Reserve your overseas currency online - for a high street beating rate!

Predicted profits of 92% on your investment in Canada Invest in pre-development land for only £20,000

Book now, pay when you stay - 100's of hotel rooms worldwide with laterooms.com

Holiday home insurance from intasure - Click Here UK insurance for your property overseas


Investment: Mass appeal - Ross Elder, HolidayLettings.co.uk

Mass appeal and the long tail in holiday lettings

What does it take to get your holiday home seen by the people you think are your target customers? How do you get the millions of people searching for holiday home accommodation in January to look at your home, send you an enquiry, fill out your calendar, request a repeat booking at your place?

These are the types of questions holidaylettings.co.uk handle all the time and the answers on which we are more than keen to share.

The holiday home marketplace of private owners transacting with individual holidaymakers has changed almost beyond recognition in the last 10 years. It really is a marketplace these days, the choice of accommodation has grown year on year on year and as a result it is more and more important that the marketing of holiday homes to holidaymakers gives holidaymakers what they want.

There is a holiday let to suit every requirement, but the target audience will find it more easily where the owner/advertiser has gone the extra mile to mention all the details of what comes with the property and what it is kitted out with to make life easy when you get there.

1.5 million people have searched holidaylettings.co.uk in the first 17 days of the new year. The top destination searches are familiar to many, but it is the detail they search for within their browsing that can help holiday home owners target their marketing more. Elaborating a little bit more on the following list within the body text of an advert could easily make one holiday home stand out above another in the same town, offered at the same price. It’s about finding your unique selling points (USPs) and then shouting about them loud and clear.

These are the top 10 most searched for facilities required by guests browsing holidaylettings.co.uk for accommodation:

  • 1 - Pool (private or shared)

  • 2 - Air conditioning

  • 3 - Balcony / terrace (private outside space for apartments)

  • 4 - Pet-friendly / pets allowed

  • 5 - Garden (enclosed, private or secure)

  • 6 - Barbecue / BBQ (says summer holidays and al fresco dining)

  • 7 - Cot (family friendly & equipped to prove it)

  • 8 - Jacuzzi / hot tub (loved by skiers & those with bigger budgets)

  • 9 - Internet (allows them to stay in touch with the outside world)

  • 10 - Child / toddler friendly (safe and suitable for under 5s)

    The other factors that holiday home owners and managers need to consider in their marketing is the very reason people opt to stay in a holiday letting property over a hotel. The value and space factors associated with renting a holiday home are increasingly prominent ideals. The freedom and flexibility of living on your timetable are part and parcel too, but need not be taken as read and are worthy of some attention in the marketing spiel to really get your potential guests salivating for a stay at your home.

    Around a third of people searching at this time of year are enquiring about holidays in July and August, so the family friendly element of your home is very important. Many others are looking at breaks in the UK and on the slopes for February half term; Spain and Florida are particular favourites for the Easter holidays and staycation weekends are proving popular for Valentine’s weekend.

    Despite some attempts to put a damper on the ‘staycation’, the UK remains the most popular destination so far this year, particularly for Valentine’s weekend breaks and the early school breaks of half term and Easter. While Turkey is yet to make the top five, it has risen to the seventh most enquired about destination so far this month.

    Five most enquired about destinations overall

  • 1 - UK

  • 2 - Spain

  • 3 - Canary Islands

  • 4 - France

  • 5 - Portugal

    Ross Elder

    A buy-to-let investor and holiday home owner, Ross is passionate about doing holiday home letting effectively and efficiently with oodles of customer care. He is a keynote speaker on successfully marketing and managing holiday home lettings and instils much of his drive into the team at Holiday Lettings. Founded by Ross and his business partner Andy Firth in 1999, the company is now the busiest holiday home website in the UK


    More pages

    Page 1: Mass appeal and the long tail in holiday lettings

    Discounted Airport Parking - available across the UK

    Reserve your overseas currency online - for a high street beating rate!

    Holiday home insurance with Staysure - the over 50's experts

    Seaside Mariana Spa & Golf Resort 923 acre private Jack Nicklaus Signature luxury community on Nicaragua's Pacific Coast.


    • Browse our articles written by leading industry experts:

    Overseas Property Buying Guides

    UK Property Guides

    Gardens and Interiors

    Cosmetic Surgery Fact Sheets

    Looking Good Guides

    Money

    Business

    Community

    Travel