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April 2008
All the work at the moment is around INDABA at the beginning of next month where once again BnB SURE will be present and several meetings have already been established with various key role players. Immediately after INDABA we have the first of the two HOSTEX exhibitions for this year, the first in Cape Town late next month and the second in Durban in September.
Whilst INDABA is a very important forum and at which we are one of the sponsors of the glittering AA Travel Guides awards banquet, we do not see as many establishment owners as we would like but HOSTEX is an entirely different matter. It is at HOSTEX where the owners visit us and where we are able to interact. At both exhibitions and in conjunction with AA Travel Guides we have a presentation and give entry tickets to establishment owners to join us at our stand and talk about any of the services we offer.
www.mybedandbreakfast.co.za
We have had wonderful response to the launch of our new website which we did in February in Bloemfontein to coincide with the opening of our new branch there. The website is designed to give B&B and guesthouse owners and "would be" owners information on a variety of matters ranging from how to run a B&B to how to set up a room. In addition all legal requirements and information are also on the website and we encourage those looking for information to visit the site.
CAR HIRE COMMISSION FOR ESTABLISHMENT OWNERS
We have concluded an arrangement with First Car Rental (SIXT Car Rental in South Africa) that will allow all those establishments listed on www.bnbfinder.co.za to generate extra income by way of commission on car hire. The commission is an amount of 10% of a completed rental.
An icon will be placed on the www.bnbfinder.co.za website alongside the entry for the establishment, whenever car hire is required by a guest (or anybody else) the establishment owner need simply go into the BnB Finder website and make the reservation via their specific link to earn the commission.
Simple and lucrative.
First Car Rental's technology systems allow a specific code to be associated to each Bed and Breakfast or Guesthouse, once a car rental has been successfully completed the commission will be allocated to the establishment. When the amount of the commission associated to the establishment exceeds R500 the establishment will be contacted and an arrangement will be made to pay the commission to the establishment.
We remind those not listed on www.bnbfinder.co.za that they need only e-mail their details to accommodation@bnbsure.co.za and we will gladly add them to the site.
1.FIND YOUR BnB or Guesthouse on BnBFinder.co.za - Click on the Car Rental Icon Next to your Name...
2. Start the three step booking process... Choose Dates, Times, Location etc
3. Choose a vehicle... Page 2
4. Fill in the Renters details...
The BnB Finder website is a free service to BnB Sure clients worth around R150 to R200 on similar sites.
In order to maximise the potential of BnB Finder we suggest the all our members add a link to www.bnbfinder.co.za via a text link: Bed and Breakfasts in South Africa - This will increase the Search Engine Rankings of BnBfinder and ultimately establishments will be listed on a highly ranked site free of charge.
A "BnBfinder Newsletter" is being sent to all those listed on the site.
MAKING THINGS EASIER
CHECKING THE STATUS OF CLAIMS
Understanding the importance to the broker of being completely up to date at all times with progress on claims and to save the broker from sending reminders for updates, we have now made available to all our brokers the claims notes on our computer system. Once the broker has been registered as a user for this facility it is simply a matter of accessing the notes to see what is happening on all the claims for that particular broker. Obviously security is in place so that information is kept confidential.
Brokers wishing to register for this service should simply send a request to Rachel Mogodi at rachel@bnbsure.co.za and this will be done. Once the Master User in a broker's office is registered, that Master User may add or delete other users.
RISK ANALYSIS FORM
Another way we have tried to make things easier for our broker friends is by developing the Risk Analysis form. This form asks all the necessary questions in a yes/no format that you would need to know to understand the risk before providing a quotation. You can access the Risk Analysis form from our website, www.bnbsure.co.za under "Forms" or ask the BnB Sure branch that you deal with to email it to you.
LOAD SHEDDING WARNING
A message from the NAA that they have just had from one of their members as a warning we should perhaps all heed. "People should be extra cautious during evening load shedding times. On Wednesday evening during the load shedding at about 9:45 I was attacked and robbed by two men armed with screwdrivers. They wanted to know where the money was kept and wanted the keys to the Guest House. I managed to convince them that I was a guest and that the owner was out. Thankfully my Guests were out at the time of the incident. Please be extra cautious as robbers are really taking advantage of the load shedding." Our thanks to the NAA for this information.
FOCUS ON........
GUESTS MEDICAL EVACUATION
We are delighted at the response to this new section of the policy that was introduced in August 2007. This is clearly an indication that the cover offered is considered by Guesthouse owners to be extremely important and with the increase in foreign travellers any medical problem to a guest could leave the guesthouse with serious problems of its own. Imagine a guest suddenly becoming ill at an establishment and having no medical insurance or money to be admitted to hospital. What does one do?
In the event of an accident or illness to a guest, if this cover is in place, an emergency medical service will be able to transfer the guest from the guest house or bed & breakfast to an appropriate medical facility for treatment. With most "medical evacuation" facilities on policies the first question that will be asked to the caller is "who is going to pay?" The insurer will be responsible for the emergency medical and evacuation costs in terms of the BnB Sure section if selected.
A choice of three options is available. R10,000, R50,000 or R100,000 at premiums of R50, R75 and R100 respectively.
BnB SURE ASSIST TOLL FREE LINE
We remind readers that use of the Electric and Plumbing services and the Appliance Maintenance section offered through the BnB Sure Assist toll free line can be activated either by calling toll free on 0800 55 66 77 or by reporting a claim in the normal manner.
BRANCH OFFICES
Contact details of BnB SURE offices are:
Johannesburg (011) 886-6066 Fax No. (011)886-1725
Cape Town office (021) 948-0432 Fax No. (021) 948-3582
Durban office (031) 561-4986 Fax No. 086 685 6509
East London (043) 721-3101 Fax No. (043) 721-3112
Bloemfontein (051) 447-4080 Fax No. (051) 447-4088
Nelspruit (013) 752-5599 Fax No. (013) 752-4831
Managers: Johannesburg Debbie Smith
Cape Town Trudy Venter
Durban Merran Johansson
East London Lynne Reynolds
Bloemfontein Dalene Lemmer
Nelspruit Marinda Welgemoed
THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH:
Excellence is not an event, it's a habit.
Aristotle |
