The Vacation Rental Manager's Podcast with Sarah and T

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Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

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This week Sarah and T reprise an episode from 5 years ago that is just as relevant today as it was when it first aired.   Carl Shepherd,  one of the co-founders of HomeAway (now Vrbo), was interviewed by Sarah and Tim in the fall of 2019.   The interview was wide ranging and filled with predictions about the future which have all come true.   Many consider this the best episode in the history of the program.   Sit back and listen to one of the true visionaries in the industry give a great rundown on the history and future of vacation rentals. 

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

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In this episode Sarah and Tim cover all you need to know to set up a proper budget for your vacation rental company.   This episode is a must listen for any company owner that is not currently using a budget, or the company owner that wants to improve their current process.   Two of the true experts on this subject give all of their secrets of this critically important component of running a successful business!

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode Sarah and T interview one of the customer service giants.   A world renowned motivational speaker and author of 8 books Shep Hyken is the guest on this week's episode.
Learn the true meaning of the word Fine.   Learn the 5 steps of how to get better at customer service.  And, learn why the worst trained staff person on your team is the standard you set on customer service.   Get a pen and paper ready because this episode is chock full of takeaways for you and your business.

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

Send us Fan Mail

Logistics, the mere mention of the word brings fear to some vacation rental managers.   Scheduling cleans, inspections, maintenance, getting the property ready for the next guest and providing all of the arrival amenities is no joke in the vacation rental business.  In this episode Sarah and T talk to Max Farley of Sojo about how to improve logistics for your firm.   Lots of great ideas and takeaways are in store.  In Not So Hot off The Press But Definitely Happening Sarah and T reveal the top 3 shows of 2023.

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

Send us Fan Mail

Your Christmas present from Sarah and T is an episode that gives all of the takeaways from the recent Vacation Rental Women's Summit & the DARM (Data and Revenue Management) conference that was held in Nashville, TN in early December.  Sarah was there with a microphone in hand to get all of the best takeaways from the conference attendees.   In the news segment, Sarah gets a big surprise at the conference.

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this week's episode we have a familiar name - DiJulius.   This time it is Cal DiJulius who is John DiJulius' son and an expert on the motivations of Millennials and Gen Z workers and why it is important to understand those motivations.   This is a fascinating look at what our employees are thinking and what motivates them.   A great conversation with a well informed guest.

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

Send us Fan Mail

Sarah and T are back with another great content episode.  This week our two hosts interview Matt Durrette of Cozi Vacation Rentals in Texas. Matt has adopted the EOS platform to run his business and he shares all of his secrets with us on today's episode.  In addition find out how Matt has leveraged his brother in Honduras to help his business.   This one is a can't miss episode.

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com

Sarah and T are back with another great content episode.  This week our two hosts interview Matt Durrette of Cozi Vacation Rentals in Texas. Matt has adopted the EOS platform to run his business and he shares all of his secrets with us on today's episode.  In addition find out how Matt has leveraged his brother in Honduras to help his business.   This one is a can't miss episode.

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode Sarah and T take on the topic of e-mail blasts.  Are you doing them?  Are you doing them effectively?    How do you know?  14 specific points are covered in how you can crush your next effort and know exactly how well you did.

1) Build up your email list & segment - all previous guests list, potential guests, by season, by type of property, etc. 

- Every single email you get should be added to a list and segmented.  I recently stayed in a VR with a company. After we booked, they kept sending us promotional emails. Made me wonder if we had a booking! Make sure your upcoming guests aren't sent an email that you are now offering 40% off! 

- Booking Anniversary to previous guests on their booking date from last year

- Type of properties, size of properties, season they visited only?

2) Consistent (so you're there when it's time to book) - top of mind. Only way to pull this off is to make your emails interesting/professonal

3) Frequency of sending - at least once a month, ideally once a week (TIM & SARAH DISAGREE)

4) Not Always a Sales Email - way too many VR emails are like this "20% off for next week!" - think about your own perspective when you get an eblast.

5) Types of eblasts - introduce a new property (attracts Lookie Loo's), newsletter format - new restaurants/activities in the area, Resort developments (new gondola), groups of properites/themes, Snow alerts, local partners (make sure you show them they were included), booking anniversary, ...others, TIM? 

6) Professional looking, template so recognizable (idea - personalize by showing a person from your team at bottom), highlight properties at bottom, social links, videos, other examples

Paul Hanak from ICND says open rates don't matter! Listen to his reasoning mid-podcast. 

7) Call to Action - we always had "book direct & save" at bottom of every single email. 

8) Lots of links! Link logo and photos too

9) Always include all owners on your emails

10) Tracking code to conversion! Follow by email monthly - this is the WHOLE POINT. Don't send an email without tracking conversion. 

11) A/B testing - most platforms easily allow you to test everything from subject lines to send times - utilize it!

12) Stop gathering emails from "contests" just to have a bigger list. We've tested it! They signed up to win a contest, not to engage with your brand. Open rates are poor, so you wind up paying for all these extra emails without any payoff. Quality over quantity. 

13)  Subject Lines are the name of this game. Without a good subject line that captures attention and creates curiosity, that email won't even be opened.  Need some inspiration? Just google "Good email subject lines" and ask ole chatGPT.

14) Check and recheck for spelling/grammar errors - everything speaks! (sarah example of "piece") 

Find all of Sarah and T's content at www.sarahandt.com 
You can also follow this podcast on Instagram or Linked In 

Special thanks to our podcast Partners:
Intercoastal  Net Designs    www.icoastalnet.com
KeyData    www.keydatadashboard.com
Sojo   www.getsojo.com