for a few years.
  4. The buck stops with you and there is a lot of responsibility.
  5. It can get lonely – you might miss having a colleague who can provide some objectivity.

Should I buy a franchise?

If you’re not sure whether or not starting your own business is the right step for you, you might consider buying a franchise instead. A franchise can provide a lot of the freedom of running your own business, but without the pressure of working alone to deliver your own ideas.

There are many benefits to buying a franchise:

  1. Enjoy the freedom to work for yourself
  2. Take advantage of existing brand and reputation
  3. Join a family of supportive franchisees
  4. Continue on your career path, managing your team and making many of your own business decisions.
  5. Benefit from centralised resources like marketing material, training courses and software.

However, buying a franchise isn’t for everyone.

  1. The business model and ethos are driven by the franchise owner. Fortunately, ours is tried and tested!
  2. The role of a franchisee is to lead, not to do – if you like rolling your sleeves up, you might prefer your own business where you can deliver your core work yourself.
  3. You’ll make regular payments to the franchise owner, in addition to the upfront purchase – this covers the cost of centralised resources.
  4. Some franchises (not Get Ahead!) set compulsory targets for franchisees.
  5. Some other franchises (again, not Get Ahead!) impose limits on how and where you work, preventing you from scaling your franchise.  

When we decided to franchise Get Ahead, we identified some of the problems of franchising and set out to address them. That’s why our franchisees aren’t under pressure from performance targets, do receive regular training and, above all, benefit from our scalable business model so they can push themselves and their franchise as far as they like.

Buy a Get Ahead franchise

Whatever you decide your next step should be, it’s got to be right for you. And if do decide to buy a franchise, we hope you’ll choose Get Ahead! Our site is full of resources to help you make your decision. You could also follow our social channels and find out more about our ethos. You can even book in a call with franchisor Rebecca Newenham – why not have a chat and get your questions answered before you take the plunge?

If you’ve decided to buy a franchise instead of running your own business, this might be because you’d like to be part of a team. One of Get Ahead’s great strengths is our team of regional directors, who in turn are supported by a UK-wide team of virtual experts.

In this blog, we take a look at what teamwork means at Get Ahead and how it benefits our franchisees.

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Busy expos are tiring, but the work doesn’t finish when you take your stand down. It’s important to keep the momentum going by following up with the people you met at the expo as soon as you can. If you don’t follow up, some of your work at the expo will be wasted – a real shame when you consider how much you’ve invested in the event.

Here are our top tips for effective follow ups:

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When you’re building up to exhibiting at an expo, it’s easy to spend all your time planning your stand and designing a rock-solid lead generation form.  But promoting the expo in advance of the big day is important too, and plays a key part in increasing visitor numbers and helping you get the results you’re hoping for.

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Regular followers of Get Ahead will know that we love an expo, and our regional directors have really enjoyed getting back out to promote the business. But did you know that we also support our clients before, during and after business expos? An expo is a big commitment, but with our help, clients can get more from the event and embrace all the opportunities it gives them.

Here’s how Get Ahead supports businesses at expos.

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Promotions, competitions and giveaways can create a real buzz around your business expo stand, both in the real world and online. However, it’s important to put thought into your promo so it works for your business and isn’t just a gimmick.

In this blog, we look at how to plan promos and pass on some ideas that work too!

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A hybrid conference or meeting is one which is held both in person and virtually. More conference organisers are choosing this approach since the pandemic showed us all the possibilities of remote and hybrid working. Get Ahead have been offering Zoom services since the 2020 lockdown, continually refining our approaches to provide a streamlined service and successful outcomes.

Let’s take a closer look….

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Attendance at business expos is a significant part of the role of a Get Ahead franchisee. Expos are a great way to attract new clients, and also to tap into the wealth of knowledge available at the event.

In this blog, we look at the benefits of business expos, and why they are important for Get Ahead’s regional directors.

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