BedPosts 2014 Conference: York

The world is moving on. Are you keeping up?

Aims:

  1. To hold AGM of the nascent BedPosts Business Club and set out plans for the future of the BedPosts movement..
  2. To advise accommodation providers of how to stay abreast of changing technology and the Internet.
  3. To gain insights from other industry organisations.
Invited participants: Owners and managers in the independent serviced accommodation sector including hotels, B&Bs, guesthouses, inns, restaurants with rooms, cottages, apartments
Date: Tuesday 4th February 2014
Time: 09.30 am to 10.00 am registration & coffee; Conference closes 04.30 pm; Optional Q&A to 05.00 pm
Lunch: 2 course buffet served during conference
Venue: Merchant Taylors Hall, Aldwark, York, YO1 7BX
Car park: There are up to 20 parking spaces on site, public car parks are within a 5 minute walk and York station a short taxi journey or walk away.
Ticket price: £30 per head (£25 Business Club members) includes lunch & tea/coffee
Other events: Optional social events in the evening and following day will be charged for separately.
Time Content Facilitator / Presenter
09.30 Arrival - Welcome cuppa and Registration
10.00 Club AGM - For Members and Non Members alike.
Meet the Committee, hear the various club proposals.
Treasurer's report
Roy McGregor - Chair, BedPosts

Dennis Pearson - Treasurer, BedPosts
10.45 Online Travel Agents - Discussion: Should we use them? Can BedPosts negotiate concessions? Roy McGregor - Chair, BedPosts
11.30 Break: Tea/coffee and biscuits
11.50 Running a Green B&B David Nichol-Brown - Proprietor, Polemonium Plantery and B&B
12.25 Responsive websites - and other new technology Ben Gooding - Director, Internet Results Limited
13.00 Lunch
14.00 Reviews Scheme - and other BedPosts website features. Ben Gooding - Director, Internet Results Limited
14.30 Importance of partnerships in the promotion of a destination Kate McMullen - CEO, Visit York
15.00 Beyond Booking.com Tony Blaney - Chairman, Lakes Hospitality Association
15.30 Break: Coffee
15.45 BedPosts in 2014 Roy McGregor - Chair, BedPosts
16.30 Conference officially closes; optionally stay on for Q&A and/or join BedPosts BreakAway members for dinner (extra cost)
16.30 Forum Q&A (optional) - for those seeking advice on how to use the BedPosts forums to their full capacity. Ben Gooding - Director, Internet Results Limited
17.00 End

BedPosts BreakAway

The conference is at the start of a two-day get-together and conference participants are invited to join in other activities as desired:

  1. Monday 3rd February 2014 - Some members will arrive in York and will meet informally.
  2. Tuesday 4th February 2014 - Full day conference from 10.00 am; Three course evening meal to be arranged.
  3. Wednesday 5th February 2014 - Full day and evening of organised leisure activities.

For further information go to bedposts.org.uk/club/breakaway.htm


Explanatory note about BedPosts for non-members

Inception

BedPosts started as an Internet Forum in 2006 as a method of communicating with and seeking help from fellow-accommodation providers over badly-drafted EU legislation - The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 - resulting in overzealous interpretation and application by the UK Fire Services.

Progression

After discussion of hundreds of different topics and a substantial increase in numbers, the membership decided to progress from talking together to also doing things together. They chose the name BedPosts, having two meanings, a pun on the fact that members post messages on forum noticeboards.

Today

  • The membership numbers are over 1000, mainly around UK but a handful abroad.
  • In addition to mutual support, BedPosts has been successful in using its purchasing power to negotiate the supply of products and services for its members at discount prices.
  • BedPosts has relaunched its website with more than 2000 pages and a new focus. The focus is on presenting members' accommodation to the general public to secure more business for members during the troubled economic times ahead.
  • On 8th October 2013 the BedPosts Business Club was launched which offers advanced assistance for members including a Customers Reviews scheme

The future

BedPosts is a mutual and democratic organisation characterised by frequent voting on its forum. At the conference, the Chairman will appraise members of the plans for BedPosts' future which take into account the votes and consultations.

The website

BedPosts.org.uk, and its system of daily or weekly newsletters, is both a focal point of members' activities and a means of advertising their businesses to the travelling public. Main Features:

  • 2000+ town/village pages containing advertisements of members' accommodation
  • Linking system from members' websites which will drive these pages to the top of search engine rankings
  • System of automatically passing excess demand to one another
  • Community software including forums, blogs, pages, chat, downloads, calendar and maps

Joining BedPosts

Membership of BedPosts is free of charge, the costs of its major expenditure, the website, being met from advertising revenue.

Membership of the BedPosts Business Club is £50 per annum.