Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.Suzanne asks:I’m building a luxury short-term rental that sleeps 16 people. What tips do you have to make sure the entire space – not just the bedrooms – are ready for big groups of guests?Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit Speakpipe.com/ThanksforvisitingAMAResources:• Use code TFV20 at IntelliHost.coThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.

We have heard from you all that you would like a little bit more behind the scenes of what Annette and I get ourselves into, so we’re sharing about our current journey buying 175 acres of land out in Ohio. In this episode, we're going to go over the who, what, when, where, and why of this exciting new project. We share who we are collaborating with for this project and why we believe it’s a good partnership. We talk about our plan for the structures on the land, and how long it has taken us to find the right property. We also get into why we’ve chosen central Ohio as where we are investing in real estate, and the long list of “whys” we’re so excited about this next challenge.Resources:• BiggerPockets Podcast: biggerpockets.com• #STRShareSunday: @motojave1953Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.Minoan | Minoan helps short-term rentals and boutique hotels enhance their appeal with their customizable, curated retail platform.Minoan | Visit MinoanExperience.com and tell them TFV sent you!Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.Ingrid from Columbus asks:What is your advice on guests wanting to bring rentals to our property, such as bounce houses and pop-up tents & chairs? What safety issues should we be concerned with?Extra thanks to Justin Ford from Breezeway for his expertise on this question.Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit Speakpipe.com/ThanksforvisitingAMAThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.

Today you’ll hear from a woman who left behind her corporate career for hosting. While it's hard to do, we've heard that story before. But here's a story you haven't heard; she made it her priority to get 70% direct booking, and in this episode, shares how she did it.Kerri Gibson is a CPA who spent the first 22 years of her career in international technology and development for tax and accounting firms. She has worked as an advisor to the Obama administration on tax legislation and was twice named one of the most influential CPAs under the age of 40 in the USA. After experiencing burnout, Kerri reevaluated her career and priorities. In 2017, she pivoted to the hospitality and real estate investment sector, including short-term rentals, and discovered her passion for entrepreneurship, hospitality, and design. Chalets Hygge, founded in 2017 by Kerri and her partner Philippe, has become a recognizable short-term rental brand in Quebec, Canada. They have built a brand that contributes to the local economy and culture by focusing on guest experience, passion for supporting sustainable and local businesses, and involvement in local government and tourism associations. Their success is evident in the numerous publications and television spots featuring their properties. By focusing on building a direct booking business, they have achieved an impressive 70% direct booking rate, allowing them to maintain control over the customer experience and build a loyal customer base. Kerri’s journey is definitely one to learn from and aspire to, and we know you’re going to learn so much from this conversation.Resources:• Website: chaletshygge.com• Instagram: @kerri_reinvented• Read: Start with Why by Simon Sinek• LinkedIn: Kerri Gibson• Read: The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman• Lodgify: lodgify.com• #STRShareSunday: @littlewolflodgeThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.Minoan | Minoan helps short-term rentals and boutique hotels enhance their appeal with their customizable, curated retail platform.Minoan | Visit MinoanExperience.com and tell them TFV sent you!Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.This week’s question:What advice and information do you have for hosting pets; specifically dogs?Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit Speakpipe.com/ThanksforvisitingAMAResources:• Pet Hair Dryer Sheets• Pet Microfiber TowelThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.

Who doesn’t want to book more guests? Jeff Brown is a self proclaimed data geek. He co-founded Loma Homes, a vacation rental company that focuses on unique experiences and themes. Jeff saw the need for better data to optimize his properties and therefore created IntelliHost as an internal tool to help him grow his STR business. IntelliHost is the first platform to show you the entire Airbnb search funnel and how you’re performing in each step. Their mission is to empower hosts to make data driven decisions that optimize their listings and earn more Airbnb revenue.This episode is juicy. You’ll learn how you can improve your Airbnb booking funnel by paying attention to four things that could be keeping people from booking your property. In this episode, Jeff breaks down the Airbnb search funnel and how to show up in results, how to optimize your property for Airbnb’s filter, Airbnb’s algorithm for determining relevance, tips for launching a brand new listing, optimizing your cover image and what’s scaring people away in your listing description. We’re excited for you to leverage data from IntelliHost to increase your bookings and revenue for your short term rental!Resources:• Website: intellihost.co/TFV - use code TFV20 for 20% off• Instagram: @intellihost.co• YouTube: Intellihost• Loma Homes: loma-homes.com• #STRShareSunday: @cedarmountainviewThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.Minoan | Minoan helps short-term rentals and boutique hotels enhance their appeal with their customizable, curated retail platform.Minoan | Visit MinoanExperience.com and tell them TFV sent you!Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.Zach asks:What tools do you use when researching potential short-term rentals to help influence a purchasing decision on a new property?Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah & Annette, visit Speakpipe.com/ThanksforvisitingAMAResources:• STR Insights• PriceLabsThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.

Andi Diamond Bennett is an on-the-go mom of two, wife, portrait photographer, co-owner of 10 STRs, and co-owner of Sunburst Inn which was just renovated and featured on HGTV's 100 Day Dream Home: Beachfront Hotel. She lives in Tampa, FL and her properties are all in Indian Shores and Indian Rocks Beach, FL. Today, Andi sits down with us to spill the beans about her whirlwind television journey, from her hotel being bought for teardown, to making over a million dollars in revenue this year. She’s living so many short-term rental hosts’ dream of being a television talent and hotelier, but the truth is that it’s not all fun and glamorous. We talk about the highs and lows of her journey, how she manages multiple properties and a full-time job, as well as how she got on HGTV’s 100-Day Dream Home. She also shares behind-the-scenes secrets of the entire process – including the benefits of being featured on the show, sharing the unique marketing strategies she’s employing to take advantage of HGTV’s valuable exposure. We know you’re going to learn a lot from Andi’s experience!Resources:• #STRShareSunday: @riverside.retreat.yxh• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/andi-diamond-bennett• Instagram: @andidiamond• Sunburst Inn: sunburstinn.com • Indian Rocks Beach: book.indianrocksbeachvacationrental.com• PriceLabs: pricelabs.co• Read: Who Not How by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin HardyThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Minoan | Minoan helps short-term rentals and boutique hotels enhance their appeal with their customizable, curated retail platform.Minoan | Visit MinoanExperience.com and tell them TFV sent you!Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between.Today’s question:I’m going to start listing my house’s mother-in-law suite on Airbnb. But, it’s a daylight basement, in an old house with quirks (and charm), and frequent noise from kids and pets. What is the best way to list this and disclose the negatives while highlighting the positives?Thanks to everyone who submitted questions. To hear your voice on the show and send a question to Sarah and Annette, visit Speakpipe.com/ThanksforvisitingAMAResources:• Noise Machine• Thanks for Visiting StorefrontThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.

Letting go of team members is never easy, no matter how long you've been with them. It's always hard. In this episode, we're going to unpack a situation that we had recently when we had to part ways with some of our team members. We want to share as much as we can here on the podcast how you can prevent ending the partnership in the first place, and be proactive in training and communicating with your vendors. We share what we learned, what we did right, and what we didn't do well. We know you all care deeply about your properties, guests and teams, and as humans, parting ways with essential members of the team can be stressful, challenging and mentally tough. We know this is an uncomfortable, unfortunate inevitability of running a business, so we’re here to support you through it. Remember that ending a chapter can be scary and hard, but it’s okay, natural and, in many cases, ultimately for the best.Resources:• #STRShareSunday: @hillsidehouse_shenandoah• Hillside House: hillsidehouseshenandoah.comThanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.Mentioned in this episode:Minoan | Minoan helps short-term rentals and boutique hotels enhance their appeal with their customizable, curated retail platform.Minoan | Visit MinoanExperience.com and tell them TFV sent you!Hosting Business Mastery Method | Join us for our live, free, host masterclass and learn how to OWN your digital real estate!HBMM | Sign up today at hostmasterclass.com.Breezeway | Go to breezeway.io/tfv to claim your free implementation when you start a Breezeway account.