Living There
Major Domo is located in Queenstown New Zealand as specializes in the management of Luxury Holiday Homes
Even with the proliferation of vacation rental listing sites online, many owners still have a hard time getting enough exposure for their properties. Listing one’s vacation rental property on multiple sites does not guarantee more bookings. Furthermore, many of the top listing sites operate under paid subscription models, forcing property owners to shell out cold hard cash for the privilege of advertising. The onus is on the vacation property owner to get the best bang for their advertising buck.
Even in sites where vacation rental listing is free, property owners need to employ a strategy for effective advertising. In a highly competitive vacation rental market, randomly posting ads all over the web and hoping for the best is not a recipe for success.
Here are some effective online marketing tips for vacation rental property owners:
PUT YOURSELF IN THE TRAVELER’S SHOES: Before posting the ad, take some time and browse through the other listings on the site. Keep in mind that your listing will compete with these other listings, and you should fine-tune your ad so it stands out and grabs the average vacation goer’s attention. Narrow the search field by your area to see what else is listed there – this is your competition. A popular holiday destination such as Bali or Phuket will likely have many listings, so your listing will have to have that special something that puts it above the rest. Do not rely on a standard template for your property listing; tailor it to a particular site or audience. Include an attention-getting heading, highlight aspects of your property that makes it unique (location, price, additional amenities), make sure your listing has better photos than all the other listings and so on. Place yourself in the mind-set of the average traveller planning their vacation online and create your listing to appeal to such a person.
BE MINDFUL OF REGIONAL DIFFERENCES: Not every vacation rental listing site caters to the same audience; different sites will have followers from different parts of the world. While we tend to think of the internet as a global phenomenon, vacation rental listing sites cater largely to a regional audience. Some sites will specialize in vacation properties in Asia and will a see huge influx of traffic from various Asian countries. Others will focus on vacation property listings in different parts of the world and attract viewers from those areas. The sites you should focus your advertising efforts on will depend on where your vacation property is located. Ideally you will place your ads in the sites that attract the highest number of visitors searching for vacation rentals in the locality or property is located. Many vacation property owners make the mistake of focusing on rental sites that are popular in their area, ignoring the vast numbers of potential customers who rely on other sites. You can’t expect that the average person will randomly stumble across your listing in the vast expanse of the internet – you have to go the places where travellers already congregate and actively court them.
TAKE PART IN ONLINE DISCUSSIONS WITH OTHER VACATION RENTAL PROPERTY OWNERS: See what others are saying and take part in the conversation! Most vacation rental sites will have their own discussion forums where property owners like you can discuss common problems and come up with advertising strategies. Many forum members are more than happy to share their thoughts and ideas with others. These forums are a valuable source of information for vacation rental property owners.
PAID SUBSCRIPTION SITES: Many of the top vacation rental listing sites offer a paid/subscription model. They should not be dismissed out-of-hand, as many of these sites make an active effort to ensure your vacation property is rented out as they earn a commission on the booking amount. These sites will handle much of the marketing and advertising to give your listing the maximum level of exposure both online and offline. While some may balk at paying the extra fee to advertise on such sites, property owners should not overlook these services as it can greatly booking opportunities. Remember, earning slightly less on booking fees is better than earning nothing at all!
