What’s the value of Facebook for Vacation Rental Owners?

I was watching the ‘tech expert’ on Canada TV AM this morning and was interested with this statistic:

“The fastest growing demographic on Facebook is women over 55”

This struck me, as it doesn’t seem that long since Facebook was regarded as the haunt of the 16 – 25 age group, and of no interest whatsoever to anyone who might wish to promote their vacation home. Well, things have changed, and that change is reflected in the use of social media by professional players on the vacation rental field. These are the owners who take active advantage of the free marketing benefits of using Facebook, Twitter, Linked In & YouTube, and write articles that are published on Ezine Articles and other article syndicate sites.

Why are they doing this?

Well, you only have to follow people like Sylvia Guarino, owner of Florida vacation homes, or Stu Bradley who has been posting every detail of a renovation project at his French gite & camp ground, to realize they are drawing the attention of their target market. It’s about creating a buzz and generating a loyal following of people who spread the message to their friends through their social networks.

There’s even Facebook applications to allow you to take advantage of your friend’s social networks and share information about your property across a wider spectrum. Garnering a lot of media attention, Second Porch is probably going to be around for a while. Check it out and list your property for free.

Social networking is not going to go away any time soon, and jumping on the bandwagon now seems a no-brainer. It’s free networking folks!

I’d love to know how it’s working for you. Jump in and tell us. Stu & Sylvia – would love to hear from you both about your experiences.