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[00:00:05] Sarah: Hello. Welcome back to another great episode. I am Sarah Karakaian.

[00:00:09] Annette: I am Annette Grant. And together we are–

[00:00:11] Both Annette & Sarah: Thanks for Visiting.

[00:00:12] Sarah: Let’s start this episode like we do each and every week, and that is sharing one of you, our incredible listeners, who is heading on over to strshare.com, sharing everything they can about their short-term rentals so that we can share it here on the podcast, to our entire email list, and of course, on Instagram each and every Sunday. Annette, who are we sharing this week?

[00:00:30] Annette: This week we are sharing @floridacamprentals. Again that’s @floridacamprentals, and it’s hosted by Lydia. I want to be friends with Lydia. She was getting the Airstream, and she had a– she has a highlight on her Instagram about the Airstream delivery and I was thoroughly amused by it.

[00:00:52] It was pure excitement that she was preparing for and her Airstream being delivered. But what I want to share is Lydia has done a wonderful job. So many hosts asked us, what do I do if I have multiple properties? Do I need multiple Instagram accounts? This is a wonderful case in point. She has multiple rentals, but one Instagram. Hence, Florida Camp Rentals, plural.

[00:01:17] I’m assuming her new Airstream will go on here too, but she has two other properties. And you can see the way that she has done it. She has the cities listed in her bio. So it’s very clear. There’s one in Edgewater. There’s one in New Smyrna Beach. And then I’m sure her newest one, she will put that location also.

[00:01:44] So I want you to take a look at the way she is creating content and highlighting both of her properties in her feed. Also, we want to share that she is one of Airbnb’s guest favorite, and she is in the top 1%.

[00:02:01] Sarah: Well done.

[00:02:02] Annette: Go ahead with [Inaudible] self. That is impressive. And she also has that in her bio. And so if you’re a guest favorite, people want to know that. Share that with everyone. But I just want to say, go into her account, and you’ll see her logo. You’ll see the ways that she’s infusing all of her properties, and then giving her personal content and then content of the home. I just have to shout it out because she’s going to be excited about this.

[00:02:33] She also has an amazing vintage truck that she’s named Regina. This is what people love. I know that was in her bio on Airbnb that this is her Sunday fun day as she takes out her two-tone 1975 Ford Ranger truck. This is why guests want to book with you. The little thing that you are most passionate about or that quirkiness that makes you authentically you, share that. When I was reading her bio, I’m like, I want to stay with her.

[00:03:04] So that’s the type of stuff like, put that out there. Let your potential guests see it because it’s everything that you display to them, everything that you show, why that guest would choose to stay with you. But at Florida Camp Rentals, give her a follow. Well done. Sarah, let’s get on to the episode.

[00:03:24] Sarah: We just had a meeting with our revenue manager for our rental company, and we have Operation Fall happening here in our market. So we thought, we don’t want to keep all these ideas and strategies to ourselves. We want to share them with all of you. So this episode is all timely ways to make extra money with your short-term rental. This fall, we have six different strategies we’re deploying, and we’re hoping that you can find one, two, three, four, or maybe all six strategies would apply for you and your business.

[00:03:59] And let’s start with us maximizing long weekends. So focusing on long weekends. We’ll probably pass it by the time this airs, but Columbus day is going to be a long weekend. There’s Veterans Day that is coming up. So encouraging guests to book extended stays. In our market, usually it’s Friday to Sunday, but these might mean Friday to Monday. And then using Airbnb rule sets to maximize that.

[00:04:31] So rule sets is something that you can optimize in Airbnb specifically. There’s other things that you can do within PriceLabs or whatever your pricing software is, but making sure that for that specific weekend, you are maximizing and incentivizing people to go ahead, treat themselves and to stay with you for a little bit longer.

[00:04:54] Annette: Absolutely. And this is something, again, we know we’re talking about the fall right now, but we already know there’s three-day weekends happening in the winter. We know they’re going to happen in the spring and in the summer. So start looking at that calendar, maximize it now in the fall, but also look ahead.

[00:05:11] Next, we’re going to prepare for holiday guests. The holidays are coming up. People are starting to plan, and this is the time you want to start marketing it. You want to start highlighting that your listing is prepped and ready for holiday gatherings. If you have some of those holiday photos, it is not too soon to infuse those and show that off to your potential guests.

[00:05:36] This is the time, making sure that you are ready. If you have an awesome kitchen, you are equipped for Thanksgiving, for those maybe Christmas, New Year’s gatherings. Show that. Highlight that. You can never go wrong with highlighting the way that your kitchen is equipped because that guest that is looking for those accommodations specifically, they are going to care.

[00:06:03] They are going to care about your oven, about what’s inside your cupboards. Show it off. That guest will be looking for those amenities. And this is the time to show that off. And this is a time, if you’ve never taken photos of the details in your kitchen, go ahead and do that while it’s decorated.

[00:06:23] And what we love is, yes, you’re going to have to make the investment of the holiday decorations and having a photographer come out, but these are the gifts that keep on giving, no pun intended. You can use these photos year after year So this is that one-time investment, and you’ll get a huge return on it for following seasons. So this is the time to do that

[00:06:45] Sarah: I wanted to elaborate a little bit on the photos of your kitchen. Yes, decor. Maybe you’re a real go-getter and you do decorate for fall, but winter decor, or if you do get specific with the holiday, like Christmas. But for Thanksgiving, if you don’t have photos of your kitchen with the cabinets open and your drawers pulled out and getting really beautiful shots of what you offer, do that.

[00:07:13] We offer listing audits to our members when they first join us that we can get a really good understanding of their listing, but they can also see from an outsider’s perspective of what is maybe missing from their listing or not highlighted. And that is something I see time and time again, especially in these big homes, showcasing what is in your cabinets. What sort of smaller appliances do you offer that are really cool?

[00:07:35] So I wanted to mention that. And then once you get someone who books, especially for a holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas, reach out to that guest and ask them, “Will you be cooking in the home? Is there something you want to make sure that we have?” They may not even think to ask you, and then they show up, and you don’t have it, and then there’s maybe a little friction there.

[00:07:55] So I always like to reach out to these guests specifically about, is there anything you want to make sure that you have on site? Obviously within reason, but usually, it’s very reasonable. And then we surprise and delight them that we’re thinking about their stay ahead of time. And if you are maybe a newer host and you’re not sure if you have everything ready for the holidays, we’ll go ahead in our show notes and link to our essentials checklist. It will prep you for the holidays to make sure that you have everything on site that a holiday renter will need.

[00:08:26] Annette: All right. Up next is leveraging any local events that are going on in your area. This time of year, there can be a ton of different things from– again, we’re Columbus, Ohio, so there’s been a ton of football games, alumni gatherings, people coming in, families coming in to celebrate. You might have concerts happening. You might have fall festivals. We have so many of them just because of the amazing weather we have here.

[00:08:56] It really is our busy time of year because there is so much going on all of the time, and so really just understanding that in your area. Know those smaller events that are going on too, drawing so many people potentially. I was just talking to someone this week from the East Coast and– what’s the town? Oh my gosh. It’s big Halloween. Halloween was actually–

[00:09:23] Sarah: Oh, like Salem?

[00:09:24] Annette: Yes, yes. We were talking because her revenue should be more. She wasn’t capitalizing. She wasn’t priced right for that holiday season. So you might not know what those festivals, those fall things are going on in your town. We have the American Quarter Horse Congress. Exactly. I know you’re all– unless you’re in that world. It’s over 30 days long. People come in here and spend tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of dollars on new horses, on new trailers. They stay here for over 30 days, and it is here year after year after year, and it’s a huge time for us. So really keen in to what are those niche events happening in your town.

[00:10:08] Sarah: Let me give you another example too of leveraging local events for pricing. Anyone out there who uses PriceLabs, Beyond Pricing, or Wheelhouse, any of those third-party dynamic pricing, good for you. That’s awesome. We champion them. But, for example, we leverage football games here. So OSU is here, Ohio State University, and there are home games, and obviously, PriceLabs picks up. They know when we have home games, and that’s great.

[00:10:31] But what PriceLabs won’t know that we know is that there are certain games where we’re playing certain opponents that are going to travel here different than other schools that we play where they’re not going to travel here. So it actually won’t be as big of a weekend as you might think with it being a home game.

[00:10:48] And so we know that because we– hey, if I don’t like football– and I do. I actually really enjoy it. I’ve got to enjoy it even more living here. But let’s say you don’t. If you know that’s a driver for people to come to your town, you need to figure out who knows intricacies like that so that you can understand, oh, this game, I need to adjust my pricing even more and be even more bullish than PriceLabs is saying because I know that these fans are going to travel here to come to that game.

[00:11:18] Annette: We just had that happen, actually, and Colleen and I were looking at all the hotels because we were pushing our rates as high as possible, and the hotels in our area were getting three to four– some hotels in Columbus, Ohio, when I say Holiday Inn Expresses were going for $1,000 a night, not even close to the university because we were playing a team from West Virginia, and it was just a two, three-hour drive, and it might be the only time they ever play us.

[00:11:49] And it’s a really, really big deal for that team to play us in our stadium. And so if people weren’t on top of that, they miss. I actually talked to some hosts because we were bragging about the rates that they got, and they were like, “What? We didn’t get that.” We’re like, “Yeah, it’s because we played this specific team.” And so if you’re not on top of it, you can miss out on a ton of revenue.

[00:12:07] Sarah: So what does that mean for you in your market? Maybe you don’t have college ball, and that’s okay. You got something else that’s going to drive people this holiday season. Maybe you have a botanical gardens, and they do a really big event for Halloween or Thanksgiving or fall in general. Who knows? So dive into your marketplace and make sure you understand it inside out, especially right now, and make sure that you are adjusting your pricing. Again, it’s that art and science, especially during the holidays, to make sure you’re maximizing that revenue.

[00:12:37] Okay. Moving on to number four, slow season strategy. We get all hyped up for September, October, November, but then it is quickly followed by this nosedive of occupancy, at least in our market. So maybe you’re opposite. Maybe you’re in your slow season now, and then you’re in a ski town, and so you’re about to hopefully have your high season here in January, February, March.

[00:13:00] So you might want to flip this. But for us, we have to prepare for our slow season. So for those of you in vacation markets or maybe during hurricane season, and of course our hearts go out to everyone who may have been impacted by the two hurricanes that have already hit this hurricane season, you do want to use slow fall season to, one, analyze your numbers and get your bookkeeping in order.

[00:13:24] So make sure that you understand what has already transpired this year in terms of your bookkeeping. We’re not talking about revenue management. We’re talking about your bookkeeping so that you are staying organized because tax season is around the corner. So if you’re slower, take the time to make sure you’re all reconciled.

[00:13:42] Make sure your P&L makes sense. Maybe something went into an account that it shouldn’t have gone into, so you’re adjusting all of that. Bookkeeping needs to be in order so that your CPA can work with something and help you out when tax time comes around here. Review your booking window to better prepare for the upcoming busy season.

[00:14:00] So we’re already preparing for when March and April come around here in Columbus and making sure that, “Okay, how did 2023 go? How did 2024 go? And how are we going to beat ourselves in 2025?” And doing some forecasting there. And then, of course, you want to update your listing and refresh the description, the titles, the photos to keep your property competitive.

[00:14:22] Annette, let’s just talk a little bit about experienced hosts and their photos and how we continue to be shocked that so many of you did your listing– maybe some of you– years ago, and you don’t go back and look at it with fresh eyes or give it your phone to someone else. You’re listening to someone else who doesn’t know you and say, “What do you think about my listing?” And get an outsider’s view. Because how many times do we see these photos and they are just not the true representation of how awesome these properties are?

[00:14:51] Annette: Yeah. We would just get caught up in doing all the other things. We forget that the pictures are what is selling your property. So you might have done a refresh of some of your linens, some of your decor, just maybe you’ve had a fresh coat of paint, and we just forget sometimes that the photos need to be refreshed too.

[00:15:13] We can share that one of our coaches inside our membership, We were just chatting with her. She has some properties that she has had up to five different photo shoots because, seasonality. She wants different photos taken during different times of year. Also lighting. She wants some during the day. She wants some at golden hour. She wants some at night. So I just encourage you, when is the last time you’ve– Sarah and I were talking today. We need to get new photos done. So this is a time to put that into your budget, plan for it, and get it on your calendar.

[00:15:50] Sarah: People book your property off of the photos. It also blows our mind when this is when hosts skimp. Or these photos are several seasons old. You’re like, “Well, it still looks like that.” And it’s like, I know, but go through your reviews. What actually stood out to your guests? Maybe it surprised you from what you thought would stand out.

[00:16:09] Maybe you have upgraded a bed size. Any of these things, you’d be surprised. So just go through your listing and see how you can refresh it, and make sure it’s optimized, and make sure it’s showing up on page one. Doing all that during your slow season is going to help you get ready for when you want to capture as much as you can during your high season.

[00:16:30] Annette: All right. Number five is prepping for Black Friday and continuing to do gap night promos. So why not participate in all of the holiday deals? You can run promotions to your email list for holiday. Let’s say, maybe you don’t have an email list. You should have one though. We encourage you to do that. But if you have a social media following, if you have your own network of people, this is the time to send out that email to your friends and family. “Hey, do you know anybody looking for a stay next year?” This is where people are planning their next year trips.

[00:17:10] So offer that to whether it’s people that you work with, your personal network, hopefully your email list of people that have already stayed at your property, and/or your social media list. Run those promos. And here’s the deal. Don’t be discouraged if someone doesn’t take you up on it. You’re becoming top of mind again. You’re getting in front of them. A lot of times we have to make several, several offers before someone says yes, but this is a perfect time for you to remind your network and your past guests about your property.

[00:17:44] Sarah: And then gap nights, we just did a whole episode on that just last week. So if you didn’t get a chance to check out last week’s episode, please do that. Especially during the holidays, people are a little bit more lax with their travel. They’re a little bit more lax with their schedule, so you could sell them an extra night, either before their say starts or a night after they’re due to check out.

[00:18:06] They’re already in your property, or you’ve already approved them. They’ve already paid the cute cleaning fee. So these are hot, hot leads to extend their stay, especially during those holiday seasons where everyone’s feeling a little bit more open to spending money and really taking care and treating themselves or their family.

[00:18:26] All right. The last and final tip that we are going to make sure that we are on top of this fall, and we hope you are too, is make sure that you’re coordinating with your team. There’s a lot of travel during the holidays. Hopefully you’ve already set expectations. We’re open 24/7/365, and that means on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, and Thanksgiving.

[00:18:48] Who is making sure that guest support is there on the Airbnb app or your property management software unified inbox? Who can go to a property if a guest needs something? If you can’t go to the property, have you already talked to your guest about that?

[00:19:03] And of course your cleaning team. You might not have thought ahead with your cleaning schedule and what days guests can book and check out. Maybe you’ve got a guest checking out on Thanksgiving and then checking in on Thanksgiving, a back-to-back, but maybe your cleaning team was expecting to have off. Same with Christmas and Christmas Eve, or New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

[00:19:28] Check with your cleaning team. Are they willing to clean on holidays? If they’re not, you may have to adjust your schedule, or maybe you’re going to roll up your sleeves and do it yourself. Whatever that means to you, go ahead and make sure all of that is dialed in now so that it’s not a surprise to you, your team, or your guests when those holidays approach.

[00:19:47] Annette: And just be mindful that during the holiday season, you really do need to knock it out of the park for your guests. You think people would be more generous during this time, but they are more on edge. They’re going to be around family. They’re traveling a lot. It’s very hectic. Maybe financially, they’ve got a lot of things going on. So you want to make sure that you are on your A game.

[00:20:10] Sarah: Yes. And here’s a little bonus tip. It is the holiday season. It’s a time to share gratitude with your team. So is there anything that you can start thinking about how you can show them how much you appreciate them? Your cleaning team, maybe your bookkeeper, your inspector, your guest services team, your VA, whoever that is, what motivates them? What is going to make them feel appreciated?

[00:20:35] And we start thinking about it now so when the next four to six weeks rolls around, you can surprise and delight them just as much as you surprise and delight your guests. We hope that these six tips get you geared up for the fall and holiday season that is upon us and that you rock it out and really maximize your revenue. You’re a business owner, and you’ve always got to be thinking of ways to tap into that revenue and tap into profits for your business. With that, I am Sarah Karakaian.

[00:21:07] Annette: I am Annette Grant. And together we are–

[00:21:09] Both Annette & Sarah: Thanks for Visiting.

[00:21:10] Sarah: Talk to you next time.