8 Ways to Impress Every Guest with StayFi
BUILD YOUR VACATION RENTAL BRAND WITH HIGH TOUCH HOSPITALITY
Have You Wondered
“How do I prove my vacation rental is not just another Airbnb?”
As a vacation rental host, you’re constantly navigating the balance between leveraging platforms like Airbnb and building your own brand.
Did you know it takes 8 impressions to communicate that you are not “just an Airbnb”?
You don't have to be tethered to the Airbnb brand (among other OTAs), but you certainly do need tools to craft your own unique identity.
If you're wondering, "How can I impress every guest?" Stop thinking figuratively and start thinking literally.
With a little help from our friends at StayFi, today I’m sharing 8 systemized ways to make 8 new impressions that will set you apart from the mega OTAs.
StayFi is one all-inclusive tool that helps hosts impress every guest.
StayFi is the leading WiFi, email, and text marketing solution tailored specifically for short-term rentals. It provides hosts with customizable splash pages for guest connectivity, reducing dependency on OTAs, increasing guest revenue, and enhancing the overall guest experience. All in one place, your guests can access WiFi, your guidebook, and concierge services in a streamlined way.
Before we dive in, let's set the stage.
In the world of vacation rentals, offering more than just a place to stay is key to standing out. Today’s evolving traveler craves personalized experiences and memorable touches that beat the basics.
“We have an opportunity—a responsibility—to make magic in a world that desperately needs more of it.”
The magic is in your high-touch hospitality.
“High-touch hospitality” is the art of providing highly personalized service and attention to guests, making them feel valued and cared for throughout their stay with details that feel designed just for them.
The little things can make a big impact.
While The Olive Jar is an industry expert designing customized details—from curated family travel kits to themed snack bar menus—these details must be marketable to your target traveler and delivered with consistency, using a system that’s manageable to maintain with excellence at every guest turnover.
What we love about StayFi is that it empowers hosts to deliver high-touch hospitality in this way. At every turnover.
How do you make a memorable first impression? Well, don’t stop there.
MAYBE YOU’VE MADE A GREAT FIRST IMPRESSION. DON’T STOP THERE.
IF YOU WANT TO BUILD A UNIQUE BRAND IDENTITY, MAKE 8 UNFORGETTABLE IMPRESSIONS.
In this blog I’m showing off StayFi, an experiential marketing tool I can get behind. Read on for high-touch hospitality ideas that optimize this all-in one digital hosting tool in ways that showcase your brand story best.
MAKE 8 BRAND-BUILDING IMPRESSIONS
EXPERIENTIAL MARKETINg with stayfi
IMPRESSION #1
Showcase Your Brand with Captivating Imagery
Your property’s imagery makes the first impression—so make it count. With StayFi’s image integrations, you can focus on using key visuals as backgrounds and banners that represent the magic of your brand. Use intriguing hero shots of your property, landscapes, logos, graphics, you and your travelers. With a professional look, you instantly set the tone for an unforgettable experience—the unforgettable experience—you offer. Think of this imagery as the material you need to spark an engaging conversation…
IMPRESSION #2
Engage with Guests Via SMS & Email Drip Campaigns
Let’s talk about those first interactions with your guests. StayFi allows you to collect guest data from WiFi logins, capturing information from every guest, not just the booking person. Stay connected with the entire guest crew via SMS. Send a first-morning message as a courteous “hello” and ask for feedback. Poke at details your guests have seen in all that captivating imagery, too, driving reminders of your strongest brand visuals (i.e. “Did you catch the sunset? How was your first dip in the pool?”).
You can keep the conversation going throughout their stay, but it shouldn’t end at check out. Email marketing remains one of the most effective forms of audience engagement. Nurture relationships through an email drip campaign. Send personalized messages, special offers, and updates to keep your brand top of mind and encourage repeat visits.
Need ideas for email campaign content?
PRO TIP: Here’s one “special offer” that’s highly effective and costs you little to nothing: THE GIFT OF GIVING. By this I mean, encourage your new followers to GIFT AWAY a future stay! Put a spin on it for every season, not just the holidays.
In STR experiential marketing, you’re looking for every chance to offer your guests co-ownership of your vacation rental, a personal attachment to your brand. Just pop back on their radar one week after check out. Let them know this is an invitation to “host” right alongside you. You could even up the incentive with a one-time “friends & family” discount code.
IMPRESSION #3
Create a “Know, Like & Trust” Connection
Even with the best intentions, challenges can arise during a guest’s stay. To proactively neutralize any bumps in the road, you should be building trust long before your traveler has booked; but, especially in the window between booking and check-out, your traveler needs to “Know, Like & Trust” you. Showcase authentic imagery and storytelling of YOU as the host throughout your StayFi platform. It’s about creating a personal connection with your guests on repeat, making them feel confident, comfortable, and eager to return despite any imperfections.
IMPRESSION #4
Redirect Guests to Your Direct Booking Site
So you’ve built trust. Now what? Make their repeat booking easy as pie.
StayFi supports your vision for independence by allowing you to create custom redirects, driving traffic to your direct booking site. Your direct booking site helps build brand loyalty and encourages repeat bookings.
Increased direct bookings can make you feel like you’ve arrived as an independent host, but it’s hard work to maintain. With StayFi’s support, you can steer that growth.
If you haven’t built your direct booking site yet, now’s the time. It’s your next step to going professional. If you’ve been making the impressions laid out here, your traveler is already more likely to share your site with others and rebook directly with you—the host they now know, like, and trust.
IMPRESSION #5
Enhance the Guest Experience with Custom Content
Digital guidebooks are essential, and StayFi makes them easily accessible with Custom Buttons. But have you been elevating your guests’ experience across multiple channels? Optimize your original content by linking those Custom Buttons to your travel blog, YouTube channel, or personalized music playlists. These story-driven touches immerse guests in the multi-dimensional world of your vacation rental, and StayFi makes it so easy to dive in from a single waterhole.
IMPRESSION #6
Partner with Local Businesses for Exclusive Offers
Leverage StayFi’s Custom Buttons once more to offer a digital coupon book with exclusive deals and discounts from local vendors. This ain’t your mother’s coupon book! Hop on Canva to create an eye-catching deck with 3-5 curated discounts from local businesses that align with your brand—from color palette to experiential vibe. Remember, we’re talking about making an impression of your brand on your traveler’s mind with every click. Expanding your collaborative network opens up those opportunities to increase your click thru rate—and that’s guest engagement!
IMPRESSION #7
Promote Local Experiences with Viator
Remember when Airbnb offered “Experiences”? StayFi has kept that concept alive through integration with Viator. By offering local experiences, you not only enhance your guests’ stay but also support local services. Whether it’s a guided tour, a cooking class, or a unique cultural experience that aligns with your brand (just like you’ve done with local partners), these add-ons level up your offering. When a unique experience can be delivered right to your vacation rental's front door, you instantly raise the value of your STR.
IMPRESSION #8
Offer Upsells with The Host Co.
StayFi’s integration with The Host Co. makes it easy for guests to access upsells and add-ons that enrich their stay. It’s a win-win: guests enjoy extra perks, and you boost your revenue. We’ve seen hosts generate significant revenue through upsells. In just four months, Rather Be Properties generated more than $40K in upsell revenue, with early check-in upsells alone, bringing in $300-$400 per month per listing.
These upsells can also be leveraged as rewards.
Offering early check-in or late check-out for purchase means you can also offer it “on the house” as a reward.
PRO TIP: Rewards most effectively increase customer loyalty when offered to guests who are already in a good mood building a positive association with your brand. Using rewards in reaction to guest complaints can often be taken as a silencing tool, as opposed to a thoughtful, proactive extension of your generosity.
I BELIEVE Emotions are the social currency essential to connectedness. Hosts who embrace this build a loyal following.
Making an impression isn’t about selling—it’s about giving more.
I also believe an act of kindness is memorable, but it’s your generosity that will leave an impact for eternity—that’s real hospitality.
To be clear—I’m NOT talking about giving away free nights!
I'm talking about shifting your booking strategies from transactional to relational.
It’s imperative to strengthen your traveler’s connection to your brand with strategies built on generosity.
By incorporating these impression strategies into your vacation rental business, you’ll not only build a stronger brand, but more importantly, produce a connective guest experience that offers MORE than they expect: your own unique picture of high-touch, 5-star hospitality.
StayFi provides the tools to build a loyal following seamlessly, allowing you to focus on what you do best and what The Olive Jar is all about:
GETAWAYS TO RECONNECT
CHECKPOINT: WHAT’S DRIVING YOUR BOOKINGS?
How are you attracting and engaging your target traveler? The Olive Jar promotes 4 neurological drivers to help you build customer loyalty. Wondering if you’ve tapped into any of those drivers?
READY TO BUILD A BRAND YOU CAN MAINTAIN?
We think StayFi has set the bar as a systemized experiential marketing tool. Comment below to share one new way you want to impress every guest. Choose from our list of Impressions #1-8!