Unlocked by Matt Landau

Latest Episodes:

Coronavirus Update & Season 5 Announcement Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

This update episode of the Unlocked Podcast features Matt giving a heads up on the upcoming season, which will feature industry luminaries who have managed crises before. What to do, how to stay positive.

After speaking with owners and managers daily, Matt also shares some of the patterns he's noticing beneath the surface of what was "the fastest growing sector in travel" now stopped dead in its tracks.

Matt's Top 20 Advocacy Tips for 2020 Feb 21, 2020

Show notes

We're in-between podcast seasons right now. So I thought it might be nice to use this platform to share something very important:

The Vacation Rental Advocacy Playbook:

http://www.vacationrentaladvocacy.com

It's a compilation of videos from advocacy specialists that can help you and your colleagues in your destination prepare for the worst.

You can also see the 20 videos I picked out and reviewed on the podcast here:

https://www.vrmb.com/advocacy/

EP59: Tables Turned with Matt Landau Jan 22, 2020

Show notes

In this very special season finale episode of Unlocked with Matt Landau, our sponsor, Sean Miller of Point Central turns the microphone around on Matt and and asks the questions we've been waiting nearly sixty episodes to answer.

Everything from Matt's management past to his Vacation Rental Show future is revealed, along with a great deal of thinking and action items about the vacation rental industry itself.

Don't miss our special finale, and as always, if you want to innovate like the best managers in the industry consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

VRMB: www.vrmb.com

EP58: 0-500 Properties in 5 Years with Brooke Pfautz Jan 15, 2020

Show notes

Brooke Pfautz is the Founder of Vintory, one of the only companies that I am aware of that helps property managers grow their inventory. I traveled to meet Brooke in Maryland, where he lives with his family and where he built a property management business from 0-500 properties in 5 years.

Since he sold that business and now focuses full time on helping other managers grow, we focused the majority of our conversation on his growth tactics: how any manager anywhere in the world can identify the kinds of properties they want, message these property owners directly, and grow a hospitality business through the use of disruptive means.

This is a different kind of episode: less entertainment, more education. We finished our day of learning with some recording at my parents vacation rental on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay.

If you want to innovate like Brooke, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

Vintory: https://vintory.com

VRMB: www.vrmb.com

Ocean City, Maryland: https://ococean.com

The Cambridge Movement: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Movement_(civil_rights)

EP57: Homerun Hospitality with Jesse and Emily Cole Jan 08, 2020

Show notes

This is probably the most unexpected podcast we've ever published. It features a couple, Emily and Jesse Cole, who epitomize a lot of vacation rental hosts using Airbnb to build a real estate portfolio. But that's the end of where the Cole's are normal. They also own a baseball team. Where the *MALE* cheerleaders dance on dugouts, kids find signed baseballs hidden like easter eggs, and tickets ($18) include food and drink. The stadium is sold out far into the future. It is one of the most outrageous sports entertainment and hospitality stories you will ever hear. Just so you have an idea, Jesse wears a full yellow tuxedo. All the time.

I wanted to change it up a bit this season. I didn't just want to interview one kind of vacation rental stakeholder: that's why we've got managers, owners, vendors, thought-leaders...etc. But I also thought it would be cool to feature a kind of vacation rental professional that is less noticeable by the VRM-industry yet arguably more impactful on the global markets: that is Lifestylists who use sites like Airbnb to make a real living. And perhaps unsurprisingly, their aspirational storylines are equally if not more zany and unexpected than the ones we've featured thus far. Jesse and Emily Cole are husband and wife, they're co-owners of a few vacation rentals on Tybee Island off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, and they're also co-owners of a baseball team called the Savannah Bananas.

For the Coles, the industry that we know as vacation rentals are merely one pillar in their crazy, happy and fun-filled life. Our interview in their home has a bit of sound trouble but the stories and the ideas will keep you glued to the airpod or speaker or whatever.

If you want to innovate like Jesse and Emily, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

The Savannah Bananas: https://thesavannahbananas.com

Little Tybee Island: https://visittybee.com

Jesse and Emily's vacation rental properties:

https://airbnb.com/h/bluebanana

https://airbnb.com/h/breezybanana

EP56: Our Future with Carole Lynn Sharoff Jan 01, 2020

Show notes

Carole Lynn Sharoff of Atlantic Vacation Homes in Massachusetts is one of the wisest vacation rental professionals I have met in my 10+ years of interviewing. You can tell a lot about someone from how others describe them. And when some colleagues like Jodi Refosco and Jennifer Frankenstein Harris heard I was launching a new season of the podcast, they were all unanimous: you have to interview Carole. No ifs ands or buts. And they were right. I didn't know Carole personally before our sit-down but afterwards, she was right up there with the top people in our industry I'd personally aim to emulate.

Carole doesn't shy away from thoughts on diversity and inclusion in an industry that admittedly struggles in those departments. She attends conferences to speak on the subject of social responsibility. She is basically one of those stewards the industry is fortunate to count on: one of those compasses steering us all in the right direction.

If you want to innovate like Carole, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

VRMA: www.vrma.org

VRMB: www.vrmb.com

Atlantic Vacation Homes: https://www.atlanticvacationhomes.com

EP55: The Paragon with Tim Cafferty Dec 25, 2019

Show notes

Tim Cafferty of Outer Banks Blue Realty in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina is one of the most admired and respected professional managers in the world. He is a paragon of professionalism and hospitality as a whole.

Tim's region is something of a mecca for short term rentals in the USA, but when Tim started the business, he wasn't expecting his business to take off the way it did. Many years ago, I had only heard rumblings this guy Tim Cafferty who was conducting the equivalent of a vacation rental orchestra of the Fortune 5000 caliber.

Then I began to listen to his podcast Sarah and T, and you start to get an idea. But when I finally met him in person, it suddenly all made sense. Tim's stand-up personality and emphasis on relationships are quintessentially "all of us" -- Tim is the hospitality professional we all aspire to be. I had the chance to nab Tim for an interview during the VRMA International conference and his personal story is one that will motivate you to plan for your challenges, channel your inner entrepreneur, and soar.

If you want to innovate like Tim, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

VRMA: http://www.vrma.org

VRMB: www.vrmb.com

Sarah & T Podcast: https://sarahandt.com

Unlocked John Dean Episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0MCtzrfaY2MQBwZjOGLM8k?si=AERNqbnoRbG6F7u91tF_Uw

EP54: Doing Things Properly with Tammi Sims Dec 18, 2019

Show notes

Tammi Sims is the VP of Customer at Properly, an industry-leading cleaning app with a host of deeper applications. Perhaps more importantly, Tammi (along with her partner Alex Nigg) are visionary vacation rental leaders: they identified a need for this solution way back before anyone could even name the problem.

Tammi is a regular at industry conferences -- and it was at VRMA in New Orleans where Tammi was 'in her element' -- that I got the chance to sit in on a sushi lunch and then record a conversation that goes way beneath the surface (like any good thorough vacation rental professional would) to explore Tammi's backstory, her borderline-obsession with small details, and some of her concerns and wishes for the future of this movement.

I have had the pleasure to watch Tammi and Alex grow their business over the course of the last few years and it's been such a treat to watch them grow, but with the right values, the right priorities and the right attitude about how we should treat one another. This is a fabulous episode for any RBO or PM who likes to do things properly.

If you want to innovate like Tammi, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

Properly: https://www.getproperly.com

VRMA: http://www.vrma.org

VRMB: www.vrmb.com

Touchstay: https://touchstay.com

Collapsible Funnel: https://www.worldmarket.com/product/collapsible-silicone-funnels-set-of-3.do

EP53: The Fisherman Niche with David Krauthamer Dec 11, 2019

Show notes

David Krathamer never thought he'd be running a world-class hospitality business. Along with his wife Edna, David is the owner of D&E Landing in Guntersville, Alabama. I stop over for the evening and hang out and go fishing with David as often as I get the chance. And on this particular visit, I decided to record a podcast.

What's most intriguing about David and his business is the precision and discipline with which he's identified and maintained his niche: fishermen looking to hook bass on the famous Lake Guntersville. His repeat guest rate and occupancy rate are insanely high on paper: but more impressive is David's work-life balance. He has created for himself a job -- a business -- that he loves. This is ultimately what our movement is all about.

If you want to innovate like David, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

D&E Landing: https://www.delanding.com

Lake Guntersville: https://alabama.travel/places-to-go/lake-guntersville-state-park

The Inner Circle: https://www.vrmb.com/what-is-the-inner-circle/

Autozone: https://www.autozone.com

EP52: The Conference Beat with Koryn Okey Dec 04, 2019

Show notes

If there is one person that has been a steady constant throughout the last decade of vacation rental mayhem, it's Koryn Okey. She started out with a company called FlipKey and now works as the VP of Sales at Breezeway (an awesome cleaning app you should demo immediately). If you have ever attended a vacation rental conference, chances are you have seen or met or at least heard Koryn laugh.

Her experience gives her an incredibly nuanced understanding of where we are right now. And it's not often that we interview vendors this season, so I took the opportunity (after pulling Koryn away from her booth at the Streamline Summit) to ask some of the grittier questions like 'where are VR vendors missing the mark?' Koryn took the questions like a champ -- her interview is as fun as it is insightful.

If you want to innovate like Koryn, consider a demo with our friends at PointCentral (free HVAC Analytics included from this landing page): https://www.pointcentral.com/vrmb/

Here are some links and people mentioned in the episode:

Breezeway: https://www.breezeway.io

Streamline Summit: https://www.streamlinesummit.com

Flipkey: https://www.flipkey.com

Trip Advisor: https://www.tripadvisor.com

TruPlace: https://go.truplace.com