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- Founder, VRMB
As the worst year ever winds to a close, some vacation rental professionals find themselves in surprisingly good situations whereas others are still completely stuck due to travel restrictions.
This applies to both vacation rental managers (VRMs) who manage other peoples' properties AND "RBOs" or rent-by-owner types who manage their own select property(s).
So what's a vacation rental hopeful to do? I've broken...
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Latest reply by
- ConradO
Get serious about email marketing: segmentation and personalization allow you to better control, monetize, and project future bookings. Your list is the most important marketing asset you own...
- Founder, VRMB
Miriam Ramsey is a key player in the VTrips model of growth through local brands and a star of our first Homerunners episode which premieres worldwide on October 23rd at VRMA International in Las Vegas.
In this episode Matt and Miriam discuss what it takes to make it in this industry, how to handle getting bought and how to nail it as a Homerunner.
This episode is brought you by PointCentral...
- Founder, VRMB
This week's tip is about direct relationships with your guests and removing intermediaries that dilute enthusiasm and loyalty. A combination of Listing Site Independence and the Theory of Limited Edition.
If you are a creator — say an artist, musician, author — and you can get 1000 “true fans” to support your work by buying $100 worth of what you create every year, you’d earn $100,000 per year.
This sounds...
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- ConradO
Love this Matt.
What must happen for me to turn a listing site inquiry (stranger) into a true guest?
Marketing-wise an email here is too valuable! Connecting with their real email is how...
- Founder, VRMB
Lauren Madewell found her calling when Vacation Rentals unexpectedly became the family business. In this episode Lauren and Matt discuss finding that calling, how a passion for the family business can unlock tools to work with guests and staff and what the future holds for our industry.
This episode is brought you by PointCentral: https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/ the leaders in smart home automation, and...
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Latest reply by - RuthM
Amazing podcast. Our industry is full of great stories and good people. Thanks Matt for shining a light.
- Founder, VRMB
I wanted to start a discussion on this topic because teams are the piece of the puzzle that make everything tick ... however due to a convergence of forces, teams are distanced physically and subtly/mentally in new ways (most enabled by tech).
If our business' health is directly correlated to the strength of our relationships within our teams....how do we correct this course?
Doing things face-to-face feels...
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Latest reply by - Will Franco
Another way to strengthen team relationships is by emphasizing purpose. If you can draw a line between one's contribution and the bigger picture (happy/loyal guests) you've strengthened a business.
When I am able to communicate to a subcontractor how their project(s) contribute to the...
This week Matt and Jed Stevens of Koloa Kai detail a six-step program for building a sustainable and profitable vacation rental business and soft-launch the VRMB Accelerator Program.
[UPDATE]
Official Accelerator Program Sign-Up Page
For more information, send a direct message to @Jed
This episode is brought to you by Point Central, the leaders in smart home automation, and Breezeway, the best-in-class property...
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Latest reply by
- Will Franco
[UPDATE 05/12/23]
Official Accelerator Program Sign-Up Page
- Founder, VRMB
In this episode you'll get a taste of what's to come in the next season of Unlocked themed "First Mover Status" in which we'll interview owners and managers who are gaining HUGE advantages by being first to market with new innovations. But until then, enjoy this brief audio essay from Matt's visit to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Where he visited Robin Craigen of www.movingmountains.com
Link's Mentioned in...
- Founder, VRMB
Michelle Ruber of Shift Vacation Rentals has not only built a thriving vacation rental business with her own properties, she has turned passion for her community into a way to give back and enhance guest experience. The result is a kind of first-mover status that carves a deep moat around her business and earns social capital in the eyes of neighbors & employees.
GoFundMe for Rihab's family
Shift Vacation...
- Founder, VRMB
Graham Donoghue is CEO of Sykes Cottages, arguably the largest profitable vacation rental management company in the world. He brings a unique perspective to our industry, having presided over some of the largest digital-led businesses across the UK. In this mega-episode Matt and Graham tackle how to build a team, how to wield data, how to buy and sell vacation rental companies and...nudgies.
Sykes Cottages...
- Founder, VRMB
Our next episode with Megan Carda of Lifestyle Properties drops this coming Thursday, March 10th.
- Founder, VRMB
Megan Carda of Lifestyle Properties used her passion for her local community to build a network of connected businesses that opened the doors to Oregon's Wine Country. Not only does this create a rich guest experience, it drives business to the community and puts Megan lightyears ahead of the competition.
Lifestyle Properties of Oregon
Motivation for Conferences in 2022
RueBaRue
RueBaRue Guidebook for 'The...
- Founder, VRMB
Virginia Ivy is a hospitality pioneer. From opening a music venue in a dead part of Memphis to starting her current vacation rental business in the Arkansas Ozarks, she has earned ‘first mover status’ many times over. She is now an integral part of a tourism oriented community and expanding into related businesses, but through it all she understands the best way to superb guest experience is to focus on the...
- Founder, VRMB
Jeff Brown of Loma Homes is innvotating in a unique space within the vacation rental industry. In this episode we explore his themed home business, the tech used to power it, the bumps along the way and the money he uses to grow the business.
Loma Homes
TaskRabbit
Pricelab
Stayfi
Annversary Inn
This episode is brought you by PointCentral, the leaders in smart home automation, and Breezeway, the best in class...
- Founder, VRMB
@Dana 's quest to quantify vacation rental advocacy health continues in Episode 3 with Robin Craigen of Steamboat Springs and John An of Oahu.
The mountains of Colorado and islands of Hawaii are facing some of the toughest regulatory fights in the country. Even if managers manage to stay afloat or win a battle, they're seeing underhanded tactics from local governments and punitive economic measures. We think...
- Founder, VRMB
After working in the industry for nearly a decade, Brittany Blackman started Breathe Easy Rentals in the crowded Destin, Florida market. She quickly gained a foothold by providing a no stress hospitality experience to guests and owners alike. In this episode Brittany also talks about heartfelt videos she has been sharing that have gained her a viral following and perspective on the business.
Breathe Easy...
- Founder, VRMB
This episode features Madeline List, a senior research analyst at Phocuswright, the leading travel industry research platform. Our nacesent vacation rental movement isn't always well understood by the broader travel industry and this is in part due to a lack of good data to explain the story of our rise.
Madeline is almost single-handedly changing that from a research perspective. Today's conversation...
- Founder, VRMB
@Eddie Love used to work in credit analytics giving small business loans to military veterans. When he got let go because of the pandemic, he began to build his short term rental property into Mountain Mama Cabins in West Virginia. The protagonist is a young man who is thoughtful beyond his years: part of a new generation of Homerunners changing their communities and the world!
This episode is brought you by...
- Founder, VRMB
Miles Chew of Compass Resorts is a marketing manager in the high stakes destination of Destin, Florida. In this interview Miles and Matt talk about being a marketing manager inside a hospitality company and nerd out on the specifics that drive leads and bookings.
Compass Resorts: https://www.compassresorts.com
Fall Family Facebook Campaign...
- Founder, VRMB
Paul Waldschmidt of OwnerRez has spent the last ten years quietly building one of the best property management softwares in the industry. OwneRez barely advertises and yet they have a fiercely loyal customer base and are raved about in our private forum, VRMB Communities. In this episode we dive into innovation, pricing and loyalty with Paul and come away with some lessons we can all benefit from.
OwnerRez...
- Founder, VRMB
Kelly Hill of DoneRight Vacation Rentals/Casago Mcall has forged deep ties with her community and enjoys a sterling reputation but regulations have still come knocking. Her relationships give her a unique voice in the process and there is hope these decisions will be beneficial for the community and her business but the specter of unfair regulation always looms. We spoke with Kelly before and after critical...
- Founder, VRMB
Michael Skinner of Savvy Travels is a member of VRMB’s first accelerator cohort and in this episode we’ll take a look at achievements like his knowledge base and org chart. We also talk about retrofitting your business for better decision making.
Savvy Travels: https://www.savvytravels.co
Notion: https://www.notion.so
Taskrabbit: https://www.taskrabbit.com
OwnerRez: https://www.ownerreservations.com...
- Founder, VRMB
Tom Goodwin of Mountain Laurel Chalets in Gatlinburg, Tennessee is celebrating 50 years of making limited edition memories for guests. In this episode we dive into his direct marketing techniques, which are among the most holistic and comprehensive we have ever encountered.
Mountain Laurel Chalets: www.mtnlaurelchalets.com
Rue Bar Rue: https://www.ruebarue.com
Track: https://trackhs.com
Bomb Bomb...
In this episode Dana and Matt discuss our progress so far this season and talk about what the scorecard really means.
Matt shares audience questions on how the scorecard will be used, we dive into some lessons from the first three episodes and talk about what is to come as we look ahead to bill creation, lawsuits, measuring public sentiment and how to keep score.
This season is made possible by Minut and...
- Founder, VRMB
Victoria O'Connell is the creator of GoLightly, a home sharing platform for women. In this episode we dive into the genesis of the platform, talk about creating accountability and deep ties in a network and discuss broader concepts in niche marketing.
GoLightly: https://www.wegolightly.com
This episode is brought you by PointCentral: https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/ the leaders in smart home automation...
- Founder, VRMB
In this episode producer Stuart Hooper gives an update on progress at Mangofish Studios, an off the grid creative retreat center in Panama and talks to Matt about his recent article for Phocuswire.com on the challenge of scaling what cannot be scaled.
Phocuswire Aritcle: https://www.phocuswire.com/challenges-scaling-vacation-rentals?fbclid=IwAR131IU5NxRVFt3T_SxGb4Mgfl_IKRin0XMHX5QbGl-fyqv8MwX4DVDsVvM...
- Founder, VRMB
In this final episode of Season 8 we speak with the godmother of vacation rentals, Heather Bayer of the Vacation Rental Success podcast, which has featured more than 440 vacation rental innovators and given an enormous wealth of knowledge to our community. Heather recently sold her vacation rental business after twenty years and we dig into that process, the state of the industry, and how well she has been...
- Founder, VRMB
Prior to launching Season 9: Homerunners this week, Matt sat down with Breezeway founder and perennial Unlocked sponsor Jeremiah Gall to discuss highlights from last season and the state of the industry moving forward.
Episode One of Homerunners featuring Lukas Krause of Skyrun Vacation Rentals drops with the VRMB newsletter Thursday September 8th.
This episode is brought you by PointCentral...
- Founder, VRMB
Welcome to Season 9 of the Unlocked Podcast! Lukas Krause is part of a new generation of industry professionals bringing superpowers from other industries into our own. He’s running a large company in the space but focusing on small hospitality details. In this episode Matt and Lukas dive into the good, the bad and the ugly of our current high paced acquisitions cycle and talk about what it means to be a...
- Founder, VRMB
‘How To Save Your Vacation Rental Business’ is a 10-part educational podcast series hosted by vacation rental advocate Dana Lubner that will teach vacation rental managers how to solve their business’ greatest looming threat -- unfair regulation -- from the ground up.
In this teaser clip, meet Dana, say hello to Matt, and get a listen to some of the industry voices that will be helping us explore just how to...
- Founder, VRMB
In this episode Matt and Nate Wysk of Point Central talk 'advocacy technology' and upcoming 2023 trends for the vacation rental industry.
This episode is brought to you by PointCentral: https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/ the leaders in smart home automation, and Breezeway, https://www.breezeway.io/vrmb the best in class property care and automations platform.
Point Central's Smart Noise Monitor...
Welcome to VRMB!
I’m Matt Landau, the founder of this forum. It was created in 2016 when a group of us wanted a safe space to discuss our growing STR businesses.
Today, you can join our community of 1,000+ creative, thoughtful, and generous members who believe in a better future.
Spotlight
Discover "Unlocked: The Intermission" - a captivating 6-part podcast series featuring the individuals who have shaped Matt Landau's horseradish in the past 6 months.