Creating Videos to Promote Your Short Term Rentals

In this age of internet and social media, if you are not making clever use of digital marketing, you are certainly missing the bus on reaching some potential guests. This is particularly true for a business-focused Short Term Rental. Obviously, we know the importance of professional pictures.  You must be using beautiful photos of your property to entice potential guests.  But… are you placing videos to promote your vacation rental, too? Videos catch the attention of large numbers of guests and have become very popular in the STR Industry, especially in vacation rentals.  It’s the latest trend!

Here are some tips to make the most of these promotional videos.

Photos are Good.  Videos are Better.

It is almost criminal not to make use of technology when it is available to you for free. By making promotional videos of your vacation rental, you can get two steps ahead of your competitors who are still trying to catch the attention of their guests by showing them great photos.  You can allow your potential guests to take a virtual tour of your property as they are sitting at home.  You can get them to imagine how they would feel if they were to stay in your property.  It’s like watching one of those destination shows on the Travel Channel.  You want them saying, “I want to go there!”   This is the power of videos when marketing your vacation rental digitally.

Keep Your Videos Short but Don’t Miss the Highlights!

Remember, your guests are not interested in seeing long videos.  People’s attention spans are shorter now than ever before.  Make the length of your videos only 2 or 3 minutes long but make sure you have included everything that you believe highlights your property.  Catch potential guests’ attention quickly by starting with the stunners: the most beautiful part of each property.  Move with the camera as if you are showing your property in a sequence to your visitors.

Amenities and Facilities

Do not forget to include all important amenities and facilities that are included in your property such as Wi-Fi, air conditioning, clean bathrooms with lots of towels, fully equipped kitchens, and amazing outdoor spaces.  This will entice potential guests.

Provide Useful Information About the Area

Your goal in making these videos is to encourage potential guests to stay at your property. But instead of highlighting just your property, you can share useful information about the area and the fun-filled activities that your guests can indulge in during their stay in your city.

Show Them the Experience They Can Expect

Promoting your vacation rental through videos is like trying to sell an experience to your guests. You should describe your property in such a manner that the audience feels compelled to click on your listing as soon as they finish watching.  If they know the kind of experience they will be getting during their stay in your property, they are likely to book a reservation in your vacation rental.

Hire Local Talent

If you aren’t a photographer or don’t know one, we recommend you hire some local talent.  Is there a film school in your local college or university?  What about a local film club?  Remember, paying for a professional or even semi-professional is much better than looking like an amateur.  Don’t be afraid to spend a little money on this.  Just like professional photos help you to stand out among all the other listings, so will having this professionally filmed and edited video.  People will see the difference and LOVE it!

Now go and grow! 

Michelle R Russell

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