PAII newsletter October 2015

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Emailing: How your subject line can help you stand out from the crowd Because it’s become so easy to do email campaigns, it’s become much harder to catch your reader’s attention. The first impression you give will be through the subject line of your email. 9 times out of 10, the subject line is the determining factor for your reader to open your email or ignore it. If the content of your <strong>newsletter</strong> will ensure you long-term loyalty from your readers, it is important to not neglect its email subject. You will sharpen the curiosity of your existing readers and it will certainly help you to acquire new readers (and maybe future guests). Here are a few tips to boost your opening rate and your click rate today in order to encourage your readers to book a stay at your B&B today or later on. 1. Make it relevant. It has to be both relevant to the profile of your audience and to the content of your email. 2. Do not fall into the spam trap! Among the most commons mistakes, we’ve all received emails having emails with subject lines that are way too fancy with excessive punctuation, too many capital letters or special characters. Popular tricks such as “RE:” or an abusive use of the recipient’s name in the subject line do not work anymore. It is likely that your email will end up directly in the spam folder. Some words like “Free” or “Money” are absolutely spam-friendly. Do not use them for any reason. 3. Keep your promises. We understand that you want your readers to open and click the email. However, if you make it too appealing to your readers, there is a risk that they will be disappointed by the content of your email. 4. Make it sound like it is important they open the email NOW. Words like “last days” or “last hours” usually work well. In addition, it is pretty easy to include them if you want to communicate regarding a special offer. For instance, a flash sale if your occupancy rate is low for the coming weekends (last minute bookings) or if you want to encourage people to book early. 5. Use numbers. If you don’t feel comfortable using the advice above, it is important that you tell your readers until when they can take advantage of the offer by using “5 days left” or “24 hours left”. 6. Personalize the subject line as much as possible. You won’t be using the same words if you talk to retired people than if you were talking to young parents. In the same way, you will not adopt the same tone if you talk to people that have already stayed at your property than to your prospect guests (those who subscribed to your <strong>newsletter</strong> but have never stayed at your B&B). 7. Make sure your subject lines are never the same (or even built under the same format). Soon, your readers will get tired of your staleness and will unsubscribe. 8. Test your subject line over and over again. It is strongly recommended that you try two subject lines. In order to do a proper A/B testing, select 20% of your subscriber base, split it in two. Email 10% of your subscriber base with one subject line and the other 10% with a different one. After a few hours, take a look at the opening and click rates for each campaign and use the most efficient subject line for the remaining 80% of your subscriber base. If you are not sure about the subject line you’re about to use, you can always ask yourself “Would I open this email if I received it” or “Will opening this email waste my time?”. Most of the time, you will have the answer yourself. Contributed by: Xotelia Over 42 Suchet, Lyon, France http://www.xotelia.com
Focus On ServSafe Certification While most states don’t require innkeepers to take and pass a ServSafe course in order to run their inns. Taking a ServSafe course from the perspective of being able to advertise to guests that you have their health and safety in mind, as well as further educating yourself on proper food handling techniques like correct temperature control for keeping hot foods warm, and for how long, and proper sanitizing techniques. If you don’t know the answers to some of these questions without having to look them up, then taking a ServSafe course may be helpful to furthering your knowledge of food safety. • What condition (temp) promotes the growth of bacteria? • Parasites are commonly associated with what food? • Although all food is in danger of becoming spoiled, which is not considered a “high risk” food for bacterial contamination? Eggs or Bread or Uncooked chicken or Sliced tomatoes • Which of the following is not considered to be a “toxic metal” when used in food preparation? Steel or Tin or Copper or Brass • What is the minimum internal cooking temperature for a veal chop? • How many hours can cold food be held without refrigeration before it must be sold, served, or thrown out? • Cutting boards used for food preparation should be made of: • If a food contact surface has been soiled, what three actions must be performed before it can be used again? The ServSafe® program provides food safety training, exams and educational materials to foodservice managers. Students can earn the ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification, accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-Conference for Food Protection (CFP). The program blends the latest FDA Food Code, food safety research and years of food sanitation training experience. Managers learn to implement essential food safety practices and create a culture of food safety. All content and materials are based on actual job tasks identified by foodservice industry experts. Take the program online or in a classroom, in several languages. The course has no official prerequisite and may be completed by any individual that seeks knowledge of basic safe food handling procedures. Training covers these concepts: The Importance of Food Safety Good Personal Hygiene Time and Temperature Control Preventing Cross-Contamination Cleaning and Sanitizing Safe Food Preparation Receiving and Storing Food Methods of Thawing, Cooking, Cooling and Reheating Food HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) Food Safety Regulations And more . . . Are you a member with news, helpful information, ideas and recipes to share? Please send your articles to marketing@paii.org Deadline is the 10th of every month. Photos welcomed!* *Please make sure photos are yours or you have permission to use.
Page 1 and 2: October 2015 Executive Director‘s
Page 3 and 4: Board Members’ Note In the words
Page 5 and 6: Association Corner Recommended Read
Page 7 and 8: PAII Innkeeping Conference & Hospit
Page 9 and 10: Interested in advertising in the mo
Page 11: B&B Jokes A man wrote a letter to a
Page 17 and 18: Upcoming Webinars (more dates and t
Page 19 and 20: Technology Corner - Focus On PDFs,

PAII newsletter October 2015

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