Vineyard Bed & Breakfast Business Plan

The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast has three different target groups that it is attempting to attract. The first are people from the region that just want to get away for the weekend. They may have activities planned for the weekend, or just chose to vegetate. The second group are travelers who are passing through Eugene and prefer to stay in B&Bs instead of a hotel/motel. The last group is any customer affiliated with the local school, the University of Oregon. This group may be parents of students or visiting the University on official business and the University is the entity that sets up the reservation. While The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will certainly get customers that fall outside of these groups, this classification should be fairly accurate.

4.1 Market Segmentation

Our customers can be broadly divided into three groups (please note it is possible to divide the customers in to much smaller groups, but we have chosen not to):

1. Weekend getaway customers. These people are from the region and are looking to get away from their life so they come to The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast to be pampered and escape.
2. Travelers. These people, for whatever reason, are passing through Eugene and prefer to stay in a B&B instead of a hotel/motel.
3. University of Oregon travelers. The University brings a large number of people through Eugene, and The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast believes that a good portion of their business will be from the University. Occassions include parent weekend, orientation, parents visiting, and graduation. Lastly, the University will often set up rooms for administrative visitors.

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast intends to target these three customer groups as they make up the largest population of people who utilize B&Bs. The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast has a three pronged strategy that will work for all three groups:

• Association membership and advertising. A large number of visitors will look to regional B&B associations for information about the different B&Bs in the area. Most associations publish a guide to the local B&Bs and The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast wants to be in this guide. One of the other perks of membership is visibility on the associations website with a link to ours. Additionally, we will be a member of the Chamber of Commerce because people will typically inquire with the local Chamber when planning a vacation.

• Website. The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will have a full-service website that allows the visitor to view the B&B, read details about what it has to offer, provide information on regional activities, and even allow the visitor to book a reservation. With the growing use of the Internet, the Web has become an indispensable tool for planning vacations to areas that are not close enough to check out in person.

• Strategic relationship with the University of Oregon. The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will develop a partnership with the University so when the school is in need of finding rooms for guests they will use The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast. We will also be advertising with the University so when students are searching for places for their parents to stay, they will come across The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast in a school related publication and feel more comfortable with booking a reservation sight unseen because of the trust bond they have formed with the University.

4.3 Competition and Buying Patterns

Competition comes in several forms:

1. Other B&Bs. Typically B&Bs have a set of unique features, something that makes them stand out.

   Some B&Bs will create uniqueness down to the level of different rooms within the B&B. The size of a B&Bs range from one or two room (traditionally called a home stay) to a country inn with 30 rooms.

   On average most B&Bs have only a couple of rooms and are often booked up in advance. Particularly during special events, demand outstrips supply for the B&Bs.

   The B&Bs differentiate themselves by personal service offerings and the general ambiance of the Inn. Finally, B&Bs usually have a very nice sit down breakfast for their guests. This is not a simple continental breakfast of juice, coffee, and a bagel, but an elaborate spread of gourmet food such as quiche, a portabello mushroom, fresh roasted garlic and sun-dried tomato omelette, or some sort of fresh smoked fish.

   Guests of B&Bs are looking not just for a room to sleep in but the whole experience in staying in a lovely setting, with interesting people to chat with and people present to pamper them in any way possible.

2. Hotels/motels. These facilities are generally much more sterile in character relative to B&Bs.

   The rooms are typically the same throughout the facility (unlike B&Bs where each room is typically different). The guests of hotels generally use the hotel as a place to stay at night.

   The operator will usually see the guest when they check in and when they check out. This differs from a B&B where the guests are encouraged to spend time in communal rooms and socialize with the operators and the other guests.

   Breakfasts, if included, are sparse. The typical guests are looking for a room to stay in at night and not much more than that.