One of the biggest hurdles to overcome when it comes to online marketing, is getting started.<\/p>\n
Using social media to market your holiday let can feel like such insurmountable task that you procrastinate, come up with countless reasons why it won\u2019t work, and give up before you\u2019ve even really begun.<\/p>\n
But as with anything, all you need is a plan of attack.<\/p>\n
Once you\u2019ve broken down the key elements, it\u2019s just a case of implementation. And so to help, here\u2019s how you can create a practical<\/em> social media plan for your holiday rental in just four simple steps.<\/p>\n But before we jump into the guide, it\u2019s probably worth reiterating why you should be on social media. It \u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n As you can see, there are plenty of compelling reasons why you should use social media as part of your marketing, so without further ado, let\u2019s get started on the plan.<\/p>\n Getting started is all about choosing the social media channels you should be active in.<\/p>\n There are two key considerations here:<\/p>\n The first point can be tricky to know for certain – which is why any social media plan needs a degree of flexibility to make changes if you\u2019re not seeing any rewards for your efforts. But there are plenty of stats available that outline each site\u2019s primary demographic. Taking a look at these may offer some guidance if you\u2019re unsure.<\/p>\n Facebook<\/strong> is the<\/em> most popular social media site. It\u2019s personal, easy to share content and get involved in conversations. Men and women across all<\/em> age groups are actively using Facebook:<\/p>\n So the chances are, your guests are on Facebook.<\/p>\n Not sure how to set up a Facebook page? See \u2018How to Create a Facebook Business Page<\/a>\u2019<\/p>\n Twitter<\/strong> is another hugely popular social channel, however with a very different way of interacting. Given its 140-character limit, Twitter is ideal for sharing latest developments and breaking news.\u00a0 The demographics show that the most active users are 18-29 year olds (37%), followed by 30-49 year olds (25%). The number of users over 50 is significantly lower \u2013 dropping to just 10%.<\/p>\n If you decide Twitter is a good platform for your holiday let business, see \u2018How to Make Your Twitter Account Stand Out<\/a>\u2019<\/p>\n Pinterest<\/strong> is a highly visual platform, which can be a great way to reach a large audience through aspirational imagery. This network has a significant female following, with a fairly even split across all age groups. Importantly, statistics show that the most browsed and<\/em> pinned categories are: Food & Drink, DIY, Home Decor, Holidays & Events \u2013 the latter two, of course, being relevant to holiday rental owners.<\/p>\n Still not sure about Pinterest? See \u2018Why Pinterest is a Great Tool for Marketing Holiday Rental Websites<\/a>\u2019<\/p>\n Instagram<\/strong> is another visual platform, which is now the network with the largest population of young users – 53% of 18-29 year olds. This drops to 25% of 30-49 year olds. 11% of 50-65 year olds. And only 6% of the 65+ age group.<\/p>\n And there are other platforms – Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn, Snapchat, etc. – with their own demographic as well.<\/p>\n So what it really comes down to is which network(s) interests you. And crucially<\/em>, which one(s) would you find easy to manage.<\/p>\n If it\u2019s just one network, that\u2019s totally fine. It\u2019s better to be active on one, than inactive on four.<\/p>\n Take some time to look at each network before making your decision, then create a business profile for your holiday let on your chosen platform(s), before moving on to the second step.<\/p>\n The type of content you could broadcast is vast \u2013 see \u20183 Ways to Find Great Content to Share on Social Media<\/a>\u2019. Seriously, marketing a holiday rental gives you endless possibilities of shareable content.<\/p>\n 1 Your own content<\/strong><\/p>\n If you have a blog, social media is the perfect way to share your posts. Not only will this get your content in front of a lot more people, it will drive traffic back to your website and could<\/em> be the mechanism that generates new bookings.<\/p>\n 2. Local business content<\/strong><\/p>\n Keep abreast of the local news and share content that might encourage people to visit. For example, a new Michelin star restaurant opening in town, a new gallery, a new tour company. Anything that could positively impact your guests experience is shareable news.<\/p>\n 3. Local events<\/strong><\/p>\n There will most certainly be plenty of events going on, either in your local town, or nearby, throughout the course of the year. All of which is shareable content. Set up a Google alert so you\u2019re aware of them as soon as they\u2019re announced, and be the first holiday let owner to get that content out there.<\/p>\n 4. Local tourism content<\/strong><\/p>\n Follow the tourist information services for your holiday let\u2019s local area, they\u2019ll always share informative content that\u2019s relevant and interesting to potential guests. And when they do, all you need to do is share it.<\/p>\n 3. How often content should be shared<\/strong><\/p>\n First and foremost, content should only be shared when you have something valuable to offer.<\/p>\n Always<\/em> think of your target market when broadcasting anything<\/em> on social media channels.<\/p>\n You aren\u2019t writing or sharing information for you. You\u2019re sharing it to help market your business<\/em>. Therefore, it\u2019s your potential guests that you need to think of.<\/p>\n With that being said, there are \u2018best practices\u2019 to follow for how many times you should broadcast on the different networks:<\/p>\n But what\u2019s also important, is the frequency of the type<\/em> of content shared.<\/p>\n People are more likely to follow you if you are providing valuable information for free, than if you are blatantly promoting your business. Once they are following you that allows you, every once in a while, to offer them something.<\/p>\n If you over-do it on the promotion, they\u2019ll most likely unfollow your page.<\/p>\n Sharing valuable content is the most important factor when it comes to social media marketing. And of course, conversing with your audience.<\/p>\n Obvious<\/em> self-promotion comes last.<\/p>\n So whilst you should also post special offers from time to time, don\u2019t over-sell. The easiest thing is to use the 80\/20 rule. 80% of the time broadcast valuable, informative content. 20% of the time, self-promote.<\/p>\n If that all sounds like a lot of work, don\u2019t worry, there are plenty of free tools to help you automate some of the necessary tasks.<\/p>\n Managing your social media profiles has been made much easier by online services created specifically for the task.<\/p>\n 1. Google alerts<\/a> \u2013 mentioned earlier, these are a great way to be alerted to the latest news relevant to you, without having to search around.<\/p>\n 2. Feedly<\/a> \u2013 Another way to get the latest content sent directly to you<\/em>. Subscribe to relevant blogs and their latest content will stream to your inbox ready for you to read and share.<\/p>\n 3. Buffer<\/a> \u2013 schedule your posts in advance. This is a super simple tool to use and the free version can schedule up to 10 posts in advance.<\/p>\n 4. Hootsuite<\/a> \u2013 another post scheduler. With Hootsuite there\u2019s no limit on the amount of posts you can schedule and you can add up to 3 social media profiles within the free version.<\/p>\n Then once a schedule is in place, all you\u2019ll need to do is keep an eye on any comments, likes and shares.<\/p>\n So here\u2019s a recap of how you can get your social media plan underway:<\/p>\n One of the biggest hurdles to overcome when it comes to online marketing, is getting started. Using social media to market your holiday let can feel like such insurmountable task that you procrastinate, come up with countless reasons why it won\u2019t work, and give up before you\u2019ve even really begun. 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Step 1. Choosing the right platform(s)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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2. Types of content to broadcast<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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4. Time-saving automation tools<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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