Launching a vacation rental business can be expensive. Before you’ve even considered how to promote your vacation rental, you could wind up spending a fortune on anything from purchasing the property to carrying out repairs and outfitting it with all the facilities you need to entertain guests.
However, if you’re hoping to save money by doing away with all promotions, you should reconsider. Budget-friendly marketing initiatives are necessary for any small business that wants to turn a profit. Here are six low-cost vacation rental marketing techniques that will dramatically increase your reservations at very little expense, assuming you already have a quality website.
1. Publish a newsletter
When considering ROI, email marketing is still among the most effective tactics. Sending a newsletter gives you the chance to get in touch with former visitors or inform curious tourists about the most recent developments at your hotel. You can make dynamic, tailored newsletters and send them to your whole email list for nothing by using a free platform like Mailchimp.
2. Learn to use social media
Due to the recent explosion of social media, vacation rental companies now have the opportunity to contact potential guests all over the world through free platforms like Instagram and Facebook. You can make the most of social media for your rental by using hashtags, asking visitors to geotag your location, and providing frequent, interesting updates. The best part is that these channels are free and can support the development of your vacation rental business. Never forget to create links between your website and social media platforms!
3. Join forces with nearby companies
Local businesses in your neighborhood are formidable competitors. They already have a solid customer base, unlike you, which you may make use of as a new lodging provider. Because of this, collaborating with other neighborhood businesses is a very low-risk and inexpensive approach to marketing your vacation rental and increasing the number of people who see it. These collaborations can not only contribute to the development of deep bonds within your immediate community but also significantly enhance the experience of your visitors. Trusted restaurant recommendations and activity discounts will appeal to your visitor and encourage them to write positively about their stay in their rental review as well as with their family and friends.
4. Create a blog about vacation rentals.
A vacation rental blog is a terrific method to increase the amount of material on your website and attract more visitors. Writing blog posts that address visitors’ questions about your destination is a wonderful way to get more people to your website and establish your brand as an authority in the area. Countless content options can quickly fill up your site. And as a result, people who are only browsing for local information will find your website—possibly even before they start considering lodging possibilities.
5. Learn fundamental SEO
The process of search engine optimization for your website may be much easier than it appears. Simple keyword research is a good place to start identifying the keyphrases you should focus on for your website. Once this is finished, edit the page names and meta descriptions on your website to whenever possible, include these keywords. Rename all of the image captions in your website’s photo gallery with descriptive names (these are known as “alt tags” in the SEO industry and help your photos appear on Google). Linking between your website’s pages and other, pertinent websites (like regional tourism organizations) might also help your SEO. Additionally, if you can acquire links pointing back to your website from these high-authority sites, you’re onto a winner.
Of course, more costly marketing techniques are available, such as developing paid ads, which you might want to take into account later on, once your vacation rental has already begun to bring in money. For even the most inexperienced marketer, these six suggestions are an excellent place to start!
6. Observe pertinent occurrences
Another tactic that may be implemented for close to nothing and have a significant influence on your organization is networking. But make sure to send your vacation rental business cards to print before you think about showing up at a nearby homeowners association function. These should always be available so that you may share them with anyone who might be considering staying at your resort in the future or suggest it to other tourists.
Examine conferences farther away in addition to any regional ones. Even while they might be more expensive, they can be a terrific way to get your rental out there and gain experience. Each year, a plethora of national, regional, and international industry events offer unequaled opportunities for networking with like-minded individuals and knowledge-sharing sessions.
