Direct Booking Websites
Rental Property Investor · Lafayette, IN · Member since 2020 · 35 posts · 6 votes
Direct Booking Websites
Most Popular Reply
Rental Property Investor · The Villages, FL · Member since 2017 · 341 posts · 398 votes
3yI highly recommend that you list your property on Houfy.com, it is free for hosts and guests. It is a great platform to accept bookings, receive payments via Stipe or square or if you prefer you can accept payment with any platform you choose, such as venmo, zelle, PayPal or check....your choice. You can upload your rental agreement and guest will sign when making the reservation. I have had great success with booking repeat guests from other platforms that charge a booking fee..
To promote your listing, whether on Houfy or another platform, social media posts on local FB groups is a great way to get exposure to your listing.
21 Replies
- Rental Property Investor · The Villages, FL · Member since 2017 · 341 posts · 398 votes3y
I highly recommend that you list your property on Houfy.com, it is free for hosts and guests. It is a great platform to accept bookings, receive payments via Stipe or square or if you prefer you can accept payment with any platform you choose, such as venmo, zelle, PayPal or check....your choice. You can upload your rental agreement and guest will sign when making the reservation. I have had great success with booking repeat guests from other platforms that charge a booking fee..
To promote your listing, whether on Houfy or another platform, social media posts on local FB groups is a great way to get exposure to your listing.
- 3yMichael BaumPro MemberOlympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
Hey @Ryan O'Connor. You are going to have to spend some time reading up on SEO. Search Engine Optimization. If you do your own site you will need to master SEO to help drive traffic to your site in addition to what @Lisa Graesser said about FBM.
Thanks Lisa for that bit of info. I am going to check it out to see what's what. How much traffic do you get from Houfy.com?
- Rental Property Investor · The Villages, FL · Member since 2017 · 341 posts · 398 votes3y
Quote from @Michael Baum:
Hey @Ryan O'Connor. You are going to have to spend some time reading up on SEO. Search Engine Optimization. If you do your own site you will need to master SEO to help drive traffic to your site in addition to what @Lisa Graesser said about FBM.
Thanks Lisa for that bit of info. I am going to check it out to see what's what. How much traffic do you get from Houfy.com?
At this point into Oct 2023 I have 24 reservations on Houfy. These are either repeat guests or leads from local websites in our local area, zillow or Google. It has been a great platform that gets better with every host that joins. The owner and administrative staff are very receptive to all recommendation from hosts. They do not do any advertising, you do your own promoting on social media.
- 3yMichael BaumPro MemberOlympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
Thanks @Lisa Graesser. Really appreciate the info. Man, social media. I am more of an antisocial media guy... :)
- Rental Property Investor · The Villages, FL · Member since 2017 · 341 posts · 398 votes3yHere are my Houfy listings if you want to check them out.
Quote from @Michael Baum:
Thanks @Lisa Graesser. Really appreciate the info. Man, social media. I am more of an antisocial media guy... :)
www.houfy.com/l/villagershomestyle - 3yAndrew SteffensBusiness MemberTampa, FL · Member since 2022 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Howdy BP! We are looking to diversify a bit and not solely rely on the major OTA's for bookings(Airbnb, vrbo, etc). We currently utilize Hostaway PMS and have built a direct booking site through that platform, but haven't used it up to this point. Looking for recommendations on best practices for driving traffic to site to book and just general advice. Any help is greatly appreciated!
Ryan
Hey Ryan - When we launched our new site last year I had saved every phone number and email from every booking I had previously made through other OTA's since 2016 (about 15,000 reservations). We built a Constant Contact email campaign and a Twilio text campaign to urge direct bookings. We made a repeat guest coupon as well to help. Also, we use StayFI to collect peoples emails who want to use the wifi in our homes. I hope that helps, good luck!
Vacation Rentals of Florida53 Reviews - Real Estate Agent · Smoky Mountains, TN · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 984 votes3y
Google ads can be an effective method with the ability to cap your budget.
- Rental Property Investor · Lafayette, IN · Member since 2020 · 35 posts · 6 votes3y
Quote from @Lisa Graesser:
I highly recommend that you list your property on Houfy.com, it is free for hosts and guests. It is a great platform to accept bookings, receive payments via Stipe or square or if you prefer you can accept payment with any platform you choose, such as venmo, zelle, PayPal or check....your choice. You can upload your rental agreement and guest will sign when making the reservation. I have had great success with booking repeat guests from other platforms that charge a booking fee..
To promote your listing, whether on Houfy or another platform, social media posts on local FB groups is a great way to get exposure to your listing.
Thanks for the input! I am familiar with Houfy, however our property is not in a destination location and there aren't currently any other listings on houfy in our general area, so I'm not sure how effect it would be in this market. Definitely something to keep in mind though!
- Rental Property Investor · The Villages, FL · Member since 2017 · 341 posts · 398 votes3yHoufy doesn't advertise, so the fact that your property is not in a destination area doesn't matter, I was the only the only member in The Villages for quite a while, it is just a resource for you to steer previous renters and new guests from social media posts to book direct. It is a way for you to have more control of your own property. For me it is like having my own website that I didn't have to create myself. I have been on Houfy since close to its inception and have watched how hard the admistrators have worked on this with help from input from the members. It has come a long way since I joined them over 2 years ago, it has benefited me and I have enjoyed watching them grow and improve.
Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Quote from @Lisa Graesser:
I highly recommend that you list your property on Houfy.com, it is free for hosts and guests. It is a great platform to accept bookings, receive payments via Stipe or square or if you prefer you can accept payment with any platform you choose, such as venmo, zelle, PayPal or check....your choice. You can upload your rental agreement and guest will sign when making the reservation. I have had great success with booking repeat guests from other platforms that charge a booking fee..
To promote your listing, whether on Houfy or another platform, social media posts on local FB groups is a great way to get exposure to your listing.
Thanks for the input! I am familiar with Houfy, however our property is not in a destination location and there aren't currently any other listings on houfy in our general area, so I'm not sure how effect it would be in this market. Definitely something to keep in mind though!
- Rental Property Investor · Lafayette, IN · Member since 2020 · 35 posts · 6 votes3y
Gotcha. That makes sense and I'll definitely explore that option. Thanks again!
- Investor · Westchester Co., NY · Member since 2016 · 68 posts · 11 votes3y
Quote from @Lisa Graesser:
Houfy doesn't advertise, so the fact that your property is not in a destination area doesn't matter, I was the only the only member in The Villages for quite a while, it is just a resource for you to steer previous renters and new guests from social media posts to book direct. It is a way for you to have more control of your own property. For me it is like having my own website that I didn't have to create myself. I have been on Houfy since close to its inception and have watched how hard the admistrators have worked on this with help from input from the members. It has come a long way since I joined them over 2 years ago, it has benefited me and I have enjoyed watching them grow and improve.Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Quote from @Lisa Graesser:
I highly recommend that you list your property on Houfy.com, it is free for hosts and guests. It is a great platform to accept bookings, receive payments via Stipe or square or if you prefer you can accept payment with any platform you choose, such as venmo, zelle, PayPal or check....your choice. You can upload your rental agreement and guest will sign when making the reservation. I have had great success with booking repeat guests from other platforms that charge a booking fee..
To promote your listing, whether on Houfy or another platform, social media posts on local FB groups is a great way to get exposure to your listing.
Thanks for the input! I am familiar with Houfy, however our property is not in a destination location and there aren't currently any other listings on houfy in our general area, so I'm not sure how effect it would be in this market. Definitely something to keep in mind though!
@Lisa Graesser Following this thread - I am wondering how Houfy monetizes from the listings if they don't charge either hosts or guests. is there a premium service? Very interested in listing
- Rental Property Investor · The Villages, FL · Member since 2017 · 341 posts · 398 votes3y
Quote from @Vincent M.:
Quote from @Lisa Graesser:
Houfy doesn't advertise, so the fact that your property is not in a destination area doesn't matter, I was the only the only member in The Villages for quite a while, it is just a resource for you to steer previous renters and new guests from social media posts to book direct. It is a way for you to have more control of your own property. For me it is like having my own website that I didn't have to create myself. I have been on Houfy since close to its inception and have watched how hard the admistrators have worked on this with help from input from the members. It has come a long way since I joined them over 2 years ago, it has benefited me and I have enjoyed watching them grow and improve.Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Quote from @Lisa Graesser:
I highly recommend that you list your property on Houfy.com, it is free for hosts and guests. It is a great platform to accept bookings, receive payments via Stipe or square or if you prefer you can accept payment with any platform you choose, such as venmo, zelle, PayPal or check....your choice. You can upload your rental agreement and guest will sign when making the reservation. I have had great success with booking repeat guests from other platforms that charge a booking fee..
To promote your listing, whether on Houfy or another platform, social media posts on local FB groups is a great way to get exposure to your listing.
Thanks for the input! I am familiar with Houfy, however our property is not in a destination location and there aren't currently any other listings on houfy in our general area, so I'm not sure how effect it would be in this market. Definitely something to keep in mind though!
@Lisa Graesser Following this thread - I am wondering how Houfy monetizes from the listings if they don't charge either hosts or guests. is there a premium service? Very interested in listing
At this point they make a little on featured listings and last minute deals, but they have bigger plans coming in the near future, you can find this information on a post from 2 days ago on the Facebook group "Say Yes to Houfy"
- Property Manager · Columbia, SC · Member since 2017 · 121 posts · 163 votes3y
We use Hostaway and most of our direct reservations are from repeat guests. Hostaway will let you message via SMS, and we let guest know to book direct next time to save on the airbnb fees. I don't think its worth it to try and compete on SEO with the channels like Airbnb & VRBO who have big marketing dollars to spend on Google.
- Rental Property Investor · Lafayette, IN · Member since 2020 · 35 posts · 6 votes3yDavid, we also use Hostaway. Did you use their direct booking engine? Also, with the sms feature is that on a schedule or you’re manually sending the individual texts to previous guests through the platform?
Quote from @David Bergmann:
We use Hostaway and most of our direct reservations are from repeat guests. Hostaway will let you message via SMS, and we let guest know to book direct next time to save on the airbnb fees. I don't think its worth it to try and compete on SEO with the channels like Airbnb & VRBO who have big marketing dollars to spend on Google.
- Property Manager · Columbia, SC · Member since 2017 · 121 posts · 163 votes3yIt's a scheduled message to each guest the day of check out. Yes, we use their booking engine on our website. You can see how it works by going to our website heartwoodfurnishedhomes.com and hit "book now".
Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
David, we also use Hostaway. Did you use their direct booking engine? Also, with the sms feature is that on a schedule or you’re manually sending the individual texts to previous guests through the platform?Quote from @David Bergmann:
We use Hostaway and most of our direct reservations are from repeat guests. Hostaway will let you message via SMS, and we let guest know to book direct next time to save on the airbnb fees. I don't think its worth it to try and compete on SEO with the channels like Airbnb & VRBO who have big marketing dollars to spend on Google.
- 3yRyan MoyerBusiness MemberProperty Manager · Orlando Kissimmee Davenport Salt Lake City, Park City · Member since 2019 · 993 posts · 1k+ votes
Quote from @David Bergmann:
It's a scheduled message to each guest the day of check out. Yes, we use their booking engine on our website. You can see how it works by going to our website heartwoodfurnishedhomes.com and hit "book now".Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
David, we also use Hostaway. Did you use their direct booking engine? Also, with the sms feature is that on a schedule or you’re manually sending the individual texts to previous guests through the platform?Quote from @David Bergmann:
We use Hostaway and most of our direct reservations are from repeat guests. Hostaway will let you message via SMS, and we let guest know to book direct next time to save on the airbnb fees. I don't think its worth it to try and compete on SEO with the channels like Airbnb & VRBO who have big marketing dollars to spend on Google.
Do you have them opt in to the texts some way? I'm finishing up a direct booking site and I've got 2 years worth of guests I didn't go out of my way to get emails for, but I still have all their phone numbers from within Airbnb/VRBO. Not sure on the legality of blasting them all a text with our new direct booking site.
Cosmic Vacations4.9174 Reviews - Property Manager · Columbia, SC · Member since 2017 · 121 posts · 163 votes3y
Quote from @Ryan Moyer:
Quote from @David Bergmann:
It's a scheduled message to each guest the day of check out. Yes, we use their booking engine on our website. You can see how it works by going to our website heartwoodfurnishedhomes.com and hit "book now".Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
David, we also use Hostaway. Did you use their direct booking engine? Also, with the sms feature is that on a schedule or you’re manually sending the individual texts to previous guests through the platform?Quote from @David Bergmann:
We use Hostaway and most of our direct reservations are from repeat guests. Hostaway will let you message via SMS, and we let guest know to book direct next time to save on the airbnb fees. I don't think its worth it to try and compete on SEO with the channels like Airbnb & VRBO who have big marketing dollars to spend on Google.
Do you have them opt in to the texts some way? I'm finishing up a direct booking site and I've got 2 years worth of guests I didn't go out of my way to get emails for, but I still have all their phone numbers from within Airbnb/VRBO. Not sure on the legality of blasting them all a text with our new direct booking site.
I personally wouldn't blast phone numbers months or years later. We only communicate directly after checkout and thank them for staying, ask for any feedback, and encourage them to stay again and book direct. Logging it for marketing campaigns is a little more dubious.
- Rental Property Investor · Las Vegas · Member since 2022 · 12 posts · 3 votes3y
Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Howdy BP! We are looking to diversify a bit and not solely rely on the major OTA's for bookings(Airbnb, vrbo, etc). We currently utilize Hostaway PMS and have built a direct booking site through that platform, but haven't used it up to this point. Looking for recommendations on best practices for driving traffic to site to book and just general advice. Any help is greatly appreciated!
Ryan
I would find a copy writer to fulfill all marketing emails or messages you may have. They’d do it by creating you an email sequence that gets sent out weekly to increase your direct booking rate
- 3yRyan MoyerBusiness MemberProperty Manager · Orlando Kissimmee Davenport Salt Lake City, Park City · Member since 2019 · 993 posts · 1k+ votes
Quote from @Austin Keller:
Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Howdy BP! We are looking to diversify a bit and not solely rely on the major OTA's for bookings(Airbnb, vrbo, etc). We currently utilize Hostaway PMS and have built a direct booking site through that platform, but haven't used it up to this point. Looking for recommendations on best practices for driving traffic to site to book and just general advice. Any help is greatly appreciated!
Ryan
I would find a copy writer to fulfill all marketing emails or messages you may have. They’d do it by creating you an email sequence that gets sent out weekly to increase your direct booking rate
Are there copy writers that do this specific to STR, and focused on your specific home/market? Any recommendations? I loathe writing email copy.
Cosmic Vacations4.9174 Reviews - Rental Property Investor · Las Vegas · Member since 2022 · 12 posts · 3 votes3y
Quote from @Ryan Moyer:
Quote from @Austin Keller:
Quote from @Ryan O'Connor:
Howdy BP! We are looking to diversify a bit and not solely rely on the major OTA's for bookings(Airbnb, vrbo, etc). We currently utilize Hostaway PMS and have built a direct booking site through that platform, but haven't used it up to this point. Looking for recommendations on best practices for driving traffic to site to book and just general advice. Any help is greatly appreciated!
Ryan
I would find a copy writer to fulfill all marketing emails or messages you may have. They’d do it by creating you an email sequence that gets sent out weekly to increase your direct booking rate
Are there copy writers that do this specific to STR, and focused on your specific home/market? Any recommendations? I loathe writing email copy.
There are for sure! My best advice as a copy writer would be to reach out to a couple and see what all they can offer. Me personally I enjoy writing email and SMS copy for the mere fact it'll increase someone's revenue. Our job as writers is to offer more than what we're paid for. (that's why we're so valued) With that being said, almost any writer can get the task done, it's just a matter of how good the pieces of copy are and how much they enjoy email/SMS marketing.
If you have any more questions feel free to DM anytime!
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