Today's guest

Today I had the honor of speaking with Natacha Parmantier. Natacha is a world-traveling host who has settled down in Valencia Spain. Natacha manages two short term rentals while also caring for her 1.5yo baby.

In this episode, Natacha shares her experience as a vacation rental marketer and gives us her top 3 tips to getting your direct booking site up and running.

Natacha shares some really good information on finding your target customer and how to use Pinterest to get more bookings.

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Full Interview Transcript

Natacha:                              00:00                     Pinterest is essential because like the growth on my Pinterest was just crazy. I went from having zero people looking because I have no account on Pinterest. So I had one where I was just pinning and then one month I think I reached 10,000 people looking at my pictures from nothing from zero to 10,000. And right now, I’m 20,000

Julian:                                   00:25                     Welcome back to short term rental success stories. I’m your host Julian Sage. This is a show where I talk to hosts about their journeys and starting and growing their short term rental business. My goal is that you’ll be able to walk away with practical information that’ll help you become a better host and learn how to scale your business. Like any exceptional hosts. We all strive for five star reviews, so please go on over to iTunes and let us know what you enjoy and it really helps support the show if you haven’t done so already. Going over to our Facebook group, the host nation, to connect with the community. Host nation. So I wanted to share some really exciting news. I love the show so, so much and the show has changed my life. I never would have thought that I would be doing what I am today because of the show meeting.

Julian:                                   01:06                     So many awesome people meeting my friend, my business partner, my mentor, John Bell, starting this other podcasts together, vacation rental machine and giving a free course. That’s basically what we’re doing. We’re giving you all the information for course, in like chronological order that people would pay for. We’re going through that for free. And when I talked to John, I was like, Hey John, this is what I want to do with the show. I want to give everybody a free course. And he was like, well, how are we supposed to make money off of that? I said, you know, if we provide that value, you know, people are gonna want to support, maybe they’ll click on the links. Maybe when we do have a course that does come out, it’ll be a little bit more maybe organized. We can provide extra stuff, extra resources, mentoring, some really cool stuff.

Julian:                                   01:44                     So I was all about that philosophy and John was on board with it too. So that’s why we started vacation rental machine was really to teach, you know, myself and other people, everything that you need in a more chronological order. But we also want to get more engagement in the community. So if you haven’t gone to our Facebook group, the host nation, then you definitely want to join that because we’re going to be answering live Q and A’s. We’re going to be doing some really cool stuff, more engagement in the community. So that is really exciting and I just wanted to share some of that. The other exciting news is that our team is actually getting bigger because I want to provide so much value and I can only do so much guys. I work full time. I’m in the coast guard full time active duty.

Julian:                                   02:21                     So that does take some time and I need to also operate my business. I also have other plans, some other little stuff that we have going on in the works little hush shush. I’m trying not to share too, too much information cause it’s still a work in progress. But I, there’s so much more that I want to do with this show. So many more things and I only have so much time in a day and I’ve been doing everything on my own for the past six months. So it’s been, it’s been a lot of work. But I am finally taken on a couple of really awesome people onto the team. We have Neil’s who is going to be our video and podcast editor. So if you noticed on the show maybe some changes that music changing, some graphics, changing more visuals, maybe you know, different ways to get you guys engaged in part of the community.

Julian:                                   03:03                     Neal’s going to be spearheading that and really taking charge of that workload that I was doing. Now I, we also took on Kizziah Kizziah is also going to be helping us out. She is going to be managing more of the social media side, helping with the show notes because there’s a lot of content that is coming onto the show that like I just posted it onto the website and I’m just like, it’s got to stay there. I can’t, I don’t have the time to be able to change all this stuff and work on all this. So she’s going to be going back, fixing things, adding more links to shows that maybe I need include everything. Also improving stuff. She is going to be in the community answering questions. If anybody’s like, Hey, you know, have you guys done an episode on this? She’ll be able to reference those episodes.

Julian:                                   03:43                     So we’re really building this out and trying to just give you as much content. Now guys, I’m not really making any money off of this show right now and I’m paying other people to come onto the show. The reason being is because I just, I believe in what we have here. I believe the community, you guys, you know, we’re almost gonna be, you know, I think that we’re going to be like the number one rated podcast for short term rentals. I definitely believe that you guys are super engaged. You guys are always asking questions and are really supportive. It’s just such a positive environment. I love, I love the community that we’re building up this family, the host nation family. So I’m just super grateful and I want to be able to pour more into this and pour more energy and efforts. So if it means me having to pay other people to be able to work on this and grow and provide even more valuable content than that’s what I’m going to do.

Julian:                                   04:29                     But I know that the payout is going to be worth it in the end because you guys are just so awesome and I believe in this and I know that we can do so much more. Yeah, it’s crazy. I want to do more podcasts and more content, but definitely I’m excited. So a lot of really cool, exciting stuff. I’m sorry that I was rambling about this, but I just get super excited about this and I wanted to share this with you because I really feel like you all are a part of this journey with me from this show’s inception to where we are now and where we continue to grow. There’s just a lot of exciting stuff happening today. I had the honor of speaking with Natacha [inaudible]. Natasha is a world traveling host who settled down in Valencia, Spain. She manages to short term rentals while also caring for her one and a half year old baby and this episode Natacha shares her experience as a vacation rental marketer.

Julian:                                   05:15                     It gives us her top three tips to getting your direct booking site up and running. She shares some really good information on finding your target customer and how to use Pinterest to get more bookings. What I like about this episode is that there’s a lot of practical information, things that you can start doing right away to be able to potentially increase your bookings, but also just a very easy to understand episode. Talking about why a blog is so important, how to use Pinterest. We get into some more tactical stuff like how to use Pinterest to be able to drive traffic to your blog, to your website, to be able to get increased bookings. If you like my show notes for this episode, go short term sage.com backslash STR to nine or if you’d like my show notes sent directly to your inbox every week, then go to short term st Jack on backslash show notes.

Julian:                                   05:59                     With all that being said onto this week’s conversation. Hey, welcome back, host nation to another episode of short term rental success stories. Today I have the special honor of speaking with Natacha Parmantier. If you wouldn’t mind, please letting the audience know a little bit more about who you are and what inspired you to get into short term rentals.

Natacha:                              06:20                     Okay, so first, thank you very much for having your on your show. I’m very happy to be here with you and everyone and watching. So what’s made missteps? The vacation rental or business? I did vacation rentals at first when I was living in Germany. I was just doing, it’s renting out my room when it was going to [inaudible]. In fact it was funny was that’s great because it’s financing my trouble as I love traveling. It was great and then we moved. I moved here staying okay, but let’s do it again here, but more like can you need more? So we are doing it as a home share where we are living here in one property that we have in the countryside, which is much more seasonal or are we all doing it as well to basically covering the cost of everything we are, we are there. So is that what made me tell to vacation rentals and also because I lo, I love having people from different countries. I speak six languages, so it’s nice to be, it’s nice to be able to, to use those languages with people coming to my place and Wednesday we’ll talk or waste of anymore, but it’s a, it’s nice 1200 liter chat over coffee. That’s nice. That’s what they like.

Julian:                                   07:45                     Now you’ve traveled all over the world and you speak a bunch of different languages. Were you funding this with your vacation rental that you had listed?

Natacha:                              07:54                     Yes, definitely. Yeah. This is definitely funding my, yeah, my lifestyle. I love traveling. Last last winter because my both narrow, my baby’s father is Brazilian and for him as pain is to go and want to see for me as well because Spanish houses are not done for winter, so we are always trying to escape. This winter we escape for three months in Asia. So we were, I’m mostly in Thailand and yeah, at least once a month I’m traveling and at the same time I have some people who are renting the place.

Julian:                                   08:44                     I think that’s, that’s pretty interesting. So like you’ve been in China, you’ve been in Germany, France, you also went to Ohio in the U S but all of these places that you went to, you also had your, that was able to supplement that income

Natacha:                              08:59                     When it was in Germany. Yes, because then when I went to Ohio and China, no, that was a moment where I was not doing back rentals. And now that I have been doing this, yes, each time it’s not just funny. It’s funny, more things, but it’s, it enables me to not think about, okay, what will I do? How do I pay the beat and everything? No. Yeah. Can you go and the visa paid

Julian:                                   09:28                     And that’s just off of two properties. If you wouldn’t mind sharing, how much are you able to make off of just two properties that is able to supplement your income?

Natacha:                              09:35                     [Inaudible] So with two properties, one as I said is very seasonal, but for instance for the month of August we are making 2000 you are also 2,400 us.

Julian:                                   09:47                     That’s pretty good. And in Spain it’s pretty, pretty equal. It’s pretty expensive or is it pretty cheap there?

Natacha:                              09:53                     Spain is very cheap. That’s like my lifestyle is not about like making a bunch of money to be able to like work for core for up. No, that’s totally the opposite. I chose Spain because you need almost nothing to be able to live here. Everything is cheap. Everything. And you have also, they will continue to do so many things which are free. I live 800 meters from the beach. I don’t need to pay to go to the beach. I just go and enjoy. And you have a very big parking balance. Yeah. Which I think Carol, thank you. Major lounge all around the city. So I go there, I can do a yoga. So was that like for some parts in the U S I guess 2000 it’s not much because you cannot leave here. Here we have 2000 you’re King. A lot of like in Spain, I don’t know [inaudible] knowing that I need to us, but in Spain we have a lot people who are unemployed and the don’t get much [inaudible] enjoying at the terrace of the cafe every day. So I can tell you the truth. You can leave a very red, not so much,

Julian:                                   11:04                     You know, I just think that that is so cool. Just kind of listening to people’s stories that got started and now you’ve, you’ve been able to travel and you found this location that with the income that you’re able to make off of just just off the two properties, you’re able to be financially independent and work on, you know, taking care of your baby or able to, to travel. You’re able to do other things and you don’t have like your primary job. But what you do do on the side because you have this financial independence is you are a getting a digital marketer for vacation rentals. If you wouldn’t mind kind of explaining that and how that kind of came to me.

Natacha:                              11:39                     [Inaudible] Yeah. So I have [inaudible] website for my own businesses, like four years and I love doing it. I also love being on social media and after some time after watching a lot of, or like trainings or lie and everything and being as way to host, I thought, okay, how could they help other people to know better how to optimize their website to optimize their online presence to get more bookings. So that’s how I came up with the idea or doing my new business on the side or Airbnb and basically I’m painting people. Wow. Always in usually more people was the people who are coming to me are Superhosts because online you have a lot of coach, which I can you to become a CFO. So postings, you see not what I do. These are people who I’m helping, well, everything’s that know everything about hospitality, the noses, nothing.

Natacha:                              12:40                     It’s a lot of how can I make people get to my place because they know that when they are there they will have a next meeting experience. They will have the MEC review difficulties too. Make their unique face. No, so that’s how I came into into the game. I heard same. I had same with the keywords. Usually they are confused. They don’t know how to promote right now online you have so many tips and people aren’t telling you you should do Instagram, you should do this, you should do this, you should do this and then you’re confused. You don’t know where to start off and in fact the first thing I say every time when I want to query someone, okay, what’s working well for you? Where are you customers coming from when they book with you, where are they coming from? For instance, last time I was with Melanie and she was sending, okay micro streamers are coming from Facebook and she was saying, yeah, I know I have to do Instagram but I really don’t know how to do it. Okay. No, for now, let’s focus on Facebook because they are coming from Facebook, so let’s, let’s put some work. As I said, like my way of living my lifestyle is no, to work more but to work smarter. If Facebook is working, let’s concentrate on Facebook.

Julian:                                   13:54                     I love what you’re saying. The dash so many people get overwhelmed with how much there is, you know? Because not only is this hospitality now this is hospitality, this is social media marketing, this is content creation. This is website building. It’s like, Oh my gosh, this is way too much. Like I just wanted to post my house online and then start making that money, but yeah, yeah, you can. You can do that and you can just utilize the, the OTAs, the online travel agencies and get bookings, but what you’re doing and kind of what the movement is going towards because we’ve seen just constantly, constantly these booking sites, just like taking down bookings, like I just saw someone in the group, they had a [inaudible] camera that someone complained about and they disclose that, but then Airbnb just removed their listing. It’s like there goes all their income.

Julian:                                   14:40                     If that was their only source of traffic, then they’re not making any money and they have to go through this long process. Maybe, maybe not. They can get their listing back so or their reviews. So it is a problem and that’s why direct booking is such an important thing. So for the hosts that are listening to this, don’t feel like you have to have everything figured out. Like in our last interview with [inaudible] with our tie and Marcy, she says, you know, don’t feel like you have to have everything figured out right away. But you know, the, the ultimate goal of short term renting is to be able to sustain yourself off of the platform to have multiple streams so that if one leg he does get cut off that you have a way of staying alive, you know, Natasha, what would you say for people that, let’s say I just have my listing, it is on Airbnb right now. What would you do? Walking me through to build a foundation, you know, because there are all these different things. Instagram, Facebook, what would you say? Building a foundation for getting more direct bookings and building different ways of being able to get these bookings

Natacha:                              15:42                     [Inaudible] so there are two things that I would recommend first or free things. The first thing is very easy and a lot of people are a bit, they’re afraid of doing it, but it’s really, it just saves that you need to take, if you want to grow and have more bookings [inaudible] on Facebook we, cause we all have Facebook and we are all friends on Facebook. Have your cover Fisher and say that you have, you say about you, your property, you should don’t say in your corner picture. It should not say in your intro. Then people, while your friends may or might not know that you have this property and Sarah, we might be interested for them. They might be interested for their friends. And we all know referrals. He’s the easiest way to have new customers, right? If someone, when you know you so it’s easier.

Natacha:                              16:33                     So my first tip is too change your cover picture. Say about your pace and you can put a review of your place. Oh like it’s the best one of the best reviews saying like, why is a low score so high thing? It’s social proof is definitely camping. So that’s the first thing. The second thing, having a website, you can do it yourself. There are a lot of tutorials online or an online course that I created to do the websites. It’s one option. Oh, you can ask someone to do it for you. I can do it. Or is it specialize in doing this? This is for the first two things. Then the first thing, and it’s sweet, not well known right now. It’s been terrorists. Pete Harris. Once you have the websites and maybe I can put a link, people can contact me if they want, but I did a video in my group on what has the pages you need for the website.

Natacha:                              17:29                     But one of the page which is very important is a blog because it’s really helping bring traffic and once you have the blower, then when you put different images in your into blog posts and you link them to Pinterest, Pinterest is easy. It’s like, okay, but for images and we’ve been Pinterest, you will be able to bring traffic on the long term much more than Facebook because Facebook you will appear on the wall for like one hour maximum and then your own. For Pinterest, no, you will be appearing again and again and you can beat this traffic with interest, so that would be the first. It’s very easy to send you cover picture, your intro and your name. Oh, Q website. It should don’t have a website yet. You put the link right now on the Airbnb listing and once the website is beans, you can have it as the website.

Natacha:                              18:25                     The website is Pinterest because as you said, so many people opportunities a group from one day to the other. My listed was crows. You cannot depend on someone else. You have to depend on me. Of course we always have your Airbnb listings, but there was some talking to Antonio, which is Austin rec and short rental report last month. Last month I was talking to [inaudible] sandwiches in October. And you were saying like for sure both. He’s using it as a marketing, as a marketing tool to be seen and thing pay people. What they do, most of the people, they will look for the name of the Airbnb listing again. So that’s why you have a name for you. Airbnb listing is the same as your website. You say go ahead and look at it and then they book direct. So you always be on the platform, but you will not depend.

Julian:                                   19:28                     I really like how simple that that first step is, is you said, you know you’re changing your Facebook banner. Like you don’t, you don’t need to build a website, you don’t need to get into Instagram and to Facebook pages. The simplest thing is changing your Facebook banner, let the people around you. No what you’re doing. Because not only do the people around, you know, but they might have friends and if they say like, Oh, you know, Natasha has got a house in Spain now if I have a friend that reaches out to me, they’re going to Spain or someone else knows them, you know, I could recommend you. I think that’s a very simple, that’s something that’s surprisingly not shared, not talked about. So I’m really glad that she did the chair that creating a website and then Pinterest, Pinterest. That’s pretty interesting because there are so many different ways that you could go about it. Instagram, Facebook, YouTube. What about Pinterest is so appealing to you? When do you feel that it’s an essential part?

Natacha:                              20:19                     Pinterest is essential because like for me, it’s not too long ago was that I really discovered how to use it, but like the go on my Pinterest was just crazy. I went from having zero people looking because I am no on Pinterest or I had one where I was just pinning [inaudible] once every six months maybe. And then one knows, I think I reached 10,000 people looking at my pictures from zero. I don’t right? No, I’m 20,000 so it’s just crazy how you can, which people easily cause they are like ways and you have ways to do it automatically with tailwind for instance. And being in the right group bodes the right tribes on their wings is helping. One thing that you need to know, you will be always there and there will be always there. Oh, in a position to Instagram or Facebook where it would be much more difficult all the time if you don’t do a promotion.

Julian:                                   21:22                     What was that thing you said? You said third, third winds.

Natacha:                              21:25                     Ah, no tail winds. Okay. Wind is a software which is helping you like buffer of things laces to automate your posts. So to schedule it in fact. So I have like right now 500 posts, Oh, pictures from Pinterest, which are scalers for the next 20 days. And basically it’s posting into different Googles.

Julian:                                   21:50                     Now I don’t know how many people are maybe familiar because a lot of people that may be getting into their space aren’t familiar with social media marketing. So if you wouldn’t mind kind of explaining like what Pinterest is and how does Pinterest maybe relate to getting more direct bookings?

Natacha:                              22:03                     It’s the same as I said before, Pinterest is the same as Google. You should do a research on Google. Do we have links? If you do research on Pinterest you will have pictures which are linking to place and basically if you have a wreckage from rentals, you need to, I did also another video on this, like you need to look for the right shoe words to appear on on Pinterest. But basically it’s always the same like [inaudible] dope bitch me or you pay, so talk restaurants and then Oh your websites on your blog, you will have one post about this, the top 15 restaurants to see for instance in Washington as a, as you said you were in Washington and then you will appear when we repair their people going to go to Washington. We go on the on the block cost and then they wanna see you can do a cookbook or whatever that’s, you have this amazing place which is great with you at the same time on the Fisher I, okay, next time I’m going to Washington I agreed to try. So as a restaurant, if they’re looking for a restaurant in Washington previz because they agreed to visit and then they, we learn there we save because what’s great in Pinterest is that you can say the pins, so we will always have them in your bowl and also once it stays then to people who are following, you can also see this and that’s how you grow. Really, really? Pinterest is like a snowball at the beginning. You start small but the more you there because

Julian:                                   23:40                     I think that that is really cool. So you have the website so that you can, you know, having website is important because that’s where you’re going to be getting the direct bookings. But another important part of that is the blog and the blog is what you’re saying links to your Pinterest. So you’re, you’re pulling people from Pinterest based off of these posts and then it’s sending it to the blog and then from the blog people can see like, Oh, you’re in, you know, Spain or you’re in Washington DC and they can stay here, which is next to this restaurant is what you’re saying.

Natacha:                              24:12                     Yes, exactly. Yeah. Yeah.

Julian:                                   24:14                     That’s pretty interesting though because with Pinterest, like I don’t typically think of looking up food. Like if I’m thinking like I’m going to search food, I maybe look at like a like, like maybe a third party app like Yelp or I’ll just Google it. How does that have a relation to Pinterest?

Natacha:                              24:28                     Oh, well next time you look here you will probably see that when you put on Google, they’re not of the us for Google images. I would say a lot of the links are from Pinterest. So are you in also go to Pinterest? But you have to know. It really depends on the audience. The exam, I don’t remember exactly is the presentation but with numbers, but most of the people who are on Pinterest are women. So currently that’s also why Pinterest, but I can tell you that there’s loads of people are like using it daily for the things. And also if you have, which I recommend if you are okay switch, which is like weave around a theme or niche for instance, as I recommend that it’s a big initiative. Any like I know another person she’s doing it for skydivers, then it shows kind of diver on your looking for the best thing or the best places to skydiving. Then you will probably have a ward. So it’s like a folder interest where you will, you will have all those places where you can do skydiving and that’s how you, okay.

Julian:                                   25:39                     Okay. So if you wouldn’t mind giving an example like of of the skydiving. So how does a person’s website, so after they’ve changed their Facebook profile banner, they’ve created this website, just a basic website. They have a blog. How does a a home relates to skydiving relates to Pinterest, which relates to direct bookings.

Natacha:                              25:59                     [Inaudible] So this homes that I’m talking about in fact it’s one of the members of the group. I saw the Chesser, she’s on this mission. Permission will be soon an interview with me. She is locating very, very close to skydiving center as she noticed that most a lot of people are coming to a place in the go skydiving. So now she decided who focused on this, who stand out to attract more people who lifestyle skydiving. So that’s why say like focus on what’s working. For instance here. Okay, I’m close to the beach. I’m close to the university so I’m also putting it in my listing cross using your usage at the beach and that’s how you will attract people. So if we come back to the skydiving, that’s they, she puts a skydiving website, URL address as a website. And if she has a blog, I don’t know, I didn’t check everything. But if she has a blog then I would recommend to do like the top seven a skydiving page in the Oh, things like this. And then she appears. Does it make no sense? No.

Julian:                                   27:04                     You know like with a blog, if you just put a blog out there, it’s, it’s difficult for people just to like click on that. Because there’s a lot of things that go into getting your blog ranked in Google. You know, if someone mentions blog and they have a high ranking, they’re going to go on top of you. Or if someone has advertisements on Google, it’ll go on top of you. But because if you’re using Pinterest, you’re saying if you use Pinterest your posts might automatically get bumped up towards the top because it has a lot more authority authority on the search engines. So your blog, which might not get a lot of views, how do you get your Pinterest posts? Like more recognized. That I guess is the thing because if a bunch of people are posting it, you have to stand out as well.

Natacha:                              27:44                     Yeah, you have to set out every, all the time and one you like. What I say, one way to stand out is we to target like one the one kind of people because of course like there are a lot of blogs and they are blogs about everything, but they might not be so many blogs about skydiving. So is that the more targeted you are in the keywords, then the easier, I truly, that’s why as well you have to put in your Pinterest account name keywords that you want. You have to create rules so that as they send on the folders, eh, weave those keywords that you own. [inaudible] Wow. Of course it’s easy if you only have one Airbnb out of 1000 but if you one Airbnb for skydivers Oh two not so many for 10 then it’s easier to send out. That’s that’s the goal.

Julian:                                   28:45                     Now. I really liked that. The, the Pinterest and I didn’t, I didn’t really think of it too, too much before you kinda brought it up. But the snowball effects, how do you get your Pinterest posts to really kind of start snowballing though? Because you can’t just post it [inaudible] 10 best skydiving places or whatever, and then just expect a bunch of people to start booking direct. So how do you, how do you even get your Pinterest posts recognized?

Natacha:                              29:08                     Well, you have to be member or you have the both, and then you have the groom bones, which could be associated. It’s very lady different, but let’s say it’s like the Facebook groups. You have to be members of the rice Facebook issue are for instance a vegan Airbnb, then the members of the groups on Facebook for vegans. It’s the same for skydiving. The same for everything, so you have to be members of the right groups or they have groups where people will repeating and repeating and repeating your place. So you are of course to check out your analytics, what group is working. That’s why I use the software [inaudible] we need automatic. I don’t have to every Google notes there and also the tribe that I was talking about, you are at the beginning, it was the short form. Your case is five is working. The trial is the same.

Natacha:                              30:03                     Yeah. It’s a feature of their where people are helping each other to repeat, so they find sense in those groups who have some their love, maybe 20,000 followers on Pinterest. If you get that person who is in that tribe ripping your thing, then it will be seen by 20,000 people potentially. Of course not everyone is looking at this course exactly, but there’s those tweaks like things though, working on the keywords beams arrived in group goals. Have your own board, well done and be in tribes. Tribes is late exhibits. For me, it’s really the best because they will answer more people are like the mall. It’s the same, you know? It’s a, they’re more like people like your feelings and the more you could be shared and the tribes we doing it for you, you know I will click on the, on my tailwind and I have 10 more repins.

Natacha:                              31:04                     Okay, so then do it for you. That’s why Pinterest, Pinterest is winning or difficult. You don’t spend time. What I do, I write are locals. Then I create the tours with for the blog posts. I will repeat them and then I will send to their wins. Okay. One important thing is when you’re paying them from already, from coming to your website though, you repeat them in the who’s the best balls. That is the most specific one so that Pinterest knows, okay, this picture is for this keyword and it should appear higher for this keyword. Then you can put it in in Google’s or boards that are not done specific, but the first one has to be very specific that he knows, okay that was this and then after that I just can eat. Once I did it once myself. Then I say you’re creating some groups and you say, okay, I want to send it to the group boards, which are specific to Airbnb people who like everything. Okay and then it will be scheduled for the next 10 days and they don’t do anything for the next 10 days. Then I have another post I do the same, so that’s the only thing and we need to do it from.

Julian:                                   32:19                     And then have you and other people that have been doing this, have you, have you been able to see like a return, like people have been more direct booking because of these more targeted keyword pens?

Natacha:                              32:29                     Yes, definitely, definitely. Of course right now. But the thing is Pinterest is automatic. As I said, almost nothing. Do the most still coming for me from Facebook because being in the right groups on Facebook is helping definitions. Both Pinterest is more to latte. Being on the Facebook groups take more time. You have to reply to check, so that’s two things, but after a why and really Pinterest is helping you to stay on top with all doing. That’s why you need to work on things at the beginning and then afterwards it’s a, it’s better, but it’s long term. It’s not a, Facebook is much more easy because okay, you post something which is very targeting on once a person is expecting them, they would go on, it will help, but you will need to be there to do it on Pinterest and Google after a month or for some months. Then it’s done by itself.

Julian:                                   33:32                     I liked that about Pinterest is what you’re saying is that you can very automate it. You know like what you’re saying with Facebook it’s only gonna last as long as you know it’s on someone newsfeed. Once it leaves their newsfeed, they don’t. They don’t see that anymore. But with Pinterest, if enough people, the longer it’s there it’s like the more like it’s doing and more and more pins and more shares and more it relates and you can have a constant stream of direct bookings coming potentially from a pen that you know, the longer it sits there though, the more it grows.

Natacha:                              34:03                     Yeah, yeah, exactly. Exactly. And then what time, talking about tailwinds, because they are a lot of boats and everything they read is official. It’s approved by Pinterest. So it’s not something that is enabled. It’s something that’s, it’s approves and anyone can use it. [inaudible]

Julian:                                   34:22                     So this is kind of what you would say is like the fundamental for someone that is just like brand new, just starting out. They just got their listing on Airbnb, but they’re, they don’t, they don’t want to just put all their eggs in one basket. Do you recommend, you know, changing your Facebook banner, start simple, start easy, let other people know. Then creating a website that allows you to direct book and then creating a blog post and then the strategy that you recommend with a blog post is finding things that are relatable to you in the common areas. So if, if I’m in DC, maybe I’ll mention like jazz nights or I mentioned like top restaurants near me or you know, places near my unit. And then lastly you says is what with those blog posts that you do create then pinning it on Pinterest and it kind of shares and grows that way.

Natacha:                              35:08                     Yeah, exactly. You’re not pinning your feelings a possible your opinions or pictures that you will create. It’s very easy. Like, I don’t know it should know Canva, but kind of say kind of as a new Photoshop but much easier. Like the first time you do it you will have to Louise and then afterwards you keep the same. Thankfully you just change what you’re writing. You just change the picture that you put in and then you put, I would recommend like three sweet pictures depending on the land for course of your cost, but sweet pictures, fair post. And then you, you do flame laces.

Julian:                                   35:47                     Now can you just like with Pinterest as a host, you know, people that are listening to this show you, you know that you have to have pictures that stand out. You have to have eye catching things, you have to have a description that is good and is catching you have to stand out, you have to be original. Is that also gonna have to relate in your blog posts and your Pinterest posts as well. Are you going to need like just these eye catching blog posts and really well-worded and described and do you also need like these really eye catching poppy Pinterest photos that are going to attract people as well?

Natacha:                              36:21                     Yes, of course. You need to have those eye catching pictures. You need to have those titles which are helping people to think, Oh yeah, I want to click on this. If you don’t know, there is a something which is called a King Sumo and [inaudible] helps you to have the right headlines and yeah. Afterwards. Also one change that I would recommend is like being personally rude to think about ranking and how to have everything eye catching but especially as the posts and what you want them. You want to attract people because of you as they come to your place. Of course it depends which kind of face you have. They want to come to your place because of you because they they want to know you right away. You are not fry on the for the Google search to find you. Yeah, of course you have to ride the hub. You have to have the right keywords into titles, into seven headings but then afterwards talk like you are because it will be easier for you and easier also for the person who is staying on the website.

Julian:                                   37:33                     Well great. Thank you so much Natacha for taking the time and educating the audience on Pinterest and starting and really, really great tips. If you are just starting off to get your property on different channels so that you are not just relying on a single OTA. I really appreciate that. Is there any way that anybody can reach in and touch? If they have any questions about Pinterest or marketing, indirect direct booking and expanding that.

Natacha:                              37:56                     Yes, for sure. I guess the best would be to just put my link in the description of your YouTube channel because as you know it’s a bit difficult to put my name, but my website is my name, so it’s not a shop on chair.com they can find me share without any problems.

Julian:                                   38:13                     Great. Well thank you so much. I’ll include everything in the description box and until next time, host nation. Keep on hosting.

Julian:                                   38:23                     Hope you hosts benefit from the show. If you found value, please go on over to iTunes, leave us a review and let us know what you enjoy about the show. If you’d like to talk to hosts that have been featured in these episodes as well as the community, go on over to our Facebook group, the host nation. Talk to you, host in the next episode keep on hosting.

 

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Episode #29 Success Secrets

1. Find out what’s working for you already and where you are getting your customers from.
2. Change your Facebook cover photo to highlight your website and short term rentals.
3. Use Pinterest to link images to your direct booking site to drive traffic.
4. Use Airbnb as a marketing channel to drive traffic for more direct bookings.
5. Find a niche to target customers and optimize your listing to relate.
6. Write your airbnb title and description for who your brand is for, not for just what google is looking for to rank.