Shownotes
This week, I'm diving into SEO and marketing while you sleep - because who doesn't want their business working hard while they're catching some well-deserved shut-eye?
I'm chatting about the reality of getting your holiday business found online without losing your sanity in the process. No fancy jargon or complicated tricks here - just straight-talking advice that actually works for real people running real businesses.
Now, I know SEO can feel like trying to crack some mysterious code that Google keeps changing (because, let's face it, they do!). But here's the thing - it doesn't have to be overwhelming or turn you into a tech wizard overnight.
So if you've been wondering how to get Google to notice your gorgeous property without staying up all night tweaking keywords, grab a cuppa and let's get into it!
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Key Takeaways:
- SEO isn't rocket science - it's just about helping the right guests find you when they're searching
- Your website can be working for you 24/7, even when you're fast asleep (now that's what I call a good employee!)
- Small, consistent efforts beat massive overhauls every single time
- Google loves fresh content, but it doesn't have to be perfect - progress over perfection, always
- Don't get caught up in all the technical stuff - focus on what your guests actually want to know
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Further Training:
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Tools
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Connect with Sarah:
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Transcripts
You're listening to Get Fully Booked with Sarah Orchard.
Speaker A:Are you ready to master your marketing so you can ditch your reliance on the online agents and grow your direct bookings?
Speaker A:I'll be sharing with you exactly what it takes to grow your direct bookings and the simple marketing steps to get more profit in your pocket.
Speaker A:Hi, and welcome back to another episode of the Get Fully Booked podcast.
Speaker A:I'm your host, Sarah Orchard.
Speaker A:Do you ever just wish that your marketing could happen while you sleep?
Speaker A:Well, imagine having a little marketing assistant working for you around the clock.
Speaker A:No wages, no holiday pay, no sick days, and they never switch off.
Speaker A:That's what search engine optimization, often referred to as SEO, can do for your business.
Speaker A:It's like marketing while you sleep.
Speaker A:I've audited over 80 short term rental or glamping websites and every single one had weak SEO.
Speaker A:Meaning that most of you listening are missing out on a huge opportunity right now.
Speaker A:So in this episode, I'm going to look at three key areas of search engine optimization that hosts need to focus on.
Speaker A:So let's get started.
Speaker A:So first of all, let's look at what SEO actually is.
Speaker A:In simple terms, people try and make SEO a dark art.
Speaker A:They tell you that it's something that you need to spend like huge amounts of money on every month to keep up in the Google rankings and be on page one.
Speaker A:But really, SEO is about making your website easier to find and giving Google some signposts so that it knows exactly what it is that you do.
Speaker A:If you think about it, Google is an algorithm.
Speaker A:Algorithm.
Speaker A:It's, you know, it's a computer program.
Speaker A:It does not know what your business does, and your website copy may not explain clearly what you do.
Speaker A:So there's certain elements of your website that helps Google to understand what it is that you do and make sure that it shows you to the most relevant people.
Speaker A:And ultimately that's what Google's goal is.
Speaker A:Know, we all get quite frustrated with it in terms of where we appear on the search rankings.
Speaker A:But at the end of the day, all it's trying to do is to show people the most relevant and up to date search results that match what the person has typed into the search engine.
Speaker A:So contrast that with maybe doing paid ads on meta or social media.
Speaker A:That only works when you're actively spending time or money.
Speaker A:But search engine optimization, SEO is constant and it's something that does work around the clock and it does build momentum over time.
Speaker A:So I'd like to use a little analogy.
Speaker A:It is like planting an orchard.
Speaker A:Obviously my surname is Orchard but it's like planting that orchard, you're like investing in the future.
Speaker A:You don't eat all of the apples tomorrow as soon as you plant them, but once it's established, it keeps on feeding you year after year.
Speaker A:So I would thoroughly encourage you to think about embracing this as one of your most powerful marketing tactics that you can use in your business.
Speaker A:So give you an example.
Speaker A:If someone types into the search engine that they're looking for, a romantic cabin with a hot tub in the Cotswolds in the uk, and you appear, you know that that guest is already looking to book.
Speaker A:They're not somebod that you've interrupted on social media.
Speaker A:And that's a point that I always make, that social media is about entertainment.
Speaker A:People are on the platform first and foremost for entertainment.
Speaker A:They are not always in a buying state.
Speaker A:Whereas when someone goes onto a search engine, they really are actively looking to find or buy something.
Speaker A:And that means that those people that find your website through search engine optimization and through your SEO, they are much more likely to buy.
Speaker A:They are warmer prospects for your business.
Speaker A:They're a higher quality, bigger, you know, higher value in terms of the person that that Google sends to your site.
Speaker A:So we get 37% of our bookings, which is our top source of bookings from Google search.
Speaker A:And I'm not paying for that.
Speaker A:That's the free organic search traffic.
Speaker A:So that is really, really powerful.
Speaker A:So I think my key point really is that search engine optimization is not a, it's not a quick win.
Speaker A:But actually in the longer term, these SEO improvements to your website really sort of stack up and they will have a much bigger impact than you spending hours and hours on social media.
Speaker A:So my second point I wanted to talk to you about is about what keywords people search for.
Speaker A:So keywords, if you're not familiar with that, that's the term that we use for what people put into a search engine.
Speaker A:So these are the exact words that someone puts into Google.
Speaker A:And the big mistake I often see is that owners will sort of hosts will write something that they think sounds good from a sort of marketing perspective, like the copy that we would put on our website.
Speaker A:And what you put into your metadata fields for SEO is actually not the same.
Speaker A:So they put things like, for example, luxury accommodation or bespoke accommodation.
Speaker A:And actually one of the most highly searched terms is glamping pod or glamping pods with hot tub.
Speaker A:So, you know, you can.
Speaker A:And actually very few people, when I've looked at the actual data, use the word luxury.
Speaker A:It's quite an interesting one and yet it gets so used so many times.
Speaker A:You know, when I do these website audits and I look at people's sites that they're often using that luxury word and using lots of lovely adjectives to describe.
Speaker A:They might have got a bit carried away with ChatGPT and come up with a really sexy expression for their, for their business.
Speaker A:But actually that's not what people are putting into search engines.
Speaker A:And again, another example, again in the, in the glamping area, is around shepherd's huts.
Speaker A:So obviously there's been a huge growth in the number of shepherd's huts.
Speaker A:But actually when you look at search terms, people don't type shepherd's hut as a search term.
Speaker A:They either will probably look for a glamping pod or a glamping cabin.
Speaker A:Now that will give very, you know, shepherd's huts might have a very small search volume, whereas the glamping pod will have a much higher search volume.
Speaker A:And, you know, we can get quite precious and go, well, I, you know, I'm not.
Speaker A:My shepherd's hut is not a glamping pod.
Speaker A:So that's not what I'm going to describe it as.
Speaker A:And I'm not saying that you should put that on your website copy on the actual page, but in the metadata fields that Google looks at, you definitely should be using glamping pod rather than a shepherd's hut, because very few people search for shepherd's hut.
Speaker A:So if you choose to put that, you're putting yourself at a disadvantage.
Speaker A:If you're not sure what people search for, there's a few things that you can do to find that out.
Speaker A:One of my favorite ones is, I don't know if you've looked at.
Speaker A:When you start typing a search into Google, you get the autocomplete where it starts to fill in what it thinks you're looking for.
Speaker A:That typically shows you like the top 10 expressions.
Speaker A:So that can give you an indication.
Speaker A:And also at the bottom of search results you get people also ask.
Speaker A:And again, that helps you to get into the language of your ideal guest and what they're searching for so that you understand the popular search terms.
Speaker A:So I'm going to give you a little bit of homework here.
Speaker A:I want you, this is something for you to do.
Speaker A:Make a list of 10 keyword phrases that you think your guests, your ideal guests, would actually type into Google.
Speaker A:Are they looking for dog friendly cottages in the Lake District?
Speaker A:Are they looking for Cornwall glamping with the kids?
Speaker A:Are they looking for a romantic break in a Tree house, you know, what are they typing into the search engines?
Speaker A:Are they looking for a dog friendly holiday cottage?
Speaker A:You get the gist.
Speaker A:It's like, what are they actually searching for?
Speaker A:Now if you're finding this a little bit overwhelming and you're thinking, Sarah, I really need to know a bit more about this.
Speaker A:I do have some step by step training on search engine optimization.
Speaker A:So that's in my membership, which is my marketing club called the Fully Booked Business Club.
Speaker A:So if you are interested in that, do come and check that out on my website.
Speaker A:I'll put a link in the show notes.
Speaker A:That definitely would help you to improve this on your website.
Speaker A:And I also did a training, a couple of trainings on SEO, but I did one recently with some case studies where I actually walk you through the metadata that is actually on particular different types of holiday cottage glamping, a small hotel, so different types of accommodation and what I've actually used for their SEO.
Speaker A:So you get a feel of how you apply this in, you know, in real life.
Speaker A:But so you need to think about these keywords in the metadata fields, but you also need to sprinkle them naturally into your website copy as well.
Speaker A:And a classic example of where people go like miss a trick on this is if you had a glamping site, they might refer to the site and they don't use the word glamping or glamp site.
Speaker A:And actually the more that you can put those expressions into the copy in a natural way and you know, the stronger that will be for your search engine optimization.
Speaker A:So that's just a practical sort of how to.
Speaker A:I thought I'd share an interesting fact with you which sort of supports this because there's been a lot of talk about AI and the fact that Google search is sort of, you know, waning.
Speaker A:There's still trillions and trillions of searches on, on Google and I don't think it's going anywhere soon.
Speaker A:But did you know that 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine?
Speaker A:So people are actively going on and still searching.
Speaker A:And of course Google is now incorporating an AI generated result in its, its search results anyway, so it's embracing AI.
Speaker A:But ultimately I don't think we can underestimate the power of search.
Speaker A:And as I said to you remember for our Hudnall's Hideout Treehouse, my own business, we get 37% of our business, it's our top source, comes from search traffic, way above Instagram and some of our other listing sites that we use.
Speaker A:It is very, very powerful.
Speaker A:It's like that little magnet bringing people to us that are interested in what we offer.
Speaker A:So basically, if your website is not search engine friendly, you literally are invisible and you're sort of missing out on those people that are actively on the 93% starting their online experiences with a search engine.
Speaker A:So those people that are actively planning a trip, they are on Google and you're potentially missing out.
Speaker A:You know, you could have the most beautiful lodge, holiday cottage, tree house in the world, but if Google can't see it and basically doesn't know what you do, it's hidden in the woods.
Speaker A:My last point that I want to share with you today is about some quick wins and I've given you a little bit of homework.
Speaker A:It's not me doing all the work, I'm going to give you some homework to do.
Speaker A:So you've got Your list of 10 keywords to work on.
Speaker A:But I'd like to give you a tip that I use when I'm thinking about metadata.
Speaker A:So not everyone can afford to hire someone to do their SEO.
Speaker A:I understand that.
Speaker A:But if you use a WordPress website, you can get a plugin, it's called Yoast SEO.
Speaker A:I'll put a link in the show notes, it walks you through editing these fields.
Speaker A:And then I want you to think about the three things that people typically will consider when they're looking for a holiday business.
Speaker A:I use a three point sort of structure when I'm thinking about that metadata.
Speaker A:So I think about my audience.
Speaker A:So who are my ideal guests?
Speaker A:Is it families?
Speaker A:Is it dog friendly?
Speaker A:Is it romantic couples?
Speaker A:Is it groups?
Speaker A:Is it weddings?
Speaker A:Is it corporates, contractors?
Speaker A:You get the gist.
Speaker A:What type of accommodation are they looking for?
Speaker A:Camping, glamping, holiday cottages, large party house, Airbnb, you can use that term as well.
Speaker A:And then the third one is location.
Speaker A:So often people's search will begin with thinking about where they want to go in the country they want to narrow it down to maybe because they want to go and see some particular sites, attractions, there might be something amazing beach that they want to go to.
Speaker A:So actually they will use that as part of their search.
Speaker A:When they go onto a search engine, they go onto Google and they will type in, as I said, like glamping in the Lake District, you know they will and they might have put family friendly or dog friendly glamping in the Lake District.
Speaker A:So hopefully that's given you like demystified it a little bit.
Speaker A:Because I do think people try and over complicate SEO, but it is one of the most Important things that you can do for your business, but you don't need to do it all at once.
Speaker A:If you could just make a few improvements, you know, and go through all of your main web pages and update the metadata.
Speaker A:As I said, I've done over 80 website audits and every single one, the metadata on the website was really weak.
Speaker A:But I'd also encourage you to be consistent and keep updating your website.
Speaker A:So things like I'm going to talk about this next week is, you know, things like blogging, area guides, things to do, you know, tourist information and like, what to do when you're out and about.
Speaker A:All of that adds content, which Google loves.
Speaker A:But adding more pages into your website through a blog will definitely boost your SEO.
Speaker A:And as I said, I'm going to talk about that more in episode 34 next week.
Speaker A:So just as a little recap, obviously like I said, I gave you some homework to do.
Speaker A:So SEO for me is marketing while you sleep.
Speaker A:And I don't know about you, but that is the best form of marketing.
Speaker A:It is a long term asset in terms of what you're creating.
Speaker A:You don't need to keep doing it every week like you do with social media.
Speaker A:So that for me is a major quick win.
Speaker A:But I challenge you to just pick one page on your website.
Speaker A:If you can do nothing else, go to your homepage and look at what's in that metadata field, look at improving that one page and that will make a huge difference.
Speaker A:So hopefully then you can pour yourself a glass of wine or gin and tonic if it was me, and put your feet up and you can let the SEO do all the hard work.
Speaker A:It's doing that heavy lifting and bringing the right types of guests to your website so that your website can then convert them into those direct bookings that we so desperately want.
Speaker A:So thanks for tuning in today.
Speaker A:I will be back next week, as I said, with another solo episode and I'm going to be looking at blogging for Google Visibility.
Speaker A:So that will be helping you to get free traffic from Google to your website, which is ultimately the dream for all of us.
Speaker A:And if you've enjoyed this episode, I'd love it if you could leave me a review because you know how much us hosts love those five star reviews.
Speaker A:I'll see you next time.
Speaker A:Thank you for listening to Get Fully Booked with Sarah Orchard.
Speaker A:If you want to see if you are ready to ditch the likes of Airbnb and grow your direct bookings, put your business to the test with my free direct booking roadmap.
Speaker A:Quiz, head to my website, get fully booked.com quiz and let's get you more direct bookings and more profit in your pocket.
