Your Monthly Vacation Rental News
December 4, 2019
It was an eventful month for the vacation rental industry.
Between Vrbo’s leadership changes, Expedia’s stock tanking, and Airbnb’s announcement to verify all 7 million listings after the October shooting at an Airbnb rental, it’s been a busy month. See below for more industry highlights…
RedAwning Expands Partnership With Amazon To Power Hotel-Level Guest Experiences In Short-Term Rentals
November 1, 2019
RedAwning is now adding two new Amazon powered guest enhancements: The first is the ability to easily filter for Amazon PrimeNow delivery services on RedAwning.com. This will enable guests to book with confidence knowing groceries or supplies can be delivered seamlessly to their rental of choice. The second addition is the RedAwning Hospitality Store: https://www.amazon.com/shop/redawning
Read moreAirbnb Attempts to Ban Party Houses After Multiple Deaths in California Shooting
November 2, 2019
Guests using short-term rentals for wild parties and criminal activities have been the scourge of the sector, and the problem was highlighted again this week after a Halloween evening “mansion party,” booked through Airbnb in Orinda, California, reportedly led to the deaths of five people in a shooting.
Read moreFareHarbor responds to criticism from tours and activities reservation system CEOs
November 4, 2019
There was tension in the air at the Arival conference in Orlando last week as FareHarbor CEO Max Valverde took a seat on stage next to fellow leaders of tour and activity reservation systems including Chris Atkin of Rezdy, Ruzwana Bashir of Peek and Jason Morehouse from Checkfront. In April 2018, Booking Holdings bought FareHarbor, boosting the profile and pocketbook of what had been just another one of the more than 150 reservation system providers in this sector (according to Arival research).
Read moreAirbnb Announces Plans to Verify All 7 Million Listings by December 2020 to Regain 'Trust' From Customers
November 6, 2019
Starting now, verification of all seven million listings on Airbnb will commence. Homes will be verified for accuracy of the listing (including accuracy of photos, addresses, and listing details) and quality standards (including cleanliness, safety, and basic home amenities) and those that meet our high expectations will be clearly labeled. By December 15, 2020, every home and every host on Airbnb will be reviewed with the objective of 100% verification.
Read moreAnnual iTrip Summit
November 6-8, 2019
During this year's event, more than 130 iTrip Vacations franchise property managers and corporate staff gathered for three days of learning and networking.
Read moreExpedia’s stock tanks as company looks to bypass Google and increase direct bookings on Vrbo
November 7, 2019
Expedia’s stock is down 26 percent today after the company posted Q3 2019 results showing underperformance. According to Bloomberg, Vrbo posted another decline in revenue growth last quarter, leading to a lowered profit forecast for the year. The company is citing SEO headwinds as one of the reasons for missed earnings and is investing in higher cost marketing channels to make up for lost revenue resulting from organic traffic coming from Google. Now, Expedia is focused on obtaining more direct traffic and direct bookings on Vrbo.
Read moreVRMU User Conference
November 12, 2019
VRM University hosted a full day of feature and overview training, networking with select vendors, and individual support sessions with the VRM team.
Read moreVrbo Shuffles Leadership as Latest Expedia Group Reorganization Moves Take Shape
November 13, 2019
John Kim, who took over the reins of Expedia Group’s now-struggling vacation rental unit Vrbo in 2016, has been replaced in that leadership role by Jeff Hurst. In another move in Expedia Group’s ongoing reorganization, which has been under way for months, Cyril Ranque, previously president of Lodging Partner Services, became president of the company’s Travel Partners Group.
Read moreResearch Shows Reducing Friction Matters; Expedia Group Prioritizes for Travelers and Partners
November 13, 2019
Technology can improve travel experiences by reducing pain points and stressors along the journey. Today, Expedia Group and business strategy Firm Magid released the Online Travel Friction Index1, finding travelers want suppliers to offer a seamless travel experience, and to quickly and effectively handle any challenge during their travels. The research is aligned with Expedia Group's priority focus to unleash the power of its platform to build out traveler and partner solutions that can help knock down the barriers to travel, making it easier, more enjoyable, more attainable, more accessible and in doing so, ultimately bring the world within reach for billions of people around the globe.
Read moreRedAwning partners with aRes Travel
November 13, 2019
Vacation rental property network RedAwning has partnered with aRes Travel to list instantly bookable vacation rentals directly on local destination marketing organisation websites [DMO]. The New Braunfels, Texas DMO will be the first site on which travellers will be able to search and book RedAwning short-term rentals as the partnership continues to gain traction.
Read moreExpedia’s Vrbo to Reposition Itself Beyond Vacation Rentals as a Family Travel Business
November 14, 2019
Expedia Group’s vacation rental business Vrbo plans to reposition itself as a family travel site that would offer vacation rentals, resorts, and other features facilitating family vacations. The unit’s new general manager Jeff Hurst told Skift Thursday that the move has been in the works behind the scenes for some time. Hurst, who was interviewed on the sidelines of the Expedia Explore ’19 conference in Las Vegas, said he sees the move as a differentiator in a crowded short-term rental marketplace, and one that has almost limitless opportunity.
Read morePhocuswright Conference 2020
November 19-21, 2019
This year's Phocuswright conference provided compelling content, top-tier attendees and an electrified atmosphere.
Read moreWATCH: A visual history of digital travel company revenues
November 22, 2019
With more digital travel companies in the public markets than ever before, PhocusWire documented the entire history of quarterly total revenues since the first digital brands IPOed in the mid-1990s. The data, which is contained in an animated bar chart, is in United States dollars and in millions. All numbers were pulled from publicly available financial reports.
Read moreOperto and Expedia Group Multifamily Solutions announce partnership
November 27, 2019
Operto Guest Technologies has announced an industry-leading integration and partnership that brings together Operto’s Smart Stay property automation solution with Expedia Group Multifamily Solutions.
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