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Using
Renter Testimonials as Advertising
by Robin
Fowler
Taking advantage of
the rave reviews that you get from your renters is one
of the easiest, least expensive, and most effective ways
to lure new renters to your vacation rental!
As a vacation rental owner, you more than likely have
more than one means of advertisement for your property.
You likely have one or more websites that showcase the
features and amenities of the house or condo, as well as
any pertinent rental information. But, do you take
advantage of guest books and testimonials as a way to
convince inquiring minds to seal the deal on your rental
property? Including ratings and reviews with the rest of
the information on your vacation rental will help your
business expand! Testimonials can be a great way to
attract people to your property, and convince them to
rent it!
Have an online guest book set up on your website, if you
can. Make it available for previous renters to go on
there and leave their impressions and reviews of your
property, its amenities, and even how it was to do
business with you (hopefully, these will all be glowing
and positive!). This makes it easy for people who are
potentially interested in your vacation rental property
to not only look at pictures, but to also get firsthand
accounts about things that are important to them in
accommodations. And it might help them go from “not
sure” to “sign me up” a lot faster!
Sometimes, no matter how hard you will try, previous
guests just won’t visit your website and leave comments.
In that case, do the work for them! Leave a guest book
at the rental property, with plenty of room for them to
leave their impressions. Ask them if they mind if you
use their names and comments for your online guest book
by having them check yes or no in a column next to the
comments. For those that agree, you can then simply
transcribe their comments yourself onto your website,
noting that the comment was recorded by you, the owner,
with the guest’s permission.
By taking advantage of testimonials, you can build up a
positive and successful vacation rental business. The
power of this personal form of advertising (not to
mention cheap!) and the positive reviews will help those
who inquire about your property for their next vacation
make a speedier decision. Corporations spend heaps of
money every year seeking out customer testimonials to
promote and sell their products and services. Why
shouldn’t you do the very same thing for your vacation
rental business?
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Need
help? Call toll-free 1-800-929-VLBO
