Vacation rentals are properties with great potential and growing popularity. However, it’s not easy getting a profit from your rentals when there is so much competition. You need to stay ahead of the competition, and that is not always so easy. Other people may have better rentals, more beautiful spaces or spaces that are just better located. In this case, there is not much you can do, but there are ways to make yourself stand out even if your conditions seem worse than those of other people. So, if you are interested in some fun ways to delight your guests and be above your competition, here are some great tips to improve your chances and make your guests fall in love with your vacation rental.
Match What You Advertise
This is an obvious thing but some people might need a reminder. Sure, you have a beautiful yard, but if it’s muddy or messy or full of your stuff, you shouldn’t advertise it as such. If your rental has three bedrooms but you are using one as storage for your stuff, you can’t advertise that as a three-bedroom house- you need to tell guests the truth. The same goes for all other areas of the house. Be honest, tell the truth and show them what you really have to offer. Make sure that the pictures that you take of your vacation rental property accurately represent what you are trying to sell. You can’t take a picture of some area that your guests will never be able to use. You also shouldn’t lie about the location. This is a very important element to any guest and they need to know before they rent your place out whether it’s located close to what they need or not. If you lie about the location, your guests may leave soon after they show up and you lose good business and reputation. However, be honest about your location and the distance from important places, and you might get a different type of audience, but more of it.
Remove Yourself from the Space
So, you might live in the house you rent but you go away while someone is renting. Great, this works for many people. However, you need to understand that when guests come to your home, they don’t want to feel uncomfortable and like they are invading your space. Hide as much of your stuff as you possibly can somewhere safe and leave your guests with a blank canvas of a comfortable vacationing space that they can really use. This means, remove your pictures or personal items that usually just lay around, remove your magazines or personal items that you really care about. You should keep your home empty of such stuff if you are renting it out often because it makes your job easier and it makes your guests more comfortable.
Allow Them to Relax
People rent homes outside of cities to relax, especially after enjoying adventures all day. So, you need to make sure that they are comfortable and that the evenings are fun. Make games, reading, WiFi, cable, DVD player, Netflix and so on all available with directions on how to turn them on and use them. Make sure the clutter is out of their way as well. These are some of the selling points that you can easily afford but that will put you way above other vacation rentals. Sure, people love visiting a destination for outdoor activities, but we all like to cozy up and feel comfortable and at home when we are tired. So, make sure that you enable basic entertainment elements and your guests will thank you.
Related: 8 Things Airbnb Guests Will Expect from a Vacation Rental in 2019
Make Space for Families
One thing that vacation rentals have to be is family-friendly, especially if you are offering a larger space near places where families usually go on vacation. So, make it fun and safe for kids. Add some books for them, toys, bath toys, strollers and so on. It doesn’t have to be huge but families with children appreciate small things. If you want to go bigger, you can provide pack-and-plays, booster seats, bigger toys and so on. Again, these are some selling points that will place you directly above the competition, no matter the location.
Help Your Guests Before They Come
Planning and packing are important elements of your guest’s lives. So, make it easy for them by listing everything you do offer so that they know what they should bring and what they shouldn’t bring. This will mean a lot to them and it will make them love your rental even more. Supply the kitchen with all the basics your guests need to cook – both when it comes to cookery and things they will actually eat like spices, coffee, tea and so on.
Make Your Home Easy to Navigate
“Use labels to tell your guests where everything is and make them feel comfortable with their stay,” says Holland Freddie, a residential appraiser at Assignment Writing Service.
Create a Great Place for Them to Sleep
You need to give your guests a nice sleeping environment and offer them comfortable mattresses, extra pillows, and blankets as well as linen and other similar things.
Make the Place Clean
This is the most important thing – you need to make the place very clean. Dirty places make the guests sick because it’s clear evidence that either other people have been there or that other people haven’t been there in a while. This is the worst thing that you can do. So, clean your vacation rental property and make it crisp for every new visitor.
Make It Affordable
“Don’t charge sky-high fees for your rental property as well as for cleaning and the pets. Pets are now a part of the family so they shouldn’t be charged for. Your guests are also most likely not going to leave a huge mess behind, so don’t charge so much,” says Fiona Bell, real estate managing broker at Big Assignments. Setting reasonable and competitive nightly rates can now be easily done with an Airbnb calculator so be sure to check one out.
Add Some Small Delights
Make this experience memorable by leaving wine or food for them, flowers, notes and so on.
With these 10 tips, guests are sure to fall in love with your vacation rental!
This article has been contributed by Aimee Laurence.