Vacation Rental Owners Blog |  |
- Thoughts on 2017 & our recent $6.1 million funding announcement
- Year-end update: Airbnb, new support options, new plans & pricing
- Even more great features from MyVR (that you requested!)
- Reservations just got a lot more powerful (our best release ever!)
- 5 Reasons to Build A Great Vacation Rental Website (and SEO Isn’t One of Them)
- Stressed About SEO? Why It May Not Make Sense For Your Vacation Rental
- More New Features: Reducing Your Vacation Rental Management Labor
- Read About MyVR's Many New Product Improvements
- Putting Autoresponders to Work for You
- The Secret Weapon Most Vacation Rental Owners Ignore
- Outdoor Amenities That Help Attract Guests
- MyVR’s Explainer Video Wins Award in International Competition
- New MyVR Features Will Help Cut Your To Do List
- Are you missing out on vacation rental referrals?
- Why your new vacation rental website isn't showing in search results
| Thoughts on 2017 & our recent $6.1 million funding announcement Posted: 07 Jan 2018 10:30 PM PST  With 2017 behind us, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on this past year and talk about what lies ahead for MyVR, our customers, and our partners in 2018. Before we do – and on behalf of the entire MyVR team – I wanted to thank YOU for trusting us with your businesses. We take this trust very seriously, and it motivates us to strive for excellence. 2017 was a big growth year for MyVR – we tripled the number of active properties using MyVR, tripled our customer reservation volume, and we made numerous improvements to our property management software. We know we still have a lot of work to do in many areas, so we feel fortunate to have been able to secure some significant funding this past quarter (more on this below), as this will allow us to grow our team and move a lot faster in the pursuit of our goal to make property management as easy as possible for all of you. We know we can't get their overnight, but we made some great progress this year and have a lot more in the works. 2017 Highlights: New Apps, Channel Improvements, and New Features ****Let's start with progress on our third party integrations! Within the pricing and yield management category alone, we supported 3 new companies as they integrated with our APIs and started working behind the scenes with several of our customers in beta: Beyond Pricing, Wheelhouse, and PriceLabs. This was one of our most requested features, so we're excited to be making headway here and to provide customers with a choice in providers, as we launch 3 of the industry leaders in this category. To help with on-the-ground operations, we've similarly supported integration efforts by Properly and Breezeway and look forward to adding these to our app marketplace (contact support if you'd like to request being a beta tester!). We've also had 3rd party website builders create custom websites for clients who seek a higher level of customization than our internal customizable website templates offers. In total we have almost a dozen apps being built and/or tested in beta with customers behind the scenes, and we plan to roll them out more broadly in our app marketplace during 2018. This is just the beginning… we are working behind the scenes to formalize and streamline our integration processes for third party apps and services, so that we can better scale this area of the business and solve more problems for our customers by connecting to other best-of-breed apps and services. This will be a big focus for us going forward, and we've had many learnings from partner and customer feedback thus far. We also made numerous advances to our channel management offering in 2017. After launching Airbnb and Booking.com a year ago, we made monthly improvements to these and our other major channels to keep up with changes at the channels, improve the stability of our connections, and add new functionality. We announced several new features this past year (customers can see a full recap here). From rates management to website conversion tracking, and from reply-by-email to better deposit management, we've chipped away at a few dozen feature requests of various sizes. You'll soon see a few other features that we worked on this past year but haven't yet launched. For example, we've integrated with the property API that Booking.com recently added, so property data will no longer need to be managed separately. We're also nearing the release of promo code support, another top request in our new feature voting tool. We've added support for https on our MyVR websites, we're expanding custom fields to any object (e.g. reservations) and adding custom fields support within our APIs. You'll see these, and a few others from our 2017 development efforts, make their way to the product over the next 1-2 months. MyVR's Major Funding Announcement 2018 Preview: Taking MyVR to the Next Level After launching Airbnb and Bcom, we found that maintaining and advancing these channels, along with our HomeAway and TripAdvisor integrations, required a lot more technical support than we hoped, which takes away bandwidth for other things (like new features). The channels make regular changes and enhancements that we must support, and many of you have also requested additional functionality around the channels. Since our new funding closed, we have already doubled the size of our channel management team, which has helped address resourcing needs there and is bringing added stability and improved functionality to these channels. We've also started work on the underlying customer onboarding process, working towards faster and smoother customer integrations with the channels. Another area we're hoping to improve upon in 2018 is our customer support and related services. Our community forum has been a hit with many users, but a significant percentage of MyVR users still haven't taken advantage of this venue for getting questions answered, picking up tips and advice, or learning more about MyVR's features. We're looking for ways to engage more of our users in the community – both asking and answering questions – and we're staffing up our internal Customer Success team in parallel in order to improve the speed at which questions get answered, while also building out more support articles, videos, and manuals. We're aiming for 2018 to also be the year we roll out phone support in some capacity, as well as starting to test webinars and other more scalable, and low/no-cost options for clients to obtain support, training, and education. How You Can Help ****Thanks for your continued support of MyVR. We're working hard to make your lives easier, and appreciate your partnership. Please continue to spread the word with other owners and property managers who are struggling with their current software – or lack thereof. The more we can continue to grow our business, the more we can invest in our team, which allows us to further improve our features, services, and support in order to make your lives easier. Please keep the feedback coming. In 2017, we launched a voting tool for new features that about 1/3rd of our customers have utilized (customers can access it here). We review this data regularly (along with the notes you submit on requested features) and leverage it in our decision-making, so please keep ranking which features you want most, and use the notes to tell us what you want out of those features as you vote on them. With our growing team, you're going to start to see a more rapid pace of development against this list of requested features, particularly some of the larger ones. Lastly, please also spread the word about our open roles. We're looking for A-players – the very cream of the crop – to help us take our offering to the next level. Thanks again to everyone for a great 2017, and for your continued support and feedback in 2018! We couldn't do it without you. Jonathan |
| Year-end update: Airbnb, new support options, new plans & pricing Posted: 20 Dec 2016 12:12 AM PST  It's hard to believe 2016 is coming to an end already, and it's even harder to believe it's been 6 years since we founded MyVR! A LOOK BACK… WE GOT A FEW THINGS RIGHT
Sure, there were already more than a few property management software solutions on the market, but they appeared outdated, hard to use, and not designed to handle the challenges that lay ahead given the trends we saw. So, we set out to build modern management software with a focus on design, usability, and connectivity. We also aimed to make software more accessible for smaller property managers and owners – both of whom appeared neglected by the legacy software providers. … AND A FEW THINGS… NOT SO MUCH!
This isn't our first startup, so we knew coming in that nothing ever comes without a lot of hard work and determination. While we thought early on that delivering the sheer number of features that customers wanted would be the biggest challenge we faced, we now believe that effectively onboarding, training, and supporting customers is an even bigger challenge, and potentially even more important to the success of MyVR and our customers. It's clear, given the current industry trends outlined above, that our solution is needed now more than ever, and we're excited to have achieved so much towards these product and support goals throughout 2016. MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS IN 2016
More channel integrations: Airbnb and Booking.com We're also proud to connected you with these channels directly – meaning we connect you to the channels without a third party channel manager. This keeps the complexity of integrating, as well as the costs, to a minimum. Better tools for maintaining your website Automation enhancements Other software enhancements: inquiry routing, reporting, and more Expanded support infrastructure We've added dozens of product tutorial videos, with more on the way. We created our first downloadable user manual to help walk you through the setup process. We launched a Community Forum to make standard Q&As easier to find, and to get you answers faster, with access not just to the MyVR team but to other users as well. Through our new services offering, you can now get referrals to professionals who can offer assistance such as data importation, 1:1 training, SEO help, as well as website design and development—whatever you need to get the most from technology and optimize your business. Many of our plans also now come with some setup and training services included, and additional options can be purchased a la carte via our new services offering! Product redesign and new plans We moved all third party integrations (like HomeAway, Stripe, Mailchimp, etc) and optional add-ons (like websites) to this new App Marketplace. We've also created this new Services Marketplace to organize the many services that we now offer, and we expect both of these marketplaces to see many great additions in 2017. Lastly, we organized the software itself into major functional modules, and have redesigned our product navigation around these. Given the evolution of the product, we also needed to create a set of new plans (three property manager plans, and two owner plans) to better customize our offering to different clients with differing needs and budgets, and help them understand what they get with each plan level. We released these new plans to new customers a few weeks ago (and stopped offering the prior ones when we did that). New pricing We were overdue for these changes – most of our customers were on a pricing plan that was designed in early 2013, when we had a very small fraction of the platform capabilities what we have now, and we hadn't been adjusting prices upward all that time as we made the product better. We're continuing to honor the legacy plan you signed up for, so if you've been satisfied with the product, this recent price adjustment need not have any impact on you. (NOTE: Some users on legacy plans have inquired about converting to one of our newer plans. Sit tight… we have a separate email coming on that within a few days.) A LOOK AHEAD TO 2017 One key investment we made in 2016 that we didn't mention above (and haven't talked about much) was the release of a Developer Portal with a robust set of APIs – something that will allow for greater connectivity with our software. We realize that's pretty technical for most users, and the sound of "APIs" might not get you super excited, but you'll appreciate what APIs will let you do! In the short term, the APIs give larger customers better access to their data and allow them to build custom technology on top of MyVR's software. Longer term, APIs add functionality for our users by letting third party software developers integrate their products and services with MyVR's software. For example, our APIs are already being used for things like building custom websites and enabling yield management companies to optimize rental rates for our clients. Going forward, APIs will enable MyVR to bring greater choice in features and services to our clients via third party apps and services, and these will be made available to users via our App and Services Marketplaces. We're excited to close out 2016 with a bang and have an exciting roadmap developing for 2017! Thanks for your continued support, |
| Even more great features from MyVR (that you requested!) Posted: 10 Dec 2015 02:17 AM PST  We have had a busy fall and have launched several new features that you've asked for – we hope you love them! Here's a brief summary: Automated check-in & check-out emails – you can now send automated emails triggered by a set number of days before or after check-in date, check-out date, or the midpoint of a renter's stay. Inbox improvements- we made a few improvements to our messaging interface, including:
Multi-property maps – for clients with a multi-property website, you now have the option to add a 'map view' to your website to show the locations of your various properties.
Email design controls – we've exposed some simple design tools so you can better match the look and feel of emails we send on your behalf, so that they can include your own logo and colors. Transactional emails controls – we send a number of transactional emails on your behalf (e.g. reservation confirmation emails, payment reminders, etc). We now expose these templates to you so you can see what's being sent, we give you the ability to customize these messages, and we warn you when we're sending them. Booking & calendar widgets – if you have a 3rd party website managed outside of MyVR, you can now embed your centralized MyVR calendar onto that website, and you can add online bookings to your website with MyVR's mobile-responsive booking flow widget! New custom fields – add custom fields to your property data for fields you use often (driving directions, a PDF home manual, etc) and then automatically populate these on your website, automated email communications, and more! You no longer need to customize certain web pages or automated emails by property! New channel management offerings – we are excited to announce a significantly revamped channel management offering, providing centralized management of listings on HomeAway, VRBO, VacationRentals.com, TripAdvisor, and Flipkey:
Please let us know what you think, and also what other features you want us to work on by clicking on the "Suggestions" tab at the bottom of the MyVR dashboard when you're logged in! |
| Reservations just got a lot more powerful (our best release ever!) Posted: 26 Oct 2015 02:12 AM PDT  Hey everyone! We sent out an email to customers last week on some amazing new features, so I thought I'd post on the blog to share with our other followers. Here's the email:
Everything you set up in a Booking Policy becomes your default. You can set up a Booking Policy to apply across many properties, and you can set up several Booking Policies and assign them to properties or property groups as you see fit.
Want to learn more? Please check out the following:
Stay tuned for upgrades to our automated communications and a relaunching of our channel management in the coming weeks. Thanks! p.s. Send me your feedback after you've reviewed our latest release. What are we missing in our reservations product? Please use the "Suggestions" tab at the bottom of your screen when you are logged into your MyVR dashboard. |
| 5 Reasons to Build A Great Vacation Rental Website (and SEO Isn’t One of Them) Posted: 13 Oct 2015 10:30 PM PDT People are often surprised when I say they need to stop stressing out about search engine optimization (SEO) because it may not even be right for their vacation rental marketing strategy. "Jonathan, don't you guys offer websites? Why would you tell people not to do SEO?"
It's true that MyVR offers powerful vacation rental property management software, and it's true that websites are one of the key features. However, we'd much rather customers have a clear sense of what their strategy is before starting a website; the entire approach to your website could radically change depending on your purpose. There are plenty of very good reasons to have a website even if SEO isn't a core part of your strategy. Here are five of them. 1. Improve your conversion rate on inquiries from listing sitesListing sites are a teaser for you rental property; you can bet that a good number of people will check out your website before they decide to book—even if you have a knock-out listing. Why?
You can also improve your conversion rate by looking more professional yourself. Even when people want the independence of a vacation rental, it's reassuring to know there's someone available if something goes wrong. An effective website doesn't just showcase your property—a stand-out web presence inspires confidence that you take the rest of your vacation rental business just as seriously. 2. Get repeat business more easily…To build a steady stream of income, you need to be more than "the white house we stayed at last year, which we found through one of those listing sites." Establishing a memorable brand gives people something to remember with a simple way to find you in the future. Will people even find your listing among the options on a listing site when they're booking their trip next year? Your rental could buried several pages in, you may have changed your marketing priorities and cancelled your listing. If they do find your listing, will they get distracted by the selection of nearby alternatives that any listing site will serve up? Without a professional and well-branded website, you leave too much to chance. Even if someone has had a great experience, they'll only go so far to try to track your rental down a second time. 3. …and make word of mouth simpleLike giving people something to remember, it's much easier to tell a friend to look up ""Sonoma Square Cottage" (my property) than "VRBO #3537208," and it's infinitely preferable to "I don't know, I just found it on HomeAway." 4. Give yourself more marketing optionsWhether you want to pursue paid ads, Facebook ads, or email marketing, a great vacation rental website gives you options. Free listings from sites like Yelp, Yahoo Local, and the Yellow Pages may be lower volume, but they've still sent some bookings my way. The cost of paid campaigns like Google PPC, remarketing, and Facebook targeting may not make sense for small owners, but they can be used effectively. Email marketing is another option that's easier and cheaper than these paid options. However, any of these marketing tactics need a page that's designed to convert new leads. As I said above, trusting a listing to convert leaves a lot to chance—especially if you're paying for the exposure. 5. Automate your workflowVacation rental owners are busy, and listing sites just don't offer the same flexibility you get by building your business around your own website. Learn what people want to know about your property, then build your website to meet those needs. Create a local guide, share your contract, better explain your rates, provide quotes, offer package deals, set up an FAQ section. You can even feature local recommendations, deals, and events, like I've done for SonomaSquareCottage.com. These are all valid and powerful uses for a website that have nothing to do with SEO ranking. Your website can have many different goals, but having a primary goal will help prioritize your efforts. Some goals require a certain time or cost investment; sometimes goals can even conflict. Prioritizing paid advertising campaigns could mean an entirely different site design than if your primary goal is better converting your existing flow of inquiries. …And if you just can't knock SEO off your to-do list? You can do much of the fairly quick on-page SEO configuration on your own without knocking other goals off track. |
| Stressed About SEO? Why It May Not Make Sense For Your Vacation Rental Posted: 07 Oct 2015 12:00 AM PDT I often find myself in conversations with vacation rental owners of just one property—or perhaps a few—about whether SEO should be a part of their marketing strategy.
For many larger, professional property managers, it's not just a good idea, but a necessary piece of their long-term strategy to diversify and take control of their business. For that reason, MyVR's mobile responsive website templates allow for full on-page SEO configuration. However, the SEO decision for most smaller "mom-and-pop" owners is not so clear. Reason #1: SEO is complicated and changes over timeVery few vacation rental owners also happen to be SEO experts, so the knowledge gap is large and the ramp-up time considerable. SEO is also a relatively complex set of algorithms: No one knows for sure exactly what Google's algorithms are, although some tenants do hold true over time, like high-quality backlinks (links from other websites) and having useful and relevant content. The SEO game, and what it takes to rank high, also changes over time as search engines refine and improve their algorithms. Staying ahead of the curve can be time consuming and it takes a large investment of time to read Google's guidelines and updates. What's clear is that there is no short cut; to climb your way to the top, you need fresh, relevant content on a website that is both credible and reputable. Reason #2: No time for SEOMost vacation rental owners who manage their property on their own are already stretched thin: They work full-time jobs, have a family, or have other responsibilities, hobbies, or interests. Who has time to learn a new profession on the side—knowledge it takes experts years to accumulate and refine? More than the commitment to learning a new skill, however, SEO it takes a lot of effort to create an effective presence. You need to have a base of solid content that's fully optimized with keywords and other on-page elements. You also need to invest time to build off-page SEO, like building a network of backlinks (i.e. links from reputable websites to your site) and social shares. Doing all of this is a major commitment that most owners just don't have time for. Reason #3: Outsourcing SEO is expensive (and risky)If you acknowledge that you don't have the time to do it yourself, a busy vacation rental owner does have the option to hire SEO help. However, it's an industry that is unfortunately littered with unscrupulous service providers who prey on uneducated customers. The really good ones—which do exist—are not cheap. I've seen clients so confused that they believed they were instantly boosted to #1 in organic search results, when what they really had was a $350 /month pay-per-click (PPC) ad! If you don't know the difference, or don't understand what "organic search" or "PPC ads" are, don't risk your money hiring SEO help until you learn more. Conrad O'Connell, of InterCoastal Net Designs, works with large vacation rental companies all over the U.S. on their SEO efforts. According to Conrad, it isn't uncommon for his clients to have spent months—even years—working with SEO companies who lacked solid strategy, monthly reporting, and a reasonable client contract. He says the best results come from an agency that's highly knowledgeable about the vacation rental industry and that interacts with you on a regular basis. Reason #4: SEO requires an ongoing commitmentNot only does SEO take a big investment of time and/or money up front to see a noticeable difference, the investment doesn't end once you've finally achieved some success (assuming you achieve success). SEO is not a one-time thing that you set up and watch it grow; maintaining a reputable website with relevant content for your desired search terms is ongoing, both to keep your site fresh and to keep up with the changing SEO environment. Reason #5: SEO can be very competitiveIf all this didn't seem enough of a challenge already, the competition for good positions in search results can also be fierce. You're not only up against the major listing sites (HomeAway, VRBO, FlipKey, Airbnb, etc.)—big brands that are all vying for page one on Google—but you're also up against professional property managers, too. And don't forget the dozens—even hundreds or thousands—of other individual owners in your area. For example, VRBO currently lists more than 7,500 properties on the Grand Strand in Myrtle Beach; just 10 organic results make it onto page one of the search results, a few more if you include the ones who've grabbed their location on Google Maps. (The collection of paid ads are a whole different ballgame!) For the typical vacation rental owner, getting ahead of the listing sites and property managers— as well as any other owners in the area who decide to pursue SEO—isn't impossible, but it's practically guaranteed to be a steep climb. So, is SEO right for you?This may all seem daunting, but it isn't meant to scare anyone away from doing SEO; it may make sense for some owners to pursue it. However, it is something that requires a thorough assessment of the return you'll get on your investment before you commit. There are plenty of great reasons to have a website, and SEO doesn't need to be one of them. If it isn't for you, make that decision up front, then stop worrying about it. |
| More New Features: Reducing Your Vacation Rental Management Labor Posted: 05 Sep 2015 09:07 AM PDT Happy Labor Day! We're not resting this Labor Day – we're actually working hard to deliver some amazing upgrades to our vacation rental management software. This coming Tuesday, we're releasing a number of improvements, which we wanted you to know about ahead of time. Read below to hear about some of the most requested enhancements in this upcoming release:
Sending Renter Quotes
Have more improvements that you'd like to see to Quotes? Share any feedback you have here. The MyVR Inbox
While these Inbox changes are small, we have a ton more coming over the next two months. Send any feedback you have now here. Reservations
We have more Reservations improvements coming next month, including new refund / cancellation options and more flexible payments schedule creation. We'll also be adding the much-requested ability to create default settings for online bookings, so that you can better customize the terms and payment schedules for inbound bookings on your website or marketing channels. Have more you'd like to see in our Reservations module? Share any feedback you have here. The MyVR Calendar
We have a ton more changes coming to the Calendar, too. Send any feedback you have here. Thanks for all the feedback everyone. As mentioned, we've got a lot more coming. Please let us know what you like and what you don't! |
| Read About MyVR's Many New Product Improvements Posted: 07 Jul 2015 07:41 AM PDT Happy summer from MyVR!We can't believe 2015 is already at its midpoint. It's been a great year for MyVR thus far. We've made a ton of improvements to many areas of our platform, but we don't always do the best job of sharing those updates. As the summer kicks into high gear, we thought it was a good time to pause and reflect on many of the enhancements we've made thus far in 2015.
ReservationsWe've added numerous new capabilities in 2015 to our already-robust Reservations module. These include:
In the coming weeks, MyVR will also be adding optional add-ons to your renter transactions, and we're adding more flexibility in setting up your default reservation settings (including refund & cancellation policies for instant bookings). Please be sure to send us feedback on what would make our reservations product even better for you. WebsitesMyVR's been a leader in vacation rental websites since our launch in 2011. We've made our websites even better in 2015 with several major new features:
We continue to iterate on our website builder and make it easier to build stunning, professional-looking websites to represent your brand. In the coming weeks, we'll be launching Owner Portals – a new website type that allows property managers to let their owners login, view their calendar, block dates, and more. Please be sure to send us feedback on how we can improve our website builder even further. Marketing Channel ManagementChannel Management is relatively new to the vacation rental industry, and is getting better every year. New channels are accepting integration, and the functionality supported by channels continues to improve. MyVR has recently made several significant improvements to our Channel Management offering:
We continue to look at other possible channels to integrate and hope to add a few additional major channels this year. Please be sure to send us feedback on which channels are most important to you. |
| Putting Autoresponders to Work for You Posted: 02 Feb 2015 10:50 PM PST This topic recently came up in Matt Landau's Inner Circle forum, and these two posts are based on information I shared there. If you aren't already participating, check out the Inner Circle forum or connect with Matt Landau's Vacation Rental Marketing blog.
In my last post, I called autoresponders "the secret weapon most vacation rental owners ignore," explaining that adding them can save time, improve professionalism, and increase conversion rates. As an owner, I like to know that every inquiry gets a response — even those that aren't likely to convert because they fall outside my renter criteria. You can spend a lot of time responding individually to people who aren't a good fit for your property, or you can use autoresponders to free up that energy so you can focus on your actual guests. Autoresponders work exactly as the name implies — they're automatically sent out, and the message is determined by triggers within the inquiry email, like whether guests indicate that they're travelling with pets or the number of adults in their party. To get the most from autoresponders, however, you need to use them effectively: Use rules to send tailored messages for different types of inquiries, and adjust your message until you get the results you're looking for. It's taken years of testing and tweaking the way I use them in my own vacation rental business, Sonoma Square Cottage, to get them right. What works for me may not work for you — but you need to start somewhere. Here are the templates I've developed for six common situations, as well as the most important things I've learned about autoresponders from my experience. The rules consider specific information from the booking form I use on my website, and send whichever template is more appropriate. Rules 1: The stay is too shortAt one point, I applied a seven-day minimum to rentals. However, I'm currently looking for longer stays of 30 days or more.
Ideally, my autoresponder would also explain what my minimum stay is. However, there is some regulatory stuff going on, and I prefer to keep my correspondence vague. Rule 2: The group is too bigI limit reservations to groups of eight people or less, but still get requests to host larger parties.
Rule 3: The group is too big (adults)Sometimes I receive inquiries from groups of adults who look at the stats for my property — three bedrooms, three bathrooms — and decide to try their luck any way. As you can see from the message below, however, one room is set up just for kids.
Rule 4: Their group includes a smokerThe booking form on my website asks whether anyone in the party smokes, which helps me screen for my non-smoking rental.
Rule 5: The dates are already bookedGetting inquiries for dates that are already booked can be frustrating, especially when your calendar is up-to-date, but I believe each inquiry is still worth a follow up.
Rule 6: General response for all other inquiriesIf none of the above templates is triggered, the following email is sent.
Tracking my resultsI'm a big fan of A/B tests, and I've tested all of these templates — especially the final "default" template — learning a few things along the way. 1) Keep it short and simple. Don't cram your email with information and advice — put it on your website, then take one sentence to tell them that it's there. The shorter I keep my autoresponder messages, the more quality responses I receive. 2) Help, don't sell. This is something Matt says all the time — because it's true. This is obviously a sales transaction, but if the only thing a potential guest hears from you is BOOK NOW it won't seem very inviting. Put yourself in their shoes: what sort of customer service would stand out to you? How can you help them book a trip that includes your rental as home base? Point them to the free and helpful information you've (hopefully) added to your website, like a page of local recommendations or a thoughtful [insider's guide](http://blog.myvr.com/2012/09/25/vacation-rental-website-local-guide/ "MyVR: "Creating a Local Guide for Your Vacation Rental Website""). 3) Personalize your message as much as you can. The nature of templates is that they're standardized — mine certainly are. But many people still reply and thank me for responding so quickly, even when I'm turning them down! The #1 complaint about autoresponders is that they're impersonal, but it doesn't take much to make your message a bit warmer, like having slightly different messages for different types of inquiries and including the renter's first name in the response. A lot of owners and property managers — A LOT of them! — don't respond to inquiries at all, and renters usually appreciate any response, whether you're confirming their reservation or not. Autoresponders are an easy way to elevate your vacation rental business and step up in a way that your competition may be missing. What do you think about autoresponders — love them? Hate them? Tell me about it in the comments below. |
| The Secret Weapon Most Vacation Rental Owners Ignore Posted: 26 Jan 2015 10:19 PM PST I posted about this recently in Matt Landau's Inner Circle forum. It's been a while since I blogged about autoresponders, a tool many owners still aren't taking advantage of, so I wanted to share the information with you here. If you aren't already participating, check out the Inner Circle forum or connect with Matt Landau's Vacation Rental Marketing blog. Done well, with some fine-tuning, using autoresponders in my vacation rental business have helped me capture more bookings, cut demands on my time, and build better relationships with my guests. Inquiry autoresponders are messages that send automatically and immediately when someone sends a new rental inquiry. Some owners choose not to use autoresponders, but many don't realize they're even an option. Here are seven reasons why I think every owner should include autoresponders in their booking process. 1. Boost conversion rates by getting there firstResponse time matters in this business: someone who receives a response within an hour is up to [7x more likely to convert](http://blog.myvr.com/2012/11/07/convert-inquiries-into-bookings/ "MyVR: "How To Convert Vacation Rental Inquiries Into Bookings""). Being glued to your email isn't a solution — we're all busy people. I personally find it hard to consistently respond immediately to every renter, but I know an autoresponder will land in their inbox within that one-hour sweetspot. That buys me a bit more time to respond to them myself. 2. Build trust with your professionalismIn an industry where many owners and property managers don't even respond, getting a message into the renter's inbox first doesn't just get conversions — it helps you stand out. It shows you take their business seriously, a sign you'll give them the attention they need before, during, and after their visit. An effective autoresponder will also point potential guests to your website and introduce your brand, which will help solidify that good first impression. 3. Establish your brandNobody's going to remember "VRBO #3537208," so I call my property "Sonoma Square Cottage." An autoresponder gets my property's name into their head. This increases the chance they'll recognize and remember it later, which is good for repeat business and word-of-mouth referrals, and it will help if I remarket to them later with a promotion or newsletter. 4. Push the renter to your own websiteI created a website for Sonoma Square Cottage, where I draw people in with lots of photos, local information. Your autoresponder will get to their inbox as soon as they send an inquiry to you — before they've looked at a dozen other properties, while you're still top-of-mind. What a great opportunity to distract their browsing and pull them onto your own website. 5. Be a resource for your guestsI've added a lot of helpful information to my website about the local area, not just my vacation rental, and I use the autoresponder to point renters to it. Other owners use their website to collect responses to frequently asked questions, or to highlight other details. A [local guide](http://blog.myvr.com/2012/09/25/vacation-rental-website-local-guide/ "MyVR: "Creating a Local Guide for Your Vacation Rental Website"") positions you to help with your guest's travel planning, which boosts both your credibility and customer service. 6. Respond to all inquiriesSometimes, inquiries don't work out — the dates are taken, the group is too big, they're travelling with pets, etc. I feel better when I know every inquiry is getting a response; it's mark of professionalism and makes a good impression. It's easy to ignore the ones you know aren't going to work out, but that will kill any chance they'll think of you next time. 7. Have more time for guests that are a perfect fitWhen you free up time by using autoresponders to point people to your website for FAQs or to respond to inquiries that won't lead to bookings, you can shift your attention to other things — like the inquiries that are a perfect fit. Customer service is a big differentiator in this industry; "high touch" service can help you clinch a new booking. In my next post, I'll share a few autoresponder variations that I use as part of my system to help inspire your own efforts. How have autoresponders helped your business? Photo by [Christian Schnettelker](https://www.flickr.com/photos/manoftaste-de/14049520074 ""Welcome" on flickr") (CC BY 2.0) |
| Outdoor Amenities That Help Attract Guests Posted: 07 Oct 2014 02:00 AM PDT When you're trying to rent your vacation property, your first priority is to attract interested renters — and to do that, you need features that will catch people's attention when they're searching online. Some of the most important are outdoor amenities: the right kind can grab the eye when someone is browsing hundreds of online listings, and can help someone choose your rental over the competition. A place to sit and relaxPeople go on vacation to relax, so show that your property gives them a place to do this. Put plenty of outdoor seating on your property:
Your outdoor space can be as simple or as complex as your budget allows. If you have a porch or patio, you don't need to spend a fortune on fancy seating. Just make sure you have something there — something that will handle the weather well — and your potential renters will notice. Don't forget about lighting so people can still use the space after the sun sets! A place to cook outIf the weather in your area is conducive to outdoor cookouts or marshmallow roasts, consider adding an attractive grill or fire pit area. People enjoy the relaxation that comes from gathering around a fire with hot dogs or marshmallows in hand, swapping stories with friends or family while they enjoy the cool evening air. Be sure to check with your insurance or the homeowner's association in the community to ensure that a fire pit is allowed. A place to playDoes your rental appeal to people with kids? A small swing set, if it's not too much of an insurance liability, can be a major draw. Many parents will opt to rent a property that gives their children a place to play — they'll have more opportunities to relax if their kids aren't constantly saying, "I'm bored!" What can you do if a playground is not allowed or practical? Consider some outdoor games to give the kids something to play with. Anything that provides some distraction and entertainment will be valued by your guests. A place to swimIf you have the budget for installation and upkeep, consider investing in a pool or a sauna. Giving your guests a place to swim can make your property feel more like a resort or hotel. Yes, it can add significant upkeep costs, but the benefit can be more renters who are thrilled to have an on-site pool available. You can also raise your rates because of the extra feature. A place to enjoy beautyDon't forget about the landscaping and garden when you're improving the outdoor space around your rental property. Your landscaping doesn't need to be fancy, but it does need to look nice. This is what will make people stop and take a closer look. Add a few low-maintenance perennial plants to keep the yard looking fresh, clean and beautiful, and enjoy the benefit of more interest in your rental property. Don't forget to add rocks or mulch to keep the weeds at bay. A place for petsDoes your rental property allow pets? If so, consider adding a dog run so animals have a place to enjoy the outdoors off-leash. For vacationers who travel with their pets, this small addition can show that you're truly a pet-friendly property. There's a benefit for you, too: because pet owners are likely to put their pets in the designated area if it is available, it can help protect your lawn and landscaping. To make your rental property a success, you have to think like a potential renter — which means thinking about what renters look for in a property before they decide to book. Invest in the outdoor amenities and you will get it back through more inquiries and happy guests. Jeff Caldwell is Brand Manager of Superior Shade (srpshade.com) in Carrollton, GA. Superior Shade provides protection from the elements with products like column umbrellas, custom shades, and shade hips, that provide protection from the sun and harmful UV rays. They provide custom shade structures to fit your business needs. |
| MyVR’s Explainer Video Wins Award in International Competition Posted: 24 May 2014 02:00 AM PDT MyVR has a platform that delivers the tools you need to market and manage your vacation rental business — but what does that actually mean? For people looking at their marketing options, not to mention owners who are new to the industry, it's hard to capture what we offer in a brief but engaging way. We contacted Adelie Studios to create a video that would explain what we offer in a way that was quick, engaging, and not full of "marketing speak." The MyVR explainer had the impact we were looking for: we got a 34 percent increase in trial signups as a result. And we're not the only ones who were impressed! Of 6,000 videos entered into an international competition, Adelie Studios was recently awarded a Silver Communicator Award of Distinction from the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts. Congratulations to the team at Adelie Studios, and thanks for creating such an effective video! |
| New MyVR Features Will Help Cut Your To Do List Posted: 29 Apr 2014 05:00 AM PDT Want to save money, save time, be more organized and look more professional when it comes to managing your vacation rental property? The MyVR team has been busy building great new features — it's like spring cleaning for your property management to do list. Free up more time to spend growing your RBO businessDelivering good customer service takes time, so focus your time where it matters most.
Look and feel more professionalRunning your rent-by-owner (RBO) like a professional gets easier when you have the right tools.
We don't talk about MyVR much on the blog, but we're excited to add these new features to [our existing online platform](http://myvr.com/vacation-rental-website/ "MyVR: "Beautiful Vacation Rental Websites""): one Inbox to manage, one hub for all your advertising, one great-looking website. After all, we're vacation rental owners, too; we want to streamline the management process so you can focus on the things that need a personal touch. What do you think? Tell us how else we might help you manage your vacation rental business in the comments below! |
| Are you missing out on vacation rental referrals? Posted: 12 Apr 2014 02:00 AM PDT Referrals are a common way for businesses to grow, and rent-by-owners (RBOs) aren't any different; you likely already know that word-of-mouth marketing from happy guests can be one of your most powerful assets. But what about referrals from other businesses — and other vacation rental owners in particular. Is it weird to get referrals from your competitors, or is it a potential source for new bookings that you've overlooked? How referrals workWe make referrals almost daily, whether we're pointing guests to favorite restaurants, unique boutiques or a local taxi company. In general, we make referrals to help other people get the information or service they're looking for. But referrals can also be part of a more formal arrangement, whether through networking organizations like your local chamber of commerce or using vacation rental-specific networks. Some networks offer incentives for referrals; for example, Matt Landau shared the idea of the Vacation Rental Referral Pledge, which encourages a 10 percent commission. Other businesses might offer a fixed cash incentive or other type of reward. Why referrals can help build your businessBuilding positive relationships with RBOs in your area can be a smart move, whether you're interested in referrals or not. Who knows the challenges of running a vacation rental in your area better than other owners? "Ask them their experiences, how booked they get," suggested owner Pat Luftman in an interview with MyVR, whose local network also sends referrals to each other. I think building a vacation rental coalition can be an effective part of your overall marketing strategy, and it's one of the best ways to deal with what can otherwise be frustrating situations:
Sending guests to a property across town costs you nothing; whatever the reason, this inquiry isn't a good fit. But saving them the hassle of starting their search over again builds goodwill and could turn into a booking or referral in the future. When you're on the receiving end of a solid referral, you're helping a fellow owner out of a jam while benefiting from a new booking. And, however they find you initially, a happy traveler can always lead to more business down the road. Things to watch out forReferrals work because people trust the source; a business owner won't risk their reputation by sending a new customer to someone who can't deliver. That means two things within a referral network:
Incentives can be effective and having them in place — and detailed in a written agreement — can help avoid strife. Referral agreements work without incentives, too, but it can be frustrating if you consistently make referrals and get none in return. If you get a referral fee or other incentive, however, you'll always receive a benefit. MyVR has a referral tool that lets owners share leads with each other and, if you refer a traveler to someone else, you can track whether it converts into a booking. Whether you pass referrals back and forth as part of being a good neighbor, or turn referrals into a whole new revenue stream, is entirely up to you. But it's something I think every owner should consider adding to their business-building strategy. What works and what doesn't when it comes to sharing referrals with other RBOs? Share your advice in the comments section below! |
| Why your new vacation rental website isn't showing in search results Posted: 22 Mar 2014 02:00 AM PDT Launching a new website for your vacation rental business is an exciting event…that can quickly deflate when nothing seems to happen. Where are the website visitors? Where are the new bookings? Like building a business, generating web traffic takes time; over time, there are a lot of different ways you can improve your search engine optimization (SEO) — where you show up in search results — and make it easier for people to find you. But for now, you just need your site to show up! Whether you use Google (by far the most-used search engine), Bing or Yahoo, search engines find new web pages through sitemaps — the index pages for individual websites (created automatically if you have a MyVR website!) — and links that point back to those pages. There is no specific "waiting period" for having your site start showing up in search results, but there are things you can do to move the process along more quickly. How to flag your new site for Google to findIn "[How to Get Google to Index Your New Website & Blog Quickly](http://blog.kissmetrics.com/get-google-to-index/ "KISSmetrics: "How to Get Google to Index Your New Website & Blog Quickly"")," Kristi Hines explains eight tactics you can use to tell search bots that there's a new site they need to pay attention to. Her top tip? "The best way to ensure that your new content is discovered quickly is simply by sharing it on social media networks through status updates, especially on Google+." Social media can make a big difference — not just for a new site but on an ongoing basis. In a blog post last year, we looked at the [impact social media has on your search rank](http://blog.myvr.com/2013/07/30/how-social-media-impacts-your-vacation-rentals-search-rank/ "MyVR: "How Social Media Impacts Your Vacation Rental's Search Rank""). It's not surprising that Google+, Google's own social network, tops the list of factors that can impact where you show up in search results. However, it's worth noting that Facebook is a close second. What else can you do to help people discover your rental? Check out our top tips for [getting your vacation rental to rank higher on Google](http://blog.myvr.com/2013/05/13/ranking-on-google/ "MyVR: "Getting your vacation rental website to rank higher on Google""). Have a question about getting your website to show up in search results? Ask about it in the comments below. |
Every inquiry creates a new contact entry where details like special notes, past reservations and correspondence are tracked — all in one spot, so you won't need to fish for it later.
| You are subscribed to email updates from MyVR Blog. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States | |
