Our 4th Quarter Free-For-All (FFA) Webinar was titled “The Secret of your Online Success?” The attendees to this session learned that your Website is just one small slice of a Successful Innkeeper’s Online Pie.
If you missed attending the webinar, please contact Annie Buck our Education Manager, at annie@acorn-is.com or 719-219-6732, to receive a link and the password to the Video Recording.
As part of the Webinar, all the attendees were invited to participate in a fun and telling Online Quiz to indicate their level of Online Responsibility awareness.
Here Are Those Results...
There are basic Online Responsibilities that ALL property Owners must be aware of.
This DOES NOT MEAN you are doing your own Marketing tasks. This simply means that you possess the basic knowledge regarding topics and concepts that make up your Online Presence, and that you establish and maintain control of all the associated accounts and services that impact your Online Presence.
Here's a Simple Analogy
As an Inn Owner, you have Physical Responsibilities to manage in order to keep the Inn running efficiently.
- For example, you have to pay your utility bill by a specific day of the month. You know what that utility bill payment is going to cover, you know who you are making your check out to, and you know the repercussions as to what will happen if you don’t manage the account properly and pay the amount due on time.
- It’s no different in the Virtual World. A Successful Inn Owner understands that they have online accounts and systems that need to be managed. Some involve payments, others are FREE. And there are resulting repercussions when each of them aren’t handled properly.
- Inn Owners simply need to know who their Virtual Online “Utility” Companies are, what it is they are providing you, when your payments are due, when changes occur to these accounts -- what those changes are, how they impact your business and how to manage them appropriately!
Often times Inn Owners become overwhelmed by these Online Responsibilities.
So, instead of choosing to learn the basics, they simply “Hope for the Best”. This is the worst approach an Inn Owner can take. How you approach your Online Responsibilities will determine the success of your business. Again, if you missed it, we encourage you to watch the FFA Video to learn more!
As part of the FFA Webinar, we developed a Short 10 Question Quiz to help Inn Owners evaluate how much they really know about their own Online Responsibilities.
These are responsibilities regarding digital assets that you, the Inn Owner, should control. Though these responsibilities may involve your Webmaster, Designer or Marketing Firm, the people who may be doing the actual work to implement these features on your Virtual systems, but it is you, the owner, who needs to establish the ownership and be aware of each of the topics impacting your Online Presence.
Based on case after case of Inn Owners who have been “Hoping for the Best” to only experience results not even remotely approaching the "Best", we have implemented a new Acorn University Track called Inn Owner Basics.
We see Inn Owners every day continue to struggle.
With the basics of their Domain Registration, understanding the difference between PPC, Local and Organic, the importance of their online Business Identity, what E-Commerce is and why you need it, and the list goes on and on.
This new track will include 2 short (20 minute +/-) webinars a month to help Inn Owners get up to speed on the basics they need to know to run their inn, effectively, online. This understanding of online basics is a very real need in our industry. Inn Owners who don’t understand the basics are the ones that tend to make mistakes, simply because they didn’t know what they needed to know.
We are designing these Inn Owner Basic webinars to help you eliminate these sometimes costly, but very real mistakes. These sessions will be recorded for you to watch at your convenience if you cannot attend live. And you’ll also have access to all of Acorn University for your Inn staff to attend, should you wish to have them learn how to DIY any of the marketing tasks for you, or simply to help you successfully manage your online requirements. In Acorn University, they’ll learn how to do it right the first time, saving their time and your money.
If you are already hiring out your marketing work to a Marketing Firm, then this is the one and only foundation you’ll need to keep track of the work your Marketing Firm is doing for you, as you too will receive the Project Management guide, to monitor your marketing progress.
Whether you are interested in the Inn Owners Basics Track or the original Acorn University DIY Track, or you’d like to pick and choose the classes from each of the tracks you want to learn more about. It all is covered in the one yearly low price.
Acorn Internet Services is unlike any of the other companies out there in our industry.
When you choose Acorn Internet Services, you are taking the first step in establishing a partnership rather than just hiring a website designer -- we are a whole lot more than that! It is our mission to look out for your best interests, which means going well beyond just a website design and hosting. As part of that partnership, we hope that you will commit to learning the Inn Owner basics, and follow our advice for your virtual presence just as you would your attorney or financial advisor for your physical presence.
- So how did you fare on the Quiz?
- Did you know all the answers?
- Did you know some of the answers?
- Or did they leave you puzzled and confused?
- Is it time to quit “Hoping for the Best” and invest in your business by investing in your own Basic Inn Owner Education?
2017 is the time to get in the know and improve your Basic Online Responsibility skills.
Please contact Annie Buck our Education and Local Manager at annie@acorn-is.com or 719-219-6732 to enroll in Acorn University now.
Finally, for those Inn Owners that need additional help and support when it comes to managing your Online Responsibilities, we offer our MarketWatch Services. This personalized partnership is for those Inn Owners who have the extended budget to cover the additional individualized step-by-step assistance each month.
