Today we speak with serial entrepreneur Heather Bayer who has been immersed in the vacation rental industry for over 25 years. In this episode, Heather shares her story and also what is coming up for her since selling her 95% book direct, 20-year-old company in Canada earlier this year.

Hear how the idea was born for her to leave the UK and head to Cottage Country in Ontario, Canada. And how the direct booking landscape looked in 2003, what’s changed and what the future may hold. Heather also shares another terrible Airbnb shut down story and gives some top reasons to take direct bookings.

Topics discussed:

• The other residents in the cottage
• Buying our first property six weeks after the idea
• Marketing Ontario cottages to the UK
• Started with direct bookings as there was nothing else in 2003
• Then came HomeAway, Trip Advisor and finally Airbnb
• Selling a 95% book direct company in 2022 and it’s future
• Another Airbnb shut down story
• Top reasons to take direct bookings
• What Direct Booking Success means to Heather

CONNECT WITH Jenn Boyles:

Website: https://directbookingsuccess.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/directbookingsuccess

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directbookingsuccess/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennboyles/

CONNECT WITH Heather Bayer:

Websites: https://www.vacationrentalformula.com/

Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/vacation-rental-success/id599200191

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cottageguru/?hl=en

Facebook group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/business.of.str.property.management

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-bayer-8773986/?originalSubdomain=ca

Join me at the virtual Direct Booking Success Summit (27-29 September 2022). Get on the waitlist – https://www.directbookingsuccesssummit.com

Ep#12– Of mice and being 95% book direct with Heather Bayer

However, I still wanted to bring you the episode as I think you'll get a lot out of listening to our conversation. So here it is.

Heather, welcome to the podcast.

[00:00:44] Jenn: Now, I’m just thrilled you said. Let's start there. Most people will know who you are, but let's say somebody has been living in a cave for the last few years.

And could you introduce yourself, please?

Jen, when the exchange rate was crazy, we were getting $2 45 to the pound. Oh my goodness, back in 19 98, 19 99, we first started buying properties. So it was; it was crazy inexpensive to buy waterfront in Ontario. Right. So we just gobbled a few up then and rented them out. And then, I mean, this is a, a, a sort of a short, long story or a long short story.

But I started a company in England at that time called Clearwater holidays, and we were marketing Ontario cottages to the British market. Brilliant, brilliant. And, we were finding that we were getting phone calls from people in Toronto saying you're renting out cottages two hours north of me.

And so we were bundling the flights and the car rental, and it was by, I I'm, I'm a serial entrepreneur, so love to start companies. So I'd gone from being a hypnotherapist and a psychotherapist, right and a management training consultant. Right. Oh, now I'm going to do it; I’m going to market holidays in Ontario in cottages.

And I'd met the owner of the cottage link, which, as I said, was a listing site, just a listing site. And he'd had owners come to him and say, you know, I, I. Like to list with you, but I don't want to do this myself. Right. Could you manage them for me? And he was passing them off to other local management companies.

[00:04:04] Jenn: Right? So you went over to Canada, into Ontario in 2003. Yeah. So we were ships passing in the night. Cause the second half, September; I think it was September 4th, 2002 that's when I came to London so I have been in CA I've been in the UK as long as you've been, you know, in Canada, which is quite funny.

[00:04:32] Jenn: no, no, no, no. We, although there are some things that you say that sound very Ontario, you know, it, it does. I'm from Vancouver. So, yeah, I can, I can notice this a little bit of a difference, but, yeah, no, it's really funny that our stories cross that way.

So, tell us the story of how you started and your first trip to cottage country in Ontario.

Yes. Yeah. And came across Ontario for dual weddings. My brother was getting married about two hours north of Toronto, and then we moved on to mass. There were 12 of us in this travelling party from the UK. We moved to Detroit in Michigan for my niece's wedding, a week apart. Right. Okay. And, uh, my brother loves him.

Rented us a lakefront cabin, and he painted the picture of this idyllic cottage on a lake where we'd be able to swim every day. And the 12 us would have plenty of room, which was so exciting. And I never thought I should have; I should have known better. It was my brother after. All right. Better into it.

With a boat waiting for us to take us across to what was water access only cottage, which came with this little boat with a nine horsepower motor. And there we were with 12 of us with all our luggage for two weeks. Unfortunately, we got buried over there and arrived at this place. And. I'm having this deep pause because sometimes I think about it, and I think, how did we ever live there for a week?

Yeah. And it, it, it, it hadn't been cleaned for at least six months. And, but there were already residents in there. Right. Um, about a hundred mice. Oh my God. And the place was full of mouse droppings. The screen doors were all ripped, so it was full of mosquitoes. It hadn't been cleaned, and it, it was, it was pretty disgusting, but we are a very resilient family.

So we took it upon ourselves just to clean the place and eliminate the mice. Plus, you were.

[00:07:17] Heather: like, we were, we could take this little boat backwards and forwards. Right. Okay. But not do much else. Yeah. And then there, there was a, there was a holding tank, and that was full. So we had a little outhouse.

So it, it was, it was an enjoyable vacation, but we loved every minute of it. We just absolutely loved it. The water was crystal clear. We swam at Dawn and sat around campfires at night and the things people do on vacation, you know, we reconnected as a family. And then, on the last night, my sister and I sat on a rock overlooking this.

The sunset that I've never seen the like of before. And we were sipping Gin and tonic. And I look back at this sort of ever so slightly leaning property and thought, Hey, we could do this. And, and I know my husband would’ve shaken his head and despair if he'd heard me. Yeah.

Because the moment I get one of. Entrepreneurial ideas. He knows it's going to go somewhere. And I said, we could do this, and we could do it a dance site better. And six weeks ago, let's start six weeks later, I'd come back across the pond and bought our first property six weeks after. Wow. And that was the origin story.

It was the beginning of it all. And we, I built the company in the UK and then. Started the property management company in Ontario, which led to having as 180 properties as we had under management. And I sold that company six weeks ago. Yes. And I am delighted to be company-free now, property management company free, and able to concentrate on other things.

But I started with direct booking from the beginning because there was nothing else—Mm-hmm at that time. At the time, we had to get out there as a small property management company; there was no help. Nobody wanted to be of any help, but what

To, you know, the British public, these idyllic holidays, but also putting that package together with the flight. And mm-hmm, you know, because you knew better than anybody else that you need some help, you need

[00:09:45] Jenn: both only access and.

Right. Yeah. But it worked, it worked, but I, that, that, lasted for four years. And before we moved out, you started managing them, yes. On, on-site, if you like.

[00:10:25] Heather: Well, HomeAway came along first. Okay. And HomeAway trip advisor. And as I said, we started direct bookings because it was nothing else. We were hugely successful, and HomeAway came along, and it was like this light bulb. Wow. This is fantastic. We can put our properties on this site, and they will market them to this much wider audience.

But at that time, when we started with HomeAway. We had access to our guests immediately. You put, you put the properties on HomeAway, but the guests came directly to

[00:11:05] Heather: Yeah, exactly. And then, the trip advisor came along, flip, flip key. Okay. For people who've been around a long time, there was a company called a flip key.

They were the ones that started with the very first online review. And I remember that so clearly, because these were unfiltered reviews, you could not go in and just pick the best part. Right. You know, they were living; you had to publish them. And I remember the furore that broke out amongst property managers then.

When Airbnb came along in 2000, 2000 hit the general short-term rental market in probably about 2011 mm-hmm 2012, but it didn't hit Ontario until probably about five years ago. Really. Okay. It was very, very slow in getting into this market. I, I was, I, I honestly didn't think it would make it into our market because we always prided ourselves on screening.

That was, that was our primary function for owners. You know, we will screen your guests, and we will match them to the property. And then Airbnb came along and asked for online booking, instant booking. Mm. And we lost that opportu. And I honestly didn't think it would last, but it, obviously, it, it has tentacles reached out and, and it was like this octopus, you know?

Yeah. We were reaching out into every part of our world where it is firmly, very firmly now. So, we went from direct booking. We went through HomeAway. We never listed on Airbnb. Okay. And when I sold the company six weeks ago, we were 95% direct book. Yeah. And I know the new owners are actively putting every property back onto Airbnb and VRBO.

So I'm very interested to see how they are really, yeah. Very curious to hit and see how that pans out. But it's a, we we've been bought out by a, a very young group of investors, and they've grown up with Airbnb, right?

[00:13:46] Heather: isn't it? Yes. Yeah, absolutely.

[00:13:54] Heather: yes.

Well, no. I mean, I'm, I'm interested. I'm. I'm still involved in the company because we're in a transitionary period. So I'm seeing, you know, I, I go, I still go out and look for new properties and, do that owner acquisition function. Mm-hmm. And I see them, you know, them being listed on Airbnb, and some of them are large properties, so we'll still, we'll see, we'll see how it, how it pans out.

But I think the direct booking part of the company will because we've got a strong band brand. Yeah. That natural, direct booking part will be significant for a long time.

[00:14:35] Heather: high. Yeah, probably. I think when we sold, it was around about 55%.

Yeah. Yeah.

[00:14:48] Heather: and. It's a Rite of passage as well for, for anybody coming into Ontario, you know? Yes. New Canadians. You have got to go to a cottage. That's what you do in the summer.

Yes.

We're there for five weeks. Oh wow. And my godparents have a place on Gambier island, which is by boat, only private boat, no fairies, no cars, but then we've got friends on Bowen island and, and my uncles on Pener island. So to experience that is, it is a Rite of passage. Definitely. And to see it. And if you grow up in England, it's not quite the same.

She’s still in school, and it's, you know, the end of July. So it's a different life, that's for sure. So the company is sold now, and you're still working with them, but what will be your focus now? My focus has moved some, something we've had in, in the results for a long time.

[00:16:20] Jenn: goodness. There's a multidisciplined aspect of your life is sort of runs in your whole family.

Does it?

And we produce short courses on all aspects of the short-term rental industry, drawing on my 25 years in the industry. And, you know, pulling out all aspects of it because we've made the direct booking we've been through the, we've been through the OTA period and out the other side.

Yeah. So, we are in the process. I'm working with Jodi Bourne, yes. Whom I know is another one of your speakers at the summit. Yes. And she is. A terrific marketer. And she and I are putting together a course at the moment called the vacation rental formula business school, and it's to help small managers or those who had just got one or two, or three properties built into more prominent property management companies and do it the right way.

Because when I started, there was nothing, no help, no networking. Nobody wanted to give up their so-called secrets. Yeah. And help out a newbie. And now, there is so much help out there, but it's fragmented, and we need to, want to bring it together in one piece. So, so that's what I'm doing now is working on the vacation rental formula business school.

[00:18:16] Heather: Yes. And I, it's what I wish I'd had, you know, something comprehensive that I could, I could just work through or pick out things like, well, how do you get a new owner?

How do you get into the marketplace when many other property managers out there want to do the same thing? How do you differentiate yourself? Be unique, and then, with Jodi’s help with the branding, you know how to get out there and market yourself. We, we, yeah, we do think we've got the right formula here.

[00:19:13] Heather: Yeah, it sounds good. That

So, what are you looking forward to, hearing about at the summit or experiencing it online? I know we're back to face, and I'm sure you're travelling this, this autumn, with all the different conferences, but is there anything, specifically, you're looking forward to?

I always look forward to new information, and there is always new information at every conference and summit. I'm not travelling as much. Now travel is difficult. Travel is arduous these days; we sat at the airport in Toronto the other day and said that travel used to be glamorous.

[00:20:13] Jenn: the budget. It's the time away from family in your business. Yes. You,

[00:20:21] Jenn: And the fact of getting dressed.

You know, even from people who've been around a long time. Their things change; things change overnight. And, it's one of the beauties of this business, which, which I love, never stays static. Yeah, it's true. I was reading a report from air DNA this morning about, see, it was very focused on us, and it's saying something that we've, we we've known for the last, six months or so that 20, 22 is not 20 and 21.

There are a lot more properties out there on the market

[00:21:53] Heather: years. Yeah, exactly, exactly. And you've got to see them as outliers and not something that can be continued. So it's just so important, you know, to keep abreast with what's going on and to.

Keep working at it. Yeah. There's never something that you can say, okay, I've got this property, I'm going to put it online and let it sit there and, you know, build it, and they will come. Yes, it doesn't work that way. You've gotta build it and work at it for them to come. And, and that's what I'm looking forward to is, is hearing some new, new stuff.

Yes.

[00:22:41] Heather: to you? What I think is just I mean, for me as a, as a property management company, before I sold what direct booking success meant to me was repeat guests was building a Ju just this wonderful community of guests and those repeat guests become marketing ambassadors, which they can't do if they've come to you from, because you can't remarket to them unless you've got there.

Unless you capture their email addresses, I'm sure that's something that will be discussed at the summit as well. When you have, because I know Jen, you don't advocate that when somebody starts up. They go directly into direct booking because you've got to get your guests coming to you for this from the start.

And that's where the OTAs do come in handy. Yeah. When you're starting. Yeah. But you want to be able to remarket to them, and you want to collect those email addresses, and once you've got them, you don't want them to go back to Airbnb. And that's what, that's what that success means to me.

It's having those people work for me. They’re out there saying I stayed at this fantastic place. And then talk, talk to my colleagues and my relatives and friends and say, and here's their website, not go to Airbnb and it's yeah, this listing.

Yeah, raving fans. That's what we want.

[00:24:17] Jenn: exactly. Yeah, exactly. They can do the marketing for them and us.

I heard about you from my work colleague. She stayed at your place. Yeah. Or she stayed with your company, then that's the other thing is you, you know, if you've got a property management company, they are sharing your brand. And that's what you want. Because they don't always have to go back to the same

Yeah. And when we look at the marketing of no like, and trust, you know, if you've got someone who's giving you a reference and saying, look, I've stayed with these people, you know, you've just hit, you know, all of them out of the park. It's, yeah, it's a win-win. Thank you so much, Heather, for taking time out of your holiday.

to, to talk to me, can you tell people where they can find

[00:25:28] Jenn: the website for the summit is direct booking success, summit.com. It's like, yeah, maybe I should have made that a bit shorter, but

You can find me on Facebook. Oh, yes. I have a Facebook group, the business of short-term rental and property management. It's a thriving Facebook group. Great. Yeah. And, and it's been going for, I started it in January, February 2020 because I was about to produce this. I was about to launch this course in 2020.

Lovely. You know how Facebook groups go nasty after a while. There are a few nobodies whoever does that. This is so supportive and helpful. So if you are, you know, looking at severe business and property management, then come and join us on the Facebook group. Brilliant.

Thank you so much for joining me.