Last week I sat down to lunch with some new friends that manage nearly 80 vacation rentals in my home town. I have watched their business grow over the last few years and consider them to be a formidable competitor. We had a great time chatting about the vacation rentals industry, trends, challenges and actually found common ground on many issues.

In the course of our conversations we discovered that we really ran on the same track. We worked pretty much the same leads, competed for the same key words and long tail phrases on the search engines, advertised on many of the same vacation rentals websites and watched each others websites for updates and interesting information. We even talked about guests that we both had good and bad experiences with. We had actually helped each other (without knowing) with guests who needed to relocate due to unexpected conditions or who needed to change residences mid term.

I have to say that it was quiet refreshing to talk with people that can relate to the day to day activities of a vacation homeowner and property manager. It enabled us to put a face with the name and created a comfort level for me. I left the meeting feeling that we established a new friendship. I now feel very comfortable referring prospective visitors to them when we are booked up or just do not have a property that will suit their needs.

I have been reading a new vacation rentals blog called FlipKey. Recent interviews with vacation rental managers have been particulary interesting and again help to put things in perspective. Be sure to check out their blog entries about Twiddy & Company; a family owned property management company representing over 770 properties in the Outer Banks region of North Carolina and Seaside Vacation Rentals located in southern Maine. TJ Mahony has some great insights on the vacation rental market.

So if you have been eyeing your competitors from afar, maybe it’s time you just pick up the phone or send a quick email and make contact. It’s a Small Vacation Rental World After All. Get out there and network with fellow owners and managers. I think you will find it beneficial and refreshing!

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