We chat / work with other accommodation providers around the UK to exchange experiences and best practise - and one of the Facebook groups was discussing the ranking / rating (star) system and whether it's useful to apply. Here's what I posted there - worth sharing:
We are not listed / inspected. We took a careful look a number of years ago and decided that most of our stuff is 4/5 star but one or two things that guests don't need / ask for were missing, and that would pull us down to a much lower rating. And the cost would have added several pounds per room per night. We simply don't fit proper.
We are listed with Visit Wiltshire, who changed their policy to allow self-assessed properties a couple of years back, probably because few people were going in for inspections and rankings. We find our Trip Advisor position (currently 1st of 14) and LateRooms reviews far more important in bringing in fresh guests that VisitWiltshire where we *are* now listed too - but the most important guests of all are those on recommendation and repeat business.
"Self-grading" and visitor reviews offer us the best of both worlds - they allow us to give a true picture without an expense we have to pass on; the reviews confirm that the grading we have described is indeed genuine, or perhaps even under-played.
(written 2015-10-09)
Associated topics are indexed as below, or enter http://melksh.am/nnnn for individual articles
M400 - Well House Manor - The Hospitality Business [774] Bed and Breakfast, or Hotel? - (2006-06-22)
[884] Drive time - (2006-10-02)
[922] Staying at your own hotel - (2006-11-12)
[988] You should think you're first in a hotel room - (2006-12-15)
[1002] Meet the neighbours - (2006-12-20)
[1046] Bounce, bounce, bounce - (2007-01-20)
[1048] Getting rid of people - hotel techniques - (2007-01-21)
[1084] Writing terms and conditions for conferences and other events - (2007-02-17)
[1108] Express service - (2007-03-14)
[1122] Hotel - online feedback forms compared - (2007-03-30)
[1161] A contrast in room rates and facilities - (2007-04-25)
[1180] Conjugation - (2007-05-08)
[1248] How NOT to oversell a hotel - (2007-06-27)
[1284] An update on the West Wilts show ... - (2007-07-30)
[1421] Castle Lodge Hotel, Ely, Cambridgeshire - (2007-11-04)
[1422] Wiltshire - speaker / after dinner talker offer - (2007-11-05)
[1445] Looking after you Christmas Customer Crowds - (2007-11-26)
[1548] Hotelympia - show report - the lighter side - (2008-02-21)
[1622] An extra step - victory from defeat - (2008-04-25)
[1792] All the pieces fall into place - hotel and courses - (2008-09-10)
[1877] Guests doing a bunk? - (2008-11-09)
[2007] Launch of Melksham Food and Drink Festival - (2009-01-24)
[2283] Everyone is in the customer relations business - (2009-07-12)
[2303] Turning potential customers away - (2009-07-24)
[2593] Food and drink launch - (2010-01-21)
[2724] Escapee Grandparents welcome - Henfield and Melksham - (2010-04-15)
[2879] Night Porter and reception - 24 hours a day? - (2010-07-20)
[2936] The service that customers should receive - (2010-08-27)
[3147] Hotel star ratings - towards a better system of review - (2011-01-25)
[3164] Brown - or Mrs Sally Brown, accountant from Whitstable? - (2011-02-10)
[3309] Tipping Policy - Well House Manor - (2011-05-29)
[3660] A Pivotal Incident - learning how to welcome your guests - (2012-03-18)
[3743] Sunday - no longer a day of rest - (2012-05-28)
[3832] A busy day at Well House Manor - so come in and make it even busier! - (2012-08-10)
[3838] Guest review - Well House Manor, Melksham - (2012-08-14)
[3909] Every Customer Counts - (2012-11-01)
[3988] Three cheers for the staff at Well House Manor - (2013-01-24)
[4033] Official Star ratings for hotels - still worth having? - (2013-03-07)
[4051] On reading a new hotel review - (2013-03-24)
[4202] Excellent Railfuture conference, but some setup lessons - (2013-11-03)
[4232] Not wanted here - hotel guests who will not be happy - (2013-12-30)
[4321] Are administration / review charges on hotel guests acceptable? - (2014-11-20)
[4543] Saturday morning at Well House Manor - (2015-10-17)
[4603] Happy New Year. Our customers are our ambassadors - (2016-01-01)
[4613] Our best hotel customers help us ... to help them ... be our best customers. - (2016-01-04)
M152 - Well House Manor - Hotel Facilities [1328] Oliver says .... - (2007-09-01)
[2076] A New Advert for Well House Manor - (2009-03-11)
[2216] Past Delegate Offer - Summer Holiday / Weekend Break - (2009-06-03)
[2424] A Winter Weekend Special at Well House Manor - (2009-09-26)
[2490] Friendly Hotel in Melksham, near Bath - (2009-11-02)
[2559] Moving the product forward - ours, and MySQL, Perl, PHP and Python too - (2010-01-01)
[2847] Local information for Melksham Hotel Guests - (2010-07-02)
[3212] Well House Manor - a home from home for the business and leisure guest in Melksham - (2011-03-26)
[3296] Dog, hotel, Melksham, Wiltshire? - (2011-05-21)
[3308] Behind the scenes - setting up a cafe - (2011-05-29)
[3373] Another busy Week at Well House Manor ... pictures from the midweek - (2011-07-29)
[3437] Light bulbs - (2011-09-13)
[3549] Well House Manor - perhaps the best hotel rooms in Melksham - (2011-12-10)
[3552] Melksham Training Centre and Hotel internet speed - how does it compare? - (2011-12-14)
[3831] Our Melksham Hotel is not quiet - but we are waiting to give you a quiet welcome. Big difference! - (2012-08-09)
[3863] Five new fans at Well House Manor - (2012-09-17)
[3865] What makes Well House Manor different? - (2012-09-18)
[3924] The bedrooms at Well House Manor - (2012-11-16)
[4019] Coffee Shop in Melksham - (2013-02-24)
[4026] The coffee of the Stars comes to Melksham - (2013-03-04)
[4582] A near-empty plate of pastries - sign of a breakfast enjoyed - (2015-11-22)
[4614] PC Plod - alive and scaremongering in Wiltshire? - (2016-01-04)
[4644] In your room at Well House Manor, Melksham, Wiltshire - (2016-02-08)
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