How can I improve my profits?
You can improve your profits by reducing your costs and increasing your sales.
For practical tips on how to reduce your costs, see Cost control
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To increase your sales income, you need to increase your prices. During a recession, it may be difficult or impossible to increase your prices but it is worth exploring this option for use when the economy recovers. Before you can increase your prices, you may need to improve your:
- Link with local tour operators to offer packaged products, eg accommodation coupled with hill walking, mountain biking or walking tours.
- Improve the presentation of your meals.
- Offer packed lunches to walkers.
- Use improved or specialist ingredients, eg, organic or gluten-free.
Offer new and exciting menu dishes.
- Put new DVD releases, up-to-date magazines in rooms and candles in bathrooms.
- Provide extra space for surf gear / wet gear / hiking gear storage.
- Inform customers of upcoming local events such as art exhibitions which may be of interest to them.
- Pay attention to small details, eg provide a welcome basket.
You can improve your location, for example, by providing the following:
- Improve your interior décor and exterior façade.
- Provide adequate car-parking spaces and smoking area.
- Move up-market to a new location.
- Encourage customers to relax in your garden by providing adequate and comfortable seating.
- Link with local tourist operators to offer and jointly market flexible packaged products, eg accommodation coupled with boat trips, mountain climbing or horseback trekking.
- Create a word-of-mouth buzz about your Guesthouse / B&B.
- Promote your Guesthouse or B&B via your website, brochures, and newspaper and magazine advertisments.
Remember!
To calculate your sales, multiply the number of customers by the average price charged. This should give you a reasonable estimate in most cases.
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