How to manage your holiday rental remotely

April 2024

These days, managing holiday rentals remotely has become simple and accessible for anyone with internet access through mobile devices. Dive into this read and discover how you can easily manage your property remotely.

Holidu makes it easy for owners to remotely manage their holiday rentals, integrating software that maximises efficiency by providing specialised systems for promoting and managing holiday properties, thus optimising the time spent on work.

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Tools to optimise bookings

Firstly, it’s important to use trustworthy online booking platforms. Holidu, for example, offers wide visibility and facilitates the process for guests. Below, we’ll focus on some key tools to consider for optimising this process:

• Trust-building platforms: Provide wide visibility of your property to potential guests. For example, on Holidu, you only need to create a detailed profile and advertise the holiday home attractively but realistically. Similarly, high-quality photographs should be included, along with detailed descriptions of all spaces and highlighting all extra amenities such as gardens, pool, sauna, among others. This will help capture the attention of potential guests and increase booking possibilities.
• Real-time availability calendars: Use tools that automatically synchronise availability calendars in real-time, even if working simultaneously on different platforms. This avoids confusion, ensuring that guests see precise availability dates and thus avoid double bookings that may cause inconvenience.
• Secure booking system: Ensure that transactions are encrypted and comply with industry security standards. Also, consider European and national digital security regulations.

Automated communication

When renting out your holiday apartment with remote management, it’s essential to maintain constant communication with guests, conveying the assurance and peace of mind that they can contact you even if you’re not physically in the area. However, it’s advisable to have on-site managers who can intervene in cases of emergency, ensuring a smooth experience.

Moreover, during check-in, due to the distance, it’s even more important to provide a detailed guide on the services and amenities available in the property, helping guests feel fully informed and enjoy their stay to the fullest. This proactive approach strengthens the reputation and efficiency of remote management of your holiday rental.

Access and security management

Implementing quality software in holiday rentals for check-in and check-out is essential when working remotely. These solutions allow guests to access the property easily while maintaining security, whether through digital codes, electronically managed keys via a keybox, or even through advanced facial recognition systems.

This variety of options not only offers convenience to guests but also ensures effective and secure access control, thus enhancing the experience. Some examples of these practices include:

• Automated check-in: Use digital codes or electronic keys that allow guests to enter the property without the need for physical interaction with owners or managers.
• Electronic keybox: Implement electronic keyboxes at the entrance, where guests can physically collect securely stored keys via codes or mobile applications.
• Facial recognition systems: Implement advanced technologies that allow access to the property through facial recognition via cameras and codes, providing a unique and secure experience.
• Remote surveillance: Install security cameras connected to remote systems that allow real-time monitoring, providing peace of mind to both guests and owners.
• Alarm and emergency systems: Integrate automated alarms and emergency response systems, in collaboration with local managers, to address any unforeseen situations quickly.

Efficient energy management

Another important factor to consider when managing a holiday rental remotely is the implementation of remote energy consumption controls, allowing you to manage energy consumption. This allows for savings on bills by remotely controlling essential aspects of the property.

With this feature, owners can regulate energy consumption intelligently, adjusting lighting, temperature, and other devices remotely to reduce unnecessary energy consumption when the property is unoccupied. Some practical examples include:

• Automated lighting systems: Integrate motion sensors and timers to control lighting automatically, ensuring that lights only turn on when necessary.
• Smart thermostats: Allow owners to adjust the property’s temperature remotely, ensuring a comfortable environment for guests only when they are present.
• Appliance control: Implement connected devices that allow turning off or scheduling important appliances when the property is not in use, reducing unnecessary energy consumption.
• Solar energy systems: Integrate solar panels to harness renewable energy sources, decreasing dependence on the traditional electricity grid.

Cleaning and maintenance management

In the post-COVID-19 context, some regions have permanently implemented new regulations that affect remote management in renting out your holiday home. It’s essential to coordinate cleaning services, especially after check-outs, to ensure compliance with these regulations and guarantee a sanitary environment for incoming guests.

Some aspects of this regulation include meticulous disinfection of the property, replacement of essential supplies, and any necessary maintenance to provide guests with a flawless experience.

• Advanced protocols: Establish detailed cleaning protocols with key surface disinfection, washing bed linen and towels at high temperatures, and cleaning high-touch areas.
• Preventive maintenance: Implement preventive maintenance programs to address minor issues before they become major problems.
• Supply of essential items: Ensure that the property is stocked with essential supplies, such as toilet paper, soap, and cleaning products, to ensure that guests have everything they need during their stay.
• Collaboration with local services: Establish agreements with local cleaning and maintenance companies, facilitating a quick response to any issues.

Optimisation with specialised applications

When deciding to offer your property outside of conventional holiday rental websites, it’s advisable to incorporate tools for efficient management. Hootsuite presents itself as an ideal solution for managing profiles on social networks, offering a range of benefits that contribute to an effective digital presence.

Hootsuite

• Content scheduling: Allows scheduling of posts across various platforms, optimizing management time and ensuring a consistent presence on social media.
• Centralised management: Manages multiple social profiles on the platform, simplifying monitoring and interaction with users.
• Results analysis: Provides analytical tools to evaluate the performance of posts, facilitating decision-making in marketing strategies.
• Dashboard: Offers an easy-to-use control panel that allows editing your ads from a single place.
• Creation of templates with scheduled responses: Saves time by responding to your followers with scheduled message templates.

Advantages of using a channel manager

Channel managers, like Holidu, are programs used in the tourism sector to manage listings on online platforms. This tool has become very important for managers and hosts, providing various benefits:

• Automated work: Every modification of rates, calendars, and availability will be done solely through the channel. All information is entered through this means, and the software takes care of sending the data to each platform.
• Single interface: The channel manager memorises your usernames and passwords on the platforms to be used. This makes it easier to manage your properties in one space.
• Reduced margin of error: Since it’s not repetitive work when managing properties. You only need to worry about the functioning of the channel.
• Revenue increase: Thanks to good, fast, and simple attention, you’ll get excellent ratings, increasing your client portfolio through satisfied guest reviews. Also, it increases your visibility as a property manager.
• Avoidance of overbooking: Double booking is one of the most common problems when working individually. If you receive multiple bookings, it’s possible to make mistakes on one of the platforms when updating the availability calendar.
• Time-saving: Investing in more efficient management. Being a channel that works automatically, there’s no need to understand every process on the platforms, saving you a lot of time to invest in other areas.

Some of these channel managers are available as mobile applications and will send you a notification for each reservation that is made. Additionally, some even allow you to close the reservation through the same channel.

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