Strategies to attract Millennials to your short term rentals
Millennials are defined as the generation born between early 1980s and early years of 2000. This generation grew up in the fast changing information age and are therefore seen to have a unique view of life that differs from previous generations. In the US, this group constitutes the single largest group in the population and they are permeating every sector of the economy including technology, fashion, travel and food. They love new experiences and adventures and are thus having a major impact on business and culture. They love adventure that gives them a chance to explore new cultures and create new memories.
Millennials are good spenders while on holiday. They spend an average of $5,700 on their trips per year unlike $3,000 spent by baby boomers despite many having to bear with the burden on student loans. Short term rental owners can tap into this market by deploying millennials centric strategies to attract this market. Tailoring your rentals to their needs is the best approach to reaching out to this generation.
Millennials in the digital age
Having a mobile friendly website is no longer enough to attract today’s generation of travellers. Millennials are looking beyond information on your website. They are interested in full functionality where they can a access a full range of services by the click of a button. They want to explore your services, take a virtual tour of your property, review the neighbourhood, check out nearby places and finally make a booking. The usual search engine marketing might not be effective at reaching this clientele. You need to target places like Instagram where most of these are regular contributors. Before booking, they will check out reviews of your rental property and are easily turned away by negative reviews.
Allow a flexible check-in and out schedule
Millennials usually travel for work and create extra time for adventure. They will normally attend to work in the day and go out to sample the culture and environment of their host city. Some will venture into night life getting late to check in and sometimes late to check out. Most short term rental owners have set times for check-in and checkout which might not work well for the active generation. This will require an investment in technologies that allow for remote access to rooms instead of having to use physical keys to access premises.
Offer more than just a room
The bed and breakfast model has served enough as a marketing offer. Millennials are looking for more than a room and that’s one of the main reasons they are moving away from the hotel setting. They are looking for an experience that will create lasting memories. They will be more attracted to a room set differently and accentuated with the local culture and ambience. A room should also have appliances that will enable more pleasure like a Coffee maker, Smart TV with streaming services like Netflix, a quality sound system, fast internet with Wifi and enough USB ports to charge their many devices.
Environment and health consciousness
Modern education and exposure has created a pervasive awareness about healthy foods and concern for the environment. Many will now want to know whether your premises are environment friendly or not. Do you use solar energy; have waste recycling or water conservation. They will also like to be able to access restaurants and markets which deal in organic and healthy. An extra effort to help them access these facilities can serve as a major selling point.