Whether you manage one property or multiple, it helps to know what potential guests look for when they go online to book a vacation rental. Knowing guests’ specific preferences and turn-offs isn’t just good for attracting guests, but it’s also important for keeping your properties relevant in an occasionally fickle vacation rental market.
The good news is that almost all of the factors that influence your property’s desirability are controllable, at least, to a degree. So long as you keep abreast of wider economic and social contexts, you will have options for drawing in more guests. Let’s look at some of the critical factors that impact your property’s potential for bookings:
1. Location
All other things being equal, properties with easy access to attractions, beaches, views shopping, dining, and other amenities are more attractive than alternatives that lack these. If your property has any of these location-based advantages, you need to properly emphasize it by including professionally shot high-definition photos and videos on your website and any online travel agencies (OTAs) that your property is listed on. These media assets are going to be far more effective at selling your property’s location advantages compared to plain text.
If you already have photos and videos on your listings, it may be worthwhile to update them with more recent ones. To make the process easier, you can use vacation rental property management software to upload and optimize your listings across different platforms.
2. Property Amenities
Guests today need more than just a place to sleep. At the minimum, your property should also offer a modern kitchen, high-speed internet, and climate control. If you’re targeting a more upscale clientele, features like balconies with a view, jacuzzis, and recreational areas are also fairly essential for these guest types. Most guests also prioritize their safety, so you’ll need to provide secure locks on doors and windows and consider installing alarm systems.
Again, high-definition photos are essential for communicating the presence of these amenities to busy potential guests. If you have the budget for it, consider producing a quick video tour of your property, taking time to focus on the specific amenities you want to highlight. Don’t forget to use your property management solution to quickly update your listings with your photos and videos.
3. Cleanliness and Maintenance
Guests expect a sanitary, if not spotless environment upon arrival. Some guests might tolerate dingy rentals if they really need it, but they’re not going to come back, let alone leave a glowing review.
To avoid any unpleasantness, invest in regular cleaning services and schedule preventative maintenance on plumbing, HVAC, and electrical systems. Some vacation property management solutions can alert you to upcoming cleanup and maintenance tasks, making them worthwhile investments if you’re serious about repeat business.
4. Rental Pricing
For many potential guests, price is ultimately going to be the single biggest factor that influences booking decisions. Unfortunately, you can’t always rely on low prices to draw guests in, otherwise, you’ll risk your profits and the maintenance of your properties.
A lot of costing decisions go into effective pricing, but generally, you just want to make sure that your rental rates are not significantly higher than those of your immediate competition. Also, you’ll want to keep prices fairly low during dips in demand.
To make these pricing decisions more efficient, you can use property management software that offers demand modeling and dynamic pricing. This way, you won’t have to constantly deal with day-to-day rent pricing on top of other critical activities.
5. Customer Service
Desirability is often less dependent on your property’s pricing, amenities, and location and has to do more with how you and your staff make your guests feel. If potential guests have a negative encounter with your business over email or social media, it won’t matter how awesome your place is. However, if you’re responsive to inquiries, provide clear and timely communication, and make your guests feel good even before they book, you’re going to be well ahead of your competition.
To make your customer service processes more transparent and repeatable, be sure to invest in the right property management software. Choose solutions that allow you and your team to collate customer interactions across multiple channels. This will ensure that all your guest interactions are handled professionally, leading to more bookings over time.
6. Reputation
A strong reputation for hospitality and quality accommodations will attract more first-time guests and lead to valuable repeat bookings. To build your reputation, you’ll have to do the legwork in maintaining your facilities and ensuring your guests have a great time. Beyond that, you’ll also want to spread the word about your property’s offerings on relevant online channels.
To do this, you can encourage positive reviews from satisfied guests, offering perks for posts on high-visibility review sites and social media pages. To make managing reviews and social media content easier, you can choose a property management tool with reputation management features.
Maintain Your Vacation Rental’s Competitive Edge
By focusing on these factors, your property should be able to attract more guests, maximizing your business’s turnovers and income streams. With the right property management software and a willingness to pivot to whatever the data tells you, your vacation property will eventually live up to its market potential.
Of course, even if you’re fully in tune with what the market currently demands, there are always exceptions for guest preferences. Some guests might prioritize proximity to attractions, while others seek serenity away from the hustle and bustle. Figuring out whether these experiences are blips or part of a greater trend will often come down to your experience as a property manager.
Ultimately, staying sensitive to guests’ demands and market movements is a continuous process. Even if you have a winning formula today, regularly reassessing your strategies and adapting your offerings is the only way you will sustain your property’s relevance. Thankfully, with empathy and accurate data, you’ll know whether it’s worthwhile to keep redeveloping your property for guest rentals or whether it might be time to use it for some other purpose.
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