On the African continent, specifically Southern Africa, we have seen a surge in domestic travel compared to International travel. 2021 trends are looking positive & better. The upward trend is seen in reduced cancellations & increased arrivals out of the total # of booked guests compared to 2019 & 2020 & we are excited about this. Things could be better with return of International travelers. We however remain cautious with International guests, given the numerous Covid variants being reported in the International community by the media.
So we remain optimistic and ready to showcase our beutifull continent to both locals and foreigners as we say to travelers , Come to Zimbabwe & experience the wonder of the mighty & majestic Victoria falls and many other natural wonders that our continent is favoured with..
We enhanced service by providing branded hospitality amenities inclusive of mosquito repellent & shower gel. We earned 8.1in awards. We are working on branded uniform f our staff
Remember us too here in Harare. Our place is very cozy, quiet and views are excellent. Our hospitality is great we just need a chance to host the first guest to taste our great hospitality and fresh air close to the prestigious Sam Levy Village in Harare. A great destination for this coming Easter I tell you. and good value for money too. Also very flexible and always ready to assist our guests in the event we get booked.
I must confess that due to my low pricing entry strategy into the business I almost glossed over the bathrooms by just making sure there are basics like good quality toilet papers, towels and soap so that I do not eat into my already low price.
Allow me to thank you sincerely Aaltjeb with regards to your most valuable tips to my post of zero bookings and lack of training. You were most encouraging i must admit.
Regarding my photos BDC says I am at 85% and need to add more outside photos because guests want to see the whole thing. I am still to do that since I need to get hold of the photographer first. And indeed I now have more to show since my garden is coming up nicely following the rains.
I also take not of the strict cancellation policy tip as I was not doing that in an effort to attract guests. But like you rightly say if a guest is serious they are most likely to worry about being locked in with you. In fact chancers who cancel willy nilly are probably eliminated by a strict cancellation policy. Therefore thanks again on this tip.
The only thing I probably need to clarify is that you suggest using BDC to avoid the delays in communicating with hosts. Did I get that right? as well as the extra commission over and above BDC right? DPO advised and linked me to nightsbridge, South Africa saying they are very good since they deal with airlines. What;s your take Aaltje? Yes I know you also advised that Rome was not built in a day but I guess I was just anxious to showcase my apartments to genuine holiday makers and so before your wise counsel I was beginning to feel discouraged by zero bookings given that some facilities offering much less than what I am offering in terms of quality are always booked.This is why the channel manager issue became a point of interest for me. My reasoning was that if they get me bookings why worry about their charges but I think eventually that additional commission/middle man charge would be something that I feel. So maybe i should give the channel manager maybe one apartment for trial and see if it is worth it. What do you think?
The other issue I had not mentioned is the delay in receiving my Payoneer mastercard. The card only arrived today almost 2 months after i applied for it. That too was frustrasting me because I was wondering when I will access my money for hosting the Australian family. But I guess if activate it I can now access my money which is another motivating factor.
Finally your suggestion about writing over a photo sounds great. I was just describing my beds yet they are custom made and very popular in the local market for their comfort and design.
But sometimes BDC also confuse me by saying "you are almost there. Please complete your registration " when I am already listed and seeing my listings. Not only that while saying this on the one hand they congratulate me for getting listed and even give me feedback on my photos which they say are only at 85% suggesting that I have the small gap to close to hit 100% on the quality of my pictures. So I think I need to also focus on my pictures and change the photographer because out of the 85 photos I listed with BDC advised that 35 of them require further attention.
I also picked from your comment and photo above that guests focus on the beds a lot so maybe I must ask the photographer to take nice clear close up photos of my beds. I was focusing more on my state of the art super structure of the apartments like designer ceilings and down lights more than the beds..
I also want to thank KibokoafricaBDC for their feedback.
So now that I have my master card let me continue doing the right thing in the hope of getting a guest soon.
On the African continent, specifically Southern Africa, we have seen a surge in domestic travel compared to International travel. 2021 trends are looking positive & better. The upward trend is seen in reduced cancellations & increased arrivals out of the total # of booked guests compared to 2019 & 2020 & we are excited about this. Things could be better with return of International travelers. We however remain cautious with International guests, given the numerous Covid variants being reported in the International community by the media.
So we remain optimistic and ready to showcase our beutifull continent to both locals and foreigners as we say to travelers , Come to Zimbabwe & experience the wonder of the mighty & majestic Victoria falls and many other natural wonders that our continent is favoured with..
We enhanced service by providing branded hospitality amenities inclusive of mosquito repellent & shower gel. We earned 8.1in awards. We are working on branded uniform f our staff
Remember us too here in Harare. Our place is very cozy, quiet and views are excellent. Our hospitality is great we just need a chance to host the first guest to taste our great hospitality and fresh air close to the prestigious Sam Levy Village in Harare. A great destination for this coming Easter I tell you. and good value for money too. Also very flexible and always ready to assist our guests in the event we get booked.
Regards
From Paterrace
I must confess that due to my low pricing entry strategy into the business I almost glossed over the bathrooms by just making sure there are basics like good quality toilet papers, towels and soap so that I do not eat into my already low price.
So thanks Brooke.
Kind regards
Kiliana
Allow me to thank you sincerely Aaltjeb with regards to your most valuable tips to my post of zero bookings and lack of training. You were most encouraging i must admit.
Regarding my photos BDC says I am at 85% and need to add more outside photos because guests want to see the whole thing. I am still to do that since I need to get hold of the photographer first. And indeed I now have more to show since my garden is coming up nicely following the rains.
I also take not of the strict cancellation policy tip as I was not doing that in an effort to attract guests. But like you rightly say if a guest is serious they are most likely to worry about being locked in with you. In fact chancers who cancel willy nilly are probably eliminated by a strict cancellation policy. Therefore thanks again on this tip.
The only thing I probably need to clarify is that you suggest using BDC to avoid the delays in communicating with hosts. Did I get that right? as well as the extra commission over and above BDC right? DPO advised and linked me to nightsbridge, South Africa saying they are very good since they deal with airlines. What;s your take Aaltje? Yes I know you also advised that Rome was not built in a day but I guess I was just anxious to showcase my apartments to genuine holiday makers and so before your wise counsel I was beginning to feel discouraged by zero bookings given that some facilities offering much less than what I am offering in terms of quality are always booked.This is why the channel manager issue became a point of interest for me. My reasoning was that if they get me bookings why worry about their charges but I think eventually that additional commission/middle man charge would be something that I feel. So maybe i should give the channel manager maybe one apartment for trial and see if it is worth it. What do you think?
The other issue I had not mentioned is the delay in receiving my Payoneer mastercard. The card only arrived today almost 2 months after i applied for it. That too was frustrasting me because I was wondering when I will access my money for hosting the Australian family. But I guess if activate it I can now access my money which is another motivating factor.
Finally your suggestion about writing over a photo sounds great. I was just describing my beds yet they are custom made and very popular in the local market for their comfort and design.
But sometimes BDC also confuse me by saying "you are almost there. Please complete your registration " when I am already listed and seeing my listings. Not only that while saying this on the one hand they congratulate me for getting listed and even give me feedback on my photos which they say are only at 85% suggesting that I have the small gap to close to hit 100% on the quality of my pictures. So I think I need to also focus on my pictures and change the photographer because out of the 85 photos I listed with BDC advised that 35 of them require further attention.
I also picked from your comment and photo above that guests focus on the beds a lot so maybe I must ask the photographer to take nice clear close up photos of my beds. I was focusing more on my state of the art super structure of the apartments like designer ceilings and down lights more than the beds..
I also want to thank KibokoafricaBDC for their feedback.
So now that I have my master card let me continue doing the right thing in the hope of getting a guest soon.
Kind regards
Kiliana ( Co host, Zimbabwe)