– Guest Post from Trip101.com
When people want to make their vacation plans, accommodations are a major part of the battle. But these days, many find a lot of relief in realizing that they have more than one option. This is thanks to the rise of the vacation rental industry, be it direct booking through websites like Airbnb or through vacation home listing sites such as Tripz.com.
These sites not only give future travelers a vast multitude of options to look at for the best place they can rest their head while on the road, but they also allow vacation rental owners a grand opportunity to have their properties stand out to these potential renters in a sleek and modern way.
Of course, there are a number of vacation rental owners who still make some terrible blunders that really hamper their success. Some of these are simple flubs, and others are downright cringe-worthy. Whether you’re starting out or if you have years in the vacation rental business, here’s six mistakes you don’t ever want to make. If you want to find out more about vacation rentals and travel guides, check out Trip101.
1.Underestimating The Work.
The industry has made it a somewhat smoother process for vacation rental owners with a couple of things such as some websites having free-to-list or commission based options. But this can lend to some of them not really taking the highly competitive realm of the industry seriously. You’re effectively lumped in with millions of listings. Having the assumption that yours will stand out without putting in a lot of effort will lead to your inbox being a dry wasteland. Successful vacation rental owners learn early that you have to come in with a clean slate and remove the idea that just because you’re there, that people will come.
2.Not Marketing Your Property Wisely
To that end, as a vacation rental owner you have to pull potential renters in. This takes a personally-styled mix of marketing. You’ve already done the work of getting your place in order and securing a nice array of photography. But it’s not just a case of “if you build it, they will come” with your listing. You have to craft and market your listing to really get potential trippers to look at it. How? Take a look at other vacation rental listings in your area. See what components of their listing sticks out as you read it.
And you’ll have to employ all of the tools you can – both free-to-use tools like social media platforms and paid tools like Adwords. Also, go through multiple channels to list your property to increase the listing’s visibility.
3.Failing To Be Unique
Vacation rental owners can easily fall prey to this. It can be something as simple as not switching up your email responder template to be more personable. Avoiding this has been proven to show a significant increase in the conversion rate for listings, which is the amount of confirmed bookings after inquiries. If
you want your listing to really be a home away from home, being bland isn’t going to cut it. Add some of your personality to the description within your listing, and take a professional but welcoming tone with all of your correspondence with potential renters.
4.Not Paying Attention To Algorithms
It may seem a little bit convoluted at first, but different rental listing sites have their own formulas that vault some listings higher than others leading to them getting more bookings. Some sites give more prominence to listings that incorporate key factors such as quick response time and allowing for instant booking. Make sure your listing falls in line with these factors.
5.Not Asking For Feedback
Feedback is a vital driver for great success in the vacation rental industry. Not requesting feedback, or responding to negative feedback in a constructive and empathetic way will reflect badly on you as an owner. Do your best to elicit feedback from your guests in all forms, and respond to that quickly and make adjustments where you are advised to.
6.Being Too Content
Lastly, if you’ve been on top of your game and have made sure to not make any of the previous mistakes that’s a good thing. But don’t rest on your laurels. Do research and find out new ways to make your property stand out. Read different industry blogs and websites, and glean insight from other established professionals. Constantly improving your marketing personality will make you a standout owner in the long run.