Thanks For Visiting

Latest Episodes:

Vacation Ventures 002. Creative Deal Structuring with Bill Cook (Success Unlocked S1) Oct 18, 2023

Show notes

Welcome back to Success Unlocked, where our hosting business master membership coaches discuss operations, social media, unique builds, co-hosting strategies, and so much more. This week’s episode is Vacation Ventures, hosted by Michael Hicks, an STR host and creative builder with over twenty years of experience.

Mike talks to Bill Cook, an accomplished expert in real estate investing, to shed light on his iron-clad private funding techniques rooted in human connection and hard work. His story starts in a cinematically familiar place – excelling as a door-to-door vacuum salesman in the 1980s.

The two swap stories of early inspiration and overcoming nay-sayers on their way to building unique and fulfilling careers in the rental space, going into deep detail on strategies which have proven out as effective, decade after decade.

Resources:

Visit thanksforvisiting.com/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!
Website: billandkimcook.com
Instagram: @findyourrepurpose
TikTok: @findyourrepurpose
Instagram: @wanderchatt
Website: wanderchatt.com

WIN $100k IN CASH PRIZES | There’s a powerful why behind your business. The reason you keep up the hustle, inspire your team and trudge through the tough times. From now until November 12th, our partners at Relay are asking you to share your why with them.

To compete for the Grand Prize, submit your entry here and complete all of the application steps before the deadline of November 12, 2023. To be eligible, you’ll also need to open a Relay account, as this step will help Relay verify your business. Learn more here. No purchase is necessary. Terms and conditions apply.

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

298. Hosting Hotline: Taylor Swift Is Coming to Town! Strategizing Your STR for Marquee Events Oct 17, 2023

Show notes

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.

Steph asks:

My question revolves around events like Taylor Swift coming to your city. She's coming to Indianapolis for three nights, November 1st, and tickets go on sale very soon. We are a five minute drive from where she will be performing. We're using PriceLabs for dynamic pricing and I don't feel like the pricing is accurate quite yet, as I am seeing similar homes listed for anywhere from $500 to $1,400 per night.

Do you open up your calendar this far in advance? How do you determine pricing? Should we have a booking minimum? Just curious to hear what you recommend or how to handle those situations in the future.

Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit hostinghotline.com.

Resources:

Visit thanksforvisiting.com/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

297. Build Relationships & Solve Problems: Breaking Into Mid-Term Rentals Oct 12, 2023

Show notes

Hello and welcome to another great episode of Thanks For Visiting. Today’s expert guest, Jesse Vasquez, draws from his knowledge, experience, and passion for the emerging business opportunity in the mid-term rental market when mentoring hundreds of real estate investors, homeowners, and STR enthusiasts. He left his high-earning 6-Figure W2 Healthcare Sales Management career last year to go all-in with AirVenture Hosting and AirVenture Academy.

Based in Central Valley, California, he found his niche in operating unique rental homes specifically for traveling healthcare professionals. With solid foundations, ongoing process improvements, and a team now rallying behind him what started from two homes in 2020, he now has a growing owned and co-hosted portfolio of over twenty property listings all over California and Texas.

We hear how a sweet nurse named Barbera changed his life forever, putting him on a course to specialize in serving nurses and doctors in the mid-term rental space. We also set the stakes on what a mid-term rental is and how to best operate one, or more, for sustained profitability.

And get your notes out for today’s actionable theme – how Jesse identifies, connects with, and contracts with agencies and organizations (at higher rates) in need of the unique services he provides. It’s a masterclass in business best practices – find a niche and nail it.

Resources:

• Visit thanksforvisiting.com/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!

• Instagram: @therealjessevasquez

• YouTube: Jesse Vasquez

• #STRShareSunday: @trahlyta_cabin

• Masterclass: Accelerated MTR Blueprint Masterclass

• Jesse on Bigger Pockets: $1M/Year with 9 Rental Properties by Cracking the Travel Nurse Code

• Read: Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara

WIN $100k IN CASH PRIZES | There’s a powerful why behind your business. The reason you keep up the hustle, inspire your team and trudge through the tough times. From now until November 12th, our partners at Relay are asking you to share your why with them.

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Relay | Go to https://relayfi.com/?referralcode=ThanksForVisiting for your FREE business banking account.

Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

Co-Hosting Confidential 001. Aces in Their Places: Tips for Team Building (Success Unlocked Season 1) Oct 11, 2023

Show notes

Today, Amy chats with two important members of her All Belong Co. team – Lisa who is head of hospitality (AKA Conductor of the Symphony), and Micah, who’s the resident hospitality assistant (AKA The Inspector).

Lisa explains how they developed the special details which now make All Belong Co.’s thirty listings stand out among other listings, rapidly scaling the company in her first year on the job, and growing a team of like-minded guest-centric team members.

Micah walks us through her journey from being a solo host to helping operate such a large portfolio, the value of maintaining boundaries with respect to being on call, and the unique challenges that come with managing properties from a distance.

Resources:

• Visit thanksforvisiting.com/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!

• Website: allbelong.co

• Instagram: @allbelong.co

• Tik Tok: @allbelongco

• Facebook: allbelong.co

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

296. Hosting Hotline: Informing Guests of Construction At Your Airbnb Oct 10, 2023

Show notes

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.

Elaine asks:

We are getting ready to build our first short-term rental. We have one short-term rental as of now. But this is a new build, and it's on the back side of our five acres. I want to make sure that guests are aware that there may be some construction going on. Do you have any ideas or suggestions on wording to send to people that are planning to book the active listing?

Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit hostinghotline.com.

Resources:

• Visit thanksforvisiting.com/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

295. ChatGPT X Airbnb? Learn How To Utilize AI in Your STR Business Oct 05, 2023

Show notes

Hello and welcome to another episode of Thanks for Visiting. Our guest today, Amy Tang, is the founder and CEO of Folio, a platform used by professional hosts to create sleek digital guides that share rental information and local recommendations with guests.

Before jumping into the hospitality space, she spent 5 years as a management consultant specializing in data science solutions, building AI-enabled tools for large Fortune 500 companies – so she’s the perfect dual-informed expert for us to learn from on this complicated subject.

We talk to Amy about what AI is and how far it’s come in the last ten years, how we can leverage it while operating STR businesses, recommendation engines and how they can improve guest experience, what AI tools we’re already using (think, dynamic pricing and iMessage), and what the future holds for AI-enabled rentals.

Her company, Folio, is filling this gap in the market – modernizing the way professional hosts run their businesses, starting by helping them deliver an exceptional guest experience. Hosts can create digital guides to proactively share information and offer additional services to guests, saving hosts time and making it easy for them to earn additional revenue. Get Folio today – use the code TFVFAM for 2 free months.

Resources:

• #STRShareSunday: @lakeviewlodgeny

• Get Folio today: Use the code TFVFAM for 2 free months

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

Relay | Go to https://relayfi.com/?referralcode=ThanksForVisiting for your FREE business banking account.

Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.

Systems Shakedown 001. Secrets of Bachelorette Party Houses (Success Unlocked Season 1) Oct 04, 2023

Show notes

On today's episode, Wendy speaks with Carissa Vivirito and Nicole Zopolos, successful realtors and Airbnb entrepreneurs based in Scottsdale, Arizona. They have become experts in transforming regular homes into wildly popular, Instagram-worthy bachelorette party houses.

We hear how they strategically design, furnish, and manage glittering short-term rentals to attract their target guests, maximize bookings, and minimize problems.

About Wendy:

Wendy Doris supports a property management operation in Scottsdale, Arizona. With 10+ years of experience in the short-term rental space Wendy has had a tremendous amount of success in establishing efficient systems. By personally developing every aspect of her business model, she has created seamless operations to allow her the opportunity to focus on increasing revenue and profits. Specifically, Wendy has perfected the design of her listings. This isn’t limited to physical design in the space. She has studied listing design to optimize booking results. Wendy is a beloved coach in the Thanks for Visiting mastermind, Hosting Business Mastery Membership where she provides support fellow hosts.

Resources:

• The Pink Cactus: @pinkcactus.az

• Carissa Vivirito: @carissaviv

• Nicole Patton Zopolos: @nicolezbnb

• Website: https://mostess.host

• Instagram: @mostess.host

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

294. Hosting Hotline: Tips on Collaborating With a Stubborn Property Manager Oct 03, 2023

Show notes

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.

A listener asks:

I have a rental manager that's taking care of all the rentals for our studio condo and it seems like we're getting a few lower reviews because of things that maybe she could have done a better job communicating about. How do you handle a situation like this where you know it's better to proactively communicate, but the person who's in charge isn't actually doing that?

Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit Speakpipe.com/ThanksforvisitingAMA

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

293. 70% Direct Booking: Learn How Jenn Boyles Works Her Marketing Magic Sep 28, 2023

Show notes

Today’s conversation brings a vibrant worldly flavor to it thanks to Jenn Boyle’s sprawling global empire of STRs and invaluable hosting experiences. She is known as The Queen of Direct Booking, and we take this opportunity to get tactical about how she’s leveraged the practice for her own listings.

Raised in a hospitality family on the west coast of Canada, she gained a real understanding of the industry through her father, a retired hotel general manager. After moving to England, she found success in short-term rentals. The business she created ultimately allowed her to harness the power of direct bookings with the freedom to operate on her own terms.

In 2020, amidst the challenges of the pandemic, Jenn realized that what she was doing for her own business could help others in the hospitality industry succeed. She found her calling, coming full circle to her latest work, empowering fellow hospitality short-term rental property managers and owners to achieve more direct bookings through mindful marketing.

We cover the beginner’s basics – website, social media, clear CTAs, even word-of-mouth advertising – as a means to establish awareness in your location, whether it’s remotely located or dense with other listings. We also delve into how she began her European STR adventures, a boat listing in Liverpool, and the chalet in Austria that turned the light bulb of branding on in her mind – a shift in her mindset that would change her business, and her life, forever.

You can learn more about Jenn’s invaluable work and teachings at her (free!) online education summit, Direct Booking Success Summit, October 3-5, here: directbookingsuccesssummit.com.

Resources:

• #STRShareSunday: @sodacityshoebox

• Website: directbookingsuccess.com

• Direct Booking Success Summit: directbookingsuccesssummit.com

• Linkedin: Jenn Boyles

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Make More Money This Year | Join our LIVE Workshop!

Relay | Go to https://relayfi.com/?referralcode=ThanksForVisiting for your FREE business banking account.

Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.

Vacation Ventures 001. Influencer Collab Secrets Revealed (Success Unlocked Season 1) Sep 27, 2023

Show notes

On today's show, Michael speaks with the wonderful couple behind the travel blog, Journey More, Hayden and Nikki Hughes. With years of experience staying in unique Airbnbs and creating viral content, these two have invaluable insights for hosts looking to take their properties to the next level.

We hear how Hayden and Nikki got their start, including some pro tips for up-and-coming content creators looking to work with hosts. They share what goes into crafting an exceptional guest experience through thoughtful communication and special touches. They also get their recommendations for properties wanting to improve, from small amenities to big picture experience creation.

Throughout the conversation, Hayden and Nikki emphasize being flexible and finding win-win collaborations with hosts. Their passion for helping properties showcase their unique strengths shines through. Whether you're a new host or seasoned veteran, you're sure to pick up great tips from these world travelers.

To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: https://thanksforvisiting.me

Resources:

• Website: journeymore.com/about

• Instagram: @journey.more

• Facebook: Journey More

• YouTube: Journey More

• TikTok: @journey.more

• Instagram: @findyourrepurpose

• TikTok: @findyourrepurpose

• Website: wanderchatt.com

• Instagram: @wanderchatt

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.