Frictionless Innkeeper Podcast

In 2006, Samantha Irwin bought the Historic Balch Hotel in the small town of Dufur, Oregon, an 18-room property devoid of furniture which had not been open consistently since the 1940's.  Over the next ten years, the former middle school teacher built a stellar reputation for the boutique property by training her staff to provide their guests with a phenomenal service experience. Now, as the owner...

For Frictionless Innkeeper Podcast #43, Nathan Mayfield, Vice President of ResNexus , speaks about his company's extensive offerings for the lodging sector, how ResNexus helped property owners during the COVID-19 pandemic, and much more. ResNexus offers a comprehensive suite of solutions, which include a reservation/booking engine, property management system (PMS), website creation/hosting, digita...

For episode #42 of the Frictionless Innkeeper podcast series, we speak with Mark Reichle, CEO of Select Registry, about his organization's 50th Anniversary Conference and Gala in Baltimore, immediately preceding the 2022 ALP Conference and Marketplace. For half of a century, Select Registry has created a network of properties that offer outstanding accommodations and one-of-a-kind experiences for...

In the lodging arena, it is common for Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) to charge between 15 to 20 percent on each guest booking. While this may be palatable for larger hoteliers, smaller properties can greatly benefit from a solution that provides direct and commission-free bookings. This is where bnbfinder comes into play. The company has evolved into one of the largest online B&B directories for t...

For lodging professionals of all kinds, the ALP Conference and Marketplace is the go-to event of the year for educational opportunities for everything from sales, finance, marketing, operations to technology, and much more. This year, ALP has expanded the aspiring innkeeper portion of the conference to three days, and all attendees have the option to attend the main conference and marketplace. In...

Marketing is a key differentiator in the lodging industry, and the true driver to securing new guest reservations. Though having the internal resources to manage every aspect of marketing can be challenging. Get Heads in Beds is a marketing and consulting firm that fills in these gaps for lodging professionals. As the name suggests, the firm is all about helping properties to drive up overall reve...

Lodging professionals can differentiate their offerings by the use of branded workwear to project an ideal brand image, reinforce a consistent guest experience, and bolster overall employee morale. Jim Snedicker and his team at Stock Mfg Co. are experts at the aesthetics of clothing for the hospitality industry. Since 2012, Stock has designed and manufactured custom workwear for some of the best b...

Sometimes company origin stories can be the most inspirational, especially when an entrepreneur's love for travel translates into the creation of a next-generation property management and booking system. When Richard Aday was working as a computer engineer at Amazon in 2012, he went on vacation to Puerto Rico, and on the fly, he pitched the idea of a next-generation reservation system to the hotel...

When it comes to creating a truly unique boutique property, it's vital to provide a one-of-a-kind luxury experience that is individualized, and offers local market flare for sophisticated travelers. Boutique Hotel Professionals helps boutique properties to gain this level of differentiation through its disciplined property management capabilities – which spans from experience curation to property...

The secrets to successfully running a bed and breakfast can often be elusive, especially for aspiring innkeepers. Fortunately, Karen Thorne, the owner of the UK-based Bed and Breakfast Academy, provides a wide-range of tools, trainings and courses to enhance marketing, operations, and increase overall bookings for any innkeeper. As an innkeeper for 17 years, Karen brings a wide-range of knowledge...

Being an innkeeper is a 24/7 job that can be all encompassing, where taking time off is a luxury that does not happen very often. Whether you need to attend an important event, supplement your existing staff during peak periods, or simply get away to recharge, the Interim Innkeepers Network connects innkeepers with experienced temporary staff across the United States and provides a seamless transi...

It's often the unexpected things in life that can both challenge you, and provide a path to long-term prosperity. When Wendy Kelly and her husband acquired the Agate Beach Motel in 1990, they had zero experience in hospitality, and the property required massive renovations for it to even be guest ready. Fast-forward 31 years later, and the Agate Beach Motel is now an award-winning destination by t...

Sometimes location and timing can play a major role in gaining new guest bookings. For Trapper's Rendezvous, this was the case when managers Emily and Matthieu Monnier noticed a rise in local guests during the summer 2020 days of the COVID-19 pandemic. This unique property is comprised of six spacious cabins, and sits on five acres in the heart of the 'Gateway to the Grand Canyon' in the Route 66...

Much has been covered in the media about millennial travel trends, but it's not often that you get to hear directly from an influential member of this generation. Christa Freeland is certainly on the cutting-edge of travel in her role managing the Founder House Austin's co-working and co-living property for entrepreneurs. As a millennial herself, Christa believes that this generation is very exper...

In many ways, success in life comes down to following your passions, and working hard to turn that passion into a viable livelihood. For Wild Man Dan Tatarka and his wife, Terri Tatarka, the owners/innkeepres of WildManDan's Beercentric Bed and Breakfast, success comes from their passion for beer and being around great people. After having careers in both fiber optical engineering and hospitality,...

Known for its South by Southwest (SXSW) conference and festival, as well as its thriving music, food and culture scene, the city of Austin is a dream for young entrepreneurs, musicians and creatives. Though just as the COVID-19 pandemic upended the entire globe, Austin was also heavily impacted with SXSW being cancelled in early March, with travel restrictions making it difficult for people to vis...

The COVID-19 pandemic is having a varied impact on innkeepers around the U.S. In rural areas, there is plenty of activity – both from increased guest bookings and the buying and selling of inns – while urban environments are being challenged. There are also an increased number of prospective buyers looking to acquire rural properties, and start their lives as innkeepers away from larger cities. In...

In the innkeeping world, it's often assumed that things need to be done in a certain way. From serving breakfast to continually socializing with guests, these are all great things to do – though this may not be the ideal path for all property owners. For Jim Meade, the owner and operator of Bear Lodges, which is comprised of Bear Mountain Lodge, Bear Meadows Lodge, and 131 Main Street – three non-...

With various U.S. states launching new COVID-19 guidelines for businesses to re-open, many innkeepers are developing strategies for opening their properties for the summer season. Providing guests with the utmost confidence that their properties are clean, disinfected and safe is paramount for innkeepers. And, traditional cleaning strategies are just not enough in these challenging times. As a pio...

While many people don't often think about bed bugs, they can be a tremendous nuisance for independent hotels and inns. And unfortunately, they are on the rise, with a logical reason for their exponential growth over the years. Between 1941 and 1982, the U.S. government launched a campaign to spray pesticides like DDT to manage mosquito populations to drive down the spread of West Nile Virus. This...

As the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown continues, innkeepers are presented with a rare opportunity to use this down time to enhance their marketing efforts to help expand awareness and drive future bookings. In this podcast, Kent Schnepp, CEO of Odysys, provides deep-dive insights into how innkeepers can develop marketing strategies to ramp up their businesses as the COVID-19 pandemic winds down. Odysy...

Founded in 2009 by Teresa Luttrell, Enliven Bed and Breakfast offers accommodations that are ideal for guests who are sensitive to chemical-laden cleaning and fragrance products. The idea for the B&B came about from Teresa's decades-long challenges with Lyme disease, when she decided to create a refuge for medical travelers coming to the Seattle area for their respective treatments. The property o...

As we noted in Part 1 of our previous podcast interview, Monique Greenwood is a highly regarded innkeeper who developed the Akwaaba empire of five properties, and has parlayed this experience into an OWN TV reality show called "Checked Inn." While most of us will never know what it's like to have a reality TV show based on our work lives, Monique had this unique privilege with her Checked Inn TV s...

It's not often that we find an innkeeper who has built a reputation to the level that attracted the attention of Oprah Winfrey. Monique Greenwood is a highly regarded innkeeper who developed the Akwaaba empire of five properties, and has parlayed this experience into an OWN TV reality show called "Checked Inn." Prior to reaching these heights of innkeeping success, Monique started her career in jo...

Monica Edwards began her career as an innkeeper somewhat unexpectedly in 1997, when she and her husband opened the Morehead Manor Bed & Breakfast in Durham, North Carolina. Almost immediately, she chose to become involved with associations dedicated to helping the B&B industry and has continued to be a significant contributor to that cause ever since. Monica continues to run Morehead Manor, while...