Each year, hundreds of thousands of homeowners advertise their properties on sharing economy websites like Airbnb and HomeAway, but there’s no way to predict whether they’ll be successful in generating income.
Owners must be at the top of their game if they want to thrive since they are up against intense competition more and more often. We break down the three requirements that each vacation rental company must meet to turn a profit and remain competitive in a market that is expected to be worth $100 billion by 2020.
These are the three additional non-negotiables that are necessary to ensure the success of your new business endeavor, supposing you already own your vacation rental home (or are at least in the process of doing so).
1. A reliable brand for vacation rentals
You’re excited to welcome visitors into your new vacation rental even though the paint has barely dried. Hold on! There is something extremely vital you need to concentrate on before you start taking reservations: your vacation rental brand.
It will be much easier to construct the sort of image you want to create and portray for your vacation rental if you define your brand right away. Take your time and don’t rush into these selections; they don’t have to be made right away. Everything from your company logo to your unique business domain name will contribute to the creation of your brand identity.
Your brand’s personality, whether it be “friendly,” “familiar,” “cool,” “luxury,” “exclusive,” or anything else, will be expressed in everything you do as your brand’s voice after you have a decent concept of what it will be. This implies that to maintain a consistent image, all writing on your website, in emails you send, and in any marketing materials you create must employ the same styles and tones.
2. A vacation rental website that is optimized
Today, owners who want to grow their company must have a website for their vacation rentals. Business websites are not only the greatest method to get direct reservations for rentals, but they are also a solution for owners to avoid the rising commission fees levied by online travel agencies.
But it’s not as simple as building any website and waiting for the reservations to start pouring in. There are numerous elements your website will need to have to be competitive, so make sure it is optimized for this sector. Your vacation rental website must be mobile-friendly, given that the majority of travel reservations are now done on mobile devices.
Additionally, you’ll need to have a booking engine integrated into your website, a visible availability calendar, and an obvious call-to-action, such as “Book Now!” Search engine optimization (SEO) procedures will be carried out as part of the website-building process to ensure that Google can find your website.
In addition to technological requirements, you’ll need an area to display high-quality pictures of your home, space to write captivating descriptions, and the capability to show off that crucial customer feedback and testimonials.
Advice: View this infographic to learn what else your ideal website will require to maximize booking conversion!
3. A detailed marketing plan
You need to have a planned distribution and advertising strategy in place if you want all those prospective visitors to notice your vacation rental.
Consider the marketing strategies and techniques you’ll use to increase online and offline awareness when you write your vacation rental company plan. This entails taking into account the characteristics of your buyer personas, or ideal clients, so you may more precisely target these markets.
It’s a good idea for new companies who are just starting in the vacation rental industry to promote on a variety of listing sites to reach as many people as possible. In the beginning, having a presence on websites like Airbnb and HomeAway may be crucial to getting your property its first reservations and reviews.
A channel manager should be set up if you want to list on various websites so you won’t have to manually update all of your calendars once a booking comes in.
There are other methods of advertising your website outside listing them; this should be your primary emphasis since it will be what makes you the most money! Consider collaborating with local tourist organizations to promote your lodging, for instance. Or advertise your house on social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Finally, it’s worthwhile to think about spending some money on search engine marketing (SEM), such as AdWords, to make it easier for people looking for vacation rentals in your region to locate your home and website.
These are merely the top three elements you’ll need in place to ensure the success of your vacation rental company right away. There is a tonne more to learn as your company grows and changes.
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