How to Market Your Bed & Breakfast to Millennials *

Born in the 1980s and 1990s, millennials are changing the way that businesses operate.  A valuable market segment, millennial travelers are young and vibrant placing a higher value on experiences rather than material things.

Traveling the world in increasing numbers, often craving the authentic, local experience that can be found at your Bed & Breakfast.  How do you attract millennials to your B&B property?  What defines their booking and travel behavior?

Here are a few tips to guide your marketing to millennials:

Millennial Travelers: Trending Topics

• Millennials should not be cast aside. According to Bed and Brunch PR, there are more than 77 million millennials in the United States alone, and many of them are looking to travel the globe.
• Nearly 20% of the international tourism market is made up of young adult travelers in the millennial generation.
• Millennials are traveling more frequently.  Recently, we reported that one out of four millennials will plan more trips this year than they did the previous year.

What Millennials Do and Why They Do It

Millennial travelers crave different experiences than their parents and grandparents did when traveling as young adults.

Today’s millennials are motivated by the local experience — something Bed & Breakfasts can easily offer.  They prefer to interact with the people who actually live where they travel.  They value interacting with innkeepers and local business owners rather than the tour guide at the most famous attraction in town.

While they love to immerse themselves in the local culture, don’t expect Millennials to unplug during their trips.  They place a high priority on staying at places that offer the amenities they need to stay connected.  

They will book a property with free wifi over one that doesn’t offer it.  They love to complete tasks on their mobile devices, and are likely to always have their smartphone in hand.

Create A Bed & Breakfast Millennial Strategy

Recognize that millennials are looking for authentic experiences that are integrated with the latest technology.  It’s easy to promote your bed & breakfast to this growing travel group.

Promote your bed & breakfast as part of a local experience. Social media marketing is ideal for showcasing the different adventures that they will enjoy once they arrive.

You can promise experiences to millennial travelers, and appeal to the budget-friendly nature of this group by creating exclusive discounts and deals.

Millennials are willing to spend, but they love promotions and getting special deals.  Create marketing campaigns that encourage millennials to book quickly to get a room at your Bed & Breakfast.

Develop a strong online marketing strategy, tweaking it to cater to millennial travelers, don’t abandon other market segments that you hope to attract to your B&B.

If you want more tips on how you can create an engaging online presence for your business, follow the IAA Bed and Breakfast Blog and our Facebook Page.

The IAA Bed & Breakfast Association helps new customers find your business.  You can start enjoying the benefits today for free by either claiming your business listing on our site or you can create your new business listing.