When we talk about the “holy grail” of vacation rental marketing we talk about the repeat guest: the guest who knows and loves your vacation rental: the guest that you consider almost a friend. And to cultivate repeat guests, there are two spheres to consider:
Sphere 1: Activities that cost money and activities that only require time.
Sphere 2: Activities that are done a) pre-booking, b) during the stay, and c) post-departure.
Today's tip only requires time and is delivered post-departure.
IDEA: Mimic the dynamic of a good friend by sending a “this made me think of you” email or text to a former guest when they least expect it. This is something pretty much anyone on your team can do. And when done properly it achieves front-of-mind awareness in the eyes of the guest. The nudge doesn’t even have to be related to your region. So long as you are non-salesy, it's thought that counts.
ACTION: Take notes during the correspondence process and during the stay about things that make each guest unique (allergies, passions, hometowns, professions, talents, likes, special moments…etc.) and set yourself a reminder several months after their departure to do a little internet browsing and send a “This made me think of you” note...entirely out of the blue.
Example: The guests ate tons of X when they visited.
Email: Send an email with a link to the new record for the world’s largest/biggest X. Because it made you think of them.
Example: The guests really enjoyed Y when hanging out at your vacation rental.
Email: Send a link to the newest version of Y to hit the market. Because it made you think of them.
Example: The guests flew in from Z.
Email: Send a note with some news that happened in Z. Because it made you think of them.
Great vacation rental hosts do this naturally, but with some discipline anyone can engineer it into their follow-up operations. This tip plays into the hands of new vacation rental professionals: the fewer former guests you have the easier it is to implement.
QUESTION: As with many of the great marketing tips we discuss, this is executed best with thought, creativity, and personalization. Is there a way to speed up the process? Are there ways to "automate" any portions of the exercise? Are there shortcuts (perhaps buckets or categories of nudges) that could achieve the same effect?
Sphere 1: Activities that cost money and activities that only require time.
Sphere 2: Activities that are done a) pre-booking, b) during the stay, and c) post-departure.
Today's tip only requires time and is delivered post-departure.
IDEA: Mimic the dynamic of a good friend by sending a “this made me think of you” email or text to a former guest when they least expect it. This is something pretty much anyone on your team can do. And when done properly it achieves front-of-mind awareness in the eyes of the guest. The nudge doesn’t even have to be related to your region. So long as you are non-salesy, it's thought that counts.
ACTION: Take notes during the correspondence process and during the stay about things that make each guest unique (allergies, passions, hometowns, professions, talents, likes, special moments…etc.) and set yourself a reminder several months after their departure to do a little internet browsing and send a “This made me think of you” note...entirely out of the blue.
Example: The guests ate tons of X when they visited.
Email: Send an email with a link to the new record for the world’s largest/biggest X. Because it made you think of them.
Example: The guests really enjoyed Y when hanging out at your vacation rental.
Email: Send a link to the newest version of Y to hit the market. Because it made you think of them.
Example: The guests flew in from Z.
Email: Send a note with some news that happened in Z. Because it made you think of them.
Great vacation rental hosts do this naturally, but with some discipline anyone can engineer it into their follow-up operations. This tip plays into the hands of new vacation rental professionals: the fewer former guests you have the easier it is to implement.
QUESTION: As with many of the great marketing tips we discuss, this is executed best with thought, creativity, and personalization. Is there a way to speed up the process? Are there ways to "automate" any portions of the exercise? Are there shortcuts (perhaps buckets or categories of nudges) that could achieve the same effect?
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