Are you familiar with the right tech tools to optimize your short-term rental?
Running a short-term rental means juggling multiple responsibilities, from ensuring an exceptional guest experience to managing property details, all while trying to stay efficient with your time. It can be a lot to handle, but the good news is that technology can make this process so much easier! With the right tools, you can streamline operations, reduce stress, and focus on what really matters, providing a seamless and memorable stay for your guests. As the industry becomes more competitive, these tech solutions not only save time but also help you stand out in a crowded market.
Below are a must-have tech tools every short-term rental host should consider using.
1. Property Analysis & Underwriting
This tool will help you get a clear picture of your property’s value and potential by looking at important things like its location, local demand, and how much similar properties are charging. By taking the time to analyze these factors, you can make smart choices that boost your occupancy rates and increase your earnings.
- STRinsights – is a data platform designed for short-term rental (STR) investors and hosts. It provides detailed market analysis that helps you find profitable locations, understand demand, and estimate your potential earnings.
- AirDNA – is a data analytics platform designed for short-term rental hosts and investors. It gives you valuable insights into how the market is performing, including occupancy rates, rental demand, average daily rates, and potential earnings for specific locations. This information helps you make informed decisions about your rental property and understand the market better.
- BNBCalc – is a user-friendly online tool that helps short-term rental (STR) hosts assess the financial health of their properties. It offers valuable insights into important metrics like estimated annual revenue, average daily rates, occupancy rates, and net operating income. All you have to do is enter details like where your property is located, your pricing, and how many guests you expect. This way, you can easily see how profitable your rental could be, making it simpler to optimize your earnings and manage your properties effectively.
2. Supply Purchasing
Purchasing supplies for your rental property is key to creating a comfortable, welcoming space for guests. Items like fresh linens, cozy towels, kitchen essentials, and toiletries help show your attention to detail. By choosing durable, high-quality supplies, you ensure they last through multiple stays while enhancing the guest experience. Staying organized with your supply purchases also saves time when restocking between bookings, helping you maintain a smooth operation. Thoughtful, well-stocked supplies will leave a lasting impression and make guests feel truly at home.
- Minoan – It’s an easy-to-use online platform made for short-term rental hosts, letting you shop from over 200 top brands for furniture and essentials. You can get big discounts, usually between 30% and 60% off regular prices, which makes it much more affordable to furnish and supply your property.
- Wayfair Professional – is a special program for businesses like property managers, providing exclusive discounts, free shipping on orders over $35, and dedicated support. It’s a valuable resource for sourcing stylish and affordable products for various projects.
3. Property Security
Property security is a top priority when it comes to ensuring peace of mind for both hosts and guests. You may check the tools below.
- Ring – is a smart security device designed to enhance property safety through real-time monitoring and alerts. It allows homeowners to view live video feeds, record footage, and communicate with visitors via two-way audio, all through a mobile app.
- Schlage – offers a wide range of products, including traditional deadbolts, keyless entry systems, and smart locks that integrate with home automation systems. Their devices are designed for durability and ease of use, providing homeowners with peace of mind through advanced security features.
- Minut – This device monitors noise levels, detects motion, and provides insights into occupancy, helping hosts maintain a peaceful environment while ensuring compliance with house rules. Minut’s user-friendly app allows property owners to receive real-time alerts and access data remotely, making it easier to manage multiple properties efficiently.
- Jervis Systems – This tool allows us to create unique lock codes for each guest during their stay, enhancing security and ensuring a personalized experience. By generating individual codes, we can manage access effectively and give guests peace of mind while they enjoy their time at the property.
4. Marketing Channels
Marketing Channels are essential for businesses to engage with their customers. For short-term rental hosts, leveraging various channels can help them stand out and attract more guests. By effectively using these channels, hosts can boost their property’s visibility and increase bookings.
- Airbnb – a platform that connects travelers with unique places to stay, ranging from cozy apartments to stunning villas. It offers hosts the opportunity to share their homes and experiences, creating a sense of community and personal touch in the travel experience. With a focus on making travel accessible and enjoyable, Airbnb continues to inspire adventure and connection across the globe.
- VRBO – It operates similarly to the Airbnb platform, providing guests with the opportunity to view and book our properties easily. Users can browse through various listings, complete with detailed descriptions, photos, and availability calendars.
5. Operations & Channel Management
This tool is designed to help you manage your marketing channels all in one convenient place. It allows you to streamline communication with all your guests, making it easier to provide updates and respond to inquiries. Additionally, you’ll be able to track and check all your bookings in a single dashboard, simplifying the management process.
- OwnerRez – a property management software that simplifies the booking and management process for vacation rental owners. It offers features like integrated payment processing, automated messaging, and channel management, allowing hosts to streamline their operations and enhance the guest experience.
- Hospitable – a platform designed for hosts of short-term rentals. It helps manage communication with guests and keep everything organized. With features like automated messages, calendar syncing, and tools for managing guests, Hospitable makes it easier for hosts to provide a great experience for their guests while efficiently handling bookings from different websites.
6. Revenue Management and Dynamic Pricing
These tools are essential strategies used by short-term rental hosts to maximize their income. By adjusting prices based on demand, seasonality, and local events, hosts can optimize occupancy rates and ensure they are charging competitive rates for their properties, ultimately enhancing profitability.
- Pricelabs – is a handy tool for short-term rental hosts that helps them figure out the best pricing for their properties. It uses data on market trends, how busy different times of the year are, and local events to suggest prices that not only keep the bookings coming in but also maximize earnings.
- Keydata – Will give you a clear look at your performance, market trends, and what your competitors are doing, which really helps you make smart decisions to boost your revenue and keep your occupancy rates high.
7. Listing Optimization
Listing optimization is a way to boost your property’s visibility on sites like Airbnb and VRBO, helping it show up at the top of search results. This means tweaking things like your title, description, and photos, as well as using the right keywords to grab potential guests’ attention. By optimizing your listing, you can get more views and bookings, making your hosting experience much more successful.
- Rankbreeze – is a tool for short-term rental hosts who want to improve how their listings perform on sites like Airbnb and VRBO. It helps you understand how your property ranks in search results by tracking keywords and analyzing performance, so you can make adjustments that lead to better visibility and more bookings.
- Intellihost – It shows you how your listing’s pricing compares to others, helping you see where you stand in the market. This way, you can make your prices more competitive.
8. Vendor Communication (Cleaners & Techs)
This is really important for short-term rental hosts because it helps everything run smoothly and ensures you get your supplies and services on time. Keeping things clear and open with your Cleaners/techs not only builds good relationships but can also lead to better deals and quick solutions if any problems pop up.
- Turno – This tool has a feature that syncs with your property management system, allowing cleaners to see your calendar. This makes it easier to coordinate cleaning schedules and ensure everything is ready for incoming guests.
- Breezeway – this helps hosts manage everything from cleaning to maintenance. It has tools for scheduling tasks and communicating with your team, which makes it much easier to keep everything organized and ensure your guests have a smooth experience.
- Slack – is a messaging app that makes it super easy for teams to communicate and work together in real time. You can create channels for different topics, send direct messages, and share files, all in one place, which helps keep everyone organized and connected.
9. Welcome Guides
These are simple digital guides that give guests all the important info they need for their stay. They make it easy for guests to find everything in one place, helping things run smoothly.
- Touch Stay – is an online platform that lets hosts create digital welcome guides for their guests. These guides can include all the important info about the property, local recommendations, and handy tips for a smooth stay, making it super easy for guests to find what they need.
- Hostfully – is an online guide to share important info with your guests. You can customize them to include house rules, check-in instructions, and even local recommendations, making it super easy for your guests to find everything they need in one spot.
10. Experiences
This is exactly what you need if you ever need guests to sign a waiver for certain amenities. It takes care of the process, so you don’t have to worry about it.
- Mount – If you need guests to sign a waiver for amenities like kayaks, you can use this tool to streamline the process. It connects directly to your property management system, so you won’t have to handle waivers manually anymore—everything is taken care of automatically!
11. Marketing and Direct Booking
- Stayfi – is a tool that helps short-term rental hosts collect guest emails and improve their marketing efforts. It works by creating a custom Wi-Fi login page for guests, so you can capture their info and build your email list effortlessly.
- Switchback’s email marketing – this makes it easy for short-term rental hosts to connect with their guests. It helps you create targeted emails, share special deals, and keep past guests in the loop, which can help encourage them to book with you again.
- Boostly – is a platform that helps short-term rental hosts improve their online presence and attract more guests. With features like website creation, social media support, and email marketing tools, it’s designed to make managing your rental business easier and more effective. This is usually used for Direct Booking.
- GOSTR – is a handy tool for hosts that makes it easier to manage everything from bookings to guest communication. It features automation for messages, helps keep track of your reservations, and provides insights to improve your rental’s performance, making your life a lot simpler.
By using these tools, you’ll notice how much easier it becomes to manage your rental. It’s not just about making tasks simpler; it’s about freeing up your time and energy so you can focus on what really matters, creating amazing experiences for your guests and pursuing your personal goals. When managing a rental feels smooth and efficient, it opens up opportunities for you to enjoy life more fully, whether that’s spending time with loved ones, exploring new hobbies, or just relaxing. With the right tools, managing your property can be a joy rather than a chore, allowing you to truly thrive both in your rental business and your everyday life!
source: Short Term Rental Tech Stack Masterclass
You can also check: STR Success – Usability Experience in STR with Kim Menapace, STR Success – Dave & Will discuss critical tech for investing and operating STRs