Unlocked Podcast
Our industry talks a lot these days about a departing generation of wisdom. About the operators exiting their businesses and taking all of their knowledge with them. But what you don't hear about is the new minds, the new leaders who will carry the torch and @Amanda.Hoffmann is definately a new leader on the rise. She's building a finance division from scratch at...
In this episode, two of the industry's top thought leaders reminisce on their friendly rivarly and come together with insights meant to push the whole industry forward.
This episode is brought you by PointCentral: https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/ the leaders in smart home automation, and Breezeway, https://www.breezeway.io/vrmbthe best in class property care and automations...
Sometimes, great initiatives need to be shut down because they are not sustainable.
Which is a difficult pill to swallow, especially when you're passionate (read: stubborn) about something and you badly want it to work.
But it's the truth: as vacation rental innovators we test out lots of ideas...some work, others don't...and then some (the really...
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Latest reply by - DeborahL
I love this. I love what you guys have done, I love the lack of a plan (and the honesty to say it, but that is the reality of what happens, speaking from experience) and the fact that you learned about monetisation. This is EXACTLY what I am going through...
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...
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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.
Tiffany Edwards grew up in the vacation rental business and has become one of its foremost goverment affairs experts and fundraisers. In this episode we dig into what our industry is doing well and what it needs to do better for a fair regulatory future.
This episode is brought you by PointCentral: https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/ the...
Steve Schwab went from living in the back of a bar in Puerto Peñasco Mexico and helping out with HVAC systems to building Casago into a major property management company with thousands of properties and franchises all over the US and Mexico. He's featured in our second episode of Homerunners and he's become a thought partner to Matt in tackling some of the deepest...-
Latest reply by
- Steve Schwab
What a great experience working with Matt and Stuart on this project. I am always available if any of you ever want to talk about the industry, how to find your own values and principles or need anything else.
Our scheduled epsiode for this week was interupted due to uncertainty around Hurricane Ian. Everyone involved with the show is fine and we'll be back next week with regularly scheduled programming, but for now we're going to archives and resharing Episode 19 with you, where Mike Harrington gives us a big business takeaway from Hurricane Florence in...
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...
Michelle "MJ" Boyle is a patented inventor, the Hostess of the Tiny House Podcast, founder and creator of My Tiny House Village, Oregon Teardrop Rentals, and My Tiny Creekside Retreat. In this episode Matt and MJ explore the rushes and reversals inherit in Homerunning...from hitting a niche market at just the right time to real adversity shutting...
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Latest reply by - Debi
Great podcast, Matt! Michelle is one of my favorite people! It was she who introduced me to the artist who...
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...
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...
I've known Matt Hoffman for what feels like an eternity. I remember talking to him back when I was running my vacation rental business in Panama in 2008 and his passion and enthusiasm for vacation rentals has not faded since...if anything they've sharpened.
Matt is the Senior Vice President and Product Leader at Kigo, which is a vacation rental management software...
This week's podcast episode (embedded below) featuring @TomG of Mt. Laurel Chalets in Gatlinburg, TN includes a very special segment (starts at 11:05) about an idea Tom calls Hometown Heroes here's how it's described on his site:
Every hometown has its heroes. The unseen caregiver who is called to serve. An unlikely achiever who tackles obstacles with a can-do spirit. Perhaps it's the unsung...
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Latest reply by
- Debi
Matt and I had a discussion about our Hometown Hero Contest on his podcast Unlocked back in May. We launched...
Dana Young is one of those people who is just unyieldingly passionate about technology. But so are a lot of people. What makes Dana unique is the way he is applying that obsession -- specifically with voice activated devices -- to the vacation rental space. He got started in our industry managing a property with his mom. But the ramifications of his singular and relatively...
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...
As a follow-up to the popular discussion 8 Deep Adjustments To Your Listings, in this week's podcast featuring @Heather we talk about what is simultaneously the biggest challenge AND the biggest differentiator (when you solve it) for independent vacation rental marketers: standing out in a crowd. You can skip forward to 12:15 to hear that part of the discussion:
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Latest reply by - Robin
We Zigged - Moving Mountains is not a conventional name by any means, and this has served us well...
Our niche is Luxury - in the true sense of the word, and every time we have strayed from this we have learned that LUXURY is what our guests expect of us, and...
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...
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...
Phocuswire Aritcle...
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...
GoLightly: https://www.wegolightly.com
This episode is brought you by PointCentral: https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/ the leaders...
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...
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...
Savvy Travels: https://www.savvytravels.co
Notion: https://www.notion.so
Taskrabbit: https://www.taskrabbit.com
OwnerRez...
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...
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...
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: ...
This is a Quick Tips episode of Unlocked, where Matt shares actionable wisdom from VRMB Communities.
Not all listings are created equally. This week, the community discusses 8 deep adjustments that are designed to maximize bookings in a crowded listing site landscape.
Read the full thread, here...
Not all listings are created equally. This week, the community discusses 8 deep adjustments that are designed to maximize bookings in a crowded listing site landscape.
Read the full thread, here...
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...
Madeline is almost single-handedly changing that from a research perspective. Today's...
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.
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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.
This episode is brought...
This episode is brought...
We're in-between podcast seasons right now. So I thought it might be nice to use this platform to share something very important:
The Vacation Rental Advocacy Playbook:
http://www.vacationrentaladvocacy.com
It's a compilation of videos from advocacy specialists that can help you and your colleagues in your destination prepare for the worst.
You can also see the 20 videos I picked out and...
In this week's unlocked interview with @Virginia (embedding it below if you haven't listened) at 40:00 we begin talking about the kinds of properties that are in vogue and Virginia reveals that she now offers a teepee!
In the listing description she BEGS people NOT to come to her teepee ("Do NOT come to this teepee! The road is rough, grumpy neighbor, you have to use outhouse") and lots of people...
In the listing description she BEGS people NOT to come to her teepee ("Do NOT come to this teepee! The road is rough, grumpy neighbor, you have to use outhouse") and lots of people...
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Latest reply by - Karla
I am going to bypass the “if money is no object” part of the what I love about a place, so much makes my heart still race about Tropical Blessings that the money part almost seems irrelevant. Although I had some major doubts that my dream could or would come true for me, namely a home of my own...
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.
Here Goes Nothin'
Retreats, workshops, and discussions that spark creative leaps in your business.
Upcoming Retreats
Matt's first Here Goes Nothin' retreat is slated for THIS NEW YEARS Dec 26-30 (cohort 1) and Dec 30-Jan 3 (cohort 2).
This retreat is all about creativity as an advanced leadership technique and is open to anyone exploring more creative risks in business (and life!)
Simply reach out to [email protected] with a bit about your current goals to learn more...