Is Your Site Truly ‘Sticky’?
How to get more direct bookings while listing on OTAs
Owner, Manager or Guest: Where Do You Fit In?
If you are in business as property owner, agent or manager, chances are you are also in this industry as a guest.
I dare to say that most of us are in business for passion first rather than necessity. Or at least passion got us started, drives us in the first place and is directly responsible for the amount of success we have today.
That also means that as passionate VR owners, managers or agents…we would normally choose a rental when we go on vacation.
Welcome To The Jungle
I began researching the property to rent for our Christmas Holiday, to thank my wife Cristina for supporting me while putting together this year’s edition of the Vacation Rental World Summit.
I started on HomeAway (duh!) as I wanted to take advantage of what I consider a smart way OTAs give users to create a list of favorite properties to refer to in view of future plans.
Not so surprisingly, given Brian Sharple’s latest business model, I retrieved my list of favorites for the Canary Islands and this is what I was presented with:
Frustration and Overwhelm
A few hours of helpless search later, quickly eye-scanning hundreds of properties on a few listing sites, I began feeling quite overwhelmed and frustrated. Sounds familiar?
I could not find a single property that matched my criteria, which are not too demanding: a stylish property that’s got flair, character, is well presented, and doesn’t cost a fortune (well…maybe I am too demanding!).
Surprisingly, there are still so many properties with very poor images, very bad property descriptions and a total lack of the basic few triggers that make a viewer think: “there you go!” Not to mention a decent website of their own where a prospective guest can really be taken into a whole new journey and turn into an actual customer.
Deep Diving Into The “Best Match”
No matter how upset with listing sites increasingly restrictive policies you can be, we cannot deny that OTA’s and listing sites are here to stay, rule the market and be the place the vast majority of travellers start planning their search for a property to rent. After all, they have massive financial resources to invest in educating consumers and building awareness about their brands.
Honestly, how many times have YOU turned to Booking.com, HomeAway, Airbnb or VRBO to find a place to stay simply because it was easier and faster?
T.M.I. (Too Much Information)
We’re constantly bombarded with information overflow, we feel the daily burden of increasing duties to keep afloat, we have less and less time to dedicate to even the silliest of our hobbies, so we all naturally tend to look for short-cuts to get things done quickly and find an easy solution to what we feel like another stressful thing to do (finding the right property for our next vacation).
With that being said, my point here is to use OTA’s as a marketing channel in your armory and one of the many starting points for your prospective guests to end up choosing you over your competitors.
How?
A Simple Trick You Should ALL Be (Already) Doing
Place the name of your Business Front and Center: in your listing’s headline, in your property’s description, in your photo captions.
I’ve got the habit to google the name of each property I quite like on OTAs, to see if they have their own website, so I can gather more information, dig deeper and eventually…contact them directly! And I’m not the only one doing so.
Bookings by Channel for our properties
A pretty fair amount of my own direct bookings comes from travellers who find us on listing sites first, google “Casa Teulada” and book direct through our site, so they avoid commissions and get a much more personalized service from the host.
Think about it: while Airbnb & friends can mask basically everything that links to you directly, they cannot (yet) mask your brand name.
So for as long as it lasts, you stand a good chance to be found and contacted directly by an increasing portion of savvy seekers who prefer dealing with hosts, managers and agents directly.
Don’t Miss Out!
I normally ask all our guests how they found us and while they sometimes can’t remember exactly on which platform they saw us first, those who didn’t find us organically or through word of mouth say that:
A) They were drawn to Casa Teulada by the beauty of our photos on a listing site (hence your images do really matter).
B) They noticed the name of our property, googled it and landed on our website! (Bingo)
So if you get travellers to that point, like I did when I stumbled upon this property in the Canary Islands:
The least that you want is for your prospect to google your property name and find a website that’s not exactly “sticky”. Not that it will turn your viewer necessarily away – in fact I emailed the owner of Villa Esmeralda to get a quote anyway – but it is your #1 asset and your business card, so you should do all you possibly can to make navigating it a memorable experience.
3 Sites That Do a Great Job
So here are three sites that awe, inspire and turn lookers into bookers. Have a look and wear your traveller’s shoes:
Would you go there? And why?
Taro De Chimida
Taro De Chimida is a stunning property in the Canary Islands.
Having found it on CoolStays and Sawday’s first was a relief after the endless search on HomeAway & Co.
The site makes good use of stunning full screen photography, so you can’t but go “Wow” as you land there. There is no doubt this property is truly charming: great decor, beautiful colors and an overall positive and relaxing atmosphere we could all quite picture ourselves in.
Eric Vökel Apartments
I’ve been a longtime fan of Eric Vökel‘s ability to brand and market his apartments successfully. The site has seen slight changes over time due to the growth of Eric’s inventory, but it is quite remarkable how many different ways this website has to engage with a prospect directly, to add them to their mailing list and to offer tangible reasons to book direct on their site.
Cortijo La Hoya
Those of you knowing me for some time, know Cortijo’s site as well! Not only Cortijo was the case study I chose to give my presentation at last year’s Vacation Rental World Summit, but it is also a case study I know well, because I built Cortijo’s site and because I’ve seen how successful it’s been to his owner (who’s actually seen a 300% increase in bookings on his first year with the new site).
Can You Mention A Site You ‘Really’ Like?
My quest for the ultimate property to rent in the Canary Islands next Christmas has finally ended and I eventually found the place for Cristina and I.
Can you link to a VR site that’s truly awesome in the comment box below and say what makes it special to you?
Free Giveaway
I’m happy to share the presentation on Effective Web Design I gave at VRWS2015. If you haven’t watched it already, you’ll see how you can turn your site ‘sticky’ and get more direct bookings as well. Simply click below, to get the Video and the PDF in your mailbox.
Happy Vacation Rental Owners & Managers Say:
Antonio helped me turn my vacation rental property - Casita Sitges - into a profitable business. He has shifted my vacation rental knowledge from amateur to professional level. I achieved that through the two modules of the Fully Booked Formula training program he teaches and I attended online, through some individual consulting and through the design of the web for Casita Sitges (http://www.casitasitges.com)
Besides the subject matter of vacation rentals that he masters extremely well, Antonio has a very strong work ethic and he gets things done quickly sticking to the deadlines formerly agreed. I do recommend Antonio's work or products if you want to stand out from the crowd and you want to stretch your profits further.
Antonio is an excellent public speaker, trainer, and event organizer. I attended the Vacation Rental World Summit that he produced this year and it was a fantastic learning experience. I was very impressed with the high-tech applications he used for the event, the seamless delivery of every facet of the program, and the ultra-rich content that was provided by the experts who he invited to participate in the Summit. I gained scores of sales, marketing, and management tips that have already helped my vacation rental business, and I have been able to successfully apply some of what I learned to another one of my businesses, too. Before the end of the Summit I decided to purchase Antonio's Fully Booked Formula training program, and I am equally impressed with that. I look forward to whatever Antonio offers up next -- I am very sure that whatever it is, it will be exceptional.
Wow, thank you for putting together this wonderful resource of information and knowledge from the industry leaders to help all VR owners alike. What a line-up of events you had. Got on to watch the first sessions on day 1. Boy did I feel cheated, I wanted my guest/s to go home so I could continue to watch the video's but that was not an option. So I spent the whole weekend trying to get a minute to watch another 5 minutes. Anyway by the time they left Sunday night, I had managed to watch the first 2 sessions on day 1 and thought it was that good I just will have to buy the program.
I am SO glad to have come across your Vacation Rental World Summit - you have opened my eye to so many things!!! And I have to give you my thanks for introducing me to such valuable learning tools, gurus etc.
I absolutely loved the Vacation Rental World Summit this year and I am so happy to know that there will be another in 2015.
Kudos for your Summit. Very well done. Excellent seminar. Much to think about. Much to do. Because I'm new to taking a professional approach to managing my 3 properties in Guatemala, I have much to see, learn, and absorb. My notes make up a pile of paper 1/2 inch thick. I ran my computer out of ink, and finished off a brand new gel pen! Ten days ago I returned to Guatemala for the half year, and brought all those notes and copies with me. United Airlines was pleased too: $40 for the extra luggage. Still there is much to process and to implement in building my rental business. Again, Muchas Gracias Señor for this opportunity.
Vacation Rental World Summit – Learn More NOW!
Good presentation Antonio and having gone through a similar experience recently, once I find a place on an OTA then I go to google & deal direct. One question: at one point I had website link on photos but it disappeared any ideas how to get name of apartment on photos – I guess it can be put on before uploading? I will make sure the property name is very visible. Thanks. BTW my favorite VR is yours 😉 you preach what you practice!!!
What you can easily do is the same thing the owner of Villa Esmeralda in this article did: you can add the name of the property to the photo, then you upload it in the listing, HOWEVER, be careful as some OTA’s may ban your listing for that (read their rules if you can). So rather than putting the url, you can ‘go soft’ and add the name of your property, provided that if googled it returns your site in the search results. You can still use it in the headline, in the description and even in the captions, so there is room for that.
Agreed on last sentance!! Most of my listings had property names in text and/or header ,but fixed those that didn’t have in header and already added name in picture title. Thanks again for the good prod!!!
I have noticed though that you can’t always put it in the header on HA, they seem to change that?
Excellent advice, Antonio! Yep, I have always had the names of my places in the headlines and descriptions, building my brand. Also redid my website this summer, and my developing platform has “Sticky” in their name. Lol. http://vacationhomeinbranson.com
And have you ever found out if placing the name there resulted in getting more direct bookings?
Wonderful examples of websites that have the “Wow” factor! I agree, that HA has been basically shooting itself in the foot (as we say) where instead of creating a more user-friendly experience, it’s very frustrating. And terrific suggestions to improve our own sites. Our own website for The Houses On Manzanita Beach is one I really like: http://vacationrentalsmanzanita.com Always a work in progress (especially as we’re locked into certain formatting issues with our channel manager) but I’m very happy with it, if I do say so myself! I look forward to making it even better with your suggestions.
Another great example @kim_bergstrom:disqus, thanks for posting ‘The Houses on Manzanita Beach”. I’ve seen the work and the improvements you’ve done over time and I think you’re doing a great job. Do you have a way to measure the engagement of viewers on each page of your site? That would give you a good insight into what to tweak if there is anything.
In case you don’t have any tool, you may look into the free SumoMe plugin, which has heat maps and content analytics: that’s a great way to see how people engage with your site and tweak it wherever needed.
Which pop up tool are you using for your lead generation? And how is it performing?
Also, have you seen a better response in terms of direct enquiries, engagement, contacts and/or conversions as a result of having your current site?
Thank you Antonio! My website is definitely a work in progress. Changes to it tend to be a bit slow going – while I do all the marketing, managing, etc., I am also the contractor on our remodels as we add to our offerings. I’m currently working on a new house, and that seems to take most of my time.
To track my visitors’ engagement, I use Google Analytics and WordPress JetPack. The pop up tool is custom, and not performing wonderfully well.
I’m set to revamp most of my pages this fall, as we will create custom modifications to my channel manager’s offerings (regarding calendaring, house page information, etc.)
I definitely see a great return on direct engagement and inquiries. On the other hand, with my rise in search engine ranking, I now receive a lot of phone inquiries for last minute stays which typically don’t convert as we tend to be booked up in advance.
Beside the website, creating a compelling video has helped immensely.
I’m particularly intrigued with the Eric Vokel website above, and how he’s meshed the vacation rental and boutique inn experience! Great examples Antonio!
Isn’t that such an inspiring challenge that of working on a new house? I feel that there is so much energy, creativity and inspiration when you’re faced with a big new project you love.
I’m curious to see what revamp you’ll give to a website that’s already quite nice as is today 🙂 Keep me posted!
Yes, I watched your video and I would tell everyone to watch it and learn. The video is very well done.
Could you tell us a bit more about the backstage of such video (scripting, filming, who did what, how long it took to get all things together…)?
I’m glad you like our video. It’s a LONG story (too long for a short reply), but like everything I do, I went into it with a vision in mind. I’m either hoping to create a blog post about the process, or discuss the process with someone writing a blog post about making Vacation Rental video where ours is featured – http://vacationrentalsmanzanita.com/video-the-houses-at-manzanita/
“discuss the process with someone writing a blog post about making Vacation Rental video where ours is featured -”
Very nice idea…how about I write it :)?
I’d be super happy to feature yours and most of all share your long story…if you feel like it. What do you think?
We can talk about it on Skype if you wish. Look me up there and connect with me. My Skype id is ‘abortolotti’ … 😉
Hi Antonio. I apologize for the delay. I was on an Anniversary Vacation, and except for guest messages, I had promised to stay away from computer time!
I would enjoy discussing this with you. I’m in the middle of a remodel, and will be heading to the beach for a week tomorrow evening. What might work for you?
Hey Kim, it’s my turn now to apologize for the delay as I’m currently on our yearly vacation at our very own Casa Teulada 🙂 Like you, I’m kind of disconnecting from the world for a couple of weeks as I had promised my wife to stay away from computer time too!
I’ll be back on Aug. 28th, how about we discuss this in September?
Hope you had a wonderful vacation Antonio! I’m off to Washington DC with my son, but will be back the middle of the month. Hopefully we will be able to find a time that works for both of us.
Just got back a few days ago, then helped our daughter move to Geneva to start university next week 🙂
Let’s Skype or email when you’re back!
Enjoy your time in DC.
This past week I had a similar experience. We went to find a place to stay during our trip to the UK. I went to VRBO. The strength of such sites is that you can find places you wouldn’t find in a general search on Google, because the owners’ sites don’t come up high in the rankings in Google. Also, when you aren’t sure exactly where you want to stay, it lets you compare a lot of places. There is a definite need for this type of service, but there are many drawbacks.
The drawbacks are the fault of those who run VRBO and similar sites. They obviously are motivated mostly by fear that listers will evade fees, so they have set up their sites in such a way that they do not serve the customers or the vacation rental owners. They are only considering how to help themselves; how to keep owners from not paying fees. To be successful in business, you must deliver value to your customers. In a sense, both the renters and the owners are their customers, and they are treating them as adversaries.
While I admit that there are always some people who try to get around such things, I don’t feel the way they are doing it is going to be a win for anyone. Let me give the example of my experience.
I booked a place on VRBO, but then I couldn’t contact the owner to ask questions about details of the property that weren’t in the listing. I thought that by putting in my dates of my reservation, I would be permitted to email her. It said no availability on those dates. So I put other dates in just so I could write her. Little did I know that doing that created 2 more reservations for me, and I started getting demands for payment, even though I had already paid. She had to fix it on her end.
When I did get an email form, it was limited to a certain number of characters, so I couldn’t really write what I wanted. It was so frustrating. So I did what anyone would do. I found her personal website online and wrote her through that. I wasn’t trying to get around paying VRBO. Nor was she. She and I both benefited from her being on VRBO. But their stupid website makes it very hard (thought obviously not impossible) to contact the owner. In fact, it is their stupidity and restrictions that drove me to find her website. I wouldn’t have bothered if they had let me email her. So the effect was frustration for her and me and me leaving VRBO, which is what they supposedly don’t want.
Until such sites allow free communication between renters and owners, things are going to be unpleasant. If they put an email link on all listings, it wouldn’t take you off their site, but it would add value. I think there is a market for someone to create one of these sites and make it truly user-friendly. Sure, some people will cheat. But there’s always a way to do that, and if you make people happy, they’re less likely to do so.
No wonder VRBO (and HomeAway) get the following feedback on Consumer Affairs… have a look (and it’s constant): https://www.consumeraffairs.com/online/vrbo.html
Thanks for featuring Finca Botanico in the examples above, we now have our own website http://www.fincabotanico.com.
You may also like http://www.fincanatura.com – Lanzarote´s ultimate rural retreat