Reply speed & Blackberry remote email

How to communicate with your potential renters - how to turn site visitors into enquiries, and enquiries into bookings.
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paolo
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Post by paolo »

I think that a quick response is really important. Many people will not just enquire about one house, but several. If you are the first to reply you get to make the strongest impression, and if you phone you could even close the sale before the others respond.

But I won't be getting Blackberry till those tariffs have come down.
Paolo
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Sunshine Smile
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Post by Sunshine Smile »

Since becoming a rental owner my bed time habits have changed completely. In order to secure bookings and get my quote into potential guests in-box, I tend to work until 2am in the morning when I know most Americans/Canadians are on-line. Luckily I work from home so I can catch up on sleep later. There is now 3 in our marriage ...the computer!
"If you know what you want, you will recognise it when you see it."
Christine Kenyon
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Post by Christine Kenyon »

.Well, we're just back from a superb walking holiday in the winter sunshine on La Gomera. And , yet again, one of the criteria for our booking was internet access which proved to be valid as we received 84 email enquiries and about 20 telephone enquiries while we were away.

The only sad bit is that I got itchy and unsettled at only being able to access our emails once or twice a day - or even worse everywhere was shut for the public holiday on 6 January.

But, we still got replies thanking us for a speedy reply and we didn't lose any bookings because folk had booked elsewhere before we replied.

Anyway, the moral of the story is that most people seem happy with a reply within 24 hours. Maybe, I'll just chill out a bit more next time 8) .

Christine
www.stybarrowcottage.co.uk
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vrooje
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Post by vrooje »

Holy ^%#*!

84 inquiries?

...wow. I'm definitely impressed...
Brooke
Christine Kenyon
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Post by Christine Kenyon »

So were we - but it is for two different cottages :lol: .
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paolo
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Post by paolo »

Christine,

'Holy ^%#*!' indeed. How do those 84 break down between your advertising efforts? Am I right in thinking you only use one paid listing site on top of your own website?
Paolo
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Christine Kenyon
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Post by Christine Kenyon »

Well remembered, Paolo - though I'm not sure you've spelt 'Holy ^%#*!' correctly!! You're right - we pay for advertising on one site for Stybarrow Cottage and two sites for Troutbeck Cottage.

Both have their own website (which are linked to each other); both are advertised on the cottageguide listing site (which I can't praise highly enough and is extremely cost effective); one is also advertised on one other site (did this as a test and it's not proving very cost effective). Both are on as many free sites as we've found so far (including the aardvark site - thank you Aaron) and on the walking britain site (which costs £10.00 per year). This was done mainly to generate incoming links to our own websites.

I don't have an exact breakdown for the 84 enquiries as I suspect that many of those that come from our own websites have probably visited cottageguide or other listing sites first and then clicked onto our own website. But roughly speaking the breakdown for those January enquiries was:

paid internet listing sites: 40%
own internet sites: 20%
repeat bookings/referrals from other cottage: 20%
unknown: 20%

Three other things to note:

1. About 30% of the enquiries were for one particular week - 28 May - which is the Spring bank holiday in the UK. And was already booked before we went away (since last July in fact!).

2. A high percentage of the enquiries were for our specific village/area (going to a wedding/friends staying in the village, etc). They weren't looking elsewhere in the Lake District.

3. January is our peak month for enquiries and bookings (apart from possibly the run up to New Year).

I don't want to sound like "goody two shoes", but we have made a lot of changes to our website for Stybarrow Cottage based on advice and info picked up from Forum members (a big, big "thank you" to everyone) and it seems to be working. For the first time, we're getting emails saying things like "I've seen your cottage on the internet and it looks gorgeous". That didn't happen before. I just hope we can live up to expectations :lol:

Anyway, hope the above helps. And thank you again to everyone for an amazing wealth of marketing advice, techie expertise, customer care - and some superb humour!

Cheers

Christine
www.stybarrowcottage.co.uk
www.troutbeckcottage.co.uk
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debk
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Re: Any Blackberry (or similar) users out there?

Post by debk »

Alison wrote:Now that Blackberry is much more affordable, I'm considering buying it or a similar product. <snip> I am mostly interested to see if there are vacation rental by owners out there who invest in this type of technology and what they like and don't like.
A few weeks ago, my old cellfone died and I bought a Blackberry 7230 (tiny qwerty keyboard) to replace it. Couldn't be happier.

Two things make this work especially well for me:
1. Two months ago, for reasons unrelated to this Blackberry acquisition, I created a gmail.com email account which is reserved for only my rental emails, no personal mail.
2. I use Rentalbot.com to manage my rental process. (eg, totally online)

When I got the Blackberry, I saved each of my standard "draft" rental emails on the device. I also set my Blackberry internet homepage to the rentalbot login page.

Now I no longer have to "go check" my email. Instead, each rental email is delivered directly to me just like a cellfone message. I can then decide whether to go reply from my PC or, if I'm out, directly from my Blackberry using my email draft replies. If I get a new inquiry, I go directly to rentalbot (again, set as my homepage) to confirm existing reservations before replying with availability.

Yesterday, I spent all day out in meetings and then getting my car towed to the junkyard... sigh... right in the midst of 4 inquires, 2 for overlapping dates. Never a worry, as the emails followed me all day, where ever I went.

Monthly surcharge is €20 for more email/internet access than I will ever use. Worth it to me, for the peace of mind and freedom.

Negatives: the internet browsing is very slow but works fine for my only usage (checking availability via rentalbot); took a few days to get use to the buttons, etc.

Positives: stays charged for about 4 days; a big added bonus was the agenda feature which I never expected to use based on the frustrations I have had with pre-palm pilot and palm pilot devices in the past; the family no longer complains about how much time I spend at the PC nor do I need to check email first thing every morning "just in case"; we can plan some nice, long vacations again!

Hope that helps.

Free and easy,
debk
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paolo
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Post by paolo »

the family no longer complains about how much time I spend at the PC nor do I need to check email first thing every morning "just in case"
I know just what you mean!
Paolo
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reddevil
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Post by reddevil »

How much does it cost to run? You mention a 20 Euro per month surcharge.....this is on top of what other charges? Do you pay for internet access at home and then only 20 Euros per month for using the Blackberry - that seems well worth it? Do you have to register it with your ISP?

And you say that it stays charged for 4 days - is that with your Blackberry on 24 hours a day and using it to check internet and e-mails regularly? Again, impressive - where can I buy one from?
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debk
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Post by debk »

Only Vodafone sells these in Portugal:

1. Monthly Costs:
- First, I had to chose one of their professional phone plans (it is a phone afterall) but I knew that and chose one that worked well for me.
- Then I chose the €20 a month option for virtually unlimited email usage throughout Portugal (eg, no roaming charges). There was another option which includes unlimited email roaming across Europe. Maybe €40/month? (For my next vacation, I'll switch to this for a month.)

2. ISP:
- I also have internet access at home but it's totally separate. They don't care/know about my Blackberry.
- I set up GMAIL (google's new email offering) for my rental emails because Gmail *will* forward to Blackberries. Not all email providers can forward emails this way. Gmail services are free.

3. BATTERY:
My Blackberry is on constantly and I also use its task management features extensively. Phone use, PDA, email, alarm... and it's still staying charged for 4 days or so.

NOTE: I do not use the Blackberry to check internet (too small, too slow, too cumbersome for that) except in emergencies (like when I desperately needed a train schedule). Also, you don't have to "check" email... it beeps when an email arrives, and displays the little SMS-type envelope icon. A glance at the Blackberry screen lets you know if there's anything waiting.

4. VENDOR:
I got mine from Vodafone. Blackberries are so new here that Vodafone doesn't yet sell those little cigarette rechargers for your car... so my mother's bringing one from the States next week.

Final Note: The Blackberry hasn't replaced my PC! Only if I am nowhere near the laptop do I reply from the Blackberry. I am, however, always aware of when an inquiry or question comes in about the rentals, no matter where I am. And then I can decide how to respond. That has freed me up mentally as well as physically.

Hope that helps. Just last night my husband mentioned how nice it was to no longer have me hovering over him when he's using the family PC.
:roll:
reddevil
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Post by reddevil »

Thanks debk for your detailed reply - great post.

Your notes will be very useful to any other renters who are considering a Blackberry and we can refer any future questions to your reply. Maybe we shoud sticky something in this topic?

To me, a device like this seems great value for the peace of mind it gives.

Does anyone know if Blackberry have any competitors? What about a normal, modern Nokia phone, why is everybody raving about the Blackberry?

The keyboard on Blackberry models I have seen are not qwerty, and so I will still have to struggle with typing long messages.
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paolo
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Post by paolo »

reddevil wrote:Your notes will be very useful to any other renters who are considering a Blackberry and we can refer any future questions to your reply. Maybe we shoud sticky something in this topic?
I've added to this thread's Subject line to highlight the good stuff on Blackberry.
Paolo
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debk
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Post by debk »

reddevil wrote:What about a normal, modern Nokia phone, why is everybody raving about the Blackberry?

The keyboard on Blackberry models I have seen are not qwerty, and so I will still have to struggle with typing long messages.
If there is a Nokia/etc that receives and sends emails, one with a QWERT keyboard, hey, go for it. And let us know your experience. (Also important for me was the ability to check my online calender, via rudimentary internet browser capabilities, but that may not be true for everyone.)

Blackberry has specialized in this area for years and I have friends in the State who rave about its reliability... that's why I moved once Blackberry arrived here. (I was also waiting for my other cellphone to die because these puppies are not cheap. I paid €325 for my Blackberry. ouch. But subtracting the cost of a new phone, which I had to buy anyway, it was easier to swallow. For me, it has been well worth the cost.)

I wasn't sure if the QWERTY keyboard was worth the extra cost but it most certainly was. I really do type out emails on it and would never have the patience to do so with a phone-type "keyboard" based on the numbers 0-9. A qwerty is worth waiting for.

I should mention that I have slim fingers and it still took a few days to get the hang of thumb typing on those itty-bitty keys.
debk
jakfr02
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Outlook and SMS

Post by jakfr02 »

I agree a fast reply equates to good customer service and better chances of bookings. A fast response over the phone with a follow-up email seems to be even better.

Here's how I use today's technology to respond quickly. But be fore warned, the following is for the more technically savvy renters.

I use MSOutlook to manage my email. I have just a little programing experience from a college course 15+ years ago. I spent some time on google and searching VBA code and Outlook. I pieced together a little program that takes a new email message, removes all the unnecessary spaces and text, and finally sends the stripped down version as a SMS text message to my cellphone (the freeby phone the cellular company issues). I pay a $5 per month upcharge for text messaging.

I can send the interest party a reply if I can't get to a computer for a while. In the cases, where they include their phone number, I will call the person ASAP then follow up with a email when I can get to a computer.

If I elect not to send a message, just seeing the message, give me time to put your thoughts together and urges me to get to a computer as quick as possible.

And there is more...Look into a free remote control program like pcAnywhere called RealVNC. It allows you to use any computer (ie at work) with Internet access to take over your home computer. This allows me to keep all my email and contact info on renters in one system so I can track history if I need.

This took me several days to get everything working just right. So, allow lots of time for research. For cheapo me, it was well worth the effort.

Frank
www.llcottages.com
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