Podcast There are two types of vacation rental owners. Those that accept bookings, and those that make bookings. So says today’s guest, the one and only Alan Egan. For those of you who know Alan, he has been in and around this industry for over two decades and was one of the first owners/managers blogging about how we should create niche sites for ourselves and become independent from the pack, before the pack really evolved into what it is now. Alan believes strongly that our current marketing is failing us, and while we may be booked solid now, this won’t be the case in a few years’ time if we continue to go along with the dictates of the current behemoth listing sites. His argument is that we need to create massive and brilliant content that can be used to guide travelers back to our own websites, and it’s an argument that has proved successful for a lot of owners he has coached and trained over the years. Alan has featured on this podcast twice before – the first time to discuss his strategies for Google Plus which he still feels are effective for those who are using it the right way. On the second occasion, we moved onto his real passion – WordPress websites. More recently, Alan has been giving away websites to anyone willing to do the work to set one up under his video tutelage. In this episode Alan shares: His views on the current state of vacation rental marketing Why we need to stop griping about traveler fees and start working on the alternatives Why we cannot go back to the ‘way it used to be’ The five core topics you need to create content around The need to understand how social media works How one family flew from China just to go to a remote California location The real reason owners don’t create content Sites mentioned in this episode: Holidays on Bornholm (Alan’s site) The WordPress Website Giveaway Rent More Weeks Smoky Mountains.com Emerald Coast By Owner St Johns Villa Rentals Wherewaterfalls.com (Amy Blomquist) Amy’s Google Plus page
Terry Whyte Thank you Heather, that is the best podcast I have ever heard. Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Alan Egan Thanks Terry, that’s great to hear. I’m so glad that you liked it. Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Terry Whyte Hi Alan, I really need help with content marketing. Will you be offering a course anytime soon? Thank you, Terry http://www.absoluteannamaria.com http://www.thebeachsands.com http://www.theislandinthesun.com 289-660-2331 Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Alan Egan Yes Terry, I have just made a video course outlining new easy to follow methods. It’s so new that I’m still putting a few finishing touches to it and I’ve not even advertised it yet. It’s like nothing else on the market. If you email me I will tell you more details. My address is alan [at] rentmoreweeks.com Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Jo Studer Really enjoyed this Frank open discussion. As vacation rental owners we often feel like we’re working alone but discussions such as these with our ‘work colleagues’ proves we are not. Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Amy Blomquist Thanks for the mention, Heather! Another great podcast, as usual, by two of my favorite peps! Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Dan Weese Heather or Alan, Just curious, what percentage of owners with at least 2 properties have the ability to book on their own website versus needing AirBnB, HomeAway, VRBO, etc. to do it for them? In the quest for LSI, you can’t get there if you don’t have a way to book online I’d think. Leave a reply: Cancel Reply Name* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Comment Comments are closed