It is crucial to have an effective marketing plan to boost your vacation rental business. If you dream of achieving long term success, then you need to leverage the power of marketing. Without a solid plan, you are bound to face disappointments and possibly lower revenue and profits.
Refine your marketing strategies by specifically studying your market. With a proper plan and by customizing the marketing plan, you will go a long way. Here are the top 5 marketing strategies that vacation rental owners should focus upon while developing a vacation rental marketing plan.
Take a quick peek into the below slides for some highly effective marketing strategies that can boost your bottom-line immensely!
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List your vacation rental site on various platforms
You need to spend considerable time in preparing and presenting every aspect of your vacation rental. This is one of the first steps you can take in developing an amazing marketing plan. There is no dearth of options when it comes to finding travel-related sites where you can place your vacation rental ad. Of course, we highly recommend our site, RentalTrader.com
Besides our site, there are plenty of distribution websites that offer a wide range of options in standards, pricing, partners, and demographics. You need to find reliable partners for advertising your properties and you should focus on reliable names in the industry and you’ll want to have your own website as well.
Online travel agency (OTA)sites convey what your property is all about. They highlight the look, feel, and location of the property really well thereby compelling the guests to make a choice. If you want to devise a successful vacation rental marketing plan, then you need to collaborate with several distribution websites.
If you are not sure where to start, then you can consider dependable names in the industry for vacation rentals such as Rentaltrader.com. This is a reliable platform that helps vacation rental owners connect with more prospective guests. It is easy to sign up.
As mentioned earlier, you should also focus on developing your own vacation rental website which will also serve as a distribution channel particularly for return customers. Make sure that you design your website to function seamlessly and keep in mind that you can integrate it with RentalTrader.com.
Market with photography and descriptions
Travelers simply detest unpleasant experiences when it comes to accommodations. There is nothing more deflating than reaching a rental property and then finding out that the images online don’t look anything like the actual property. It is best to be honest while running any business. Invest time and money in taking great photos of your rental property. Representing your property with a few basic snaps just isn’t enough.
There is massive competition out there and hence you need to focus on small details and proper lighting. If you don’t have expertise and equipment, then rely on an expert for capturing great pictures of your property. Also, focus on the written description of your property and make sure to include any information about the unique features and the amenities. By using words carefully, you will help your guests choose you.
Don’t forget to use Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques which will help your guests find you easily on the web. Social media also plays a crucial role in generating leads for your listings and website. You’ll also want to make sure to have an active presence on Instagram and Facebook. Be active on any platform where your prospective guests are most active.
Social media works well both organically and with paid ads. Keep your audience engaged. Devise an appropriate strategy for social media marketing while refraining from over-posting on social media. Use links wherever necessary to drive toward your website or listing on Rentaltrader.com.
Make sure that the posts are relevant to the platform and keep a mix of fun and informational posts. Include high-quality images of your property and be sure to highlight various aspects of your property. Help your potential guests visualize what it would be like to spend quality time at your rental property.
Do not forget to interact with your audience on social media platforms. Show them how approachable you are and assure them that you would always be available for them if they have any questions regarding your property. This will help you build trust with the guests who are interested in your property.
Lead generation
Lead generation refers to the actual process of reaching the right audience and converting them into leads. The more the potential guests come across your rental website or your online listings, the more bookings you can expect. Benefit from modern marketing tools for optimizing the quality of leads that you generate. You can tweak your marketing plan and promotions anytime based on your requirements.
You can consider targeting specific demographics for ensuring a high percentage of visitors to your property listing. This will boost the chances of them booking your property. Do not focus solely on a broad reach. Narrow down your options for effective targeting. You can also run ads on social media platforms and target a specific audience that would be interested in your property.
Study various modes of lead generation. Experiment with them to identify which one works well for your industry and your property specifically. Not all lead generating channels are created equal so be sure to study them in detail and use them effectively.
Leverage the power of Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO involves various aspects that have a direct impact on the placement of your business in the search engine rankings. Having good rankings will make a massive difference for your vacation rental business. You need to have a well-optimized website for describing your services and product. Having organic traffic will result in the highest conversion rates.
Search engines consider many factors including visible website content for determining page rank. Using Meta descriptions will inform search engines what your business is all about. Have a good description and make effective use of keywords. It is vital to use Meta tags to help your guests find your listings and your website.
The best way in which you can build your website is by conducting a detailed and thorough keyword search. Place links on blogs and on various other locations to divert the traffic to your website.
Here are the major advantages of using SEO techniques for promoting your vacation rental property.
- Offers better user experience
- Is a primary source of leads
- Promise higher closing rates for businesses
- Ensures better cost management
- Builds brand credibility and establishes brand awareness
- Improves traffic to your website and helps you gain a following on social media platforms
The opportunities prevalent for a vacation rental or brand are limitless. The digital platform provides a myriad of options to explore their dreams of achieving their goals. SEO is an effective strategy that will help you ace the competition. It will help you gain qualitative and quantitative experience through organic search results.
Email marketing
Well devised and targeted vacation rental email marketing campaigns can be quite effective in converting traffic to your website into bookings. It pays to have direct communication with your potential and previous guests so that you can convey all the vital information about your vacation rental property and offer last-minute deals to them. Email marketing also enables you to provide preferential treatment to those on your mailing list who are likely to have been a guest before.
Here are some strategies to follow:
- Provide pre-arrival information to the guests
- Request that they share their experiences about your property post-checkout
- Send newsletters on a periodic basis
- Offer deals and share information about what’s new in your rental property
- Make sustainable vacation rentals to protect the natural and cultural resources
Emails are quite effective; however, you’ll want to limit the frequency since this will turn your prospective guests off. Send a weekly or monthly newsletter with relevant information for keeping your readers interested. Promotions are expected and be sure to keep all your emails informative and friendly with valuable information that is worth taking time to read.
You should focus on building an extensive and quality list. Include data of all the guests who have stayed at your vacation rental previously. Also, include those who have showed interested in your property now and in the past. Email marketing is one the least expensive channels for promoting your property and the most important channel to focus on since repeat guests can be a goldmine for your business since they are less expensive to acquire.
Digital marketing is not a one-time solution. After developing and executing the core ideas, focus on ways of continually improving and growing your vacation rental marketing plan. As the vacation rental landscape is highly competitive, being consistent and working over time, your efforts will pay off as you develop and post content to your website, RentalTrader.com listing, and various social media sites. There are many aggressive competitors out there in the vacation rental landscape so you’ll need to put up a fight by utilizing appropriate marketing channels over and over. It doesn’t really matter whether you manage a handful of rentals or have a chain of hundreds, having an appropriate vacation rental marketing plan is critical to bringing in customers and revenue.
