Podcast Episodes

For today’s episode, we talk to Melanie Brown. Melanie is the Director of Data and Analytics at Key Data, the leading analytics and benchmarking company for the vacation rental industry. Melanie has a strong background in data-driven decision-making. She is excited to help property managers and destinations around the world better understand their data. Key Data is the leading provider of trusted, real-time short-term rental market data around the world. Key Data Dashboard was created BY proper...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie feature two special guests, Jason Sprenkle, CEO of Key Data Dashboard, and Ben Coleman, President of Rev & Research. They unveil a new partnership between their two organizations to better service their co-customers. Key Data is great at helping customers visualize data, especially with the increasing use of purely automated pricing platforms, while Rev & Research excels at walking customers through the process. Ben shares how genuine care to help customers ...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie feature Salar Tanzif, the VP of Sales at Guest Ranger. Security has become a primary concern for both property managers and homeowners. As a result, screening guests is essential to ensure that bad actors are detected and prevented from causing harm or damage. Guest Ranger, a risk management company, offers screening services that help to detect shady backgrounds, fraudulent activities, and other red flags that could indicate a problematic guest. Salar discu...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie feature Suneel Goud, the CEO and Co-Founder of GuestView Guide, a SHARP NEC company. Suneel discusses their in-unit digital concierge designed for property managers and operators to enhance the guest's experience. GuestView Guide provides guests with everything they need to know about the property and the local area while saving time through the automation of tasks and facilitating communication. The device is customizable and comes with a management console...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie are joined by Michelle Marquis and Vanessa Moore, the Chief Innovation Officer and Director of Distribution respectively at TravelNet Solutions. Michelle talks about their Hospitality Hub which aims to consolidate the efforts of property managers and streamline operations. Vanessa's expertise is in strategic distribution and she highlights that while they maintain direct connections with channels, they focus on the 20% that serves the 80%. The idea is to be wh...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie are joined by Christina Thoreson, who with her husband Thor, built Chattanooga Vacation Rentals into a sizable and well-run outfit in Tennessee prior to selling in 2022. Christina recalls their early struggles including not knowing how to run housekeeping and maintenance, and struggling to figure out the legal and operational aspects of the business. Christina and Thor were early adopters of technology, and although they went through a series of software cha...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie sit down with Graham Donoghue, the CEO of Sykes Holidays Cottages Group. When Graham was brought on Sykes, the brand was lacking a narrative and a story. They were large and profitable but departments were siloed with no real rallying cry to drive the company forward. Today, Sykes has 25 brands in its portfolio and 24,000 properties under management in the UK and New Zealand, making the brand a major player in the vacation rental industry. One interesting th...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie sit down with Steve Trover, the Founder, and CEO of Better Talent. Knowing a person makes connecting their talents with the right jobs easier. Interestingly, Steve is also the one who brought together Annie and her current role today at Homes & Villas by Marriott International. Steve talks about the people stack and how optimizing human capital has a profound effect because it is most companies' single biggest cost. He shares how a company's integrator works...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Steve Milo and Miriam Ramsey, the Founder/CEO and Regional Business Development Director of Vtrips respectively. They discuss the latest trends observed from the IMN Conference, the latest headlines from Vacasa, the new purpose-built cabins of Vtrips, fighting for smarter legislation, and organizing people in the collaborative committee of the Vacation Rental Management Association (VRMA). Inside Current Headlines Steve shares his experience as a pan...

Elevate a Vacation Guest’s Experience In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Mike Flaskey, Former CEO of Diamond Resorts International and Founder of Mike Flaskey Entertainment, as he gives his second public interview since leading the sale of Diamond Resorts to Hilton Grand Vacations in June 2021. COVID profoundly affected Diamond but innovation allowed them to rebound quickly. Mike shares how they did this and how they pioneered a new way to be evaluated on multiples of EBITDA. He ta...

Build Strong Relationships In The Vacation Rental Community In this special edition of Alex & Annie, Got2Go announces the “Mystery Guest” that has been hired to lead the company as Chief Commercial Officer. Jim Barsch needs little introduction; this experienced vacation rental technology veteran brings years of experience and a wealth of knowledge to the Got2Go team. Got2Go CEO Craig Musumeci shares their big plans for a membership model and event concerts, while Jim shares the path to get th...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Ben Coleman and Rebecca Ballart, Revenue Management Consultants for Rev & Research. They share the trends they observe in today's market, with the most notable being shrinking lead times. They discuss how to communicate with homeowners, manage CEO-level expectations, and organize the portfolio according to lead time. With more competition and softening demand, Ben and Rebecca suggest being proactive and using a data-driven approach to achieve growth. ...

In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Ben Coleman and Rebecca Ballart, Revenue Management Consultants for Rev & Research. They share the trends they observe in today's market, with the most notable being shrinking lead times. They discuss how to communicate with homeowners, manage CEO-level expectations, and organize the portfolio according to lead time. With more competition and softening demand, Ben and Rebecca suggest being proactive and using a data-driven approach to achieve growth....

VALUES AND ETHICS ARE THE FOUNDATIONS OF SUCCESS In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Steve Schwab, CEO of Casago. He shares his unintentional entry into the vacation rental industry and how working with the local community is at the core of his success. Steve also talks about Casago University, the company’s in-house training institution, and how this empowers local heroes because their success is the franchise's success too. Find out more about Steve and the owner-centric systems he c...

On today’s episode, we’re featuring our recent panel at DESTICON, a virtual conference that brought together tourism and hospitality professionals from the DMO (Destination marketing organization) space. In our session, we discussed how professional managers can work with their DMOs and CVBs to promote responsible tourism. (DMO = designated marketing organization and CVB = convention visitor’s bureau. These organizations are typically funded by local and state tourism dollars, and exist to prom...

On today’s episode, we’re featuring our recent panel at DESTICON, a virtual conference that brought together tourism and hospitality professionals from the DMO (Destination marketing organization) space. In our session, we discussed how professional managers can work with their DMOs and CVBs to promote responsible tourism. (DMO = designated marketing organization and CVB = convention visitor’s bureau. These organizations are typically funded by local and state tourism dollars, and exist to pr...

THE KEY TO A GREAT TEAM IS AUTHENTICITY In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Alex Zemianek, the Founder and CEO of JZ Vacation Rentals. He shares how trial after trial left him broke and almost broken. However, when he allowed himself to be vulnerable with his team, they rallied behind him during their darkest days. Alex says that it was through an authentic relationship with the people who make up his team that this was even possible. Find out more about Alex and JZ Vacation Rentals in t...

THE KEY TO A GREAT TEAM IS AUTHENTICITY In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Alex Zemianek, the Founder and CEO of JZ Vacation Rentals. He shares how trial after trial left him broke and almost broken. However, when he allowed himself to be vulnerable with his team, they rallied behind him during their darkest days. Alex says that it was through an authentic relationship with the people who make up his team that this was even possible. Find out more about Alex and JZ Vacation Rentals in this latest episode of Alex & Annie: The Real Women of Vacation Rentals. “REAL” TALK ALEX ZEMIANEK: AUTHENTICITY CREATES A TEAM THAT STAYS "The biggest thing is making sure that you have some kind of authentic relationship. And when people feel that you're genuine, then they're probably going to perform a little bit differently." ALEX ZEMIANEK: GIFT KNOWLEDGE THROUGH EDUCATION "I genuinely feel that education is the best gift you can give and receive as well because people can …

IMPROVE YOUR GUEST EXPERIENCE WITH SEAMLESS TECHNOLOGY In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Thomas Schaper, the Head of Product at DACK Inc. Thomas shares his experience in creating DACK as an app that improves the guest experience and makes vacations easier. He also discusses details about DACK’s model from how it was named to how it works. Find out more about Thomas and DACK in this latest episode of Alex & Annie: The Real Women of Vacation Rentals. “REAL” TALK THOMAS: FREE UP YOUR STAF...

IMPROVE YOUR GUEST EXPERIENCE WITH SEAMLESS TECHNOLOGY In today’s episode, Alex and Annie welcome Thomas Schaper, the Head of Product at DACK Inc. Thomas shares his experience in creating DACK as an app that improves the guest experience and makes vacations easier. He also discusses details about DACK’s model from how it was named to how it works. Find out more about Thomas and DACK in this latest episode of Alex & Annie: The Real Women of Vacation Rentals. “REAL” TALK THOMAS: FREE UP YOUR...

SUCCESS IN THE VACATION RENTAL SPACE ISN’T ALWAYS INTENTIONAL and Arthur Colker is proof of that. Arthur is the CEO and founder of StayFi, and in this episode, discusses how he accidentally fell into the short-term rental and vacation rental space. He talks about how he helped a friend develop an independent brand, and how he saw the value in controlling and owning guests’ data. Arthur built a solution that helps managers and operators capture guest data and then monetize it through tools lik...

Luca Zambello joins us for today's episode to share the journey of creating Jurny, the industry's first MOS (management operating system). With roots in property management, Luca shares how he changed software 5 times - then finally realized, he wanted to create a solution to empower property managers to more efficiently run their businesses...and that he wanted to be a technology company rather than a hospitality company. His journey is nothing short of inspiring and impressive! This episode...

It's the 1st of the Month! Tune in as we look back on this incredible year and share our top 5 most downloaded episodes. We also share our predictions for 2023, and our Words of the Year :) Alex just returned from attending Casago University for 2 weeks in Puerto Penasco, MX, and shares her experience learning all about Casago's vacation rental franchise model. Here are our Top 5 Most Downloaded Episodes of 2022: 1. Steve Milo: We've Got Questions, He's Got Answers - Q&A with VTrips CEO 2. Re...

Tune in for Part 2 of our Holiday Bonus - our two favorite episodes of this past year! Unlocking $4.9 BILLION Dollars in Military Travel to the Vacation Rental Industry, with Anthony Gantt Anthony Gantt, entrepreneur and recently retired Officer for the United States Marine Corps after 22 years, joins us today to tell a tale of what it truly means to build a purpose-built startup. During his service, Anthony was relocated from Virginia to Texas, charged with orders to find accommodations for h...