When I say, “Up your Game”, I mean take care of all the things that you have not had time for in the past because you were too busy with customers. You know, things such as maintenance, painting and re-decorating. Why? When things open back up, people will likely be more than ready to want to get and travel, visit new places or family in other areas. Many vacation rental owners may be running special deals, trying to make up for lost income. You want your vacation rental to stand out from the crowd and your competition.
While you may be reluctant to spend any money on your vacation rental right now, if it is possible for you to do, it could reap future rewards and then some. I know from experience. See my article, Does Your Vacation Rental Stand Out from the Crowd Online for some tips.
Re-designing your Vacation Rental Can Reap Big Rewards
- Double your bookings and income
- Attract your ideal customer
- Create listing photos that give you a competitive edge online.
Things to Consider Before Redesigning Your Vacation Rental
- Who is your ideal customer? What do they want? What kind of activities do they enjoy? Are they looking for budget accommodations or something more luxurious?
- Take an honest look around. Is your décor way out of date? You may be used to seeing it this way but that shows up loud and clear in your listing photos.
- What kind of comments have you received in customer reviews about the comfort of your space? Have you taken action to address every single negative comment?
- Have the bedspreads, pillows, blankets, sheets or towels seen better days and need replacing?
- Are the colors in the room conducive to providing a calm and restful atmosphere?
- Is everything in perfect running order? You know, no sticking toilet handles, loose drawer handles or lights that need replacing? Are all your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors up to date and working with fresh batteries? Fire extinguishers inspected and ready to go?
- Do your online photos look better than your competitions photos? Are they professional photos?
- Does your website not just talk about the room details, but portray an “experience”? If so, is that experience what your ideal customers are looking for?
- Are you charging a price that is within the budget of your ideal customer, and are you providing the experience, amenities etc. that they want and expect?
- Are you charging enough? Do you want to charge more? How can you increase the value in terms of looks, comfort and experience so you can charge what you want?
- Have you considered what new procedures you plan to implement to deal with keeping yourself and guest safe from the virus? We know it will still be present in a most countries for quite some time.
- See my article, Designing your Bed and Breakfast to Keep You and Your Guests Safe.
How Interior Design Can Really Up Your Game
- Update your color scheme to create a mood and atmosphere that will appeal to your guests.
- Update your furnishings, accessories, lighting and bedding so it looks current, fresh and new.
- Consider whether your current layout could be re-arranged to provide more space or ease of movement, which is really important in a small space.
- Attract your ideal customer. We all have our perfect guests. Wouldn’t you like to attract those people all the time?
- Create an atmosphere and “experience” that will attract guests more than just a nice looking, comfortable room.
- Increase your nightly price and overall bookings. I increased my price by $40 per night and more than doubled my bookings after re-designing my Bed and Breakfast.
- Set your property up to get great professional listing photos. Your online photos should be more appealing and better quality than your competition.
- Improve your customer reviews.
I started my Bed and Breakfast over 20 years ago. After I became an Interior Designer, Home Stager and Color Strategist, I learned a lot of things that I was able to use to make a huge difference in my Bed and Breakfast business that I had never considered before. Every year, I had always made improvements to make my business better. Of all the things I tried, redesigning the way it looked to appeal to my ideal customers had the greatest impact by far.
Shop the Look
Need Help Desgigning Your Vacation Rental or Bed and Breakfast?
Why not try my online Vacation Rental Consultation. Find out everything you need to do to create a beautiful space that attracts your ideal customer and gives you great photos for your online marketing. I also offer website reviews and social media advertising.
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This is great advice. Once people start traveling again, they may be a bit choosy about where they stay and having a visually appealing and so neat and clean looking.
That is true! I had not really thought about that but I think you are right, people will be more choosy and concerned about safety and cleanliness!
You’re so right. I would want to stay there, so bright and fresh!
Thanks Wendy! This design was one I created. My actual B&B you can see if you click on some of the links to my other articles. Yes, I would love to stay there too with that beautiful view of the forest:)
Excellent advice to vacation rental owners, Mary Ann! We’ve rented a variety of vacation homes over the years, and the ones with the most appealing pictures and best equipped amenities are always the winners! And from our experiences, I could write a book on what NOT to do in your rental, LOL!
Thanks Janet! Pictures definitely make the biggest difference in getting bookings, but of course people need to be happy once they get to your Bed and Breakfast. It is always a good idea to spend a night in your own room and see it from the guests perspective:)
love all the color you use!
Thanks so much Elizabeth!
Such good tips!
Thank you Christina!
Great advice! Now is the time to get the rentals upgrade and ready.
Thanks Karen!
Wonderful article!!! Love the color scheme you used! Thank you for the great advice!!
Thank you Sara! I am glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for taking the time to read!
Great suggestions and I love the bright, cheery color choices!
Thank you Suzi! I love working with blues and greens, so serene!
How to keep a rental fresh is great advice, I love your colorful photos!
Thank you Amy!