Getting the most from your listing
We've put together some tips for owners that should help you get the most from your listing on Windsor Hills Private Rentals (WHPR):
Showcase your property
Promote your listing on our rolling showcase. This is our front page property
slideshow. These listings typically get more clicks. What's more the headline you
see overlaying your property here is completely controlled by you. It's taken from
your listing 'banner' text so whatever sells your listing best (might be 'south facing pool'
or 'close to clubhouse') will display here as well as at the top of your listing
page. You'll see on the slideshow that holidaymakers can click for more details. That
click takes them straight to your listing. To add your property to our
showcase slideshow we require you to send us a high quality image of your
property and also add the following html code to the main index page of your website:
Listed on...<a href='http://www.windsorhillsprivaterentals.com'> Windsor Hills Private Rentals</a>
Please get in touch for further details or put us in touch with your webmaster if
you need advice or guidance on the above.
Optimise your listing for search traffic
When logging in and updating your listing on WHPR you'll see the first line of the listing is called the 'banner'. This is the text that will appear at the top of your listing page (example) and above your property on the villa, townhome and condo pages. This text however also appears in the html Title tag. In layman's terms it's the most important piece of information a search engine will use to decide what the page (listing) is about. So, in short, if you really want to promote the fact that your property is 'newly refurbished', 'south facing' or 'right next to the kid's playground', ensure you add this to the 'banner' on your listing. Not only will it help holidaymakers on the site identify properties that meet their specific needs it will also help Google and Bing direct holidaymakers who aren't on the site directly to your listing if it closely matches a search they have entered such as 'villa for rent in Windsor hills next to kids playground'. Why not login and try adding a new banner text, wait for a month, and see if traffic improves. After a month try a different banner text.
Update Your Listing
Keeping your listing up to date is important. Holidaymakers value current rates and information. However there is another valuable reason for updating your listing. It has impact on the listing order on our villa, townhome and condo pages. Most recently updated properties are displayed first so if you update your listing you'll jump straight to the top of the page. This tip doesn't really need much explanation. If a holidaymaker clicks to view condos and your listing is the first they see they are clearly more likely to click. Whilst being top isn't everything being on the first page is more important (which means being in the top 12 as the site displays 12 properties per page).
Add a late deal or special offer
Adding a late deal or special offer is a great way to promote your property. Not only will you appear our late deals and special offers page we'll also promote your specific late deal or special offer through the WHPR Facebook and Twitter pages as well as in our mailing list which goes out to several thousand holidaymakers who have previously used the site. All of these draw additional traffic to your particular listing.
Make full use of your picture allocation
There is nothing that draws a holidaymaker to a property more than good quality pictures. Make sure they are bright, well shot and, as a group, cover the whole property so for example pictures of the living dining area and none of the bedrooms doesn't help a holidaymaker get a good feel for the entire property. And make sure you use your full allocation of 15 pictures.
Add a video
We have functionality that allows you to embed a promotional video of your property into your WHPR listing. This only works if the video is stored on a site that allows its videos to be embedded. YouTube does. A video is a great way to bring a property to life for a holidaymaker. If you are interested in exploring this option get in touch with us and we can advise.
Get your own website
While we don't insist on owners having their own website to list on WHPR we certainly feel it's a big benefit. WHPR is a portal through which holidaymakers are linked with owners. Holidaymakers need as much information as possible to help them make a decision on a particular property and there isn't enough space to cover everything. Your listing on the site should be your shop window. Your own website (which you can link to from your listing) is the actual shop, allowing holidaymakers to get more detailed information about the property, amenities, the owner, property location, rates, availability and the terms of conditions of booking.