Facebook is a great way to promote vacation rental properties and connect with past, present, and future guests. If you follow some basic steps and post consistently you will have an amazing marketing tool at your disposal. The only investment is your time. Here are a few tips for getting started.
Start by setting up a page for your property. At the bottom of your profile (assuming you already have a Facebook profile) you will see a link that says “Create a page”. Once you’ve decided on the perfect name you can set up the rest of your page, add photos, and information about the property and surrounding area.
The next step is to invite all of your friends from your profile to “like” your property page. It may take a few requests over time to get a decent response but keep asking for followers and they will come. Grab your guest book and go through your records and invite your past guests to “like” your vacation rental page. Every time you have an inquiry or new reservation ask them to become a fan of your property. Search for groups that relate to your destination and join the conversations. Be careful not to spam your friends and followers with the hard sell but rather be a resource for local news and information.
Post at least weekly with local events, weather conditions, things to see and do, local history, etc. and occasionally add a direct promotion. Ask your guests to post their photos and experiences. Link your posts back to specific pages of your website. If you talk about something fun to do near your rental link back to your “activities” page. If you post a special or announce a package link back to your “specials” page.
Try to create posts that your followers will comment on and “share” with their friends. Keep in mind that Facebook automatically rates all posts by the amount of engagement they create. The more engagement you have the more exposure your property will receive.
Be patient and take the time to educate yourself. There are several good books on using Facebook and you will find lots of information in the Facebook help section. The biggest tip I can share is to just get started on Facebook, because chances are your competitor is already there.