For all holiday rental owners the purpose of our website is to ultimately get people to book. Yes we want websote visitors to stay on our pages, to look at our lovely photographs, to read about us, but ultimately we want them to progress to making a booking.  To increase your chance of this happening:

Here are 7 mistakes to avoid on your holiday rental website.

 

Mistake Number 1. Using too much text

It can be tempting to include every single detail that’s great about your holiday rental and the about the locality.  And while it’s a good thing to share your detailed knowledge you must ensure that this copy (or writing) is presented in a way that will actually be read and understood. You don’t want visitors being overloaded with information. Here’s what to do:

• use short sentences – the shorter the sentence the easier it is to understand (12 -15 words ideally per sentence)
• use bullet points to divide up your text. This makes the page much more user-friendly.
• use images to break up the text
• add a “read more” button so you’re still including all your information, but it gives visitors the choice to read more if they wish.

Mistake Number 2. Having a cluttered layout

Avoid this by having a clear menu bar along the top of each page.  This is what your website visitors will expect and be familiar with and helps them to navigate around your website.   Ensure each page has a specific use so it’s clear from the visitors point of view, which page they are on.  Even if they couldn’t see the title of the page they should be able to tell which page they’re on.

Also ensure within each page you prioritise the important information at the top, so visitors will see it immediately. For example if you’re wanting to collect email sign-ups then ensure the sign up box is right at the top of each page, not hidden away at the bottom.

The Home page and the About Us page can sometimes be the trickiest to get right. But avoid cluttering up these pages.  The home page should be an overview of your holiday rental, it’s key points and how booking a stay there can help your guests.  The About Us page is just that, it’s about you as the owner: your interests, your passion, your background and how this is relevant to your holiday rental.  A lovely, smiling photograph of you adds credibility to the About Us page. An image taken at your holiday rental is just perfect!

Mistake Number 3. Not being specific with your descriptions

Be VERY specific.  In fact you cannot be specific enough.  For example don’t say “there are outdoor activities on the doorstep” explain what these outdoor activities are and then some. Instead write “there’s walking on the doorstep; you can take the path through the woods to Bookmore and rest in the village pub before making the return back to the cottage.”  This sounds much more enticing.

Another example of a commonly used generic phrase is “try the local foods”.  What local foods do you mean?  If it’s a restaurant you recommend mention it by name eg “try the delicious locally sourced food at The Fox and Hounds”.  Take a look through your website copy and get rid of any woolly descriptions.

Mistake Number 4. Using meaningless images

Meaningless in terms of purpose.  Only add an image if it is going to enhance the copy next to it.  For example, if you’re talking about the twin bedroom and you don’t have any images of that room, leave it out, don’t put an image of the master bedroom as this will be misleading or the kitchen as this would be meaningless. For example:

Meaningless in terms of quality.  A blurry or badly lit photograph can do harm to your holiday rental.   You’re selling a quality product so you need quality images to match.  Investing in professional photographs from a photographer is well worth it.  You will be able to use these images time and time again on your website or in your marketing.  Also ensure the room is “staged” for example all cushions plumpt up, clutter-free shots and no creased bed linen!

Mistake Number 5. Not testing the website

It’s so easy to create a website you’re proud of, make it live and then just leave it and go off and focus your marketing attention elsewhere.  Before you do that test the website yourself. Also ask a friend for help.  A friend who knows nothing about your holiday rental is even better. Ask them to test:

Navigation – how easy is it to move around the site to find the information they are looking for?

Understanding – does the copy make sense?

Hyperlinks – are they all working?

Ask friends to perform set tasks and ask them how many clicks it took them to get to a certain piece of information.   Any more than 3 and you should reconsider your layout.

A check for typos and for grammatical mistakes, by a fresh pair of eyes usually finds something amiss too (and I definitely speak from experience there).

Mistake Number 6. Not being personal

In your copy it’s important you write for “you” and not “we”.  For example “You’ll love sitting in the garden watching the sunset, glass of wine in hand” rather that “we love to sit in the garden watching the sunset, drinking wine”. Using “you” is more emotive and allows guests subconsciously to imagine themselves there. Which takes them one step closer to making a booking!

Also personalise the copy to match your guests. If you have a visitor’s book and guests refer to your holiday rental as “delightful” or “beautiful” or “gorgeous” then use these words in your website. They will mean more to your guests as you’ll be talking to them in their own language.

Mistake Number 7. Using the website as a stand alone marketing tool

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that once your website is up and running and crossed off your to-do list, the bookings will come.  Of course your website plays an important role in showcasing your holiday home and convincing guests to book but guests have to find your website first.  So other marketing tools need to be used to drive traffic to you website. These tools will depend on your marketing plan but could include third party website listings, Twitter, Facebook or local press adverts.  So don’t view your website as a stand alone marketing tool. View it as a piece in your marketing tool box.

So now you know what mistakes to avoid, just get on and do it! And I look forward to seeing the results.

More information on how to use social media, how to make your website bring in the bookings and how to market your holiday rental is included in my online program – Holiday Rental Money Makeover. Click here for more details.

Are you serious about making more money from your holiday rental?  Then don’t forget to download my free holiday rental business planner to move your holiday rental business forward.