In this episode, Alex & Annie are joined by a panel of experts to help guide you on a pressing topic - How to Explain Changes in Revenue and Bookings to Your Homeowners.
2023 is not turning out to be as profitable as expected for vacation rental managers, and naturally this is causing quite a bit of turmoil for property managers, especially those who got into the business during the golden years of 2020-2022.
That’s why today's Revenue Roundtable features Ben Coleman - Founder of Rev & Research, Vanessa Humes - Director of Sales & Marketing at InterCoastal Net Designs and Lance Stitcher - Broker/Owner at Seaside Vacations and Sales.
Some of the great insights discussed in this episode includes proactive, data-driven communication with your homeowners, as well as the importance of making sure you’re pricing appropriately for 2023 instead of making decisions like it’s still last year.
So what’s happening in the market right now, and what steps can you take?
There is no single source of truth to why this year isn’t as fruitful as the last. One of the industry specific reasons is that during these golden years, many new property managers appeared in the scene and made investments in properties with the sole purpose of running an independent short-term rental business, effectively driving up the available inventory to unprecedented amounts.
One of the market trends that Ben has noticed is that the luxury rental space has seen a huge upswing over the last couple of years, and demand is now dropping significantly. This correlates with a more cost-conscious buyer across the board due to the recent economic downturn.
Ben’s solution? Dial in your bookings earlier out in the year coming in with lower pricing. You might not see the same profit, but you’ll be in a much better spot outpricing your competition and not letting your properties stay empty.
Vanessa agrees with Ben’s strategy of getting ahead of schedule. Clear communication with accurate data is the best way to proactively make sure your property managers aren’t making poor decisions based on inaccurate research.
From an account management perspective, Vanessa suggests being very intentional about nurturing relationships with your property owners to mitigate loss of accounts due to a frightened and uncertain market.
Lance mentions that at his company Organic, Direct and Social are his biggest traffic drivers at this point in time. He also emphasizes the importance of being transparent with your homeowners about the current market situation, and taking a data-first approach to communication.
He also emphasizes exactly how important it is to hit the nail on the head with your pricing according to seasonality, dates, and local circumstances such as upcoming events and holidays.
Long-term location marketing is also a hot topic - there’s a need to address how to keep vacation rentals busy in shoulder seasons. Proactively creating demand is the only solution to this, and with a bit of creativity and a deep understanding of customer behavior you can still achieve decent results in the off-season.
With so much more inventory on the OTA, it’s a huge advantage to have a refined direct booking strategy and effective marketing with a robust tech stack. However, it’s near impossible to excel at all of these aspects as a small business. That’s why working with folks such as the panel we have on for this episode will be crucial to your success in a down market.
Our panel agrees that a huge shift from properties being viewed as investments, to properties being viewed and treated as residences is going to be the biggest trend in the next 16-18 months. The only solution to properly equip your property managers for this market is to draw accurate predictions based on data, and to be transparent with what’s to come.
Whether you’re an individual property manager feeling the pressure of the current market, or a Vacation Rental company with hundreds of properties under management looking to safeguard your book of business - tune in to this episode to learn from our expert panel on exactly what steps to take to navigate the stormy seas of 2023 and beyond.
This episode is brought to you by Casago, Guest Ranger, and Good Neighbor Tech.
Visit AlexAndAnniesList.com to view our top picks for the best suppliers in vacation rental technology and services.
Special thanks to Rev & Research for being the presenting sponsor of Alex & Annie’s List.
Connect with Ben:
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Connect with Vanessa:
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Connect with Lance:
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