Start & Run a Bed & Breakfast (EPUB) von Monica Taylor

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ixINTRODUCTION xi1. THE BUSINESS OF BED AND BREAKFAST 11. What Is Bed and Breakfast? 12. Take a Look at Your Competitors 23. Who Are the B&B Customers? 34. Can You Operate a B&B? 45. How Will This Book Help You? 42. BECOMING A BED AND BREAKFAST HOST 71. Advantages 72. Disadvantages 83. Skills and Qualities That Best Suit the Job 84. Skill Assessment 95. Action Plan to Improve Your Skills 103. MARKET RESEARCH 151. Why Do Market Research? 152. Sources of Information 153. What Tourist Attractions Are in Your Area? 164. Know Your Potential Customers 185. Know Your Competition 206. Document Your Market Research Costs 244. USING YOUR MARKET RESEARCH 261. Summarize Your Market Research Surveys 262. What Does Your Market Research Summary Tell You? 273. Do a Trial Bed and Breakfast Visit 294. Establish Start-up Parameters 32CONTENTSiv Start & run a bed & breakfast5. MAKING IT LEGAL 351. Sources of Information 352. Your Business Structure 363. Registering Your Business Name 364. Levels of Taxation 375. Bylaws and Zoning 386. Business Licenses and Inspections 397. Insurance 408. Document Your Costs 416. TIME FOR RENOVATIONS? 431. The Renovation Survey 432. Guest Bedrooms 453. Guest Bathrooms 474. Guest Hallways and Stairways 495. Common Sitting Area 506. Guest Eating Areas 507. Exterior Guest Areas 518. Private Family Areas 519. Document Your Costs 537. PLANNING YOUR FOOD SERVICES 551. A Good Breakfast — A Good Start to the Day 552. “What Time Is Breakfast?” 553. “What Kind of Breakfast Do You Serve?” 564. “What’s for Breakfast?” 575. “Is This the Breakfast Room?” 606. Other Food Services 627. Handling Food 658. Document Your Costs 679. Calculating Guest Food Costs 678. SETTING YOUR HOUSEKEEPING STANDARDS 721. Bedrooms 722. Bathrooms 743. Eating Area 754. Common Sitting Area 765. Guest Hallways and Stairways 76Contents v6. Food Preparation Areas 777. Washing Dishes 778. Laundry 789. Order of Cleaning 7810. Exterior Housekeeping 7911. Pedestrian and Vehicle Access 8012. Equipment and Supplies 8013. Document Your Costs 819. KEEPING CLIENT RECORDS 841. Use Technology Wisely 842. Types of Bookings 873. Booking Procedures and Forms 884. Document Your Costs 9510. CUSTOMER SERVICE OPTIONS 981. Check-in Procedures 982. Safety and Security 1003. Tariff Payment 1024. Check-out Procedures 1055. Customer Services 1076. Problem Customers 1107. Document Your Costs 11311. ESTABLISH YOUR FINANCIAL RECORDS 1151. What Records Do You Need to Keep? 1152. Business Expenses 1163. Expense Record Forms 1194. Revenue Record Forms 1225. Audits 1276. Document Your Costs 12712. ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION 1291. Word of Mouth 1292. Business Stationery 1303. Signage 1334. Advertising 1335. Websites and Internet Advertising 134vi Start & run a bed & breakfast6. Measuring the Effectiveness of Your Booking Sources 1397. Document Your Costs 14013. FORECASTING YOUR BUSINESS SUCCESS 1421. The First Year 1422. Subsequent Years’ Forecasts 1473. Statistics 1474. Document Your Costs 15114. FINANCIAL PLANNING 1541. Calculate Your Start-up Costs 1542. Review Your Start-up Costs 1543. Sources of Start-up Capital 1554. What Is Financial Forecasting? 1575. Estimating Revenue 1576. Estimating Expenses 1587. Cash-Flow Analysis 16015. YOUR START-UP PROJECT PLAN 1651. Why Do Project Planning? 1652. Organizing Your Plan 1653. Implement Your Start-up Project Plan 16816. SETTING AND MAINTAINING YOUR LEVEL OF SERVICE 1721. Setting Your Level of Service 1722. Maintaining Your Level of Service 1733. In Conclusion 173APPENDIXES1. Free publications 1751. United States 1752. Canada 1802. Worksheets 1833. Cost Sheets 199DL CONTENTS 212Contents viiSAMPLES1 Skills assessment 122 Skills action plan 133 Tourist attraction survey 174 Customer survey form 215 Competitor survey 236 Market research summary 287 Hospitality rating form 318 Renovation survey 449 Food services bulletin 5910 Food cost analysis 6911 Start-up equipment and supplies 8212 Reservation book 9013 Reservation slip 9114 Deposit reminder slip 9415 Booking confirmation slip 9416 Long distance telephone slip 9617 House rules 11118 Calculating business portion of a home (room method) 11819 Calculating business portion of a home (square-foot method) 11820 Monthly expense record 12121 Expense summary 12322 Monthly revenue record 12423 Revenue summary 12624 Business card 13225 Brochure 13226 Booking forecast 14327 Morris B&B advance bookings 14828 Morris B&B actual bookings 14929 Morris B&B booking sources 15230 Financial estimates 15931 Cash-flow analysis 16232 Task forms 16733 Project plan 169