Marigold! You are my long-lost twin sister! 
Rosie is right to market her business to the majority though 
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Green Rosie
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GR, can you clarify, your end of letting cleaning fee ...the way you word it on the website could suggest that it's optional.
" For cleaning we offer an end of let cleaning service priced at €35" - I assume tho' that this is an additional cost?
If it is, it would appeal to me to see this as a complimentary thing.
I hate add ons to the price.
I don't mind at all if it says the full price includes a fee for cleaning and so on but base price +cleaning +this 'n that, would put me right off cos I wouldn't dream of leaving the place a mess anyway.
Have you thought about offering weeks to tie in with specific events over there? Could you pre-book tickets? I'm thinking aloud, so you may already do this sort of thing.
EV |
EV - guests have a choice with regard to cleaning. They can either clean the gite themselves at the end of their holiday (cleaning stuff is supplied) or they can simply leave it tidy and pay €35 for us to do the clean for them. Last year slightly more people chose to do the cleaning themselves.
We are very rural so there are not a great deal of events very locally but if something is on in the week of a visit we do try and let people know. We also have free tickets for guests to visit the local organic farm (must put this on the website).
troyannick
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TV extra 25 Euro per week? that would put me off more than not having a calendar and I dont even watch it much but I assume most families would have one member who does.Cant remember the last place which didnt have a TV.Also dont like add ons.
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earthyvirgo
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People's needs/wants are so different.
We don't have a TV at home so wouldn't bother me not having one - it's not as if you can't watch them later on iPlayer and surely, part of going away is getting away from habits like religious telly-watching!
But, I imagine some people would find not having one a real issue.
On the other hand, something simple like not having half decent kitchen utensils would really naff me off 
I have to have a sharp knife for food prep.
EV
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troyannick
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People's needs/wants are so different.
We don't have a TV at home so wouldn't bother me not having one - it's not as if you can't watch them later on iPlayer and surely, part of going away is getting away from habits like religious telly-watching!
But, I imagine some people would find not having one a real issue.
On the other hand, something simple like not having half decent kitchen utensils would really naff me off
I have to have a sharp knife for food prep.
EV |
EV I am not a telly fan either but I would say 90 per cent of the population are thats why 99 per cent of accommodation provide one you dont need to reinvent the wheel just as 99 per cent dont have you cleaning the place.A holiday is to relax and dont do those things, I wouldnt dream of going anywhere where it was an option to get the Mr muscle out,I dont mean to be rude Rosie.
Green Rosie
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Sorry to disagree with you Troyannic but certainly in this area for self catering cottages you are more often than not expected to clean it yourself at the end or pay for the cleaning service. You might see it as an add on - it can equally be seen as a way of keeping costs down for cash strapped holidaymakers. If you were to not clean the gite at all during your stay and leave it in a complete mess at the end then I think you will find quite a few owners retaining some or all of your security/damages deposit.
With the TV we originally didn't have one and got plenty of bookings. Several families openly commented that they so enjoyed not having the children nagging them to watch the box all the time when they could have been out in the play area. Others got round it by bring computers/portable DVD players. However, we ended up with a TV by default and decided to offer it as an option. Again this works well for cash strapped families or those who simply prefer not to have a TV and means we can keep the gite price lower but claw back some extra cash on some lettings who want the TV.
To date on bookings for this year we have 50% wanting the cleaning service and 60% wanting the TV.
It really is a case that you cannot please all of the people all of the time. I know we lost a booking because we don't have a pool. A Dad was adamant he wanted one, Mum wasn't bothered but they didn't book despite lots of emails going back and forth and Mum getting obviously more and more irate with her OH! But if we did install a pool our prices would rise to reflect that and we could lose other bookings as a result of the gite being too pricey.
And EV - we have a very well stocked kitchen and sharp knives
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troyannick
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Fair enough the cleaning thing is it a nationwide French gite thing or is it local to your area? Never come across it before.
I am speaking from a personal opinion point of view, your post began with you complaining of lack of bookings and Im taking part in the discussion which may explain why, and maybe trying to help you.
If you were to ask the general public..not me... if they were expected to clean their holiday accomodation before leaving or pay extra what do you think they would say.
If your bookings are OK then you dont need to explore the possible reasons, I just dont think its the calendar right now, thats only my opinion.
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Green Rosie
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Fair enough the cleaning thing is it a nationwide French gite thing or is it local to your area? Never come across it before.
I am speaking from a personal opinion point of view, your post began with you complaining of lack of bookings and Im taking part in the discussion which may explain why, and maybe trying to help you.
If you were to ask the general public..not me... if they were expected to clean their holiday accomodation before leaving or pay extra what do you think they would say.
If your bookings are OK then you dont need to explore the possible reasons, I just dont think its the calendar right now, thats only my opinion. |
Actually I was not complaining about the lack of bookings - I have a lot more bookings now than I had had this time last year and a lot more bookings than other holiday homes in this area. I was therefore asking whether the lack of enquiries I was getting was because my main dates are booked as seen on my availability calender. I am interested in finding out if people are interested in the gite but have missed the boat as it were. However taking the opinions of DS members who have commented on this thread most would be put off by not seeing the calender so it stays.
I therefore believe that the lack of current enquiries is a combination of the fact that we are fairly booked (and certainly over the peak booking times). I also think that less enquiries could be due to the current economic climate. People are simply waiting to see how things pan out before deciding to book a holiday. We offer a high quality, affordable holiday cottage and so I hope that we will see enquiry levels rising over the coming weeks. In these times of austerity I hope we may attract more potential clients because they can get a gite at a more affordable price if they are happy not to have TV and do the cleaning at the end of the stay but if they are happy to pay the extra they will do so (and in doing so put the gite price up nearer to some of our competitors).
As for asking guests if they are willing to clean their gite at the end of their stay, as I said before 50% of our ours are.
chez
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I always take it as read that a 'self catering' holiday includes the fact that you clean through at the end. I have never stayed anywhere where it wasn't expected.
GR, thinking aloud re the lack of bookings - if you are stuck taking your holiday during particular times then you are more likely to book and be organised a way ahead to get what you want. If you aren't tied in to particular times and have flexibility, you are, IMO, more likely to leave it later. So I think you may be right, about the economic climate having an effect. (Affect? Sorry, Jamanda, I'm still confused!)
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welsh veg grower
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Not sure if it helps but my enquires are down on B&B and self catering although bookings are coming in a bit slower than usual but not too bad. Last year saw lots of late bookings and I wonder if this year people are only e-mailing/ calling if they are sure they are coming.
I like to see availability and lets be honest not much you can do about being booked up on a week someone wants. To me seeing you ahve bookings shows you are popular. Also if you didnt show it how many enquiries would you get only to have to say you have no availability that week. More work that way maybe.
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earthyvirgo
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I always take it as read that a 'self catering' holiday includes the fact that you clean through at the end. I have never stayed anywhere where it wasn't expected.
GR, thinking aloud re the lack of bookings - if you are stuck taking your holiday during particular times then you are more likely to book and be organised a way ahead to get what you want. If you aren't tied in to particular times and have flexibility, you are, IMO, more likely to leave it later. So I think you may be right, about the economic climate having an effect. (Affect? Sorry, Jamanda, I'm still confused!) |
Effect.
If it affects you, it has had an effect, a result.
Sorry Chez, it's one of my favourites so can't help commenting 
EV
chez
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Thank you. I just *can't* get it right. I was coached in it fairly thoroughly over the weekend and I *still* can't remember.
If it affects you, it has had an effect.
So affect = verb?
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Green Rosie
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Not sure if it helps but my enquires are down on B&B and self catering although bookings are coming in a bit slower than usual but not too bad. Last year saw lots of late bookings and I wonder if this year people are only e-mailing/ calling if they are sure they are coming.
I like to see availability and lets be honest not much you can do about being booked up on a week someone wants. To me seeing you ahve bookings shows you are popular. Also if you didn't show it how many enquiries would you get only to have to say you have no availability that week. More work that way maybe. |
I think we need to be clear on the difference between enquiries and bookings. For this time of year I have quite a good number of bookings however (and possibly because of these bookings) I am not being inundated with new enquires. I would love to know how many people actually look at our gite, want to book but their available week is gone so they move on.
Out of season bookings are always harder to achieve and there have been some great suggestions on what I can do to try and improve these. IMHO I do not think that the end of let cleaning and TV are deterring potential clients from enquiring/booking otherwise I would not have had bookings last year and 6 repeat bookings this year ( 2 of which are families who have increased their holidays to 2 weeks with us this year).
troyannick
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GR your bookings look good just had a look, and your place looks good , cant get my head round the TV thing youve either got one or you havent cant imagine you taking out of the place if people wont pay extra, bizarre, I personally think you had pressure from your guests.
Try www.homelidays.com you will definately get more clients or enquiries as you put it.
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chez
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I would love to know how many people actually look at our gite, want to book but their available week is gone so they move on.
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Do you have any way to track website hits on your availability page? (You might do that anyway?)
Green Rosie
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I always take it as read that a 'self catering' holiday includes the fact that you clean through at the end. I have never stayed anywhere where it wasn't expected.
GR, thinking aloud re the lack of bookings - if you are stuck taking your holiday during particular times then you are more likely to book and be organised a way ahead to get what you want. If you aren't tied in to particular times and have flexibility, you are, IMO, more likely to leave it later. So I think you may be right, about the economic climate having an effect. (Affect? Sorry, Jamanda, I'm still confused!) |
Thank you Chez - I'm sort of hoping that too. (and likewise with the cleaning - I have always cleaned and we have stayed in cottages in France, Ireland and the UK)
Green Rosie
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I would love to know how many people actually look at our gite, want to book but their available week is gone so they move on.
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Do you have any way to track website hits on your availability page? (You might do that anyway?)
No - it's something I need to investigate how to do. Also that still doesn't tell me if people like the look of the gite from the booking sites we are on and never even get as far as our website if we are booked.
chez
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If you get proper tracking software on the availability page, it will also tell you where people have come from. I am sure VP/EV will be more up on this, but I will go and have a bit of a google.
Who do you get your hosting from?
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Nicky cigreen
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mr Cig used to be the IT manager for a holiday cottages letting business - he says in hard times places like holiday cottages and gites are likely to do a bit better - you know the folks that were booking the Maldives are now downsizing to a weeks break in France etc.
And he says that in hard times people are likely to leave it late to how things are panning out with their jobs etc, and booking last minute. he also says you should state that you update the availability schedule daily, and make sure you do.
My opinion is that the booking schedule does your business good - it shows people that other people like your gite enough to book it- its a sort of crowd mentality - lots of other people go there too so it most be ok.
And from a personal point of view - i like to book appointments etc like this - look at what is available, then see if it would work for us etc.
I'd book it.. if it was not for all these dependent animals and greenhouses etc.. fancy a week in South Devon?
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Green Rosie
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Now you've gone technical on me. There's a button on the website that says Ecologicalhosing.com and takes you here http://www.ecologicalhosting.com/
We also advertise on Owners Direct http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/france/FR7129.htm and a few other smaller sites. One in particular is free at the moment but if I want to stay on it I will need to pay quite soon. As yet I've had no enquiries but do I pay in the hope of getting later interest? Dilemma.
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chez
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I think it depends on how much it costs.
Your calendar is hosted on them, though, yes? So it's probably not going to be possible to put anything on it to monitor clicks.
If you didn't use them for the calendar, what would you use?
The ecohosting people say that they have stats option as a bolt-on, but you have to pay extra - it doesn't say how much. I am sure there are free ones out there, I am still looking.
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Green Rosie
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Thanks CiG (and Mr CiG) - that's some really comforting info and pretty much what I was thinking. And I do keep the availability calender up to date.
I've just had a nosy round some similar gites to me from the Owner's Direct site where I advertise. The average number of weeks booked on the 17 I looked at was 6.6. We have 14 booked so I do think we are doing something right. And when I take on board the great ideas everyone has suggested we'll be up to 100% occupancy in no time 
And I'd love a holiday in S Devon .... if it weren't for all the animals/polytunnels/gite guests arriving etc ......
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Green Rosie
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I think it depends on how much it costs.
Your calendar is hosted on them, though, yes? So it's probably not going to be possible to put anything on it to monitor clicks.
If you didn't use them for the calendar, what would you use?
The ecohosting people say that they have stats option as a bolt-on, but you have to pay extra - it doesn't say how much. I am sure there are free ones out there, I am still looking. |
No, the calender links from Owner's Direct, a booking website we pay to advertise on.
troyannick
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I always take it as read that a 'self catering' holiday includes the fact that you clean through at the end. I have never stayed anywhere where it wasn't expected.
GR, thinking aloud re the lack of bookings - if you are stuck taking your holiday during particular times then you are more likely to book and be organised a way ahead to get what you want. If you aren't tied in to particular times and have flexibility, you are, IMO, more likely to leave it later. So I think you may be right, about the economic climate having an effect. (Affect? Sorry, Jamanda, I'm still confused!) |
Thank you Chez - I'm sort of hoping that too. (and likewise with the cleaning - I have always cleaned and we have stayed in cottages in France, Ireland and the UK)
How often did you guys get charged on these visits or charge waivered as it were
chez
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Okay, have a look at this - http://statcounter.com/
I think, if you put the code for that on your main page, you will be able monitor where people are coming from - and going to. So you will be able to see whether people are landing on your site and then clicking through to the availability calendar.
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Green Rosie
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Okay, have a look at this - http://statcounter.com/
I think, if you put the code for that on your main page, you will be able monitor where people are coming from - and going to. So you will be able to see whether people are landing on your site and then clicking through to the availability calendar. |
You are a star - again - Chez. I am not worthy to be on the same forum as you
troyannick
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Thanks CiG (and Mr CiG) - that's some really comforting info and pretty much what I was thinking. And I do keep the availability calender up to date.
I've just had a nosy round some similar gites to me from the Owner's Direct site where I advertise. The average number of weeks booked on the 17 I looked at was 6.6. We have 14 booked so I do think we are doing something right. And when I take on board the great ideas everyone has suggested we'll be up to 100% occupancy in no time
And I'd love a holiday in S Devon .... if it weren't for all the animals/polytunnels/gite guests arriving etc ...... |
Your doing really well GR dont know what your worried about
chez
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You are a star - again - Chez. I am not worthy to be on the same forum as you |
See if you can get it to work first. It might make the site run like a dog
troyannick
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Gawber has a great thing on his blog flagcounter which counts all the different nationalities viewing his blog, dont know if you could apply it to your site?
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Frazzled_Barbie
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Rosie - am I right in assuming that you have animals at your place. If so why not make more of the new arrivals. Families with pre school age children - the under 5's who are not committed to the "main" holiday period might be interested in new born farm animals etc.
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pookie
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And I'd love a holiday in S Devon .... if it weren't for all the animals/polytunnels/gite guests arriving etc ...... |
I think CIG was suggesting a swap? Correct me if I'm wrong...... 
Green Rosie
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Your doing really well GR dont know what your worried about |
Thank you Troyannick. I'm not so much worried as always wanting to improve ..... and very nosy.
Green Rosie
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And I'd love a holiday in S Devon .... if it weren't for all the animals/polytunnels/gite guests arriving etc ...... |
I think CIG was suggesting a swap? Correct me if I'm wrong......
Oh - so she might have been - OK alter last sentence to animals/greenhouses of hers .....
troyannick
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I can see that .....your going good it isnt easy to do what youve done
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Nicky cigreen
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google analytics will show you where your site hits are coming from - and its free
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Green Rosie
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You are a star - again - Chez. I am not worthy to be on the same forum as you |
See if you can get it to work first. It might make the site run like a dog
True - I withdraw that statement until further notice
... and I'll probably need OH to bung it on the site and he's busy hurtling down French mountains at the moment
troyannick
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GR just over the last couple of hours asked a few people two of which rent out accommodation about the cleaning and TV charge, they dont know who you are or where you are........they all said a TV isnt even a discussion and cleaning yes your expected to leave a SC clean but a charge wont attract people.
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jamanda
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What do you mean TV isn't even a discussion?
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troyannick
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What do you mean TV isn't even a discussion? |
that the notion to charge people extra money for a TV in holiday accommodation is even worth a discussion
jamanda
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No. I wouldn't particulalrly expect or want one in a place like GRs, but wouldn't expect to pay extra for it if there was one.
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troyannick
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No. I wouldn't particulalrly expect or want one in a place like GRs, but wouldn't expect to pay extra for it if there was one. |
Exactly I made that point earlier either you have a TV or you dont wouldnt bother me either way but to charge for a TV and actually remove it if the family cant afford it is bizarre and certainly wont attract custom in any way shape or form.
jamanda
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Thank you. I just *can't* get it right. I was coached in it fairly thoroughly over the weekend and I *still* can't remember.
If it affects you, it has had an effect.
So affect = verb? |
Yes. I have linked to this before haven't I?
jamanda
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No. I wouldn't particulalrly expect or want one in a place like GRs, but wouldn't expect to pay extra for it if there was one. |
Exactly I made that point earlier either you have a TV or you dont wouldnt bother me either way but to charge for a TV and actually remove it if the family cant afford it is bizarre and certainly wont attract custom in any way shape or form.
Yes. I think I agree with that.
toggle
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I do like the idea of ebing able to choose whether or not to have a tv there though.
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troyannick
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I do like the idea of ebing able to choose whether or not to have a tv there though. |
Just dont switch it on choice is yours
jamanda
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You could have the option without being charged.
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jamanda
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I do like the idea of ebing able to choose whether or not to have a tv there though. |
Just dont switch it on choice is yours
Not necessarily so simple if there are kids - no TV means no arguments about it.
troyannick
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Point is people who want a TV will be charged, those that cant afford that wont have a TV although the owner has one available who has apparently received it by default whatever that means, I assume free.Its not 1970 here if you really dont want a telly you can ask the owner to remove it.
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jamanda
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You could have the option without being charged. |
That's what I meant.
Green Rosie
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I do like the idea of ebing able to choose whether or not to have a tv there though. |
Just dont switch it on choice is yours
Do you have children Troyannick? As a parent of 2 boys who spent a holiday in France with a TV that only limited showed French channels I can tell you that 2 and 3 year old children do not understand the concept of "No, you cannot watch the TV because it only shows boring French channels". Most children will want to watch TV if it is a visible presence and so some parents chose not to have the TV when on holiday and the children are perfectly happy to play out in the play area. A case of out of sight out of mind.
Yes - we could offer it for free but we need to make money. Our gite is competitively priced and this is a way that we can make a little more money whilst providing parents with a choice. As you pointed out earlier we must be doing something right as we do have a good number of bookings. We could have lost bookings from parents specifically looking for TV free gite but this way we have not and 60% of our guests have paid for the TV making us a little more much needed cash.
Running a holiday cottage, as has been pointed our is not an easy option and in order to get bookings you need to work hard at it. We may well have lost bookings because in the past we did not have a TV but being able to fill 20 weeks in our first full year would not seem to indicate that.
It's not a case of saying you can't have a TV if you are too poor to afford it. It's saying if you want to keep your costs down, not having a TV is an option and I can assure you, the children who have holidayed here without a TV (and their parents) have had a great time and many have come back, some more than once
Green Rosie
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Point is people who want a TV will be charged, those that cant afford that wont have a TV although the owner has one available who has apparently received it by default whatever that means, I assume free.Its not 1970 here if you really dont want a telly you can ask the owner to remove it. |
No it was not free, we paid the full price for it but how we came to end up with it is a long and rather uninteresting story. And I'm sorry I don't believe any parent would book a gite WITH a TV and then ask the owners to remove it and I would hazard a guess that most owners whose TV is normally in their gite would say NO, it's too much hassle.
I really cannot see why you are getting so het up about the TV issue. It seems to be working for us. 60% want the TV, 40% don't. Some repeat bookings who originally came before we had the TV have chosen to keep it that way whilst others have asked for the TV and paid.
troyannick
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I have children although grown up now.......I am not a TV fan I dont watch TV for months on end
If your policies are working well for you then maybe were all missing a trick and wish you continuing success. Have you thought about charging the kids to go on the swings......joke
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alice
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Re: Availability Calender Dilemma
We are currently not getting a great deal of enquiries .... but, if you look at our availability here you'll see that we are booked for this half term, Easter, Summer half term all bar one week in the main summer holiday period and Autumn half term i.e. the most popular and easy to let dates. Are potential clients seeing our site, looking at the available dates, finding what they want is already booked so not contacting us? Or, is no-one looking 
All advice/ideas welcome especially from a client point of view. |
May I tell you what I think? From a client point of view?
It's a 5 bed cottage and aimed at families. Your marketing is obviously working because you are booked up for all the school hols when families usually want/need to book.
As a couple we always book outside the school holidays - which should be good for you - but I'd never choose somewhere that sleeps five, just for the two of us.
It is possible that you're not getting 'enquiries' for the available weeks because the cottage falls outside the search criteria for the majority of people who are likely to want those weeks.
I think it's a simple as that.
Green Rosie
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Thank you Alice and you have a good point. On many booking sites you can specify in you your search how many bed(room)s you want and for a couple looking for something small and cosy with one bedroom that would exclude us in a search. However before we had children I would also use the region and price in my searches, not always bedroom number. Some places are so unbelievably small we would be happy to book a slightly larger place that was often no more expensive than a tiny one. Our prices are, for this region very competitive and in fact cheaper than many places smaller than us.
We do in fact have 2 bookings this year, just for couples although neither found us via our main booking site.
What it does not explain is why we are not getting enquiries from families with pre-school children who we are perfectly set up for - unless it is what I think CiG said, and these families tend to book later. Time to do some serious marketing at families with pre-schoolers
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jamanda
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Can you get at the Mumsnet lot? I don't know much about it, but it seems to be a reasonably large operation.
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chez
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That's a great idea. They are self-funded, so you might be able to place an advert.
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Green Rosie
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Not sure about Mumsnet. I follow a lot of Parent/Mum types on Twitter and need to have a really good sort through and see where I might be able to advertise. I know I did contact one (need to check who) but because I'm in France I couldn't advertise. I'm 99% sure that wasn't Mumsnet though.
So anyone else know good family/Mum/Dad type websites I should be looking at? Or any others that might be useful.
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chez
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The Natural Mamas forum seemed quite nice and friendly when I was looking for a sling. I think that a few people here are also members over there.
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Green Rosie
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Thanks Chez - and I have a sling for sale
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