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This post is part one of a two-post series on vacation rental content that reaches guests throughout their entire booking journey. In this post, we lay the foundation for a multi-step content marketing strategy. In part two, we focus on the four stages of vacation, and offer actionable ways to engage with guests at every step.
You introduce yourself to strangers with a handshake—not by launching into your full life story.
Likewise, you should greet potential guests on your website in a way that’s consistent with how well they know you.
The most successful vacation rental brands have content that engages readers in all stages of the decision-making process—from daydreaming to planning. Then, they implement strategies that guide potential guests towards getting to know them and, eventually, booking with them.
When surveyed, 82% of customers said they felt more positive about a company after reading custom content. For vacation rental brands, that means you can begin crafting a positive image with potential guests long before they set foot inside your rental.
So how can you use your vacation rental content marketing to make new friends—and big fans—out of perfect strangers?
It’s not enough to put the pen to the paper (or fingers to the keyboard) and just see what sticks. For every great vacation rental content marketing success, there’s a calculated plan responsible for its results. Here are some things to consider when thinking about yours.
You know your business better than anyone else, so use your knowledge to identify content opportunities that are specific to you.
Live minutes from Main Street? Consider creating a downtown guide that gives the inside scoop on local shops and attractions. Then invite readers to sign up for your newsletter for more local tips.
Trying to expand into the young family demographic? Create a blog post that outlines day trips for kids close to your rentals. Then link to your collection of family-friendly homes at the end of the post.
Guest personas can really help you hone in on the kinds of vacation rental content you should be creating. Writing to a specific audience—even if it’s imagined—is far more productive than writing to a faceless crowd.
But the opportunities don’t stop there. Go beyond what you’ve gleaned from your business and spend time learning what potential guests that you’ve never met are expressing interest in. That means social listening and keyword research…which brings us to our next point.
You’ve written, re-written, edited, and gotten the opinions of your friends or associates—finally your polished piece of content is ready to greet the world.
But what’s the use if nobody’s reading? You can’t make new friends out of total strangers if they can’t find you on the web.
Every piece of content you create should have a plan behind it—from before you start writing to after you hit publish. Ask yourself: what am I trying to achieve with this content, and how will I get eyes on it?
Sometimes the means is the end: keyword targeting is both a way to distribute your content and a method for the end goal of increasing visibility. But maybe you want to start upping your email marketing game. How will you build your list, and what purpose will each newsletter have?
Even better than determining the distribution and purpose of every individual piece of content you create: develop a holistic content marketing strategy, and use that to fuel your content creation.
Guest Hook can help. We’ll create a customized solutions report, where we identify opportunities for better content marketing, branding, and copywriting for your business. Then, you can hire us to execute or use it as a guide for your own marketing efforts. Reach out to us today to learn more.
In part two, we focus on the four stages of vacation, and offer actionable ways to engage with guests at every step.
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