What enquiries, what bookings?

[Loopy Lou]

My enquiry rates and booking rates are atrocious. What am I doing wrong? How can I get my gites noticed? Advertised on Your Holiday Matters, Holiday Lettings, Owners Direct, Visit France, Apartments Direct Ireland, Homelidays, Lost in France and French Entree. And my own website where I am currently upgrading the photographs.

That's why I am taking a 6 month long-term rental for La P'tite Boulangerie when it is finished.

Your advice gratefully received.

Despondent LL

[Musetta]

Your place looks beautiful! I'd rent it if I were going to France (if it makes you feel any better, I'm not having the bookings roll in either! Have some off-season - but the whole Summer is free.)

[Loopy Lou]

Thanks, Musetta,

Let's hope we get last minute bookings. Your place looks very sweet and in such a lovely area - perhaps could do with some pictures on the walls? I'm looking at adding mirrors and pictures into the bedrooms of my gites because they look a bit bare to me. Anything to add a homely feel.

Good luck this summer,

LL

[Moliere]

Your places do look great LL - I can't imagine what the problem is. Unless it's ignorance - would it be worthwhile to put a map of France on your home page showing your location?
I also keep reading that people this year are taking their cars to Europe, rather than flying (somehow this equates to going "green") - so again would it be worth highlighting easy travel times on your front page?
Maybe you're right and a bit of "prettification" might help, although I would hope that most punters could see beyond that - so plug your super location and easy travel times, I would say.

Best of luck, I'm sure it'll all come in with a rush.

Moliere

[Musetta]

yes...need to do some decorating when I'm over in the fall..I was SO busy with the closing and getting utilites, etc. set up...and buying all the basics...spent about a month there just taking care of getting things livable (everything happens rather slowly in S. Italy!)
It needs some color for sure!! (although, I do have to confess...I just hate clutter...makes it look dirty to me...need to compromise with some pillows, mabye a little rug and a pitcure or two to liven it up without looking messy!)
Welll...I'll think good thoughts for you too and cross my fingers (and, nice to know I'm not the only one!)

[Rosbif]

Hi Loupy Lou

Your place is absolutely gorgeous I can't understand why you are not getting the bookings in when you advertise on all those websites as well!!

Are any of the places you advertise non internet sources? May be an idea to try and do some ad's in magazines etc that might be appropriate to your area.

Are you still upgrading the photo gallery on your site as it didnt seem to work for me, neither did the guest book page?

RB

[Loopy Lou]

Hi. nice to know that the photo gallery and guestbook pages are there at last! Thanks webmaster. must get to work!

[Nessie]

For us as well this year bookings are down compaired with last year. Last year the main paid site for us was visitfrance but this year it has not even bought enquiries, the interesting thing when you look at the stats , well for us at least all the people that are looking seem to be from the states, so whether they are no longer in the uk search engines or not i am not sure. But at this rate i will not be renewing with them this year.

Hope things improve for you with some last minute bookings

[Clexane]

Loopy Loo,

Your place does look beautiful but to be honest it took some squinting to see it ( I don't wear glasses either). Point is get your photos bigger, and more of them.

Second I have a place in France and didn't know where your place was and it took me a while to find your google link. Find a map you can stick in, perhaps search some of the local attractions or camp sites and you might find a good map there you could borrow so people know where your place is without havent to click out of your website.

Your rates are extremely reasonable so no issue here. You really need to get that guestbook filled out ... I think that is the most valuable thing we have got ... I never book a hotel without going to tripadvisor or sites of the like to get peoples opinion before I book.

Your home page needs to be covered in photos (big ones). people are looking at dozens of sites and dont have time to read until they are hooked by something interesting and that is photos!!!

Also at the rates you are at you might find listing with Gites France or Abritel will attract the French.

Good luck

[Loopy Lou]

Thanks, Clexanne,

Will see what I can do with the website. It will have to continue raining here for a couple of days, then, so I can't go outside and cut the blessed grass yet again and can website instead.

A bientot,

LL

[la vache!]

Hi Lou,
I think your gites are lovely too and you deserve a lot more bookings than you've got. Location is important and I didn't know where Vienne was either, neither do a lot of the listing sites as some put it under Poitou and others under Limousin??? So a map would be helpful.
I had a look at your ad on holidaylettings and I don't think the photo you use as your thumbnail is very attractive - I think the one of the pool and the back of the gites is much nicer.
Have you considered doing what Ros does and advertising for all your gites together, so for example, 6 - 8 people instead of 2 - 4? If I were coming on holiday with friends I'd like to have my own house for sleeping, but be close to the others and have communal use of the facilities.
I'd get rid of the availability calendar for the time being - it has been said on here a few times that if there aren't many bookings it can put people off.
The guest book - if you have no comments, don't have the page at the moment. Or make some up.
Have you got a big tourist attraction nearby you could mention on the homepage? Is Futuroscope anywhere nearby - that could be a big attraction for families??
More photos everywhere on your website definitely - and I don't thing the one with the patchy grass on the accommodation page is very attractive!
Good luck and don't get too disheartened - it is your first year so you don't even have the luxury of repeats to rely on.

[Jimbo]

My enquiry rates and booking rates are atrocious.

Hi LL

Don't despair.

You could do what we did: buy a stunning property in a tourist hot-spot, in a UNESCO World Heritage Site which has millions of visitors each year. Prepare your gites beautifully and watch the guest roll in. Sounds perfect but there's a big downside - such a property doesn't come cheap and our rental prices have to be correspondingly expensive.

Or buy a less expensive (but maybe just as lovely) property in a less fashionable (but beautiful) area. Save money (lots maybe) but accept that it will take a bit more time before the guests arrive in force and you're on the map. But you can afford to be more adventurous with your pricing to attract visitors than we ever could with the dead weight of our purchase price around our necks.

Swings and roundabouts.

Jim

[enid]

Looki,h at our bookings for this year just over half are reoeat bookings or referrals from previous guests. It takes time for this to build up - this is our fifth year of letting. I rememeber our first year being a real worry and bookings came later than they do now .

I would follow the advice above re your web site and especially make more of the region. There will be people looking at the last minute so don't despair.

[Overboard]

Your place looks lovely but the website is such a tease. I so want to see bigger images of those thumbnails you have and can't seem to find any. A lot of the battle is getting customers to your website, you dont want to loose them due to frustration with itsy bitsy photos (your place looks gorgeous from what I can tell).

[Overboard]

And.. I know a lot of you dont like Craigslist but list your property there. Americans love Craigslist and use it for searching vacation properties, I get a lot of hits to Edinburgh Villa from Craigslist, and they aren't all Nigerian