Vacation Rental University: Improve The Guest Experience With Personalized Communication
Vacation Rental University: Improve The Guest Experience With Personalized Communication
April 10th, 2019
One way to truly make your properties stand out from the competition is to focus on personalizing communication with your guests through every step of the process; pre, during and post stay.
Personalizing communication with your guests can help to make them feel that they are of value to you and can begin to build the type of relationship that ensures repeat business. Surveys and studies have shown that today’s consumer expects a personalized approach, whether it’s an ad or an email.
We’re overwhelmed by communication from emails and texts, to phone calls, unless you are speaking to your guests in a very personal way, they will totally disregard your message. Let’s look at some best practices you can use to ensure a productive relationship from your guests first contact with your brand, throughout their engagement, and afterward.
It’s the Simple Things That Have the Biggest Impact!
It might seem obvious, but one simple task that can make a world of difference is making sure you use your guest’s proper name. It always makes us cringe when we see someone’s name in all CAPS. Always make sure that you’re using your guest’s name accurately, with proper punctuation. This can be accomplished by using tokens.
If you have a Property Management System (PMS) that has Customer Relationship Management functionality or an email tool built in, or even if you use MailChimp or any other simple email tool, you can use tokens to insert variables into your emails. If the guest has stayed in one of your properties on a previous visit, make sure you use their First Name, and it’s also a best practice to mention the name of the unit they stayed in during their prior visit.
This can help to reconnect your guest emotionally to their stay, bringing back memories of the great time they had while on vacation. If you can, associate the season as well, for example, “while it was great having you visit us last Spring, or Summer, or over the Holidays…; now you’re deepening their emotional connection.
If you’re dealing with a potential guest, the goal here is to gather as much information as possible. When they opt-in to receive your emails, check to see where they came from, for example, were they reading an article about the best ski locations, or maybe they were looking at a unit you have right on the beach or the golf course. These are clues that can help you to tailor your message to their interests so you can provide personalized messages in the future.
The Age of Personalized Communication
Today, we all know how much information is being gathered about us as we surf the web. We know it’s being collected and we want to see that it’s being used in a very personal way to help us forge the trust bonds, and build the relationships that can help us to reach a buying decision.
Personalizing your marketing gives you the ability to do exactly this. Small gestures like remembering a guest’s birthday or a special occasion like an anniversary can be an excellent way to re-engage with former guests and invite them back. For example, if a guest has stayed with you, or a prospective guest has browsed a seasonal rental, tell them about great events coming up, like ski season or spring break.
Personalize your outreach based on past behaviors and current behaviors that can be indicative of future behavior, and you’ll build loyal and vocal followers for your brand!
April 10th, 2019
One way to truly make your properties stand out from the competition is to focus on personalizing communication with your guests through every step of the process; pre, during and post stay.
Personalizing communication with your guests can help to make them feel that they are of value to you and can begin to build the type of relationship that ensures repeat business. Surveys and studies have shown that today’s consumer expects a personalized approach, whether it’s an ad or an email.
We’re overwhelmed by communication from emails and texts, to phone calls, unless you are speaking to your guests in a very personal way, they will totally disregard your message. Let’s look at some best practices you can use to ensure a productive relationship from your guests first contact with your brand, throughout their engagement, and afterward.
It’s the Simple Things That Have the Biggest Impact!
It might seem obvious, but one simple task that can make a world of difference is making sure you use your guest’s proper name. It always makes us cringe when we see someone’s name in all CAPS. Always make sure that you’re using your guest’s name accurately, with proper punctuation. This can be accomplished by using tokens.
If you have a Property Management System (PMS) that has Customer Relationship Management functionality or an email tool built in, or even if you use MailChimp or any other simple email tool, you can use tokens to insert variables into your emails. If the guest has stayed in one of your properties on a previous visit, make sure you use their First Name, and it’s also a best practice to mention the name of the unit they stayed in during their prior visit.
This can help to reconnect your guest emotionally to their stay, bringing back memories of the great time they had while on vacation. If you can, associate the season as well, for example, “while it was great having you visit us last Spring, or Summer, or over the Holidays…; now you’re deepening their emotional connection.
If you’re dealing with a potential guest, the goal here is to gather as much information as possible. When they opt-in to receive your emails, check to see where they came from, for example, were they reading an article about the best ski locations, or maybe they were looking at a unit your have right on the beach or the golf course. These are clues that can help you to tailor your message to their interests so you can provide personalized messages in the future.
The Age of Personalized Communication
Today, we all know how much information is being gathered about us as we surf the web. We know it’s being collected and we want to see that it’s being used in a very personal way to help us forge the trust bonds, and build the relationships that can help us to reach a buying decision.
Personalizing your marketing gives you the ability to do exactly this. Small gestures like remembering a guest’s birthday or a special occasion like an anniversary can be an excellent way to re-engage with former guests and invite them back. For example, if a guest has stayed with you, or a prospective guest has browsed a seasonal rental, tell them about great events coming up, like ski season or spring break.
Personalize your outreach based on past behaviors and current behaviors that can be indicative of future behavior, and you’ll build loyal and vocal followers for your brand!
