Maximizing performance is no longer an option these days. Here are pointers to make the most out of your listing on Surf to Ski Retreats.com.

Remember: YES YOU CAN have a significant impact on the success of your listing just by following a few simple guidelines.

Understand Search Engines: We all know how to search the web but did you create your listing with search engines in mind? The content in your listing affects your listing’s performance notably. Having more content in your listing will generally increase you listings ranking in search engine results. Even if renters don’t read all the info, search engines always read every word and rank your listing accordingly. Be sure to write with search engines in mind. Don’t be worried about too much information, just keep it well organized. For example- If your property is near Disney World then then more you write about Disney World the better ranking your listing will have against other properties when vacationers search using “Disney World” as part of that search.

Listing Title: The listing title is your headline. There is usually a specific reason vacationers pick your property. Price? Location? Amenities? The listing title is your first chance to let vacationers know why they want to stay at your place. Some examples: “Special Price - 5th Night FREE”, “Pet Friendly”, “Walk to the Beach”, “Washer and Dryer”, “Perfectly Private”, “Last Minute Specials” also if you are part of a popular resort you may wish to use the name in your headline for vacationers to easily identify “Prince Resort #1254, Near the Pool”. The key is to know what keywords vacationers are using in searches and then take advantage of that knowledge when creating your headline. Remember on Surf to Ski Retreats.com you have 45 Characters available to use in your listing title. Put them to good use.

Photos: Generally the more photos the better. Renters feel more secure about renting a place when they feel like the have a solid understanding of the unit and surroundings. Photos should be:

1. Accurate- (don’t use pictures from 2007) Using out-dated or misleading photos doesn’t help in the long run. Successful VR owners rely on repeat customers to lower costs and any dishonesty will come back to haunt you.
2. Clear and Well Lighted- Take the extra effort and use lights if needed. Blurry photos make a poor impression
3. Informative- Photos of the inside should include each room and you should include at least one picture from the curb or exterior. Photos also reinforce your written description and help your property stick in the potential renter’s mind.
4. Eye Catching- Pictures of the view and pictures of near by activities. Help the potential renter feel like they are already there enjoying their vacation.

Short Description: The short description is displayed in search results and at the top of your listing. Highlight the most important features about your rental and your service. It is not necessary to list # of beds or other generic info as already display in most cases. If your property is weak on distinguished characteristics it may be more valuable to list what services your offer like: excellent short notice cancellation and refund policy, 24/7 emergency contact, itinerary consulting, discounts on local entertainment/service/food and other non-property related items.

Manage Contacts/Inquiries: For every booking there is alway 10-30 that don’t pan out. Each inquiry has value even if it doesn’t turn into a booking. What do you do with those contacts? Toss them in the trash? Save every contact, take notes and measure every inquiry. If they don’t book, why? Down the road you will have a list of contacts to use to take proactive steps to increase bookings. Also when you measure your inquires it will help with determining your marketing plan.

Act Quickly: First come, first served; the early bird gets the worm and so on. Be the first to get back to your inquiry. It shows prompt service and makes a great first impression. In many cases a renter will contact several places and book the first that replies back, especially in competitive markets that have very similar properties.

Testimonials: Testimonials have a strong psychological affect on renters. If they see a very happy and satisfied customer they will be less hesitant to rent and makes you appear established. They may also highlight and reinforce key features of your property and service. It also puts you listing in our reviews section which increases your visibility on our site.

Blog: Send us an article about your area, property, business or whatever else is relevant and be sure to include some pictures. We will post it on the blog, link to your listing(s) and link to your companies website. This is a free and easy way to increase visibility. email blog posts to: brian at surftoskiretreats dot com.

Share/Network: The action menu in the right column contains the share button. If you’re a member of myspace.com, facebook.com, twitter.com, digg.com or any of the hosts of other networking sites you can easily share your listing to those websites. Ask friends and customers to share your listing. If you don’t have accounts with these websites, they are free and it usually take less than five minutes to create an account.

Tweak and Revise: Making small changes to your listing and then measure the results. Just change your listing title for a couple months. What is the result? Refining your listing may help you find that advantage you’ve been looking for.

I wish y’all success. If you have any questions about maximizing your listing feel free to contact me.

If you have tips you’d like to share please comment below.

Thanks,

Brian

Portland Japanese Garden

The one of the things I hear people say who have not visited Oregon before is “Oh, you’re from Oregon, I hear it is a beautiful state and very green.”  and always reply “yes it is, it is a beautiful place to live”  but those of us from here know that Oregon is not only green it is blue, red, pink, orange, purple and a host of other colors.  I love gardens and Oregon has some of the best private and public gardens I have ever seen.  The gardens that I always try and bring visitors to are: the Oregon Garden in Silverton,  the Portland Japanese Garden and the Portland International Rose Test Garden.  Let me tell you a little about each garden and what makes them unique and noteworthy.

Oregon Garden

The Oregon Garden is unique in several ways.  It features 20 specialty gardens on 80 acres of well manicured grounds.  The Oregon gardens has more than flowers which are worth the trip alone but the conifer garden, the largest collection of dwarf and miniture conifers and  market place garden displaying many of the over 146 crops produced in Oregon.  There is also an amazing water garden and many other specialty gardens that you must see. (learn more at www.oregongarden.org)

The Portland International Rose Garden is a must see when visiting Portland.  The garden is one of a kind and has a rich history.  Founded in 1917, it is the oldest garden of its kind.  During the first world war roses and other plants from Europe were sent for safe keeping.  The garden boasts over 550 varieties and contains over 10,000 plants.  And last but not least is the spectacular view of Portland from the garden.  There is no entry fee to visit the garden although donations are strongly encouraged and parking is free.  (learn more at www.rosegardenstore.org)

Portland Intl Rose Garden

My third got to see garden is the Portland Japanese Garden, which is right next door to the Portland International Rose Garden.  The five gardens that make up the Japanese Garden are astoundingly well taken care of.  I found the whole garden very peaceful and a great place to reflect about things.  The Japanese garden is more than just plants though.  The ponds, statues and structures all add to the wonder of the place.  (learn more at www.japanesegarden.com)

I could write a lot more but these gardens have to must be seen in person to truly understand how unique and beautiful they are.

Thanks,

Brian Rice
Surf to Ski Retreats.com

We very much dislike going to websites cluttered with ads that have nothing to do with the website they are posted on, and we’ve heard from lots of other people who find this practice distracting too. We at Surf to Ski Retreats are very picky about the partnerships we create and the ads we publish. To that end, we look to ensure that the companies we work with have something to do with either travel, or will help our users and guests during their vacation, or for running their business. As you probably know, we are a Business to Business to Consumer website. This means we (a Business) work with other Businesses (vacation rental owners and managers) and in turn we attract Consumers (renters and travelers) to our website to find and book vacation rentals.

With all that said, you’ll find products and services that will help you get ready for a trip while at the same time save you money.

• Flights (You may need to fly to your vacation destination)
• Car Rentals (Once you get there, you’ll need a car)
• Luggage (Get new bags or replace the old ones)
• Outdoor Gear (From snorkel to ski gear, we have you covered)
• Foot Wear (While on vacation you’ll be walking a lot and need sandals, walking shoes, boots & more)
• Golf Equipment (Fill the holes in your bag before your next golf vacation)
• Business Services (Office services that will help our Business customers)
• Home Decor (Vacation Rentals need furnishings!)

Shop with confidence in the merchants that are listed on Surf to Ski Retreats!

Are you a merchant that wants to advertise with us? Contact us and let us know.

–

Michael

Surf to Ski Retreats - Vacation Rentals For Every Season

Every trip or vacation you take involves getting somewhere or needing something before or while you’re there.

We are pleased to help all our website users and guests in finding the right airfare ticket prices, new luggage, that perfect pair of walking shoes (for your long beach walks), skiing and winter gear (for your next ski vacation), that missing golf club (and ever important distance golf balls) as well as other very important items and services that will simply make your next vacation more enjoyable.

Look for their ads on our website and visit these online merchants to help you save money! Click any of the banner ads below to be taken directly to the merchant’s website and start shopping.

FLIGHTS
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CheapOair.com is a leading provider of airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages and cruises through its extensive partnerships with top travel brands and a wide breadth of inventory.

CheapOair is comprised of dedicated travel professionals, each with over 25 years in consumer travel and tourism. Together, they shape the vision of CheapOair, to provide a wide selection of travel products and services for today’s web savvy traveler.


Travelocity is a “one-stop shop” for customers looking to purchase travel.

Created by co-founders of Orbitz, Travelocity and Expedia, Kayak.com is a search engine that helps consumers find great travel deals from over 120 other travel sites.

LUGGAGE
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Luggage Online carries top brand names in luggage, briefcases, computer cases, travel accessories and business accessories. Our customer service is second to none - with all orders shipping within 48 hours, and FREE SHIPPING on orders over $99!

OUTDOOR GEAR & EQUIPMENT
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Inspiring outdoor enthusiasts to Never Stop Exploring, The North Face has been the home of innovative, technically advanced apparel, footwear, and equipment for 40 years.

Mountain Gear has outdoor clothing, gear, and accessories to take you anywhere.

eSportsonline sells over 10,000 Sporting Goods & Games. We equip every sport…baseball, basketball, football, soccer and more. Top brands like Nike, Reebok, Wilson, Rawlings and much more!

TravelCountry.com is one outdoor adventure store that still believes in customer service. Outfitting outdoor enthusiasts with the best gear and expert advice for hiking, kayaking, backpacking, camping, climbing, skiing and traveling (where there are no roads) since 1982. When you call or email a TravelCountry team member, you can rest assured that person loves the outdoors as much as you do. TravelCountry offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee, FREE SHIPPING and will match any advertised price.

GOLF EQUIPMENT
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Simply stated: GigaGolf strives to design, manufacture and sell the best golf equipment money can buy. Our direct to the customer business model save time, money and allows for a higher degree of customization.

Shop Knetgolf.com - Home of the Half Price Golf Ball & Over 100,000 Satisified Customers.
Since 1995, Knetgolf.com has been the industry leader in bringing golfers,of all abilities, great deals on every brand and style of golf ball available. In the last few years we have been working hard to add more and more products to our website that will offer golfers amazing value on products ranging from clubs to cart to gloves and more!

FOOT WEAR
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BuyAndWalk.com is the web’s most reliable source for any footwear needs. We are an online shoe retailer which suppliying footwear for women, men and kids. We have some awesome prices for the top brands, free express shipping and other valuable services that makes BuyAndWalk.com a reliable and quality footwear source.

Our goal is to make your shopping experience as easy, enjoyable, and convenient as possible, so we start by offering you Free Shipping on every order and a “Free Returns” Satisfaction Guarantee. Next, we’ve organized our website to make it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for and provide four ways - online, phone, mail-in, fax- for you to order. We want your shopping experience on ShoeTrader.com to exceed your expectations in every way.

AT HOME OR ON VACATION
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Take your audio books on the road with you. Simply Audiobooks has over 22,000 titles for rent, with free shipping, no due dates, and absolutely no late fees!

Simply Audiobooks now offers download as another means of getting your audio books! Just recently added to the list of Simply Audiobooks products, downloads can be purchased on a monthly basis similar to the rental club, or individually.

Offering high-quality, innovative merchandise from top direct marketers and manufacturers through its SkyMall catalog and web site, skymall.com. The SkyMall catalog is seen by approximately 88% of all domestic air passengers reaching more than 650 million air travelers annually.

SIRIUS is changing the way people listen to music, sports, news, and entertainment. Operating from its corporate headquarters in New York City’s Rockefeller Center, SIRIUS broadcasts over 130 digital-quality channels, including 69 channels of 100% commercial-free music, plus exclusive channels of sports, news, talk, entertainment, traffic, weather and data.

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Enjoy shopping at these fine and well respected merchants! We’ll post more merchants for you to shop with as we grow our partnership base.

As either a property manager or individual property owner there are several things you should be doing on a regular basis to ensure you’re doing everything you can to increase your bookings and revenue. Being vigilant and diligent is key to capturing more bookings.

List All Your Rentals

A frequent mistake that many managers make is to list a small number of rentals online. Each vacation rental is unique so having a subset of your rentals online really limits the number of inquiries and bookings. Don’t expect that because you have your top performing rentals online that people who are interested in those will want something else. You will lose bookings. You should also list your rentals on several sites. The bottom line is that you want to cast a wide net so you catch the most number of renters!

Rapid Response

The #1 activity you need to stay on top of is rapidly responding to renter inquiries. Whether its by phone or email, if you are not responding to potential renters you’ll never get bookings. You also need to respond in a timely manner. Many renters are looking at more than one property and you could lose a booking because someone else was faster at responding to a renter than you. In this day and age, it is highly recommended you carry a Blackberry, iPhone or Palm so you can email renters back even when you’re out and about.

Make sure to keep your contact information (phone and email) updated. If you change your phone number, go to your listings and change it otherwise you’re missing out on bookings you never knew you had coming.

Calendars

Most renters look at your rental’s availability before they will contact you so make sure it is updated on a regular basis. There are web based calendars and tools you can use so you don’t need to update dozens of calendars. And of course, Surf to Ski Retreats allows you to embed a web based calendar into your listing! Keep your calendar up to date. If you’re getting inquires for a rental that is not available, you’re wasting your time and the potential renters.

Pictures

There’s nothing more important than showing renters what the vacation rental looks like and it’s critical to include pictures of both the inside and outside of the vacation rental, even if it’s a condo, house or townhouse. As the decor changes, take new pictures. Renters will be disappointed if they arrive and find the vacation rental does not match what they saw online.

Publish Your Rates

Many owners don’t want to publish rates but that’s a big mistake. Renters have a budget when they are looking for their next vacation rental and they are not about to send off dozens of inquiries to see if that “perfect” rental is affordable to them. Keep your rates updated when they change. Renters don’t like surprises and when they see one rate and are given a higher rate, you’ll lose them right there.

Policies

With the current economic situation we are seeing more and more renters asking about cancellation and deposit policies. When two or more couple get together to go on vacation together and one pulls out it generally means they need to cancel the entire vacation. Publish these policies so renters feel more comfortable renting from you as they know what they are getting into and how they can get out. We always recommend to renters that they purchase travel insurance, but they don’t always do.

Conclusion

All these items might seem simple, but so many owners and manager fail to execute them and miss out on thousands of dollars in revenue. Just remember to post all the information about your rental, frequently update it and immediately respond your renter inquiries. These 3 items will help you increase your rental booking and revenue!

–

Michael

Surf to Ski Retreats - Vacation Rentals For Every Season

If you’re looking to stay in a quiet, well situated condo complex in Kailua-Kona, you won’t go wrong staying at Casa de Emdeko. Last year I stayed in this complex and simply loved the location, amenities and views!

Located right on the oceanside of Ali’i Drive, this complex is only a 15 minutes walk into Kona town. It’s a central location that is both close to town and to the many beaches along Ali’i Drive. (it’s also a short walk to the market). There is a small business front that has a marketplace to get a bite to eat or drink.

The amenities at Casa de Emdeko are good. There is a wonderful common area that has 3 gas BBQ’s, lots of tables, chairs and umbrellas along with a cabana that allows you to host a small party. There are 2 swimming pools - one freshwater and one salt water pool. The salt water pool is located right at the ocean’s edge and is fantastic to float, or swim in. The complex also has a man made private beach area complete with beach chairs and palm trees - located next to the pool and on the oceanside. There’s an on site manager and laundry facility with plenty of coin operated washers and dryers. This is a 2 story complex and there is an elevator for those who need one.

Whale watching from the sea wall is popular and you can often see breeching humpback whales. Many residents and vacations sit on the wall and watch the sunset, marine life and cruise ships go by.

Most condos have an ocean view (several are oceanfront) and the entire complex is right on the ocean so no matter what condo you rent you’ll be able to hear the ocean break on the sea wall. If you want a great ocean view, it’s recommended to be on the second floor. The grounds are well kept and there are plenty of palms, plants and birds.

This complex is perfect for anyone on a budget, those looking to relax and sit by the pool or those wanting a central location to head out and fill their day with local activities.

Find and rent a Casa de Emdeko vacation rental!

Sunset from the sea wall at Casa de Emdeko.

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Michael

Surf to Ski Retreats - Vacation Rentals For Every Season

Ready for your next Ski vacation? Ski vacations are fun and exciting but they need a little planning in terms of packing. Here are some of the tips to help you with your packing:

Ski Clothing – For the slopes, you need layering of clothes, head and hand coverings for the cold elements. If you pack your ski wear in the order that you wear them, chances are you won’t forget anything important. Start with the base layer (your long underwear bottoms). Then pack your mid layer (spandex pants/long johns and a sweater or turtleneck). Follow it with an insulating layer (a fleece jacket), and then make sure to pack your Ski parka/jacket and ski pants. Packing depends on the length of your ski getaway but typically one base layer and one mid- layer for every two days should be fine.

Ski accessories – Make sure you pack your ski socks - at least three pairs, winter hat that covers the ears, Ski gloves (2 pairs), Ski/board boots and Ski goggles with UV protection. Also, don’t forget important items like sunscreen, sunglasses, lip balm and skin lotion to protect your eyes and skin from UV rays.

Ski equipment - Most major ski resorts rent equipment like skis, ski poles, boots and helmets etc. You should consider renting these instead of packing and flying your own equipment in special ski bags – renting equipment is usually cheaper and hassle free.

Besides all the Ski essentials, you need to pack casual warm clothing (like regular socks, sweatshirts, jeans) when you’re not hitting the slopes. Walking boots are also a must to stay warm and prevent slipping on melting snow/slush. Also, bring plastic bags to pack wet clothing in the suitcase on your way back home.

While this is a ski vacation, don’t forget to pack the regular everyday items – camera with extra batteries, grooming items, medications, Toothbrush/toothpaste, your kids favorite toy and blanket (for that extra peace of mind ☺)

Check out this page to find some great vacation rentals for your next ski holiday.

Harshleen

Surf to Ski Retreats - Vacation Rentals For Every Season

Surf to Ski Retreats is pleased to announce a new partnership with a great company that has the same philosophies we do!

eCom Merchant Solutions provides turnkey credit card processing for both Internet and traditional “brick & mortar” businesses. eCom has doing business for over 11 years and currently services thousands of clients. Best of all, they have a large portfolio of vacation rental owners and management companies that they service.

We have partnered with eCom to help you cut your credit card processing costs (regardless of what industry you’re in). When you go into business, you want to make as much money as possible and eCom will help you lower your overall credit card processing costs while retaining the same level of service you currently give your customers.

Start by contacting eCom through our website. This way you’ll work exclusively with Jennifer at eCom. She is very good at her job and she’s been assigned to all our referrals. Anytime you have a question or need help, Jennifer will be there for you. No call centers, no bouncing between operators. If you currently process credit cards and want to see how eCom can save you money you will have to send them 3 months of statements. eCom will customize the rates & fees and create a specialized package for you based on the types of credit cards your customers use. Some companies process lots of personal cards, or primarily business cards, or travel rewards, or.. get the idea?! No company can give you a “rock bottom” rate without first knowing your history. Each type of credit card has different rates and eCom will put together a proposal that saves you $$$. We trust eCom and so should you. They are one of the largest processors!

Whether you’re a new business or an existing business, eCom will help you with the lowest credit card processing costs.

• 11 Years of Happy Customers
• Lowest Credit Card Processing Rates
• Personalized Service
• Easy & No Hassle Analysis

We want you to save money and to learn more about eCom. Visit our eCom partnership page to have Jennifer call you. There are no strings and no catches - just save money!! You’ll be set up, or switched over, within 24 hours.

–

Michael

Surf to Ski Retreats - Vacation Rentals For Every Season