Don't Let November Crash Break You

GM. This is the Hosts Toast, your sidekick for everything STR.

The Robin to your Batman. The milk to your Oreos. The Siri to your questions.

“Hey Siri, what’s going in Property today?":

Is it just me or is November the worst month as an SA Host? It just feels like this month I cant even buy bookings but then I know that all of a sudden December will be back to normal!

Feels like November is a good month to try and get those extra bookings … check out the tip below for what I’m trying

📰 Interesting News from the Property World

Check Out the Worlds Most Expensive Hotel Suite …

Content creator Alanna Panday, who is also the cousin of Bollywood actor Ananya Panday, shared a video of the most expensive hotel suite in the world. In an Instagram reel, she took her followers on a tour of the spectacular room at Atlantis The Royal located in Dubai and showcased the property's rooms, pool deck, office, library, and conference room. Notably, a one-night stay at the ''ultra-luxury experiential resort'', costs $100,000 (Rs 83 lakh approx.)

The ultra-modern two-level four-bedroom white and gold-hued penthouse named 'The Royal Mansion' comes with a private foyer, 12-seat dining room, entertainment room, swimming pool, and private terraces overlooking Dubai's sweeping skyline.

Sharing the video, Ms Panday wrote, ''Tour of the most expensive hotel suite in the world. $100,000 a night gets you 4 Bedrooms, 4 Bathrooms with steam rooms, 12-Seat dining room/ Conference Room, Indoor and Outdoor kitchens, Movie theatre, Office/Library, Private bar and Game room, 10-seat Arabian-style sunken majlis, Temperature-controlled infinity pool, Private deck with 360-degree views.''

💡 Tips and Advice/Things not to do

Try Boosting November bookings with a FREE Giveaway

Running a competition for a free weekend stay at your Airbnb property in November where entry is just providing an email address:

1. Boost Off-Season Bookings: November is typically a quieter month for bookings in many locations. Offering a free stay can generate interest and excitement about your property during this slower period. This strategy can lead to increased visibility and potentially more bookings from participants who didn't win but are still interested in staying at your property.

2. Email Marketing Opportunities: Collecting email addresses from guests allows you to build a direct line of communication. This can be an effective marketing tool to keep past and potential guests informed about promotions, updates, or special offers. It's important to ensure that this process complies with privacy laws and regulations, such as GDPR in Europe, which require explicit consent for email marketing.

3. Guest Engagement and Loyalty: Running a competition can foster a sense of community and engagement among your guests. It can also encourage repeat bookings and loyalty, as past guests might feel more connected to your property and inclined to return.

4. Social Media Exposure: Competitions like this can encourage social media sharing, which can further increase the visibility of your property. You could encourage participants to share the competition on their social media profiles, leading to organic marketing and potentially attracting a broader audience.

5. Gathering Feedback and Improving Services: By engaging with guests through email and the competition, you can gather valuable feedback about your property and services. This feedback can be used to make improvements and tailor your offerings to better meet the needs and preferences of your guests.

6. Creating a Database for Future Promotions: Once you have a database of email addresses, you can use it for future marketing campaigns, updates, or special offers, keeping your property top-of-mind for past and potential guests.

I’m giving this a go by running the competition through a lot of local businesses to raise awareness and build goodwill with them too … I’ll let you know the results

🤔 Weekly Review and Lessons

For me this week has been about keeping track of the numbers and then planning ahead.

To renew my valuation with the Business Rates team I had to provide 2 years of numbers, and this forced me to focus on them for a morning.

There were many lessons in doing this exercise but a few of the lessons I learnt and I will plan for ahead of time are:

1. February is not as bad as I thought actually

2. December is not as good as I thought generally

3. November is a killer

4. This August was a record

I’ve started using PriceLabs to track my nightly prices too so the last 6 months are more optimized than the previous figures which i will keep an eye on