In many of the big hotels it is the policy to overbook so if you have one nearby keep on good terms with them as sometimes you can pick up the overflow. My parents live opposite to a Holliday Inn and they are rung on a daily basis for their availability in case they need the rooms. It may be worth ringing your local big hotels and making contact so you can have the benefit of their emergencies. Also there are the emergencies that other places have that are no fault of their own for example a large hotel nearby to where I worked at the time their boiler packed up in January we were happy to help and picked up quite a few rooms. Something people forget is that although you are in competition with other accommodation providers you can quite often help each other out so never make the mistake of upsetting your competition with rudeness as they will never send you their overflow or help you out again.