The new design features grand photos of their B&B and surrounding area, and captures the serene quality and historic, countryside elegance of their inn in the heart of the Berkshires.

One major difference from their old website is the new website is built in WordPress, which is a Content Management Platform that we at InsideOut have built upon to provide smooth functionality and features including:

• Ability for clients to edit their own content.
• Built in, user friendly blog. Fresh content is extremely important to keep you site visible on the web in today’s competitive market.
• Included Custom Plugins exclusive to InsideOut. These include Specials manager, Recipes manager, Social Media Bar, and more!
• We offer free tech support by email or phone.
• We also offer free WordPress and blog training webinars.
• Hosting with us gives you 99% uptime and 24/7 emergency support.
• Learn more abut the InsideOut Advantage.

This family owned Bed and Breakfast is located in a quiet neighborhood merely 10 minutes from downtown Bloomington and the Indiana University campus. The new website design captures the friendly, historic ambiance of this old-fashioned Inn, and is built in the solid platform of WordPress, providing the ability to edit and manage the website and blog in a clear, user friendly interface.

More features of a WordPress website by InsideOut include:

• Blog, website content, specials, photo gallery, are all managed from one login location.
• Included Custom Plugins exclusive to InsideOut. These include Specials manager, Recipes manager, Social Media Bar, and more!
• Custom built Google attractions map, with categories and points of interest of your choosing.
• We offer free tech support by email or phone.
• We also offer free WordPress and blog training webinars.
• Hosting with us gives you 99% uptime and 24/7 emergency support.
• Learn more abut the InsideOut Advantage.

Beech Tree Inn -- Bed and Breakfast in Brookline, MA

From the contemporary, chic Inn at English Meadows in Kennebunk Maine, down to the charming country style Beech Tree Inn – Bed and Breakfast in a quiet charming neighborhood in Brookline, MA. Pat and Trina have finally found themselves at their final New England destination within the restful, sophisticated elegance of the Inn at Cape Cod to attend the New England Innkeeping show.

The morning started with an expanded version of a continental style breakfast at the Beech Tree Inn,

containing plenty of homemade goodies, including, but not limited to, homemade butter, granolla, apple spice cake, muffins, fresh fruit bowls and homemade apple sauce. The Beech Tree Inn Bed and Breakfast, unlike The Inn at English Meadows, had one common table where you will find yourself mingling with guests from a variety of locations in the world and having some very interesting conversations.

At the Beech Tree Inn — Bed and Breakfast, one can find comfort within the company of tasteful antiques, hand painted furniture, and turn-of-the-century Victorian architecture. The Beech Tree is walking distance to shopping, many restaurants and pizzerias, historic culture, Universities and most parts of Boston, MA. Beech Tree Inn provides a place for rest and relaxation in the heart of a big, busy city, with gracious hospitality.

Pat admiring Plymouth Rock, MA

Onward, south to Cape Cod, stopping at Plymouth along the way, Pat and Trina had a chance to view the Mayflower replica and the one and only Plymouth Rock. This short stop was a great opportunity to see an important piece of U.S history and really get a feel for the area surrounding New England Innkeepers, not to mention how wonderful it was to sample more Lobster!

Meeting new faces, learning, and sharing in Hyannis, Massachusetts for the 2012 New England Conference & Trade Show

Arriving in Hyannis, Massachusetts for the 2012 New England Conference & Trade Show hosted by the Professional Association of Innkeepers International (paii), the tired InsideOut travelers were excited to set up the booth and get stared with learning, mingling and sharing.

Peter and Suzan from West Hill House with Trina at the InsideOut Solutions booth

The first day went well, and the InsideOut booth was greeted by both new and familiar faces. Among those were Peter and Suzan, the Innkeepers of West Hill House Bed & Breakfast located in Warren, Vermont. InsideOut is launching their brand new website very soon. Trina had an opportunity to show Peter how he will be managing his brand new site with one simple log in, and the easy to use content management system of WordPress. They are very eager to have the new website launch and are very pleased with the beautiful fresh look.

Pat and Trina look forward to meeting new faces on Wednesday’s conference day.

A beautiful Saturday Morning in Maine

After settling in their rooms, Pat and Trina headed on down to the wine bar, ‘Old Vines’,  recommended by Eric and Liz, this place was seconds from the Inn. Starving, they were excited to try out the local eats… and this place was a winner. Plenty of menu choices, delicious New York style thin crust pizza, and an extensive drink menu. Old Vines had a young, hip sophisticated ambiance, perfect for the younger folks The Inn at English Meadows attracts.

The perfect start to a Maine day

After a restful night, morning greeted the new visitors with a beautiful, sunny, mild day. Breakfast was served at your choice of individual tables, or the main table if you prefer. Hot coffee and fine teas were served with homemade bread, then came the delicious apple crisp and the main dish. Everything done with the utmost care and creativity.

Lobsta! Lots of it.

The Landing Store and Deli

Next stop, Boston. Yet, first things first, they MUST get a Lobster Roll.

But, with such a great breakfast, the appetite was just not quite ready and Eric and Liz came to the rescue once again. If you hear a food suggestion from them, listen! They recommended a place called ‘The Landing Store and deli’. A little charming country store, with birdhouses made from old painted buoys outside, a front porch and a cute little deli in the back, this is where a large Lobster Roll was prepared, cut in half and wrapped for the trip back down south. The roll was a wonderful lunch after arriving in New Hampshire off highway 1 (the scenic route).

A quiet country Inn, nestled in in the City

Navigating through Boston after the quiet country setting up north came as a challenge, yet soon Pat and Trina arrived at their second destination, The Beech Tree Inn- Bed and Breakfast (soon to get a new design by InsideOut). A charming country style Inn nestled in a quiet city neighborhood of Boston Massachusetts. The smell of freshly baked goods greets you as you carefully walk on a path through the massive amount of tulips, daffodils and other spring delights.

Stay updated for Monday, the big day in Cape Cod, meeting more passionate and amazing Innkeepers of New England!

We are living in a world dominated by fast moving information, real time data and social media. We are receiving higher volumes of information at a quicker rate then ever before. This new explosion has created a very unique issue for small business owners. How do you stay up to date with everything that is being tweeted, tagged, liked, blogged, G+, checked in, reviewed, reported on and pinned (whew, try saying that 3 times quick). In this post, I’m going to show you a few simple tricks. Along with 2 tools to make Online Reputation Management easier, and a little less time consuming.

So What is Online Reputation Management (ORM)?

ORM is the practice of monitoring the Internet reputation of a person, brand and business. With the goal of addressing and mitigating both positive and negative mentions. For most businesses, monitoring your Online Brand and helping to build a positive outlook is the most important function. No business is perfect and no one is ever satisfied a 100%. Your going to face situations were customers or guests aren’t happy. On the other side of the token, you will have customers that rant and rave about how perfect you are. Both of these factors need to be monitored and treated equally. With the unhappy online customers you must engage and mitigate. With happy online customers engage and be thankful. When people look across the many outlets of information they aren’t looking for you to be perfect. They are looking for how you react, and how you treat your consumer (happy or not).

Using Google Alerts to Make Your Life Easier.

Google Alerts will become one of your true allies in the ORM battle. It’s a free tool that will allow you to set up a number of different search queries that will notify you anytime your brand is mentioned. A great tip is to add not only your brand name but to also add any geographical terms for your area. For example, Sequim Washington Bed and Breakfast that way you can also start to see other business in the area that are being mentioned or covered. You then can start to measure your online reputation against others in your market.

Social Media Never Rests

Sites like Facebook and Twitter never sleep. They are moving 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. So staying up with all the happenings is a tough task for those who require sleep. Luckily, there are some great tools out there that can help you to get ORM results quickly across a large number of sites. Much like Google Alerts, Social Mention will become something to lean on more and more. This program works very similar to Google Alerts, except you have the ability to reach deep into all the social network platforms.

In Conclusion:

I hope you can find a way to use these two great free tools. These tools should help keep you in the loop and speed up the rate in which you can gather information about your brand. Please contact us if you need any further details on this topic. With never ending growth of Social Media, and more advancements in technology coming. Staying on top of  your online brand reputation will become more important everyday.

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• To apply for a change, navigate to your Fan page.
• Click the Admin Panel Button.
• Click Help.
• Select “Request a name change for your page.

• Fill in the form with your current Page name
• The Page name you would like to use instead.
• Indicate the reason for the request in the drop down menu.
• If choosing “Other” from the drop down menu, add an explanation in the box.
• To expedite the process upload an image, pdf or text file to support the request for the change.

So far, Fan page owners are reporting that submitting the change is fairly painless, and the request normally goes through smoothly within a couple of days. In all the Fan pages I investigated, I did not see the option to “Request a name change” in the “Help” drop down when pages had 200 fans or less, that’s because with fewer than 200 fans, you can make these changes yourself without applying to Facebook for the change.

Keep in mind that Facebook is not able to change the URL (web address) for your Page at this time. Perhaps they will in the future. If 123 Bed and Breakfast changes its name to 789 Bed and Breakfast, the old Facebook custom URL will remain facebook.com/123bandb.

Take advantage of the growing number of people traveling with pets.

Do you allow pets at your bed and breakfast? If so, how often do you welcome guests with pets? Have you noticed the growing trend in pet travel? Do potential guests know your inn is pet friendly?

Hint: It takes more than a single sentence buried somewhere on your website declaring your property pet friendly to get the word out. It’s no use providing doggie beds and milk bones if no one realizes they can stay at your inn with their furred friend.

Let’s brainstorm. What could you do to spread the word about your accommodating pet policy?

Advertise your pet friendliness on your website

Although most pet travelers arrive with dogs, people also travel with cats and other animals.

Let’s start with the basics: make sure your website states that you are pet friendly. Add information about your pet policy, like the maximum size of the pets you accept, the closest dog walking area, and the pet-specific amenities you offer. Do you offer dog treats at check-in? Is there a grassy area across the street where Fido can get some exercise? Are certain rooms set aside for pets, while others are kept pet-free? Do you have any resident pets?

Be positive when writing your policies. Don’t scare off potential guests with a list of finger-shaking rules, which sends a message of distrust. Instead, use your policies as an opportunity to welcome responsible pet owners. For example:

• Negative: “We don’t accept pets over 50 pounds.”
  Better: “We welcome pets up to 50 pounds.”

• Negative: “Your dog must be leashed at all times.”
  Better: “We ask that your dog be leashed in our public spaces.”

• Negative: “Poop-scooping is required.”
  Better: “Please clean up after your pet. We are happy to provide plastic baggies and directions to the nearby dog park.”

• Negative: “Dogs are restricted to the Tulip Room.”
  Better: “Dogs are welcome in the Tulip Room. We also provide pet-free, allergen-free rooms for the comfort of those with allergies.”

Ideally, devote a whole page just to pets. You can optimize this page for search engines so that it shows up in searches for pet-friendly lodging in your area. Plus, a whole page is more visible to your website visitors than a bullet point hidden on your policies page.

Write blog posts about area pet-friendly activities

Blog about local attractions and activities that pets can enjoy, like dog-friendly beaches and dog parks.

Use your blog to expand on the pet-friendly qualities of your inn as well as your town. The more content people see on your site about pets, the more comfortable they’ll be with booking a getaway with Spot. The more content search engines see on your site about pets, the more likely your site will be to rank well for pet-friendly lodging.

Here are some ideas for pet-friendly blog post topics:

• Area dog parks
• Best routes for dog walks
• Pet-friendly restaurants in your area
• Pet-friendly activities and attractions in your area

Get your pet-loving Facebook fans involved

Ask your guests to post pictures of their pets at famous landmarks on your Facebook page.

Let your Facebook fans help with your marketing efforts. Social media should play an integral part in your marketing efforts, and marketing to pet travelers is no exception. Fortunately, pet lovers can make this easy. Here are some ideas for promoting your pet-friendly rooms on Facebook:

• Encourage guests to take photos of their pets and post them on your inn’s Facebook wall. People love taking pictures of their pets, and people love looking at pictures of pets.

• Hold a photo contest in which you feature the winner’s photo in your page’s cover photo. Ask for pictures of pets around your inn, at a famous area landmark, or at a local pet-friendly attraction.

Do you have any tips for ways to attract guests traveling with pets? What has worked for you in the past? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.

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Are Facebook Apps Viewing Your Personal Information?

Last week, a work colleague mentioned that while using Facebook, she had been sent an event invite to something called “Facebook Goes Pink.”

She said she thought it might be something for breast cancer awareness, and wanted to respond, so she clicked on the event link. This turned out to be a spamming App that then sent the same event invitation to all her friends.

She requested some help with this, so I asked her to go to her account settings and click on “Apps” in order to investigate and remove the offender.

What we found in the list shocked her. Not only was the “Facebook Goes Pink” App in the list, but so were over 30 other Apps she didn’t recognize. She said she had no idea those were operating inside her account.

I showed her how to go through the list, remove those she didn’t want, and how to edit each of the apps she did want to keep but to remove all the non-essential info the Apps had access to in her account.

I told her that many of these Apps were granted access to her account because she had probably interacted with a friend who used the App by commenting on the friend’s status.

I think it worthwhile to offer step by step instructions on checking your account for rogue Apps, tightening up the settings for Apps you do want to use, and (very important) disabling access to your account info for the Apps your friends use.

Let’s look at an App to see what it will pull if you allow and enable it. This is only one example. Some apps require more info to be pulled. You need to analyze each App before allowing access in order to determine if you are comfortable granting access or not.

Click on the images in this post to view at full size.

Anatomy of App Access: Point of Entry:

To Access Your Account Settings:

Deleting and Editing Apps:

Go through the list and click the “X” to delete any Apps you don’t want in your account. If you want to keep an App, click “Edit” to edit the amount of access the App has, and also to see when it last accessed your info. You can also edit the “Posts on my behalf” visibility in the drop down menu.

To Block the Apps That Your Friends Use:

To block Apps that your friends use: Privacy Settings > “Blocked People and Apps”

To Add Apps To Your Block List

Click “Manage Blocking” Scroll to the bottom, and add Apps to be blocked:
(The Apps you see in this list are my own personal list, and for me, have been proven to be spammy, or I just prefer not to see any news from them show up in my Newsfeed when friends use them).

Disallow Access By Apps That Your Friends Use

Now let’s disallow the access that your friends Apps have to your account. Again Choose “Privacy Settings” and click “Edit” under “Apps and Websites.” Now under “How people bring your info to apps they use” click “Edit Settings” (You may also want to explore the settings for “Instant Personalization*” and “Public Search” as well).

The Default: Full Access to Your Account Info

It may shock you to discover that Facebook allows full access by default, so when you visit “Privacy Settings” and click “Edit” under “Apps and Websites” you will see that every box is checked:

To Remove All Access By Apps

*A note about “Instant Personalization”

This is another eye opener, because by default Facebook is allowing instant personalization for all those companies it partners with. You will have to un-check the box below to disable Instant Personalization, which I have done here:

Now that you’ve battened down the hatches with a bit more privacy and security on your personal profile, I would suggest revisiting your list of Apps periodically to see if any new ones have been installed, or to remove those you no longer want to allow access.

For More Information About How Apps Access and Use Your Info:

To learn more about sharing your info with other website and apps, please visit privacy page on Facebook.

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New Custom Websites:
Port Townsend Food Co-op
Asheville Bed and Breakfast Association
Heart Six Guest Ranch
Historic Tamarack Lodge & Cabins
Jefferson Transit
Goosewing Ranch
Southern Comfort Bed and Breakfast
Remax Fifth Avenue

New Concept Theme Websites:
Annie’s Cottage, using our Modern Theme
Cabin Creek, using our Fade-Inn Theme
Savannah Inns, using our Chameleon Theme
Brightwood Inn, using our Hang Tag Theme
Sleeping Child Farms, using our Hang Tag Theme
Scottish Bed and Breakfast, using our Modern Theme
Peninsula Mortgage, using our Fade Inn Theme

Success is closer than you think.

If you’ve developed a schedule and system for blog posts, and posting what you believe is great content (helpful, informative, actionable, and optimized for search), and still find the traffic and follow though by readers to be lacking, then what’s next?

Lets take a very brief moment to mention one thing that works time and again for both large and small businesses in acquiring customers: Inbound Marketing! The definition of Inbound Marketing is: “Any tactic that relies on earning people’s interest rather than buying it.” Earning people’s interest creates a kind of ripple effect both in how they share information about you (you being your business), and what effects the sharing has on your business.

So back to your blog. If we keep in the back of our minds that the goal is to earn people’s interest, then top quality content (helpful, informative, actionable, and optimized for search) should be uppermost in your mind when researching, composing editing that finally publishing your blog posts. Let’s look at what it takes to create great content.

Let’s Define “Great”

Below are 4 general themes that are usually present in great content. Your content should match up to at least one.

Great Content Takes Effort to Create:

You don’t necessarily have to pay anything for great content, but you do have to invest via time and effort through excellent research, good editing and graphics that support your writing. Your readers respect the time and effort a quality blog post took to create. By writing great content you demonstrate that you respect your readers.

Great Content Is Credible:

Years of experience in your industry, in your location, and in what you love to do will shine through in your blog posts. Never underestimate the value of your own experience, even if you think the topic or subject matter may not be interesting. If you infuse your writing with examples based upon your experience and knowledge, your content will be viewed as credible.

People Want to Share Great Content:

We all know this to be true because we ourselves feel moved to share what we find, when it is useful, moving, funny or informative. One way to tell if your own content passes the “Share-O-Meter” test is notice whether you’re excited to click the “publish” button, or just glad you got through that post.

Great Content Can Be Acted Upon:

Each and every post should contain a useful take-way, something that the reader can do, to enhance their lives. I know that sounds big, but even a tip like adding crystallized ginger to the cranberry scone recipe may be a culinary twist so profound, that a reader takes the baking prize at the next county fair! When you give readers useful information that they can put into action, they will remember your content.

Ok, now we know what defines “Great Content” so lets move on to step two, marketing!

Marketing Your Great Content:

Just because you’ve written great content, does not mean that people will find it on their own. You’ve actually got to get out there and share it. This is content marketing, and it is the second half of this bullet-proof plan to wield the primary tenant of Inbound Marketing (Oy, so many marketing terms!), namely “Earning People’s Interest.”

So we’re going to hit the virtual pavement and start peddling that blog post in three steps.

Timing Is Everything:

Plan to publish your post at a time and day when your target audience is most likely to see it. (Yes, this relies, to some extent, on understanding who your audience is, but it also involves knowing who you what your audience to be, so you’ll need to define that as well).

Reach Out:

If you’ve written a post that has you excited about clicking the “publish” button, then by all means, once you publish, send the link to friends, colleagues, in your e-newsletter, on your Facebook Wall (Fan Page and Personal Profile when appropriate), tweet it, include it in an outgoing email to a guest who’s booked a stay this weekend. Build the road that gets people to your post.

Link to a Promotion:

Could it be that your post has an incentive component you could whip up to compliment the content? Could you bring in a guest blogger to spin a post off the one you just published as a follow on piece? Remember that here we’re talking about links to links, and the way your great content can spiral outward to reach not only more people, but also new markets and demographics.

Greatness Is a Process

In a world where we often expect instant success for an earnest effort, keep in mind that even on the internet, things can take time to reveal themselves. Don’t be disheartened if your great content isn’t going viral overnight, or even in a week.
Because of one well placed link or share, (or any number of other factors) your post could go from tepid to hot if the content is truly great.
And take heart, because even in the event of a seemingly flat response to your post, it was a success because you learned from what you did, and you can build upon it for the next great piece.

Resources:

• Learn more about content marketing with “Content Marketing,The New Way of Selling.“
• Here’s a 30 minute video with beginner tips on blogging for SEO
• Find out more about optimizing your blog posts for Search Engines.

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