What does the guest journey have to do with marketing your vacation rental? Our answer: everything.
While certain marketing strategies will be a better fit for some vacation rental companies than others, we all have at least a handful of similar goals. More guests, more repeat and referral guests, and more 5-star reviews? Yes, yes, and yes.
If you want to make sure your vacation rental business is a success, it’s imperative to create an extraordinary guest experience. It’s not new news for any of us in the industry that guests are seeking more personalized and amenity-rich adventures when they book a vacation home.
While each interaction should come across as natural and genuine for each individual, there is planning that must purposely happen behind the scenes. Their experience with your company is not only when they’re physically staying with you, but it encompasses their entire journey. We break this down into 8 different points:
- Research and Brand Awareness
- Inquiry
- Booking
- Pre-Arrival
- Check-In / Arrival
- During Their Stay
- Check-Out / Departure
- Post-Stay
While this can seem overwhelming when formulating your guest experience, it all boils down to preparation and planning. We’ve compiled an assessment of these 8 stages, including recommendations and examples of what you can implement within your vacation rental company during each phase.
Stage One: Research and Brand Awareness
The research and brand awareness stage is where your prospective guest has decided they want to go on their next vacation and begins researching. This typically happens online for most, which is especially true for the Millennial generation and Gen Z (also known as zoomers). They will either be exploring new destinations or investigating what will be of interest and what will maximize their experience at their preferred location. You’ll often find them searching on Google or social media platforms to explore their areas of interest and will be looking to learn about your area — including events, dining, shopping, and other activities.
It’s critical for you to stand out as an authority and have information available online for them to find you. Your prospective guests will be looking to you for information about your specific area, and, as locals, you have this knowledge readily available. This is also the stage when it’s essential to ensure your listings are fully optimized, from the heading, descriptions, amenities, photography, and more.
Your Objective
Position yourself in a place where they can find you. If this is done correctly, you will become part of their planning phase. Whether they’re dreaming of a relaxing getaway to the beach, an escape to the mountains, or the vivacious city life, your first objective is to appear in your prospective guest’s minds.
The Goal
Once your prospective guest completes this stage, they should feel comfortable and ready to reach out to you. Not your competitor down the street and not one of the OTAs (if they are on your website).
Next Steps
Luckily, we’re here to show you a few ways to get in front of your guests during their research phase! Proven strategies include:
- Website: Providing a visually engaging website
- Visual representations: Showcasing inspiring photographs and video
- Add content: Writing fascinating SEO-friendly copy and thinking outside of the box with long-tail keywords
- Paid digital advertising: Investing in pay-per-click advertisements
- Travel guide: Giving an incentive to join your newsletter mailing list
- Social media: Promoting your brand on social media
- Promotions: Offering an attractive special promotion or discount
Stage Two: The Initial Inquiry
Your prospective guest is interested enough in your property to send an inquiry; now what? First things first, all the hard work has paid off to grab their attention. Take a step back and celebrate, but only for a quick moment. You must guide them to booking and convert them into your guest for a lifetime!
While they’ll probably send you an email or call instead of a message in a bottle, the golden rule is to respond as quickly as possible. Timing is key; if your competitor responds before you, you may lose this guest. When you make your responses, you want to be their local expert, so take the time to ask them detailed questions to best fit them with the perfect vacation rental for their specific needs. When you’re asking them these questions, keep track and make notes about what is bringing them to your location (you’ll be using this information later on in their journey).
It’s also crucial to stay transparent when it comes to pricing, amenities, and your overall guest experience. This helps set their expectations appropriately — do they need to bring their favorite K-Cups for the Keurig or even their own linens for the beds?
The Goal
You want to ensure guests get the information they need to be comfortable with their decision to book a vacation property with you.
Ideas and Thoughts
While this stage may not be as complex, and this list will be a bit redundant, we wanted to point out a few strategies for you to consider:
- Respond as quickly as possible
- Ask them questions to start a conversation and for you to tailor your recommendations to what they’re looking for
- Make notes about their vacation to add into your PMS under their reservation for future use (Family or couples vacation? Guys golfing trip? Ladies long weekend? Make a note.)
- Stay transparent with your guest experience
- Make sure they’re able to reach your direct website (#bookdirect)
- Ensure an easy and streamlined booking process online, over the phone, and even in person
- Provide valuable information about your area
- Branding, branding, branding: have a branded signature on your emails
- Get their email at this stage if you’re able
Stage Three: Booking Received
Congratulations! Your prospective guest felt confident to book with you and has chosen a property on your rental program that suits their needs. Whether the reservation was created online, over the phone, or in person, you should have all of their contact information and payment (at least for their initial deposit).
Now, let’s make sure they’re happy enough to become a repeat guest and refer their friends to your property. What’s the first communication you have with your guest post-booking? Is it an automated email from your PMS or a text message? Regardless of the type of communication you use, it’s what you communicate that counts. That first impression the guest has needs to be consistent with their pre-booking experience.
The Goal
Keep your guest experience consistent and alleviate any concerns that you’re not a legitimate business that took their money and ran. They likely found you online, remember?
Next Steps
Record all the information within your PMS and send a booking confirmation by email. We challenge you to not only send transactional details but to keep the conversation going and ensure they know when you are available if they have any questions.
Your booking confirmation should include essential details like:
- Arrival and departure dates and times
- Invoice (with additional payment dates if applicable)
- Your contact information
- Design that is consistent with your entire brand
Stage Four: Pre-Arrival
While there is the saying, “if it’s not broken, then don’t fix it,” — we believe there’s always room for growth and improvement. What worked 10 years, 5 years… even 3 years ago is not necessarily what guests are expecting now. As our industry continues to grow at a rapid pace, the expectations of our guests also increase. The message we’re all hearing over and over again is that guests are expecting more. They’re expecting more than a hotel experience, and that includes absolute professionalism.
This includes having access to all the details they need ahead of time! Additionally, this is a perfect time to send them information about extra services you may offer (early arrival, late departure, or mid-stay housekeeping).
The Goal
Fuel the fire and help get them excited again about their upcoming visit! They will need to know all of the pertinent information they require for check-in: their pre-arrival instructions.
Next Steps
Plan your messaging! What do you want to include? Here are some ideas:
- General check-in details: check-in time, contact details, and similar information
- Property-specific information: address, access instructions as needed, like WiFi, pool gate, storage areas, etc.
- Amenities and where to find them
- Recommendations for things to do and must-do activities
- Welcome app or where to find the in-property welcome guide
- Personalized video welcome message (this is especially great if you don’t have a physical check-in process)
Stage Five: Check-In and Arrival
From personalized communications and welcome packets to branded soaps and custom keychains, there are plenty of opportunities to provide a memorable experience for each guest check-in! Some vacation rental companies have a staff member or property manager personally greet their guests upon arrival at the property, which offers the opportunity to walk them through any questions they have about the property. Other companies have switched to an almost fully automated experience, where guests can access the vacation rental via keyless entry with a keycode.
The check-in phase is also a fantastic time to go above and beyond to customize your guest experience. Remember when we said to ask them questions so you could get to know them and make tailored recommendations? This is when you can use that information. Golfing trip? Add a gift package of golf balls and tees. Birthday celebration? Leave a bottle of wine and a hand-signed card at the property.
The Goal
Supply your guests with all the information they need and add a personal touch. Kudos for making sure to include your brand during this stage. Keep in mind everything you do reflects you and your brand — from the way information is sent and the design to the amenities offered and the tone of voice you use.
Next Steps
Take a look at your check-in process. What could be improved? Do you make it easy for your guests to get the information they need? Have you thought about implementing a welcome package? Does your company have branded items that improve their experience (like local maps, soaps, cooler bags, beach chairs, etc.)?
Whether given during a physical check-in or presented at the property, we recommend having at least a few printed materials within your properties for guests (especially those who may not have access to the other communication you’ve sent).
Stage Six: During the Stay
As we all know, there are multiple types of guests. To roughly break these down — there are those who love communication, those who love simple gestures, and those who do not want to have a conversation at all. More and more guests prefer less contact during their stay (this is particularly true for the Millennial generation and after the pandemic era). So where is the line? Do you make a welcome phone call, send a text, a push notification, or an email? Part of the answer is knowing your guests and target market.
No matter what you decide is best for your company, there should always be a way for easy and quick communication to take place in the event they need to reach you. Setting expectations is imperative, and having clearly stated times of operation and after-hours procedures in place is very important. What’s worse than a negative review that could have been avoided by a simple conversation during the guest’s stay?
The Goal
Continue to make it easy for your guests to contact you if the need arises, and be available when you say you will be.
Next Steps
Do your guests have easy access to reach you? Is your company’s information found effortlessly in your properties? A refrigerator magnet or tent card are terrific ways to have this information readily available and allows everyone staying at the property access to you if needed.
Stage Seven: Check-Out / Departure
Like all other junctures of the guest stay, this needs to be clearly communicated and a seamless process for your guests. How do your guests check-out? Do they remember what time check-out is? What should they do before they leave the property? These are only a few of the questions you should be asking yourself. Try to think, if you were in their shoes, what questions would you ask when you leave a vacation home.
The Goal
Make the check-out process as easy as possible for your guests and clearly communicate the information they need to know.
Next Steps
In order to keep this process as streamlined as possible, we recommend sending an email before each guest check-out with departure instructions which should include information like:
- Reminder of check-out time
- How they check-out
- What should be done before they leave, if anything
If you happen to have face-to-face time with your guests before they leave, ask them how everything was. The day of their departure is also a powerful time to ask for a review.
Stage Eight: Post-Stay & Remembering
Your guest had a successful and unforgettable experience with you and has left to go home (or on their next excursion). Now comes the fun part, staying in their minds!
At this stage, you should have each guest’s email address who has stayed with you. Each email address is an invaluable tool for converting your previous guests into returning guests, and it’s even better if you have the reasons for their stay to help segment your email mailing lists!
The Goal
Staying top of mind with your past guests and intriguing them to return again.
Next Steps
First and foremost, when done correctly, nothing converts prospective guests into a booking better than email marketing campaigns. Here are a few tips:
- Implement a drip email marketing strategy to include certain intervals of time (like their booking anniversary)
- Set up your templates and copy to streamline the process
- Use reviews as a reminder of the experience they had with you
Why is the guest experience so important?
A positive experience with a vacation rental company turns into:
- More bookings from 5-star reviews left about your property and a positive reputation online
- Word-of-mouth referrals and a new business promoter
- Another engaged follower on social media
- They may become a return guest in the future, which could guarantee revenue on a regular basis
Final Thoughts About Optimizing Your Guest Journey
Let’s face it, creating an unforgettable guest experience is one of the most essential tasks vacation rental companies have, and knowing the different stages of the guest’s journey is significant in crafting your unique experience coupled with streamlined processes!
Curious to know what might help you reach more guests in the research phase or turn your past guests into recurring bookings?