When it comes to Airbnbs or any short term rental property, there is no shortage of options for people to choose from. If you want to create a profitable rental that can sustain itself long-term, you have to be able to stand out in some way. But you may not know where to start or how to make your Airbnb luxury, so it does just that.
One of the best ways to help put you a step ahead of the sea of other rentals is to have a custom brand for your rental property. A custom brand will not only give your property a more professional look and feel, but it will also create a premier client experience that will help your property thrive.
Effective and strategic branding equates to increased awareness and bookings. In fact, building your brand consistency can increase revenue by 33% (LucidPress).
Now, when I say custom brand, I mean a full custom brand. A Canva template that you just write your property’s name in isn’t going to cut it. You need intentional, true-to-you branding that speaks straight to your guest’s hearts (and wallets).
So let’s take a look at how to make your Airbnb luxury with a custom brand.
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Start with the brand strategy
A key part of a successful brand design is a customized brand strategy. P.S. Yes, your rental is a brand on its own. This brand strategy will take a deep dive into your business, who you are, who you want to attract, and what those clients are going to be looking for.
Without a solid foundation in this brand strategy, you may end up with a brand that doesn’t connect with the people that you actually want to attract. This strategy will also help you nail down things like the verbiage you use in your brand and what keywords or phrases your dream clients will be looking for.
Get a full brand design
Once you have that strategy, the next step in how to make your Airbnb luxury, is going to be your actual brand design. The design is going to include things like your color palette, logos, icons, and type suite.
This is going to be the main representation of your brand, so you want one that is going to connect and reflect your brand in its best light.
A good brand will most likely have 2-3 logos and one icon or badge. It’s essential to have more than one logo to ensure that the logo fits visually wherever you put it.
For example, you may use a primary logo on the header of a website or the front of a guest book, but you don’t want to use it everywhere you want a logo. A secondary logo may be perfect for the footer of your website or on the bottom of any print material you have.
When it comes to your icon, it is not going to be used as a sole indicator of your brand, but they are perfect for things like favicons for your website, brand marks on your social media, or even a brand pattern.
The type suite can also be very important to your brand (but it is often something that is overlooked). You want your fonts to match the vibe and overall feel of the rest of your brand.
If your brand is light and airy, you’re probably not going to want a thick or bold type suite. If your brand is bright and fun, a thin or script font is not going to meld very well with it.
While it may seem like a minor detail, you want someone to see your brand and feel like each and every part fits together like a puzzle. They should be able to look at any individual part of your brand and know that it is yours.
Finally, brand photos are a must, especially for short term rentals. These photos will not only make sure every visual aspect of your brand goes together, but they will also help show your rental in its best light.
Case Study for the Cascade Dome
If you are still not sure about whether or not you need a brand for your Airbnb, take a look at what a custom brand and website did for Cascade Dome. Cascade Dome is a geodesic glamping experience in the mountains that is the perfect combination of immersive nature, nordic finishes, and off-the-beaten path experiences.
We put together a custom brand and a one page site for this rental prior to it being listed on rental sites and it allowed this property to stand out from others in the area while playing into its already curated feelings built within the dome experience.
With a custom brand and website, we were able to:
- Build a waitlist of eager guests (170!) ready to book the dome upon opening
- Create legitimacy and trust throughout the project build
- Provide the language and an easy way to communicate expectations for guests
Think about other brand collateral you can get created
This is something that can really step your brand up and help set it apart from other properties similar to yours. Brand collateral can look like social media templates, guide book, guest books, key chain designs, mat designs, etc.
Brand collateral can help ensure that every representation of your brand, online and in person, feels the same. Social media templates are a great way to make sure that all of your virtual assets have the same fonts, colors, images, etc.
However, there are a lot of small things that you can get done to add personal brand touches throughout your properties. One that is crucial to almost any rental property is a guest book. Your guest book is something that every single person who stays at your property is going to look at, so it is important for your brand as a whole that it matches the rest of your assets.
You can also take it a step further with your brand collateral if you are trying to come up with how to make your Airbnb luxury. You can get things like custom door mats, key chains, or labels for things like wine bottles, chocolates, candies, or nuts.
These can be used to create gift baskets for each guest that not only make their stay feel more luxurious but also promote your brand at the same time.
If you have items in your property that are there for guests to use during their stay, you can also think about getting custom-printed versions of them with your logos. For instance, if your property is somewhere where it rains a lot (like Seattle), you can get custom-branded umbrellas for the property.
RESULTS THAT SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES
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If your property is by the beach (like somewhere in California or Florida), you could get custom-printed beach towels. Maybe your rental is right next to a great park. You can get custom picnic blankets or a custom picnic set.
Collateral is a great chance to infuse your brand into things that your guests are all going to look at, things that they may forget to bring for their stay or things that they may enjoy using while at your property.
Finally, consider getting a website done for your property
Now, you may be thinking, why would I need a website? My property is already listed on Airbnb, Vrbo, etc, and that’s where people are going to book me. Why would I need another site? Plus, I can’t even legally take bookings out of those platforms? Yes, I know this – but stay with me here.
There are a few key benefits to having a custom website for your property separate from where the booking is listed.
Show off more of your property/the surrounding area
A separate website allows you to show more of your property and highlight the areas around your rental that guests may want to visit. You can create galleries for the different rooms in your property, the attractions around that people may want to visit, and even things like stores and malls that are right next to the rental.
Include a more extensive description of the rental
On your site, you can list out everything a renter would need to know about the property and what is included all in one spot (and more visually pleasing).
Most of the hosting sites will have limits on how many characters show at once or how many amenities are listed without having to constantly click “show more.” A custom site allows you to lay all of this out in a more easily accessible way while also highlighting any key aspects visually.
Instead of having to call something out in a description by making it all caps (which can also make it harder to read), you can add images next to the text that draws potential renter’s attention to the most desirable features of the property and helps set expectations for your future renters.
Drive traffic through SEO
A custom site is a great way to drive traffic to your property through SEO. While the site is not going to be a place where guests can actually book your property (AirBnB especially does now allow this), having solid SEO that helps you rank on Google will help more people find your property and you can then link out to where they can book.
The key here, though, is going to be doing your research. You want to make sure that your copy has the right keywords that people are actually searching for. If you’re not comfortable or familiar with SEO, hiring a copywriter or SEO expert that can help ensure your copy is optimized is crucial.
Show off your entire rental portfolio
If you have multiple rental properties, a custom site can be a great way to show your entire rental portfolio in one place. You can use the main pages of the site as a way to introduce your brand and list out any information that is going to be the same for all of your properties.
Instead of having a gallery of just the single property, though, you can create a portfolio that highlights every property you rent. Each rental can then have its own individual pages showing the property off and describing what is unique about it
This can be a great way to grow a client base that continually comes back to your properties. Even though they most likely came to your site for one specific property in one specific city, they will be able to see all of the other rentals you own that they can book for future trips (especially after they have a great experience during their first stay).
Final thoughts
When it comes to how to make your Airbnb luxury, a custom brand and website will help you stand head and shoulders above the sea of other rental properties. Your guests will feel like they are in a 5-star hotel, and you will create a brand that you can continue to build and expand on. If you are ready to give your guests not just a rental but an experience, click here to check out our packages and get in touch.
