The vacation rental industry is changing, almost daily, as you are well aware. Home Away, Wyndham, Marriot, Trip Advisor and other large companies are moving us to places we have never been before. It can be a very challenging environment to work in. The good news is that these companies all bring awareness to our industry that there hasn’t been here before. PhoCus Wright, which is a travel research company, recently published a report, PhoCusWright’s U.S. Vacation Rentals 2009-2014: A Market Reinvented. It is a very expensive report, but brings some very valuable information to us. It was said that only 10-15% of travelers knew or considered vacation rentals. Well in this report, 20% of the travelers surveyed stayed in a vacation rental in the past two years. An additional 27% considered a vacation rental, but ultimately chose another option. Why? Well, part of it is the misconceptions of our industry, that vacation rentals are only suitable for longer trips and larger groups, as well as vacation rentals not having the “amenities” that hotels offer. Today, this is not necessarily the case.
So the good news is that more and more folks are looking at vacation rentals, but the bad news is that still, only 20% of travelers are actually choosing our industry to meet their vacation needs. How did it get from the 10% that it was 5+ years ago, to the 20%? And how do we get it from 20% to 30% and more? Most of us will agree that the national economy hasn’t improved that much. Unemployment is going back up, and so many people are still out of work. So why is it that our business is so much better? I would suggest that the marketing awareness created by these large companies, as well as the internet providing more and more innovation, is finding the average consumer, and we need to take advantage of it. So some thoughts on how you can get on board:
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Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Software,
Rental Management CRM,
CRM,
Break
So its national Vacation Rental month this July and we hope that you are preparing for the blast of business and overwhelming amount of guests. What’s that you say, you’re not doing anything to push this news to your potential guests? Surely there is a mistake here as this is some free publicity. If you have not been publicizing this then you are falling into the shadows of large companies like Wyndham, who are playing on the national level. Fear not, here are 5 ways you can still make the most of the free publicity of this month!
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Vacation Rental Management,
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
Vacation Rental Software,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Software,
Vacation Home,
Vacation,
Rental Management CRM
I have been in numerous meetings recently at the VRMA conventions where discussions regarding ROI have been addressed, and I believe the ideas put forth can be very useful to those that really want to be able to quantify their marketing investment returns.
Tags:
Vacation Rental Management,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental Software,
Software,
Rental Management,
Property Management Software,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Software,
Break Even,
Golden Number
An article published over the weekend has shed a promising light on the vacation rental industry. In an interview with Carl Shepherd, co-founder of Homeaway, said that he and his company believes that vacation rentals are the future of the vacation industry.
Tags:
Vacation Rental Management,
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Software,
Vacation Home,
Vacation,
Rental Management CRM,
CRM
Tags:
Vacation Rental Management,
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Software,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Rental Software,
Vacation Rentals,
Rental Management CRM,
Golden Number
Most of our blogs have been about some news, trends, or business moves that we learn about. This one is a bit more generalized but I wanted to take the time to write it out. Barefoot Technologies actively uses social media, our website, e-mail campaigns, and calls to speak with our clients, both current and future. However, we also travel to industry tradeshows to meet you, first hand.
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Tags:
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
Scams,
Software,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Rental Scam
In Las Vegas it has become illegal to rent homes in short term rentals. Now, a town in Arizona may be making similar strides. Gilbert Arizona prohibits short term rentals in single family neighborhoods and is considering extending the legislation to multifamily neighborhoods like condo buildings. As is, short term rentals are only supposed to occur on commercial properties, however this loophole allows people currently residing in multiple family complexes to skirt the law.
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Tags:
Vacation Rental Management,
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Client Expectations,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Property Manager,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Rental Software,
Vacation Rentals,
Vacation Home,
CRM
Today, through our webpage, a contact us form was filled out and submitted to us. The main resonating message of this e-mail was simple, I am looking to grow but simply cannot do any more work! As I spoke to this prospect, her issues resonated with me as mere wants of other prospects and clients. Things that were "nice" and "neat" or that "Jane from reservations would love" seem to get looked over all too often by those not aware of what a few process could do for their business.
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Tags:
Vacation Rental Management,
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Client Expectations,
Rentals,
Software,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Software,
Vacation Home,
Offerings,
Rental Management CRM,
CRM,
CRM Tips
Rental scams have been a part of this industry for years. Sadly, it seems that as long as someone has been kind enough to open their home, there is someone lowly enough to take advantage of that. We have tried to stay on top of scam trends, reporting on new scam styles and even providing tips on how to avoid scams all together.
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Tags:
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
Scams,
Software,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Scam
Last week I published a blog that boasted 8 things you could do to separate yourself from competitive rentals. The main goal was to realize that your company offers more than a house to rent, you have the expertise to offer an experience. This experience is what separates your professionally managed rentals from the VRBO market out there. However, in the never ending cat and mouse game, homeaway.com is now offering another service to its VRBO clients. I personally think it is a neat tool but that does not make your life easier.
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Tags:
Vacation Rental Management,
Vacation Rental Industry,
Barefoot,
Vacation Rental,
Rentals,
Rental Market,
VRBO,
Rental,
Rental Management,
Property Management,
Second Home,
Property Manager,
Property Management Software,
Vacation Advice,
Management Software,
Competitive Advantage,
Rental Software,
Vacation Rentals,
Vacation,
Rental Management CRM,
CRM
