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iknow-uk Ltd were this week short listed as North West Regional Finalists for two National Business Awards.
After much deliberation, the judges have made their decisions and the regional finalists for the 2008 National Business Awards have been announced. Leyland-based iknow-uk has been selected as one of the four North West representatives in no less than two award categories. They have been short listed in both The Orange Best Use of Technology Award and The Small to Medium Sized Business of the Year Award. They were also highly commended for the Credit Suisse ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ Award.
iknow-uk offers accommodation sites which serve as a promotion method for hoteliers, guest house and holiday cottage owners. They generate booking enquiries which are emailed directly to the accommodation provider and their knowledge of search engines ensures their sites receive a huge audience; offering excellent results for their customers. The company highlighted their head start in technologies including search engine optimisation as a reason why they should win the Best Use of Technology Award.
Helping over 1500 independent British hospitality businesses prosper was the cornerstone for their entry to The Small to Medium Sized Business of the Year Award. Since their launch in 2003, iknow has welcomed over 13 million visitors to their sites; generating booking enquiries worth an estimated £170 million for their members. As a result, 90% of their customers re-subscribe to the websites year after year.
Managing Director, Marcus Simmons comments “The National Business Awards really are the cream of the crop. These are the awards every business strives to achieve and I'm thrilled we've been recognised this year.”
“We've won a number of Awards in the past which have played a significant part in our business journey. I really feel they've paved the way for the National Awards and I believe we're ready for them now.”
“The company has grown from just me, when I started five years ago, to the seventeen people we now employ. We've been able to bring skilled jobs into the North West and to be short listed is great recognition of the talent we've attracted. We hope we can go on to win and put North West businesses firmly on the map.”
A National Business Award is the UK's most sought-after business accolade, providing finalists and winners with a real recognition of their achievements. The Award judges are drawn from leading businesses, business schools, government, public and private sector organisations and think-tanks. They are all selected for their business acumen and knowledge.
The next stage in the process is a 15-minute presentation to a panel of expert judges, before the regional winners are announced on the 17th July at the Arena and Convention Centre (ACC) in Liverpool. If they're successful, iknow-uk will progress through to the National Awards, which take place in London on the 18th November.
National Business Awards: www.nationalbusinessawards.co.uk
The UK's fastest-growing accommodation listing website launches in Somerset this month.
www.iknow-Somerset.co.uk will be officially launched this month, in preparation for the peak booking season. Anyone owning a guest house, hotel, self-catering property or holiday park, can list their property on the website for three months completely free of charge, providing they register their interest before the end of April 2008. (Look out for the mailers coming through your door, which will explain how you can sign up for the free trial.)
iknow-Somerset is a creation of the award-winning iknow-uk ltd. They have successfully released sites in Yorkshire, the Lake District, Devon, Wales, Cornwall, Scotland and the Northwest over the past five years. The sites receive over 96,000 visitors every week; generating over £60 million in booking enquiries for members in 2007 alone.
Their growing reputation attracted Farm & Cottage Holidays Ltd to become the first customer on their Somerset site. Boasting 900 cottages throughout Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset, Farm & Cottage Holidays offer luxury log cabins, barn conversions, apartments and farm houses.
Marketing manager; Sarah Thomas, said “We've always used traditional forms of advertising, but customer demand means it's become a necessity to find online ways to promote our business. We now receive lots of our bookings over the web.
“With so many websites to choose from, it was a case of finding one that works. We choose the iknow-somerset site because we wanted to achieve extra bookings – simple as that. We've achieved great success on iknow-devon and iknow-cornwall so, as soon as we heard they were launching iknow-Somerset, we asked them to add our properties.”
Where iknow-uk differs from most accommodation sites is that it actually works – their sites generated over “60 million in booking enquiries for their customers in 2007 alone. In addition, property owners can change the adverts themselves, as often as they like. The sites are very simple to use and are well ranked in the most popular search engines.
To list your property free for three months, you must register before the end of April 2008. Register using your mailer, visit www.iknow-uk.com/free-trial/ or call iknow-uk on 0871 871 0851.
As more of us take our beloved pets on holiday, the booking requests are becoming more and more bizarre…
“I am coming up to Halifax to look at a yearling filly and I would like a double bed. I am a celiac so cannot eat anything that the horse can eat.”
“I'm looking for pet friendly holiday accommodation in Harrogate and will be accompanied by my 3 Yorkshire terriers - if sellotaped together they amount to the size of a spaniel............”
“I would like to bring my much loved pet parrot in a cage.”
“I would like a family room for my 4 year old and kitten in crate.”
“My pet ferret needs to accompany me, he is house trained and will have all his own bedding.”
These are just a handful of the requests received by leading online accommodation booking website, iknow-uk.com for pet friendly accommodation. They received over 132,000 booking enquiries in 2007 for pet friendly places; proving us Brits really are a nation of pet lovers.
And it seems this market is growing. Last year, 28% of all the enquiries made to iknow-uk's sites across the country were for pet friendly accommodation. This accounted for over £19 million in booking enquiries; highlighting how lucrative this market can be for accommodation providers.
Owner of iknow-uk, Marcus Simmons, comments “Historically it's been difficult for people to find a place that will welcome their much-loved pooch, but we have seen an increase in accommodation providers accepting animals in some of their rooms.”
“As more providers realise the size of this lucrative market, I'm sure increasing numbers will accept pets. Many people choose to holiday in the UK because they can take their pet with them, so providers who don't accept pets are missing out.”
Headlines warning of credit crunches and personal debt crises haven't dampened British spirits; with holiday bookings already double the same period in 2007.
Leading online accommodation booking website, www.iknow-uk.com has witnessed a phenomenal increase in UK holiday enquiries at the start of 2008. Traditionally, January and February are the peak months for booking foreign holidays, but the bookings recorded by iknow are all within the UK.
So are the Brits choosing to stay closer to home this year, in light of increasing debt and terrorism worries?
Managing Director of iknow-uk, Marcus Simmons, comments “We put the increase down to a combination of two things; more people choosing to holiday in the UK and the increasing prominence of the iknow sites. This combination led to an unbelievable number of enquiries at the beginning of 2008.”
“In the week including New Year bank holiday, our sites received 126,000 visitors; double the same period last year. The first full working week – touted as the most popular week for holiday bookings - we were up over 150,000. I think we'll be calling January ‘the great escape’ from now on, as everyone plans their time away from work.”
Whilst iknow witnessed an increase across their seven UK sites, the site with the largest increase was the Lake District. The new Welsh and Scottish sites are also growing in popularity and rising in the search engine rankings; no doubt having an impact on visitor numbers too.
The increase in passport waiting times, after the anti-fraud measures introduced last year*, may explain why more people are choosing to stay closer to home. Whatever the reasons, it must be welcome news to Number 10, with the accompanying boost it brings to the British economy.
* Source: www.yorkshirepost.co.uk