How does a vacation home owner get people talking about his vacation rental property? It is far easier and less expensive than many owners may think. There is thousands of listing service websites to choose from however very few actually deliver results. A VRBO.com or HomeAway.com is undoubtedly amongst the top website to consider along with something like TravelEhome.com which offers great value for your money.
Refrain from expensive advertisements in the daily newspaper, which are usually costly and are disposed next day. There are better ways discussed below to attract local people.
These below Marketing tips are simple, Free and effective:
Submit your property details on Free listing directories like CraigsList.com
Creating a posting on CraigsList is simple (Choose city > create posting > housing offered > vacation rental). Along with your destination city also try posting to the nearby cities. In addition, if the vacation rental is in a location that would have widespread appeal, such as Kissimmee, consider posting to major cities nationwide.
Include maximum photos of the interior & exterior of the property and also some pictures of nearby attractions of the property so viewers can get the look and feel of the property and spend extra time looking at the listing.
Add an Email Signature about your vacation rental in every e-mail you send. All e-mails are capable of attaching a small amount of information by default to the end of every e-mail sent, called an e-mail signature. By taking advantage of this simple feature you can advertise to people without spending anything.
Keep the information short and simple, such as “A luxury Beachfront Vacation Rental in Kissimmee, Florida” followed by a link of your website and phone number. DONOT enter listing service (VRBO etc) link in your email where all your nearby competitors are also listed. Instead always add your personal website name.
Invite to your property
Invite local residents to see the inside of the rental property and your hospitality. If possible offer some water, coffee and snacks to every visitor so they feel comfortable and relaxed. Try to have a general, polite and courteous conversation with every person that walks through the door. Without worrying about the few who will just seek out the free food and try to leave, many will be happy and excited to tell their friends and relatives about the property and courteous owner.
Have something for visitors to take with them, such as a simple postcard that contains information about the property and your contact details. Try to gather their contact information which might of great help in future.
Place your brochures or postcards at important public areas in town
Place brochures where visitors generally visit during their trip to town. Local restaurants, shops and public areas often have brochure holders specifically to provide useful information to tourists.
Get a website for the vacation rental
There are inexpensive ways to get a vacation rental online. Just a listing service like VRBO or TravelEhome is not advisable as potential vacation seekers will look at the property details where all your competitors are also listed. Having a personal website link on the professional listing service website is a good way to stand out from your competitors and it also shows about your professionalism, seriousness about the business and also you can display everything about your property in detail to the vacationers. A dependable company like GoWeb99.com provides a very professional and low cost solution (starting as low as $99) as per your need and requirements like colour combination, features etc unlike others where you will have to do the tedious job by yourself. The low monthly prices are offered on everything needed to get a website up and running like domain name, support, maintenance and hosting for as low as $4.99 per month. Armed with a few pictures, basic description content with rates and amenities, a website can be quickly created in couple of days. If you already have a website and looking for redesigning it at minimal cost you can Visit www.goweb99.com for more information.
Tip: Useful features on your site such as online booking or availability calendar and Blog can also be a good option, visit www.goweb99.com for their contact information.
Offer one stop solution to the renters.
Running advertisements with a group of related businesses can provide a better response and value for money. Linking up with a restaurant and transportation company to create a package deal might a good option for the renters.
Using only one of the methods will not work well for a marketing strategy. Try to combine two or three together, selecting both print and Internet methods, to reach as wide an audience as possible.
The experience of vacationing at the property should be wonderful and memorable. Providing first-rate customer service is the KEY and sending a personalized note like a Thank-You card to customer is a great way of retaining your customers. Happy customers help in self marketing by their word of mouth publicity.
Highlight Unique Selling Points of your property
If the property has a standout feature, market it. Properties that have special built-in features that stands out from competitors. Teaming up with other business proprietors to offer special offers, discounts, home delivery, phone service, maid service or providing special Spa or yoga packages could work well. Include this information with all communications about the property to help develop a reputation for this service or feature.
Finally one place to seek more detailed information can be in your personal Website where you have the same general information which includes:
- Photo of the outside, nearby attractions.
- A clear snapshot of the interior and amenities.
- Property address and general location (five minutes from Disney World)
- Reservation information (Avail 30% discount on advance booking)
- Contact phone number/s and auto email responder.
- Extra services (Free pick-up and a welcome drink etc)
You never get a second chance to make the first impression. The key is to excite the customer with pictures, description and features within a few seconds. Give enough information to grab the attention and interest of the reader.
