As an accommodation owner, it’s important that you collect data about the guests who are booking rooms at your property and analyze the types of guests that are most likely to stay with you.

This is not only important for segmenting your target markets, but also for ensuring that you have a diverse range of travelers staying at your property at all times.

By improving the balance between business and leisure travelers, you can boost the overall health of your small hotel business.

After all, there’s no such thing as one target market.

Are Business Travelers or Leisure Travelers More Valuable?

Neither business nor leisure travelers are more valuable than one another. The fact of the matter is, they are two separate market segments with different needs and desires from their hotel experience. Ultimately, your hotel should work to attract both types of travelers to maximize revenue and increase bookings at the property.

Should B&Bs Strive for a Balance Between the Two?

In short, the answer is yes! Each of these types of travelers are looking for different benefits and amenities out of the property that they choose, and each presents a different opportunity for increasing your revenue. The trick to finding the right balance between business and leisure travelers is to promote your property to each target market as completely and effectively as possible.

Warning: Restricting Yourself to Limited Markets Could Affect Performance

Relying on one type of target market, regardless of which market it is, can negatively impact the performance of your small hotel.
For example, one tourism season may be strong and bring in a high volume of leisure travelers. However, another season may be slow for leisure travelers but strong for business travelers who are visiting your destination for different reasons.
A balanced online distribution strategy will provide your small hotel with both short-term and long-term success.

Tips and Advice for Balancing Business and Leisure Travelers

  • Offer amenities that appeal to both types of travelers. Business travelers don’t consider high-speed WiFi to be an added luxury, for them it is a necessity. This has long been the case, but an increasing number of leisure travelers also prefer to book at properties that offer free Wi-Fi connections. Additional amenities such as fireplaces in the rooms and extra electrical outlets also appeal to both types of travelers.
  • Create a mobile app for your small hotel. Business travelers, in particular, are impressed with mobile apps that allow them to streamline their visit at your hotel. Leisure travelers also love to save time while traveling, so a mobile app is appealing to them as well. Mobile app features might include mobile check-in options or breakfast ordering capabilities.
  • Prioritize your social media networking strategy, and attempt to engage with both types of travelers. Creating events and promoting your small hotel on social media channels is a great way to generate buzz about and increase interest amongst both business and leisure travelers.

By Dean Elphick

Dean is the Senior Content Marketing Specialist of Little Hotelier, the all-in-one software solution purpose-built to make the lives of small accommodation providers easier. Dean has made writing and creating content his passion for the entirety of his professional life, which includes more than six years at Little Hotelier. Through content, Dean aims to provide education, inspiration, assistance, and, ultimately, value for small accommodation businesses looking to improve the way they run their operations (and live their life).