Gift cards

[Morticia]

I have no affiliation with B&B.com other than a user of their site and the options they provide, however I for one am appalled at how some of you have responded to Eric, who took the time to respond to your posts.
YES he may not have said what we wanted to har "ok guys I am giving you all a free year / $50 featured property dollars / discounting the comm" - but he did take the time to reply, and their was very little courtesy considering the time he took to reply to each issue.
This is a GHASTLY representation of Innkeepers, we are all suffering, we all have increased costs and we can only make decisions about those things in our control.
Why - after your replies to the time he has taken, do you think he would make one little bit of effort.??
This is HORRIBLE and I for one am embarrased. Feel free to reove my sign in priviledges from this site if I perhaps do not fit in with the wrath and anger I see here..

Adele- No one gets their privileges revoked for speaking their mind. You are not in agreement with some of what you've read here, neither am I (but probably on different issues). So what. That's what a 'forum' is for...the discussion of ideas. I think revocation comes with certain objectionable traits attached to it... and objectionable traits are defined as 'we know them when we see them'.
You won't be booted for an opinion either way. If you had called everyone here names at the same time, that's something different.
We weren't expecting Eric to give us anything for free. But to at least climb down off the summit he's perched himself on and realize that we're real people with real issues and real problems paying the bills.

 

[Penelope]

I have no affiliation with B&B.com other than a user of their site and the options they provide, however I for one am appalled at how some of you have responded to Eric, who took the time to respond to your posts.
YES he may not have said what we wanted to har "ok guys I am giving you all a free year / $50 featured property dollars / discounting the comm" - but he did take the time to reply, and their was very little courtesy considering the time he took to reply to each issue.
This is a GHASTLY representation of Innkeepers, we are all suffering, we all have increased costs and we can only make decisions about those things in our control.
Why - after your replies to the time he has taken, do you think he would make one little bit of effort.??
This is HORRIBLE and I for one am embarrased. Feel free to reove my sign in priviledges from this site if I perhaps do not fit in with the wrath and anger I see here..

Last I checked, this is America. You are entitled to your opinions. No one judges you for that...don't leave mad...

 

[Penelope]

Me thinks aspiringInIdaho is not a random poster......I'm pretty good with my gut reaction, not wrong a lot of the times....

Me thinks aspiringInIdaho is not a random poster......I'm pretty good with my gut reaction, not wrong a lot of the times...

Edited to sound more grammatically correct: Me thinks you might be right.

 

[EmptyNest]

I have no affiliation with B&B.com other than a user of their site and the options they provide, however I for one am appalled at how some of you have responded to Eric, who took the time to respond to your posts.
YES he may not have said what we wanted to har "ok guys I am giving you all a free year / $50 featured property dollars / discounting the comm" - but he did take the time to reply, and their was very little courtesy considering the time he took to reply to each issue.
This is a GHASTLY representation of Innkeepers, we are all suffering, we all have increased costs and we can only make decisions about those things in our control.
Why - after your replies to the time he has taken, do you think he would make one little bit of effort.??
This is HORRIBLE and I for one am embarrased. Feel free to reove my sign in priviledges from this site if I perhaps do not fit in with the wrath and anger I see here..

As others have said...this is an OPEN forum and EVERYONE is entitled to speak their own opinions.
NO one is banned for what they have to say. We all don't have to agree. That is just the way it is.;-)
A number of us here have been together chatting at one place or another for many many years! So we know one another very well and how to roll with the punches.
It may take you 'newbies" some time to get used to all of us...but we are a great bunch...everyone with something valuable to share....whether we all agree or not. That is the whole point of this forum...share and share alike.
If we don't like what you say...we just ignore you

 

[YellowSocks]

I have no affiliation with B&B.com other than a user of their site and the options they provide, however I for one am appalled at how some of you have responded to Eric, who took the time to respond to your posts.
YES he may not have said what we wanted to har "ok guys I am giving you all a free year / $50 featured property dollars / discounting the comm" - but he did take the time to reply, and their was very little courtesy considering the time he took to reply to each issue.
This is a GHASTLY representation of Innkeepers, we are all suffering, we all have increased costs and we can only make decisions about those things in our control.
Why - after your replies to the time he has taken, do you think he would make one little bit of effort.??
This is HORRIBLE and I for one am embarrased. Feel free to reove my sign in priviledges from this site if I perhaps do not fit in with the wrath and anger I see here..

Feel free to reove my sign in priviledges from this site if I perhaps do not fit in with the wrath and anger I see here.

As others have said, the only ones who get their privileges revoked are those who abuse them. Abuse means drugs, porn, spam. Self promotion is OK as long as it is done in an "informative" manner (i.e., a guest of mine provides line drawings) instead of a "sales pitch" manner (i.e., cheapest! fastest! bestest! buy it now!!!).
I LOVE to see a variety of opinions and am glad that you (and every other new poster) is here. Tell us how you see it, let others do the same. As long as we can all be respectful we'll all benefit from the variety of perspectives.
I often disagree with things I see here. Sometimes I comment, often I don't. I glean the useful information I can, disregard what doesn't apply, and enjoy seeing how different things can be from inn to inn (especially between the smaller and larger inns).
Post away!
=)
Kk.

 

[agoodman]

Public forum yes
Free country yes
This does not absolve a forum or its posters from common courtesy, such as a thank you for the time he took to reply.

 

[Copperhead]

Agoodman1963 wrote: Has anyone tried contacting TA and asking that B&B's are classified as B&B's/Inns rather than as "value?".
What muirford was referring to is the part of the REVIEW on TA that asks the reviewer about the VALUE of their stay (cost v. experience). NOT that TA refers to B&B's being value (or economy) type places. If you really check out TA like you said you have done you would have understood her post.
I did notice that TA has now deleted this section from new reviews and only asks reviewers to rate their overall experience (1-5). They use to ask a ranking of 1-5 on the following: rooms, service, value, cleanliness, and pool.
Edited to add: AG1963, as others have said - don't take anything personally here we like to see all opinions here. It makes us see different views of the issues and sometimes it makes us alter how we think.

 

[EmptyNest]

Public forum yes
Free country yes
This does not absolve a forum or its posters from common courtesy, such as a thank you for the time he took to reply.

.

This thread was done awhile back and I think most of us had moved on.
No one asked him to reply and no one owes him a thank you for doing so as far as I am concerned. If you want to thank him then do so.
Anyone can post here and they do so on their own.

 

[swirt]

Public forum yes
Free country yes
This does not absolve a forum or its posters from common courtesy, such as a thank you for the time he took to reply.

.

This does not absolve a forum or its posters from common courtesy, such as a thank you for the time he took to reply.

Then by all means, thank him for the time he took to reply. Do what will not leave you aghast and embarrassed. As for the sermons, I don't think those will get you very far here.

 

[Morticia]

Public forum yes
Free country yes
This does not absolve a forum or its posters from common courtesy, such as a thank you for the time he took to reply.

.

Public forum yes
Free country yes
This does not absolve a forum or its posters from common courtesy, such as a thank you for the time he took to reply.

The time that Eric took to reply he spent on a soapbox. Those who agreed with him applauded, those who did not agree did not applaud. If Eric had ONCE acknowledged the plight of the small innkeeper instead of basically insisting that we here were in the minority and uninformed, he would have been thanked for his time. He spent a good deal of time beating into our senseless, emotional little peabrains that his product was the best there was, bar none, and we did not have to buy it if it didn't meet our requirements. Being an emotional business person, I was insulted by his tone. However, his product brings me business and I am not stupid, emotional tho I may be. Until I can replace him, I'll pay the fee. Once he sells to the highest bidder, then we'll see what happens. If Expedia buys him out, we may all be booted, or we may ALL have to sign up to be on Expedia, who knows.
He came, he preached, he left. The choir and the assembled congregation were (mostly) unimpressed. I KNOW he converted some on the PAII forum to his way of looking at things. Good. He is doing his best to build his business in the way it seems best for him to do that. As are we all. We don't have to thank him for giving his opinion.
Funny thing is, we are all business owners, not just Eric. I don't recall his thanking us for our opinions, relevant tho they were to HIS business. And the members of this forum have contributed greatly to Eric's business and not just with money. We have critiqued his company's products in Beta testing and have GIVEN him free, valuable advice on how to make those products better than they were for ALL innkeepers who choose to use them.
JOHN thanked us for those helpful comments. Eric hasn't said boo.

 

[gillumhouse]

Well gang this is it in a nutshell. Totally out of touch with innkeepers, totally.
Eric wrote:
We realize that innkeeper's have costs. That doesn't mean are willing to subsidize them by losing money on a program to drive them business. Your guests have costs as well. Do you take that into account in YOUR pricing? We are in business to drive business to Inns and we need to make a positive return on our investement..

Well gang this is it in a nutshell. Totally out of touch with innkeepers, totally.
Eric wrote: We realize that innkeeper's have costs. That doesn't mean are willing to subsidize them by losing money on a program to drive them business. Your guests have costs as well. Do you take that into account in YOUR pricing? We are in business to drive business to Inns and we need to make a positive return on our investement.

We haven't raised our rates since Sept 2007 and won't until April 2009. Our business revenue is up about 10% so far this year from last year. Of course, we take guests' issues into account, as well as our own cost structure. NOT raising your prices is a valid business decision as well.
.

I'm a first-time visitor to this forum and I'm an aspiring innkeeper without the slightest knowledge of nor relationship to any poster of this thread.
But after reading these extremely emotional posts, I feel compelled to comment:
From an outsider's perspective, I think bandb.com's postings have shown restraint and immense good will, patiently explaining and then re-explaining and re-explaining some very BASIC (albeit hard to swallow) economic truths. Hopefully it was instructive to some emotional innkeepers who sound as if they are ENTITLED to something.
If bandb.com is not a good deal for a particular inn, then that inn should opt out. Without whining about the big inns having an advantage, without begrudging bandb.com's profits, without publicly implying they are guilty of some wrongdoing. It's just basic business. Imagine if individual innkeepers were repeatedly challenged on tripadvisor.com to justify their room rates.
.

I am not sure that you will bother to read this, but I am going to have my say in reply to yours. Yes, I am taking MY valuable time to respond.
When times get tough, gas prices high, bandb.com is sending out e-mails to us - what discounts/savings/value added are you going to offer the traveler. Innkeepers are expected to come up with an enticement. OK, now bandb.com starts out saying times are tough so we are not lowering your rates to us, we are RAISING them! I do not care how calm you read his response - I guess you missed the refernce he made to the phase of the moon which I promise you was NOT taken as respectful or nonemotional!
Does bandb.com come up high as a referrer for me? Yes. Am I going to renew? NO! I am scratching to make it. After 12 full years, #13 is the best ever. It took a lot of hard work and marketing to do it. But I am NOT going to give up any profit I may make to Eric. He talks about ROI - well the ROI for 3 rooms is a heck of a lot less than it is for 15 or 20 - but we pay the same fee. Yes, it IS my business decision to make and I am making it. I will take that money (actually less) and just plumb a new market for my business. I will sign up for a market specific web directory. I will still have bbonline and iLoveinns for the national market - they have held the line on fees thank you very much.
Before you drop into the middle of a bunch of cats (as we are becategorized, perhaps correctly) be aware that cats have claws and we do not hesitate to unleash them when we are accused of an untruth. To my knowledge, no one has been banned from this site - yet. Warned they were nudging the line maybe, but not banned. Each of us has taken our lumps from the others when we did not agree. We are still here and friends because we do respectthe rights of opinions. On another Forum we used to visit, only one person ever "packed up their marbles and went home". Their perogative. I prefer to listen, learn, and pontificate as the thread opportunes.
Others who are new here need to read previous threads regarding issues and responses and also learn that a response to YOUR post will be directly under YOUR post (unless it has evolved to a VERY skinny posting). A new post atthe top of a thread is usually in response to the original posting.
So if you have an answer to me and this post, click the reply button and respond in the comment box that comes up. Or at least copy and paste the comment you are responding to before you answer someone.

 

[Copperhead]

To aspiringinIdaho - welcome! I find this interesting that you found this thread to be the first to post in.
You may feel the posts regarding B&B.com were bold and disrespectful but most here have been responding to Eric's posts for years and for the most part Eric turns a deaf ear (or in this case, a blind eye). Each are passionate about their cause.
As an aspiring, you are very unaware of the ins and outs of this business and how our small businesses (in general) are battling to keep up with the big boys to get our Name out there. Years ago, B&B.com was the site most small B&B's could count on for cost effective marketing but over the years, B&B.com has increased their rates and added the extras to make it less cost effective for the small B&B's while bringing on board larger inns and small hotel. This is not just about GC, even though this is the subject of this thread.
In general it is an individual business decision to be made. We just are hoping to get it through to Eric what the small B&B's feel about where he has taken his site. We are not looking for a hand out or freebie, but many feel that Eric could provide the small B&B a little more (i.e. Link) for his basic level of membership.
I was a member of B&B.com many years ago until I found his rates rise but my referrals decrease. I have recently rejoined - taking a deep hit in the pocket - to give them a year to see if I get the bang for the buck that Eric claims. I will not sign up for the GC program if I can not opt out, nor will I sign up with his online booking when there is a 30% commission. Once you have read more here and other sources, it will begin to sink in but after you open and start trying to make it, you will begin to understand where we are coming from!!!!

 

[YellowSocks]

I have no affiliation with B&B.com other than a user of their site and the options they provide, however I for one am appalled at how some of you have responded to Eric, who took the time to respond to your posts.
YES he may not have said what we wanted to har "ok guys I am giving you all a free year / $50 featured property dollars / discounting the comm" - but he did take the time to reply, and their was very little courtesy considering the time he took to reply to each issue.
This is a GHASTLY representation of Innkeepers, we are all suffering, we all have increased costs and we can only make decisions about those things in our control.
Why - after your replies to the time he has taken, do you think he would make one little bit of effort.??
This is HORRIBLE and I for one am embarrased. Feel free to reove my sign in priviledges from this site if I perhaps do not fit in with the wrath and anger I see here..

I have no affiliation with B&B.com other than a user of their site and the options they provide, however I for one am appalled at how some of you have responded to Eric, who took the time to respond to your posts.

I took a LOT of time to take a long, hard look at his claims... a logical, unemotional look.
Eric did not respond.
I mentioned in another post that it would be nice to have a response to my comments (which I'd like to think were logical and unemotional).
No response.

Why - after your replies to the time he has taken, do you think he would make one little bit of effort.??

I don't. That is, I don't think he'll make an effort or change his business model. Why should he? He's welcome to run his business any way he sees fit, as we've discussed in the past.
This is only one of several threads about b&b.com's GC program, online res program, and membership levels. I have a great deal of respect for B&B.com for coming on this forum and taking the beating we've given them, and have said so several times before. I don't feel I have anything to apologize to them for.
When either John or Eric come here and make claims, it is generally my task as logical, relatively unemotional, self-appointed spokesperson for the itty bitty B&B's of the world, to take apart their arguments piece by piece, hold them up, turn them around and inside out, and see what's left. When they're right, I acknowledge that. When I disagree, I say so and explain, with examples, why I think differently. When they make outrageous claims I call them on them. It's just what I do.
I have said, and will continue to say, that if b&b.com really wanted to serve the B&B industry instead of having 7000 member inns they'd have 14,000, or even more. They'd find a way to be such an integral part of the business that the natural course for any new B&B would be to sign up with Google local and then with b&b.com. But that is not the case. I've been in business a year now and still haven't signed up with them. (Cost is a big factor, but not the only one...)
There are a LOT of threads here (and going back a while on the old About forum) on this topic... a lot of history involved. This thread did not happen in a vacuum, either... there was another thread happening concurrently with this one and there were arguments and comments that bridged back and forth.
I don't think Eric has a bruised ego from emotional innkeepers hurting his feelings with their vented anger... he's told us many times that it's all business, all about ROI.
And this site is, above all, an innkeeper site, a place to vent and share advice and ideas. Some have thought no vendors should be allowed here at all. I say, let 'em come! (If they're brave enough.) They're coming into "our" territory... we're not owned by any directory or organization and are free to express the opinions that each of us holds. As you've seen, some are pretty free about expressing those opinions!
What I find to be a shame is that the ones who express their opinions the strongest seem to be the least tolerant of other's strongly expressed opinons. But that's a natural tendency we all have... to find fault in others which we most possess in ourselves.
=)
Kk.

 

[YellowSocks]

Well gang this is it in a nutshell. Totally out of touch with innkeepers, totally.
Eric wrote:
We realize that innkeeper's have costs. That doesn't mean are willing to subsidize them by losing money on a program to drive them business. Your guests have costs as well. Do you take that into account in YOUR pricing? We are in business to drive business to Inns and we need to make a positive return on our investement..

Well gang this is it in a nutshell. Totally out of touch with innkeepers, totally.
Eric wrote: We realize that innkeeper's have costs. That doesn't mean are willing to subsidize them by losing money on a program to drive them business. Your guests have costs as well. Do you take that into account in YOUR pricing? We are in business to drive business to Inns and we need to make a positive return on our investement.

We haven't raised our rates since Sept 2007 and won't until April 2009. Our business revenue is up about 10% so far this year from last year. Of course, we take guests' issues into account, as well as our own cost structure. NOT raising your prices is a valid business decision as well.
.

I'm a first-time visitor to this forum and I'm an aspiring innkeeper without the slightest knowledge of nor relationship to any poster of this thread.
But after reading these extremely emotional posts, I feel compelled to comment:
From an outsider's perspective, I think bandb.com's postings have shown restraint and immense good will, patiently explaining and then re-explaining and re-explaining some very BASIC (albeit hard to swallow) economic truths. Hopefully it was instructive to some emotional innkeepers who sound as if they are ENTITLED to something.
If bandb.com is not a good deal for a particular inn, then that inn should opt out. Without whining about the big inns having an advantage, without begrudging bandb.com's profits, without publicly implying they are guilty of some wrongdoing. It's just basic business. Imagine if individual innkeepers were repeatedly challenged on tripadvisor.com to justify their room rates.
.

I'm a first-time visitor to this forum and I'm an aspiring innkeeper without the slightest knowledge of nor relationship to any poster of this thread.
But after reading these extremely emotional posts, I feel compelled to comment:
From an outsider's perspective, I think bandb.com's postings have shown restraint and immense good will, patiently explaining and then re-explaining and re-explaining some very BASIC (albeit hard to swallow) economic truths. Hopefully it was instructive to some emotional innkeepers who sound as if they are ENTITLED to something.
If bandb.com is not a good deal for a particular inn, then that inn should opt out. Without whining about the big inns having an advantage, without begrudging bandb.com's profits, without publicly implying they are guilty of some wrongdoing. It's just basic business. Imagine if individual innkeepers were repeatedly challenged on tripadvisor.com to justify their room rates.

:welcome: !!!
Yes, b&b.com have explained and re-explained. And I have agreed many times that they absolutely, no-question-about-it, have every right to run their business in any way they see fit. They are welcome to charge as much as they want. They are welcome to justify those charges by explaining in great detail all the costs involved with the choices they've made.
What they are not welcome to do is expect us to be happy about rate increases. Or to laud them for their magnanimity. Or to buy weak arguments.
We have businesses to run, too, and are not happy when commissions go up without notice, violating their own contractually agreed to notice period. We weren't happy with the commissions to begin with... and we have every right not to be. We then can either not sign up for the program, or to leave the program. Fine.
When we try to explain our perspective, we don't seem to get through. Fine, whatever. But no, not really... if I, regardless of my size or history, can help someone, regardless of their size and history, I have to at least attempt it. If, after patiently explaining, and re-explaining, they still do not see my arguments, well, at least I tried. But it saddens me that any organization, especially a large and respected one, should have to learn the hard way that their "unemotional business decisions" had unexpected consequences.
They absolutely have every right to charge as much as they want. But it is a shame that they, the giant of the industry who claim to be advocating for B&B's and advertising and marketing to bring more business to the industry, should overlook a huge segment, the dinky B&B's of the world. None of their arguments about their price structure have been strong. Because their price structure is what it is for a simple, and reasonable, reason: it's what they can charge.
I don't begrudge them a profit... it's what I'm trying to make, too! But I don't ask them to feel sorry about my increased overhead, and I don't expect them to ask me to feel sorry about their increased costs either. BTDT.
Anyway, welcome to the forum. Read some other posts... it's not all emotional whining...
=)
Kk.

 

[meili]

The dial replica watches design is replica watches obviously Glashütte Original, as one might expect from the watch makers replica handbags of some of replica handbags the most immediately distinctive dials in the business, however ugg boots the finish ugg boots quality is clearly polished over their other chronographs in the Senator collection. This platinum replica watches version is replica watches expensive however, operating the pushers; one almost forgets how expensive ugg boots it is since ugg boots the sweet smoothness of the button action. The chronograph pusher action, as far replica watches as I'm replica watches concerned, I think it is one of the best creations there is in the industry.While I quite appreciate the replica watches movement and replica watches its operation, I don't like the dial as a whole.