Professionals staging is, essentially, a consultation service – especially when working with vacation rental owners.
Vacation rentals or short-term rentals like Airbnb and VRBO are extremely profitable – if the homes are competitively decorated and priced for the region.
If you’re looking to break into the market of staging for short term rentals, you will be offering your services as one part hospitality marketer and two parts interior decorator. While your eye for the aesthetic is essential, you are also helping owners build a complete guest strategy.
The experts at Thanks for Visiting know everything there is to know about short term rental staging and consulting and were kind enough to offer a few pointers in a recent RESA Professional Development Webinar, “Mastering the Short-term Rental Staging Consultation”.
We took suggestions from Sarah and Annette’s webinar to create this blog hoping it will help you build your strategy while you can dive deep into methods, customer service, and best practices through the webinar itself (available for all active RESA Members).
Staging for Short Term Rentals Rule # 1 Understand the Client’s Vision, Goals, and Budget
The first step is always the initial consultation. You will likely start on the phone and through emails, but soon you will be walking the short-term rental home, apartment, condo, or townhouse with the owner taking a look at everything they’ve set up. Annette and Sarah of Thanks for Visiting advise a very long listening session, allowing your client to explain themselves entirely, share their vision, and outline their budget before you start designing.
Research the Competition
Once you understand the property and the kind of appeal it offers, research the competition. Look at hotels and other short-term rentals in the area that offer similar bed-count, style, and price range. Share your best comparative results with your client to give them an idea of what you’re working against – and what you’re aiming for.
Build a 3-Stage Plan and Buying List For Your Clients
Competitive short-term rental staging can be done in three waves or categories, depending on just how luxurious and thorough your client wants to be. A smart move is to present three stages and let your client choose to start slow or dive right in.
1) Design Essentials
The bed, bathroom, kitchen, and living space of any vacation rental need to be cozy and welcoming, so these details are your essentials. When building a design and a price range, present clients with the essentials as your baseline.
2) Details and Decor
If your client wants to truly decorate the place with all the little details, the second stage involves throw pillows, artwork, and thematic details like accent walls and
new kitchen knobs – those little touches that make a big difference in hospitality
decor.
3) Above-and-Beyond
Finally, show your client what going all-out with convenience, luxury, and guest supplies would look like. Include a beautifully stocked kitchen (with utensils, dishes, and even spices), luxurious bathroom design, extra bedding and pillow selection, and service storage overhaul.
DIY or Make It Happen
In your short term rental staging consultation, you can offer to provide the design and shopping list (as an additional service) to your clients for a DIY installation or take on the task yourself. Time is valuable, and your client will decide whether to use their own time or hire your time to make their vacation rental into a beautifully designed hospitality space.
Become a Professional Staging Consultant for Short Term Rentals
To find out how to hone your craft and turn short-term rental owners into repeat customers, you’ll want to join Annette and Sara of Thanks for Visiting in their extremely informative RESA Professional Development Webinar on short-term rental staging consultations.
With your eye for beauty and decorator connections, you can soon cultivate a market of short-term rental clients in your area who are in need of regular design consultations to remain profitable in a highly competitive field.
Sign up with RESA to watch the webinar Mastering the Short-term Rental Staging Consultation w/ Thanks For Visiting
Stagers are in a great position to capitalize on this exciting industry. In Sarah and Annette’s RESACON session, you’ll learn tips and tricks from an expert short-term rental designer and host so that you can confidently add short-term rental design to your list of services.
Marketing Assistant at Real Estate Staging Association
Joanna creates marketing, advertising, and social media messaging for the purpose of conveying the organization's mission, vision and value, educating consumers, attracting new members, highlighting member accomplishments, providing content for real estate agents, and promoting strategic partners.
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