As part of our series “Getting Creative in Unpredictable Times”, we want to take some time to go through the benefits of having a reward point module that is part of your brand loyalty program.
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Claiborne Yarbrough
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Use a Rewards Point Program to Create Brand Loyalty
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Mar 25, 2020 2:38:42 PM
Outer Beaches Realty of Hatteras Island Uses Barefoot Vacation Rental Management Software
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Dec 26, 2019 10:00:00 AM
CASE STUDY: Grand Cayman Villa's Transition from V12 to Barefoot
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Jul 31, 2019 2:31:22 PM
Background
When meeting Jim Leavitt at his offices in Scott’s Addition, the hippest area in Richmond, you notice the innovative tech-style open layout of the office. His staff is busy at work using the latest technology to facilitate a thriving luxury vacation rental business 1279 miles away on Grand Cayman. The multiple Google Analytics, Data Dashboard and Live Chat wall-mounted monitors let you know right away that this company means to use technology to the fullest. Jim is quick-thinking and decisive, 100% focused on building the best relationships with his owners and guests. He is also well connected in the industry and spends a lot of time talking to industry influencers and like-minded vacation rental managers.
Grand Cayman Villas and Condos manages just under 100 stand-alone oceanfront villas and books as agent for another 250 condos on 7 Mile Beach. I first met Jim at a conference last year where he mentioned that he was considering making a change from using V12 software. What followed were long and intense conversations about what Barefoot could offer. But at the heart of making this change was his need to fill two major gaps in his present PMS: 1) Customer Relationship Management and 2) To have direct connections to non-Expedia OTAs, including Airbnb and Luxury Retreats.
While considering his many options, Jim attended our user conference. It gave him a great opportunity to talk with other Barefoot users in a relaxed setting. He also made great use of client references and liked that Barefoot could be tailored to his business and connect him to one of the largest partner programs in the industry.
Jim and Grand Cayman Villas and Condos are now a Barefoot client. They are almost done with training and implementations. The reason I visited his office, other than the amazing BBQ place around the corner for lunch, was to take his pulse on his transition to Barefoot and glean from him fresh impressions of how Barefoot stacked up to V12. Sharing Jim’s first-hand evaluation with potential Barefoot clients may help to illuminate how our team at Barefoot has built our PMS and its integrations around our clients’ needs and wants.
Manipulating and Control of Data is More Efficient
As he has been going through the training and building his rates, he immediately appreciated some key differences in how information is organized:
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Cosmetically, Barefoot is easier on the eyes, more logically organized, font size is larger and easily readable, even on mobile. Barefoot is faster and with fewer keystrokes.
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The ability to change the rates for properties across seasons within a minute per property or price class as opposed to having to move through several tabs saves a lot of time and is much more intuitive. Rate changes are a pleasure and not a chore.
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Ability to use the scroll and tab buttons to move down the rate table, not just three columns at a time, takes 1/5 of the time to enter/edit rates and charges.
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All the rates, add-on charges and taxes are in one table, so you can scroll to proof your work for all ranges or use the CTL F function to find a specific item immediately.
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In folio view, all rates, PM commissions/fees, owner charges, folio transactions and due in/out dates are displayed on one page. V12 requires clicking 3 separate tabs to see all the folio data that Barefoot displays on one page only. Mistakes are caught much quicker with Barefoot.
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Outstanding Individualized Training
Jim and members of his team are now in the final stages of training. He’s been through two software implementations before and the team were prepared for another significant business interruption. While any software implementation requires additional work, Jim feels that Barefoot’s training is more intuitive.
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Organized around highlighting efficiencies for the manager and the reservationist, with a significant willingness to find ways to say yes to great ideas… Barefoot values ongoing client feedback for development cycles.
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Individualized trainer and project manager work with each client to make sure that unique business needs are analyzed and incorporated into day-to-day routines.
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Accounting audits at key points during the process to make sure that trust accounting and bank reconciliation is set up correctly from the beginning.
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Partnerships/Integrations are carefully considered and implemented during the training process.
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“The adage about ‘teaching a man to fish’ has come to mind many times during the training. The Barefoot team focuses on empowering the user to take advantage of all the features and functions that have been built over time from the input of actual users.
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Your Blog The Top 5 Things to Consider When You Are Selecting Vacation Rental Management Software
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on May 24, 2019 5:46:35 PM
I come back to this every so often as a blog post. Since I just had the chance to visit a market where they are all using an older software, I put together a new slide deck with my latest thoughts.
Read MoreWeathering the Storm. Vacation Rental Asset Management with Extreme Weather Events
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Mar 12, 2019 1:11:02 PM
During 2019 Barefoot has a goal of helping our vacation rental software clients provide more value to their homeowners by providing asset management tools within the software. We introduced a comparative market analysis report to our clients at the recent Barefoot User Conference. Tools are good but knowledge is power. I am sharing the presentation that I gave to our clients here to help you look at asset management and climate resilience.
Read MoreBarefoot Announces Partnership with Key Data Dashboard
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Feb 4, 2019 3:24:53 PM
The Importance of Trust Accounting in Vacation Rental Management Software
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Dec 26, 2018 5:59:03 PM
One of the more interesting interviews that came out of VRM Intel this year, was an interview that Amy Hinote did with Steve Trover of All Star Vacation Homes as they closed their doors this year. In this wide-ranging interview, Trover, who has long been a consultant in the vacation rental industry, comments on things he wishes he paid more attention to in running his company, in order to help others.
Read MoreMaking the Most of Attending Rez Fest on Marco Island September 25-27th
Posted by Claiborne Yarbrough on Sep 14, 2018 2:52:27 PM
Barefoot is excited to attend their first Rez Fest as a preferred HomeAway partner. We are looking forward to meeting with our clients and to talk to attendees who are looking for the most tailorable and scalable software solution in the vacation rental management industry.
Read MoreThe Payment Card Industry (PCI) Council has mandated that support for early TLS protocols must be disabled no later than by June 30, 2018.
Read MoreBarefoot clients own their data. It is started very clearly in the subscription license between Barefoot and its clients:
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