Getting Ready for Rental - the Cottage Audit
By CottageGuru | May 4, 2008
Whether you are a vacation rental owner who has been renting for some time, or new to the the cottage rental business, spring is a busy time preparing for the upcoming rental season. Although my place rents year round and I have honeymooners in there at the moment, I always set aside a week in spring to get ready for the busy time ahead when I don’t have the opportunity to do tasks at leisure.
Once my guests have gone I will be doing my annual Cottage Audit. This is a comprehensive checklist that covers a whole range of things, both inside and outside the cottage, and that will get the place into tip-top condition for the prime rental weeks.
Topics: Cottage rental basics | No Comments »
How to Prevent Overcrowding at your Cottage
By CottageGuru | April 27, 2008
Overcrowding in a rental cottage is a fear for many owners thinking about listing their place for the first time. Most of us have heard the horror stories of a friend or neighbour taking a booking for a couple or small family and then discovering that more people have turned up than expected.
This is not an uncommon situation and stems from a perception that once a cottage has been booked, the renter is entitled to invite as many people to share as he or she wants.
Although this is difficult to control if you are not on site to oversee how many guests arrive, there are ways to prevent your renters from seeing your cottage as ‘party central’ and having a constant stream of overnight and day guests.
Recognise the danger signals
Sometimes you can be alerted to the potential of overcrowding by the questions you are asked. These may well be genuine enquiries from a group who have no intention to bring more people than specified, but it is worth asking a few questions of your own if you hear the following:
- How many cars can we park?
- Do you have any more pullout couches?
- Can we bring tents?
- Is there space at the dock for more than one boat?
- Will we be able to fit campbeds in the bedrooms?
Ask for sufficient details on your rental application
A comprehensive rental application form will ask your potential guests to list all the people they plan to have staying, including children. I’m amazed at the amount of enquiries we get for our cottage where the renters conveniently forget they have children. Suddenly that group of six, who would have been ideal, grow into a party of 10 once they are prompted to declare any small people they might be bringing.
Use your rental agreement to restrict occupancy
Once all the expected guests are listed on a rental application you can then state on your rental agreement that occupancy is restricted to those people that have been listed. This should be the case regardless of how many your cottage will accommodate. For example, if your place can sleep 8 people, but there are only 4 listed on the application, then limit the occupancy to 4. This often prompts a response from the renter if they did have plans to invite friends, and you can uncover the hidden children and potential overnight guests!
Create an Overcrowding Clause in your T & C
A short clause in your Terms and Conditions should cover the consequences of overcrowding. Something like: "The maximum occupancy of the cottage is 6. Exceeding this at any time without notification will result in an immediate charge on your damage deposit of $150 per person, and you may be asked to vacate the property immediately with no refund." This might sound extreme but it really works!
Play the neighbour card
We have found the best way to avoid potential overcrowding is to gently suggest that they will be found out if they do invite undeclared guests. This is the wording we use on our pre-arrival letter.
"Cottage communities are generally friendly and neighbours watch out for each other, so don’t be surprised if someone politely asks who you are and where you are staying. As a courtesy to our neighbours, we let them know when we have rented the cottage, how many people are in each group and if there will be any pets."
There is no sure-fire way of preventing overcrowding at your rental cottage, but these steps should help. If any of you have any other ideas please leave a comment. I’d love to hear them.
Topics: Cottage Security, Cottage rental basics | 2 Comments »
Honesty Can Bring More Rental Guests - Honest!
By CottageGuru | April 20, 2008
"If you are told you can’t have it - you want it more! Ever watched a child in a candy or toy store?"
Lay My Hat Forum contributor
I was reading an interesting thread on the Lay My Hat forum this morning. The gist was that the more honest you are about the shortcomings of your vacation rental, the more likely people are to book.
This seemed an interesting perspective. It’s not that I am dishonest in any way about my cottage. I make it clear it’s on a river and not a lake, and there is no access into bigger water unless guests are prepared to take the kayaks over the rapids, but I don’t overstate the negatives. However, the author of the originating post on the thread suggested that because people are reassured by honesty, it wins their trust.
Think about the Buckley’s commercial and the tagline- "It tastes awful and it works". As one of the best-selling cough remedies, their advertising strategy of blatant honesty obviously works too!
Last year, I had a call from a potential guest about a property we manage on Chemong Lake. She just loved the look of it inside and was ready to book. When she told me she had small children and it was important they could play in sand and wade in shallow water, I explained that the waterfront was very weedy and although swimming was OK in the deeper water it was not the scenario she was looking for. She then said that her husband would love that because the fishing was good, and asked some questions about local public beaches.
My detailed description of the waterfront only seemed to strengthen her decision to book, which she did. Her follow-up note after the vacation said it was the best time ever because they took the children out to the local provincial park each day, and every evening, she sat on the dock while her husband fished. "The best of every world" is how she described it!
There’s another by-product of honesty and that is the ‘No Surprise’ factor. In customer service terms it’s also called under-promising and over-delivering. If weed is occasionally blown onto the shore at your cottage, mention it; if you know your neighbour is planning some construction on his property in the summer, let your guests know. If these things do happen, they are expected; if they don’t, your clients are even happier.
If you discuss these things over the phone with potential guests and they still want to book, it’s good idea to follow-up in writing so you have a record of telling them the negative points. Just a little bit of ‘insurance’ you may never need, but always good to have!
Photo by go4action on Flickr
Topics: Building Business, Adding Value | No Comments »
Keeping on the Right Side of Your Neighbours
By CottageGuru | April 15, 2008
What do Sedona, Arizona; Maui; the Napa Valley in California, and Wasaga Beach, Ontario have in common?
These are just a few of the locations across north America that are cracking down on the growth in short term vacation rentals, by banning them altogether in some cases, and by introducing draconian licensing regulations in others.
With vacation rentals experiencing a boom in popularity - Homeaway now lists over 255,000 properties - this may be the leading edge of a movement restricting owners from taking advantage of this growth. A recent report from Venice, Florida highlights the challenge vacation home owners are now facing as their neighbours take their complaints to city officials, and the balance between residential harmony and transient tourism is fractured.
This trend is unlikely to affect the majority of owners in cottage country but it does highlight some of the issues that spawn complaints about rental properties. Here’s a few I heard last year and are some of the more common arguments used against short term rentals.
- Excessive noise
- Straying and barking dogs
- Renters ignoring property lines
- Garbage disposal issues
- General disrespect for neighbours
The responsibility of educating rental groups on cottage etiquette lies firmly with the owners or rental agencies, and it is up to them to make sure all their rental groups know how they should behave in cottage country.
This can be done simply by providing well written and concise pre-arrival instructions and a comprehensive cottage guide. Careful selection and screening of renters also goes a long way to maintaining harmony with your neighbours.
My next email newsletter will go into this in greater detail and offers some suggestions on how to educate your renters well before they arrive at your cottage. If you’d like to receive this, just sign up in the box in the side bar.
Topics: Cottage rental basics | No Comments »
Does Your "Luxury" Cottage Deliver It’s Promise?
By CottageGuru | April 6, 2008
What do the terms, “luxury cottage”, “upscale cottage rental” or “executive property” mean to you? Do you use any of these terms to describe your cottage, and if so, what criteria do base your description on?
Craig and I were driving up to Fenelon Falls yesterday to view a ‘luxury, executive’ cottage, and as we often do, got into a discussion on the changing nature of the cottage rental industry.
Craig is an old-style cottager in that he has more ‘rustic’ expectations, and luxury to him would be having a washer and dryer, and a satellite TV. To me, the expression means a lot more and I have very different perceptions of the term. If I was looking for this type of accommodation I would also want the appliances, but they must be quality brands; I don’t want just a satellite TV – I expect a home theatre system; and I’d also anticipate a high end stainless steel barbecue and quality rattan outdoor furniture, as well. And that’s just for starters.
The vacation rental industry has spawned a new breed of “luxury accommodation” and I think we must take heed of what rental clients are looking for when they type in these terms on a Google search. I remember when the term ‘boutique hotel’ was introduced, to differentiate between mass market hotels and smaller, more unique accommodation. It was a landmark in hotel marketing as it attracted a new group of clients who were seeking something a little out of the ordinary; ‘special’ and distanced from the clone style of hotel chains. I really believe we are moving in this direction with cottage vacation rentals too.
I’m not suggesting here that every cottage needs to be raised to the ‘luxury’ level. Far from it. I consider my own cottage to be an extremely comfortable space and I’ve spent a lot of time making it into a place my guests like to come back to over and over again. However, I would not call it a Luxury Cottage or an Executive Rental, because I am not appealing to the luxury or executive seekers. It has lots of features and facilities but I know realistically they are not at the level demanded by this type of client.
So, what does a property have to be, or to have, to propel it to stratospheric rental rates and allow the description to include those lofty words – upscale, executive, luxury and exceptional?. There’s been an interesting discussion on the Lay My Hat forum, on this topic and I’ve distilled a few of those ideas and added a few more from discussions I’ve had with potential renters looking for this type of accommodation.
One of the suggestions that struck me was to consider spending money on things that people touch, such as door handles, taps, knives, cookware, towels etc. I like this idea. Here’s some more
Kitchen: Top of the range appliances with brands such as Jennair and Cuisinart. High quality small appliances such as a Cuisinart coffee machine with grinder attachment, a DeLonghi toaster. Henckel or similar quality chefs knives are a must as is solid flatware, a good range of glasses and good quality plates and dishes. Corian or granite countertops with an island unit and breakfast bar type seating
Bathrooms: Stylish design throughout with top of the range fittings. At least one with a Jacuzzi or Whirlpool tub; tiled shower stalls with multi jet shower heads; double basins; good quality lighting.
Furnishings: “People who spend lots more money on their accommodation usually want to see that reflected in the quality of the furnishings”
Leather seating with recliners; large solid coffee tables; dining tables to seat at least 8 with matching chairs; distinctive area rugs; pillow top mattresses on all beds; unique beds such as log style, four poster, or wrought iron; plenty of storage space for clothes.
Soft furnishings & fittings: Egyptian cotton sheets; good looking and matching comforters and shams; wooden blinds and window coverings; oversized bath towels; unique lamps and light fixtures
Entertainment: Wide screen TVs with surround sound; TVs in bedrooms; Bose speakers or similar throughout with individual volume controls; a well equipped games room with a full size pool table, games consoles etc
Business Centre: Office space with fax/printer, high speed internet connection, paper supplies.
Leisure and Fitness: Sauna; hot tub; quality running machine; Concept rower; multi-gym; free weights and other fitness equipment.
Outdoors: Large barbecue; rattan furniture; solid wood lounging chairs with luxury cushions;
Attention to detail: This is what everyone mentioned. A luxury rental should make you feel pampered and cared for. Plenty of candles, glossy magazines, bowls of fresh fruit and candy, fresh flowers, speciality soaps and bath foam.
And finally, as one contributor on the forum said: "All the gizmos in the world do not make a top class rental, it has to look stunning.. This is the most important factor; all the other add-ons come after”
Comments anyone? Let me know what you think.
Topics: Marketing | 2 Comments »
Renting to Family and Friends
By CottageGuru | April 4, 2008
I got such a great comment on my Renting 101 post that I wanted to deal with it separately because I think it’s an issue many new cottage owners face. This was the comment:
"We are first time renters beginning this summer. What are your thoughts on how to deal with immediate family that wish to vacation at our newly-acquired cottage? Is charging rent appropriate, or would it be better to simply ask them to do things like cut the grass, clean thoroughly and replenish items such as paper and cleaning products to get the cottage through a few more weeks of upcoming renters after they leave?"
I remember when we bought our first cottage and suddenly became very popular with ‘friends’ and family. At first I didn’t want to charge them, but we had set goals for what we wanted to achieve with renting, and that didn’t leave us with any free high season weeks to give away. So, we simply made it clear that we were running our cottage rental as a business and although we’d love to offer a discount in the summer, it just wasn’t possible given our plans. However, we were happy to have family stay in the low season, and all we asked for then was for some jobs to be done.
Here’s a brief excerpt from my book, "Renting Your Recreational Property for Profit", that touches on this issue:
"To maximise your income, you’ll need to rent the whole of the summer, but that may not be practical if you have family who want to spend some time in the cottage as well. At times you need to be strict, not only with yourselves, but with family and friends who probably see your cottage as an inexpensive way to vacation, particularly if they have done so in the past. Let everyone know that you are renting in a more professional manner and that you may have late availability weeks or weekends that they can have. If you have minor jobs that need doing, you could save a little on property management by asking your non-paying guests to do them. Alternatively, have your non-paying guests, family or friends leave a ‘gift’ for the cottage. Why not keep a list of items that may need replacing from time to time and ask your non-payers to choose from the list and take the replacement item with them to the cottage. Include things like new pillows, towels, books and games, additions to the fishing tackle box, etc. They will appreciate knowing their gift is needed, and you will save on some of those expenses."
One word of caution here. Immediate family and friends have the same responsibilities as other paying guests. This means they should leave the cottage in the same condition in which it was found, if you don’t provide cleaning services. I don’t recommend relying on them to undertake the changeover duties that should be done after each rental by an owner or caretaker. Relationship issues can arise if your family guests have caused any damage or fail to clean up to the right standard. The last thing you want is for your rental guests to call you and complain about the condition of the cottage after family have left.
This can be a thorny issue and everyone will be happier if there are clear boundaries. If you can afford it, set aside a couple of high season weeks - the first and last of the season are good ones - but don’t rely on the family to prepare it for the next guests.
Has anyone else got suggestions on how to manage this issue? I’d love to hear them from you.
Topics: Rental Questions Answered | No Comments »
Is There a Mouse in the House?
By CottageGuru | April 3, 2008
I missed yesterday’s post because we spent most of the day managing the water that was insistent on making its way into our office and soaking the carpets. We’re just coping with thaw from the mountains of snow around the house, and not rising floodwater from swollen rivers, as homeowners are north of Toronto, so feel pretty lucky. However, wringing out towels every half hour, and moving all the computers off the floor is a bit time-consuming.
It’s a sign of spring though, and there were plenty of them at the Cottage Life Show last weekend. The most predictable was seeing Jen and Neil from Oust-a-Mouse unloading yet another skid of boxes.
Our booth was next to theirs a few years ago and we were amazed at the crowds surrounding them all weekend at their first Show. Each year since then, it’s been interesting to follow their progress and success, but it’s very telling that the continued demand for the Oust-a-Mouse solution points to a problem that is serious for many cottage owners.
It always helps to have a product that just about every cottager will need at some time during their time of ownership. Just take a look at one of the most-read threads on the Cottage Life Forum titled "Mice-they’re back!" This has had nearly 14,500 views since Sawbill first posted in October last year, about finding mice in his cottage for the first time in 3 years. Cottage Life reprinted a 1999 article online recently. Man vs Mouse: How to get rid of mice at the cottage, covers just about everything you need to know and is worth a read if you think you may have unwelcome furry visitors.
I’m guessing that we’ll be seeing Jen and Neil carrying in more and more boxes to the Fall Show as well!
Has anyone used the Oust-a-Mouse product? Is it effective? Or do you have another secret to removing the little critters?
Topics: Bugs and Critters | No Comments »
Cottage Life Show Round-Up
By CottageGuru | April 1, 2008
‘This is wild!’ I heard one exhibitor say around noon on Sunday, and I was in full agreement.
I’ve been going to the Spring Cottage Life Show in Toronto for over 8 years, initially as a visitor, and for the past few years as an exhibitor. This Show gets better every year, and when the organisers release the visitor figures, I wouldn’t be surprised to find this past weekend saw record attendees.
The Cottage Life Show has become so much more than an exhibition - it’s a real event that keeps visitors occupied for hours. This year, I loved the Dock Dogs - sponsored by Bark & Fitz - a competition to find the dog who could leap the furthest off the dock into the water. It was great fun and sure attracted the crowds.
Sadly, I couldn’t take part in the Dock Party since our booth was so busy, but it seemed to be a popular meeting venue. There were plenty of people taking some time out to fantasise about the possibility that summer is really on the way.
I was delighted to see so many people I knew, many of whom came along to my presentations in the Cottage Seminar area, I’d like to thank those of you who attended. And, of course, our booth was packed most of the weekend with owners who already rent out or are thinking about it, and plenty of people looking for a rental property.
One of the great benefits of being an exhibitor is that we get to meet so many other cottage product and service suppliers over the weekend. Over the rest of this week I’m going to feature a few of them - those that stood out and made me go back more than once to their booth. These are:
- a great way of tackling the mice at the cottage
- sandblasted cottage signs
- a hand carved signpost to hang your sign from
- ways of financing your cottage purchase and managing your money
- Kawartha Turtle Trauma Centre
- amazing hand crafted coffee and side tables
- Boater Exam - a reminder that you’ll need to do this before next year
Watch out for my daily reviews all week.
Topics: Great Cottage Links, Useful Resources | No Comments »
How to Create a Web Site Your Visitors will Love
By CottageGuru | March 23, 2008
With the Cottage Life Show fast approaching, I’ve been spending the weekend doing some research for the seminars I will be presenting. Since one of the presentations is on Marketing Your Cottage Rental Profitably, I used a couple of hours early today to take a look at some cottage web sites to see what cottage owners are doing to effectively market their properties.
For all sorts of reasons I’m not focusing on any of the really poor sites I found, but frankly, most of them fell into that category, and I sometimes wonder what people are thinking when they put these sites together. Do they actually ask other people for their honest opinions, or do they just not care at all?
To be fair, I found some very good sites too – ones that look as though some care has been taken over the choice of photos and how the pages are arranged; the spelling and grammar has been checked, and the presentation is free of patterned backgrounds and changing fonts. But, on the whole, it was a disappointing reflection on the Ontario cottage rental market.
With so many cottages available for rent, it is even more important to have an attractive web site with a professional look - anything else will deter potential renters particularly for out of season bookings.
I feel a rant approaching so will just pinpoint some areas where I believe cottage owners could improve their sites and achieve greater traffic and ultimately higher booking potential.
Clarity of presentation
Many sites were cluttered with randomly positioned photos and far too much text that wasn’t broken up with headings or paragraph breaks. One site had four different colours of text; two different font styles; over use of bold and underlining; and the text was centred making it tough to read. If you want visitors to stay on your site, it should be visually appealing, easy to read and attractively presented.
Consistency
It is important that a web site is consistent as you move from page to page. Each page should be instantly recognizable as belonging to the same web site you visited on the previous one. That seems to be a no-brainer yet I visited so many where the ‘designer’ seemed to be creating a completely new site with each page. By consistency, I mean having design aspects that remain the same regardless of where you are on the site.
For example, the images in a header may change but the features should remain consistent. Take a look at this site advertising Normandy Beach Rental and click on the links on the navigation bar at the top. You should get the idea.
Navigation
Visitors to your site want to navigate around easily and to find what they are looking for, such as rates, availability and facilities without any hassle. They don’t want to go searching for information by scrolling down a long text filled page, or by linking to another page that has no back links to the home page. This is almost guaranteed to send visitors to another site, and there are plenty of them, so why should they hang around trying to access information that is difficult to find.
Take a look at this site (which is still a work in progress) and note the clearly labeled navigation links:
This delightful site advertising a beautiful property in Burgundy, France also has an easy navigation scheme: 
Photos
I was just blown away by seeing so many poorly staged photos, with little attention to detail or any attempt at creating ambience. Images on a web site must be eye catching and attention grabbing, or the fickle audience is going to quickly move on to the next site. My particular bugbear is photos of toilets. This is a personal opinion, but I do not see the need to include them in a web site. Have them ready to send to potential renters if they want to see a picture of the bathroom, but from my perspective they are an unnecessary inclusion. Now if you have a whirlpool tub filled with bubbles; lighted candles and a couple of filled champagne flutes by the side, that is a different matter. That’s telling a story and creating a fantasy; a toilet with the lid up is not!
The images you use should capture the dream and drive your site visitors to make a booking straight away, not drive your visitors away.
You want your potential renters to see the photos and imagine themselves staying at the property, sleeping in the bedrooms, cooking in the kitchen and kicking back and relaxing in the living and family rooms.
When the photos and a brief description are all they have to go by, you’ve got to make a good effort to ensure they show well. Putting in extra effort in preparing the rooms will pay dividends in the interest the site receives.
Links
Internal and external links play a role in generating search engine traffic to the site as well as creating a user friendly structure. These links need to be checked frequently to make sure they still go to the right places, as broken links can be a very negative aspect of a site. One site I visited had a link with the text, ‘What Our Guests Think of Our Cottage’. When I clicked on it, the link went to an error message saying the page had been removed. That was not a great testimonial!
Over the next few weeks I’ll be reviewing some Content Management Systems (CMS) for building your own site as well as including some tips on finding a good web designer if you prefer to go this route.
I believe every owner should have their own web site if they are serious about marketing to the widest audience. I’d just like to see these web sites reflecting the business of cottage rentals as a professional and respected method of promoting tourism.
Topics: Marketing, Cottage rental basics | 2 Comments »
Are Your Rental Guests Happy?
By CottageGuru | March 15, 2008
In an increasingly competitive vacation rental market, you have to do things differently to help you stand out from the rest. That might be a matter of using well staged photos on your web site, having features and facilities that others don’t offer, and making sure your rental rate is set fairly. But, there’s another key component that can drive more enquiries than anything else.
The feedback from your previous cottage rental guests is the most valuable piece of marketing you have. Their testimonials about how they enjoyed their vacation, what they found the best about your property and the personal anecdotes they share with you, is better than any creative language you or your agency could devise to describe the experience. Take these examples:
The Cottage and the location were superb!! Loved the privacy and the tranquility. Would come again in a heartbeat.
We knew we made the right choice when our boys asked if we could return next year after being here for only 5 minutes!! The Cottage is lovely, well equipped and the views are outstanding! Thank you
After two weeks here it feels like home and it is difficult to go!! This is a beautiful area! It gave us a peaceful and relaxing place to play with the boys without the distractions of everyday life!
Thank you, we all had a wonderful time. Highlights for the 2 teenagers were the waterfront area, hot tub and comfortable beds! The girls enjoyed having table tennis tournaments with each other. The 9 year old loved everything and is already asking to come back next year. Adults – complete relaxation. I loved the quiet and peaceful setting.
How could anyone looking at these commendations not want to know more. After all, these are comments from real people…..or are they?
That is the big issue. Any owner could fabricate a bunch of testimonials like these and it isn’t uncommon to see listings with dozens of positive remarks. You can’t list the names and contact information for your raving fans on your site for privacy reasons, so what do you do to show the comments you’ve included are genuine?
If you have a visitors book and your guests leave comments, contact them and ask if they would be willing for you to give up their telephone number to a potential guest who is looking for a recommendation. Most people are happy to do that.
If you have a blog, you can set up a page where guests can leave feedback after their vacation. Make sure you have an anti-spamming plug-in though, and the ability to review comments before they are posted.
Send a post vacation questionnaire and ask for a testimonial you can post on your web site. Satisfied guests are often very willing to do this.
And what happens if you have negative feedback? Well, it’s OK not to post that on your web site, but just make sure you do something about it. Contact the renters and apologise for any shortfall they experienced in their vacation; offer them something to make up for it - perhaps a dinner voucher or cinema tickets, if it was a small oversight. For issues that were beyond your control, such as extended power outages or breakdown of a non-essential facility such as a hot tub, offering a free or heavily discounted weekend break out of season, goes a long way to win back a disgruntled guest. For major issues such as catastrophic plumbing breakdowns or rodent infestation, a refund is the only response.
Hopefully, all your feedback will be positive and you can use the testimonials as a marketing tool. Just be sure to ask if it is OK and hold copies of that permission in your files.
Topics: Building Business, Marketing | No Comments »
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