Answering promptly is key for email enquiries. I can guarantee that the longer it takes for a potential guest to receive a reply to an enquiry, the chances of losing a potential booking increases dramatically.
Let’s pretend your sink has a small but continuous leak (hopefully, you wouldn’t experience this situation anytime soon) and you need to call the plumber. You called two weeks ago and now it's starting to look like a small pond under your sink.
I know I cannot compare booking a holiday rental with your flooded bathroom, but every time a customer sends an enquiry, they want a reply as soon as possible.
Here are 9 tips to improve your response habits and turn more potential bookings into confirmed bookings.
1. Don’t relax
Be fast. People are looking at several websites and properties at the same time so they want answers and responses quickly.
Being fast in answering enquiries is the key to establishing good communication and contact first - before any other homeowner. Not only does this give a good initial impression but if you received that email a week ago and haven’t responded there is a good chance the person has moved on.
2. Be alert
Many people have a smartphone. I'm sure that most of the people who read these articles are actually on their phones.
Applications such as Gmail, Outlook or BlueMail help you manage multiple email accounts. There are options for creating alerts, so your phone will ring every time you receive an email from a query in your personal inbox. You have the option of being connected to your future guests.
In addition, you can set up automatic responses to tell the holidaymaker that they can contact you to solve their questions as soon as possible. Scheduling an answer is easy using templates like those available in our system.
3. Context is everything
Have you ever received an email from someone who does not introduce themselves and write directly on a topic they have questioned much earlier? Of course, you have.
Always begin by introducing yourself and your property. People looking for a home to stay in during their holidays normally send several queries to different property owners. So, if you forget to write your name or mention where your property is, it is decreasing your chances of converting that enquiry into a confirmed booking.
4. Straight to the point
Answer the question. Do not dance around an enquiry by wasting time and words. Be specific, people will not read a super-long answer.
It's great if you can talk about something else apart from the issue you have been questioned to build rapport, but don’t abuse it.
As we mentioned before, many of your potential guests will read your answer on their mobile devices. A massive cluster of paragraphs and a lack of punctuation will terrify them before they begin to read.
Make your description concise including the best and most attractive aspects of your property and its location, while saving the extra details for your response to their enquiry.
5. Make it personalised
Be close but professional. Use a warm tone making your answer an open door to resolve any questions that may arise from your future guest. Try to avoid using an impersonal tone, used by most hotels, you are offering an experience. But do not forget that this is your business, write with respect.
Tell them why you love your place, share with them your personal view. Starting a conversation is the key to establishing a good relationship from the beginning.
6. Include interesting information
You are probably the best person to describe the location of your property. Talk about the surroundings, places to visit, where to have lunch with outstanding sea views, etc.
Why don’t you tell them? If you find the right opportunity to tell them, do it! Everyone wants to feel like a local. Giving advice will increase their trust and confidence in you.
Add value to the information potential guests are asking you. For example, if you receive an enquiry asking about the bedroom: describe the beautiful sunrise they can experience from that room. If they ask about the garden: mention your barbeque and the incredible time you could have with your family and friends.
You can also link to websites with articles that talk about your area. You can find quality content from various parts of Spain in our articles section.
7. Take care of your image
The first glance at your email response can determine if your potential guests will respond to your email by asking about your fees and payment process or if they delete your email from their inbox.
Grammar mistakes, using upper case, lack of clarity, tone, quality content, etc. are examples of issues to consider.
A question about the availability on an occupied week of your calendar cannot be answered with a simple: It’s occupied
Using a simple greeting, a small introduction and a sign off are essential to polish your response and are signs of professionalism - even when responding with a negative answer.
Finally, if you can, include a signature that includes a picture of yourself, your full name and contact details.
8. Reviews
We rely on reviews to choose one option or another when we travel. Reviews are very powerful.
Providing the reviews we have received on our property makes it easier to build trust with our future guests by providing the opportunity to check what previous guests have said about us.
Using previous reviews can influence a decision. It can determine whether your property is chosen or not.
You might think that including everything that we said in this article could end up in an incredibly long email. However, you can incorporate multiple items via links to a website or attach files in the email, leaving potential guests with the possibility of accessing more information if they want.
9. Call if you can
Some guests say they prefer a call instead of an email. Many guests find this option a great opportunity to chat with the owner and personally discuss each question or to mention any doubts.
This creates trust between the owner and the guest and can add enhanced security to hear the voice of another human behind an online advert.
Remember, this is only an option if you feel secure with the language of your potential guests.