Digital guidebooks have become the new norm across the short term rental industry. Find out why.
The world has gone digital. While writing up that 50-page, 1-inch-thick guidebook may be exciting and informative, it’s not practical – for you or your guests. Digital guidebooks, or digital welcome books, have become the new norm across the short term rental industry. They are convenient, informative, fast, and accessible from almost anywhere.
There is a lot of buzz surrounding the new practices in the short term rental industry, none more important than the digital guidebook. Whether you’ve heard of it before or have no clue what we’re talking about, this article will cover all you need to know. Let’s dive right in.
What is a Digital Guidebook
A digital guidebook serves the same purpose as a traditional guidebook. It welcomes guests to the home and property, while adequately informing them about all check-in, check-out, and local area information.
Guidebooks have always been a staple in the short term rental industry, but digital guidebooks are taking the guest experience to a whole new level. Not to mention, they are a whole lot easier for hosts to prepare. They are affordable, informational, and incredibly easy to navigate.
Your guests no longer have to flip through the appendix or table of contents inside your “bible-thick” instruction manual to find what they are looking for. Now, they can access all they need to know from the convenience of their phone. With the ability to find all their information from one central platform, your guests will be able to spend less time setting up their rental, and more time enjoying the stay they came for.
Is a Digital Guidebook right for my short term rental?
Digital Guidebooks are best for short term rentals, vacation rentals, serviced accommodation, Airbnb’s, Vrbo’s, holiday homes, glamping sites, and B&B’s.
Digital guidebooks are a multipurpose tool that allows hosts to enhance their guests’ experience, no matter the occasion. Hosts can customize each guidebook to bring out the personality of their rental, which adds further appeal to the guests’ stay. Digital guidebooks aren’t just a unique exception, they are becoming an expectation across the industry. As we’ll now go over, this fact has much to do with the benefits digital guidebooks bring to both the guest and host.
Benefits of Digital Guidebooks for hosts
Short term rental hosts have to wear a lot of hats. From supplying cleaning services, to maintenance, to guest services, there is undoubtedly a lot of work involved in the upkeep of a short term rental property. The good news is that digital guidebooks are a fantastic resource to help manage those responsibilities.
Some key benefits include:
Better guest relationships: By providing guests with easily accessible, quality information, you are able to tighten the host-guest communication, which helps in building better trust and reputation, and improves the likelihood you’ll get a 5-star review.
Improved retention rates: Making their stay as smooth and seamless as possible is the best way to turn first-timers into repeat customers. It’s also a great way to get more guest referrals.
Saves you time: This one is a no-brainer for hosts. With all the responsibilities you have, any opportunity to save time has to be taken advantage of. Digital guidebooks can help you via automated messaging and quick edits within the guidebook system, allowing you to make whatever changes you need to, on the fly.
Better Branding: Digital guidebooks are another chance for you to plug the unique personality of your short term rental into the guest experience. This is another aspect of digital guidebooks that can help review scores, retention rates, and guest referrals tremendously.
Benefits of Digital Guidebooks for hosts
At this point, your guests are more likely accustomed to finding their information digitally than they are on paper. By providing them with a digital resource where they can locate all of the important information related to their stay, you maximize their chances for a fantastic and memorable experience. As we mentioned before, there are a number of ways digital guidebooks can enhance the guest experience.
Some key benefits include:
Immediate answers to pressing questions: “How do I get the coffee machine to work? How do I turn on this shower? Where is the tv remote?” These are the types of questions all guests have asked at one time or another. A digital guidebook can give them all the answers they are looking for in one place.
Convenience and Speed: These are staples in the digital world. As long as they know how to navigate their own phone, they’ll be able to find everything they are looking for in a digital guidebook.
Access to information in advance: Guests can sometimes show up unprepared for where to eat, what to do, or what to see in the area they’re staying in. Sending a digital guidebook link to guests as soon as they make a booking gives them an opportunity to plan ahead and make the most of their stay.
What’s Inside a Digital Guidebook?
A short term rental digital guidebook is composed of a whole number of features that outline the details of the guests’ stay. Some specific digital guidebook features include:
Check-in and check-out process House manual (Wi-Fi, thermostat, rules, benefits, etc.) Frequently asked questions and highlights Direct links to fun activities in the local area Direct links for directions to local attractions Local area map detailing popular restaurants and other attractions Access to pre-loaded places (beaches, parks, fitness centers, etc.)
How to Setup a Digital Guidebook for Your Short Term Rental
A digital guidebook can be set up in as little as a few hours. As most short term rental hosts already know all of their key property information, it’s a simple plug-and-play process.
Now that you’re overly excited about all of the benefits digital guidebooks are going to give you, let’s go over exactly how easy it is to integrate one into your business. With Guidey™, you can fully customize your guidebook with written descriptions, unlimited images, and simple video uploads. We make the process of adding links, PDFs, or additional information to your guidebook as simple as possible. As the host of your property, you’ll have full control over the contents within your guidebook.
Once you’re done creating the ultimate digital resource for your guests, sharing it with them is as simple as forwarding them a link. Many hosts also like to include easy-to-scan QR codes that they can display in prominent locations throughout the property. Best of all, Guidey™ allows you to set a passcode to keep all your rental information secure.
Everything moves fast in our digital world. But Guidey™ can help you simplify the process of digitizing your short term rental and enhance your guests’ experience along the way.
If you’re ready to take your short term rental to the next level, feel free to Book a call with our friendly team so we can collaborate on the best solution for you, or simply click here to start creating your Guidey™ digital guidebook today.