Five tips for Success in the Short Term Rental Accommodation Industry #2

Tip 2. ADAPTING TO CHANGE

The success of your business hinges on your ability to provide a niche in the market-driven accommodation industry. You need to know what the accommodation market is a searching for and if you identify a deficit you may need to change your approach. In the last 5 years there has been a real shift in the market regarding the wants and needs of travellers. Relocation personnel are coming from interstate and overseas to meet the demand for specialised skill sets required for various industries, and this means there has been a shift in the need for alternative accommodation options.

For this to occur your business needs to be able to adapt to change from what it always has been to what it needs to be. The ability to adapt to the market is a real strength to the success of your business. If you fail to move with the times the competition will be so strong that the business you started no longer fits the needs of the market. The ability to adapt to a changing market is not easy, however it can be both challenging and rewarding.

Some strategies may include:

• Offering short and medium stays – from a few nights to a several weeks or months
• Considering long term options, say a 6 –12 month lease
• Increasing your portfolio of properties. This may mean purchasing additional properties or managing other owners’ properties
• Linking up with other accommodation operators
• Offering holistic management services in your local area
• Consider a booking-only management service

To offer flexible services to meet market demand is a move to establish your business in a niche market. A world where communication to anywhere is at the push of a button and travel allows us to commute from one side of the globe to the other in a relative short space of time drastically changes the face of the accommodation industry. These are exciting times and we need to take up the challenge, make changes and be market leaders whether we are regional, city-based, national or worldwide.

Stay posted for Tip 3. KNOW YOUR PRODUCT