Vineyard Bed & Breakfast Business Plan

The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will be using advertising and membership in associations to drive in prospective customers. They will also use their website as a complete source of information about the B&B. Missy will then turn these leads into customers through unsurpassed attentiveness in one-on-one phone inquiries/conversations.

5.1 Competitive Edge

The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast’s two competitive advantages are:

• Attention to personalized service. While anyone at a B&B should reasonably expect good service, there are ways of setting yourself apart.

  This will be done through the unrelenting pursuit of personal attention. In the Eugene area there are several larger (more than six rooms) B&Bs that offer outstanding service, but it is not personal. The service is provided by employees, not the owner.

  At The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast all interactions with the customer will be with Missy or John who see it as their duty to do whatever it takes to make the customer feel at home.

  The feeling of personal attention, or more accurately defined as a sense of person concern, really adds a positive dimension to the B&B experience. Not only will the Stewarts be offering personal concern, but they will be providing the concern, not some employee.

• Uniqueness and beauty of the facility. The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will be housed in the Stewart’s home. The Stewarts will be renovating their farm house to accommodate their new guests. They will be building two more bedrooms with private baths, a patio, and enlarging the common area.

  One unique aspect of The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast is the setting within the Lorane Valley region, known for its outstanding wine production housing both vineyards and wineries.

  To compliment this setting, The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will have a large outside patio allowing guests to spend relaxing time outside with a nice view of the valley. Guests can also wander through The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast’s own vineyard.

  Each room in the B&B is 65% glass overlooking the hillside and vineyard. There is not a room in the house that doesn’t have a breath-taking view.

5.2 Sales Strategy

The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast’s sales strategy will be two pronged:

1. Personal attention in regard to calls of inquiry. It is Missy’s strategy to be willing to spend a fair amount of time on the phone to prospective clients. While most B&Bs will be pleasant on the phone and willing to answer any question, the sooner they are off the phone, the sooner they can get back to the work they were previously doing.

   Missy has the attitude that the more time she can spend on the phone with inquiries, the more likely she will be able to turn them into customers.

2. Very detailed website. Missy recognizes that over 95% of her clients have Web access and 80% used the Web to research their vacations. This usage is compelling enough to have a comprehensive website that offers enough information to allow the visitor to make a decision to stay with The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast.

   The website will have 3D walk-through tours allowing people to see the different bedrooms as well as common areas. Online pricing and reservations are also available as well as a resource page that details the different activities in the area.

   While Missy would like to encourage people to call with questions, if they do not they will be able answer almost all questions with the website.

5.2.1 Sales Forecast

The first three months will be used for the renovation of the home to fully accommodate guests. Once complete the house will have five different rooms. There will be no sales activity during this time. By month four, the B&B will be ready to go. Missy will have already been advertising, become a B&B association member, as well as have formed a strategic relationship with the University so business will ramp up fairly quickly. From month five on, business will steadily grow. Beginning with month five, Missy will hire one full-time employee. This employee will perform housecleaning as well as outdoor maintenance. This will free up Missy’s time so she can spend it with the clients.

5.3 Milestones

The Enchanted Vineyard Bed & Breakfast will have several milestones early on:

1. Business plan completion. This will be done as a road map for the organization. While we do not need a business plan to raise capital, it will be an indispensable tool for the ongoing performance and improvement of the company.
2. Joining the different associations. This is, in effect, the coming out party for announcing to the world that you are a real B&B, ready for business.
3. Completion of the facility renovations.
4. Our 100th client.