Maximize Your Peak Season With This Vacation Rental Business Plan

June 28, 2019

Whether you own a vacation rental business, a bed and breakfast, or a hotel, it’s essential to know how to make the most of your peak season. While you may already have a vacation rental business plan or a strategy for bed and breakfast in place, there are a few tweaks you need to make to see the best results during this crucial season. Use our free Q4Launch Marketing Grader Tool to learn how your marketing materials stack up, listen to our webinar, and read on to determine what changes you can make to start seeing improvement!

 

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5 STRATEGIES TO MAXIMIZE YOUR PEAK SEASON: A VACATION RENTAL BUSINESS PLAN

#1: TRACK AND MANAGE YOUR PACE REPORT

Your pace report is the number one indicator of the health of your peak season. If you’re ahead of pace, you can get more aggressive on pricing and reduce promotions. But, if you’re behind pace, you need to focus more on your marketing strategyby increasing promotions and adjusting your prices accordingly.

#2: USE PAY PER CLICK EFFECTIVELYStudent's finger on trackpad of computer.

It’s vital to understand your Pay Per Click (PPC) budget and match your management complexity accordingly. If you’ve already made PPC a key part of your marketing plan, be sure you have campaigns running, or have campaigns that are ready to go, that you know already convert well. Then, asses your pace. If you see you’re behind, you need to increase your budget, and if you’re ahead of pace, either decrease your budget or raise your room or vacation home prices.

#3: USE GUEST LIFE CYCLES TO INCREASE REVENUE FOR FUTURE SEASONS

By mapping out the life cycle of your potential guests, you can become the master of the upsell. Get together with your team to talk through each stage of the process, and if you’re a vacation rental property owner, we recommend that you loop in your property managers for their insights. Here’s what you should discuss:

>PRE-ARRIVAL

  • Pre-Arrival is one of the best times in your marketing strategy to promote specials or packages because they give potential guests an incentive to book. It’s also an excellent time to promote room upgrades. This essentially adds no additional cost to you as a property owner, but is a great way to entice your guests.

>ON THE PROPERTYbreakfast with pastries and orange juice on a table

  • This is where customer service comes into play. Make sure you and your property managers have a pulse on the satisfaction of the customer, and use this as another opportunity to upsell your experiences and packages. This is also the time to remind guests that they’re able to extend their stay!

>UPON DEPARTURE

  • As a guest leaves, thank them for their business and ask them to review their trip, whether it be on Google or social media. The goal is to lead them to rebook and gain their loyalty. At this stage in your marketing plan, you should promote “book direct” offers to encourage guests to return.

#4: LEVERAGE THE INFLUX OF GUESTS TO GET GREAT ENGAGEMENT AND REVIEWS

Peak season is the best time to increase customer engagement. It’s imperative to gather emails at check-in, so you can opt guests in to your newsletter (if they are from the EU you need explicit opt-in consent, per the GDPR). You’ll also want to boost engagement through social media, whether you offer a summer contest, scavenger hunt, or enact a “tag a friend” campaign. Plus, you can use one of our tools at Q4Launch to increase the number of 5-Star reviews you receive, because both potential guests and Google really value this information!

Close-up of female hands doing calculations

#5: HAVE A LAST-MINUTE MARKETING STRATEGY

It’s also a good idea to have a “last minute” marketing strategy to fill in any gaps you see in your booking window reports. If you take a multi-pronged approach that tackles email marketing, website banners or (minimal) pop-ups, you’re sure to fill any vacancies within your vacation rental property, bed and breakfast, or hotel.

Q4LAUNCH CAN MANAGE YOUR MARKETING

Q4Launch is here to take the stress off of all of your marketing needs. We’ll help you every step of the way whether it’s implementing a new vacation rental business plan, creating a marketing strategy for your bed and breakfast or hotel, or managing your social media. Set up a free consultation with us to take the first step in seeing real improvements to your business!

 

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