The Holiday Homefront: December 2020
Well, here it is – possibly one of the most unusual Christmas’s many of us have ever experienced in an equally unique topsy-turvy year. So, for your more than casual interest, here is a compilation of the most interesting articles we have encountered in the past few weeks. This is also slightly longer than usual Homefront because it includes helpful “ow To’’tips.
We’ve broken with tradition and moved a couple of articles aimed at My Favourite Holiday Cottage subscribers because they are essential to know. If you’re not a subscriber, you might still find them of interest – especially the one about photo copyright. But if not, scroll down to the “Naughty or Nice’’article and continue from there. As ever – Where an item refers to another article, click on the title to upload it. Titles with links are in a brighter blue.
Read on!
Advert Management
IMPORTANT! BROKEN WEB LINKS WILL SUSPEND YOUR ADVERT
Nobody likes a broken link, be it a potential booker or Google.
If you are building a new or re-designed website, please note that if the URL addresses (https://www.etc.) for all or any of the pages have changed, you must log in and update your home page and booking page with the new website addresses. Our Broken-link Checker will detect and automatically stop the old link from working. As our site focuses on driving people to your website, if your website address is missing or doesn’t work, it prevents your advert from appearing. A helping hand: if you cannot remember how to log in, send me the new page addresses for your home main property page and the booking/availability pages. We’ll upload them for you.
IF ONE PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS – THEN FILL YOUR PHOTO GALLERY WITH TWENTY-THOUSAND WORDS.
Not everybody uploads their full allowance of 20 images to show off their cottage, presumably because they don’t need twenty opportunities to show off their entire property. However, if you still have space to upload more images, upload some location photos of places to go, see, visit, etc. Compelling portraits of nearby landscapes and attractions significantly influence visitors.
Upload these to your photo holder to enhance the appeal of your property. For images to expand to large size, they must be at least 1920x1080 pixels in size – preferably landscape.
If you’re not sure how to resize an image – follow this:
- Open the photo to be resized.
- Select the Tools drop-down menu from the top menu bar
- Select “Adjust Size” This will open the Image Dimensions box, which should look something like this:
For a landscape image: Fit into. Select Custom. (This should say pixels on the right – if not, select that option)
Leave the “scale proportionately” box ticked. Enter 1920 into the Width box.
The Height box below should adjust itself. As long as it is 1080 or above, you can hit the OK button to close the image.
If the height is shown as less than 1080, enter 1080 in the height box. This will automatically increase the Width size to keep the size change proportionate. If the height is above 1080, that’s fine.
Leave it at that.
Need to resize more than one image? Then, you can batch-resize them in one go.
- Select (but don’t open) all the images you want to resize. When all have been selected, click Cmd and “O” to open all the images in one frame.
When the frame opens, click on the top image. This will highlight the thumbnail.
The top image in the example below is highlighted.
- Click Cmd + ‘‘’ to select (highlight) all the thumbnail images.
Then, complete the resizing process described above for resizing a single image.
And that’s it. Your images will be resized and ready to upload.
NB If your original images are below around 640x300 pixels when you open the Resize box, they will be too poor in quality to enlarge. You can try enlarging them, but you probably won’t be happy with the result. If you don’t have a larger size, stick to the small one instead. There’s nothing more off-putting than an over-enlarged, blurry-edged photo.
If you really get stuck, contact us for advice.
LEGAL & COMPLIANCE
PHOTOGRAPH COPYRIGHT (AND HOW TO FIND OUT IF PEOPLE ARE USING YOUR PHOTOS).
Yes, I know we mentioned this last month – but it would appear that not everybody read it! And abiding by it could save you from a hefty fine.
Do you own the rights to all the images displayed in your advert? If the photos you upload have not been taken by or owned by you, you must ensure that you have permission to use them.
Many companies now specialise in tracking down illegally used images, making it very easy to identify the person responsible for uploading them. We know this because we tend to get the first letter from the company’s solicitors because it appears on the site. We then have to carry out the unpleasant task of forwarding it to the person who posted the image. Even if you immediately remove the photo, an automatic fine is payable.
If you doubt whether you should display a photo in your advertising, I’d recommend removing it immediately (and then trying to get the necessary permission).
How do you know if your photos are being used by someone else? If it is interesting, here’s one way to find out.
To see who is displaying your photos, open and right-click on the photo you want to check and select “Search Google for Image”.
This will reveal image-based search results. Scroll down to be:
- Reassured that nobody is pirating your images for commercial gain.
- Amazed at how many people like your work.
- Convinced that you need an agency to chase some royalties.
NB: Before you embark on the latter point, be aware that posting images on some social media sites may mean you give up some of your copyright. For example, someone may add one of your photos to their Pinterest Board or share it on Instagram.
ECO-NEWS AND TIPS
Click to view The Stables, Mornacott Cottages, South Molton, Exmoor.
THE NEXT BIG THING: ELECTRIC CAR CHARGING POINTS FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES
To coin a marketing phrase, it may still be “early-adopter” time for holiday cottages featuring electric vehicle charging points. However, please give it a year or two, and electric vehicle charging points will be as commonplace as Wi-Fi and Smart TVs.
By then, it will be a taken-for-granted “must-have,” but right now, it will be an attractive USP for eco-friendly Staycationers.
Action Tip: If you are looking for a cottage with a charging point or an owner who has installed one, we have already installed a search category for “cottages with electric car chargers and “co-cottages.”
We rank at the top of Page One on Google for the latter. Log in and tick the boxes to appear in searches for these categories, boosting your visitor traffic.
ECO-FRIENDLY CLEANING SOLUTIONS FROM IRON & VELVET FOR YOUR LIVING AREAS, KITCHEN AND BATHROOM
We are not on commission, nor have we accepted any bribes to mention this. As you’ve probably gathered, we strive to be eco-friendly, so this is for property owners who want to use eco-friendly and plastic-free cleaning materials in their properties. More and more people are looking for eco-friendly holidays, and you don’t get many chances to brag about your socially acceptable cleaning regime!
PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY MANAGE YOUR HOLIDAY LET REMOTELY
This article from Schofields Insurance reveals the myriad of stress-relieving options that will help you deliver a 5-star guest experience when you live many miles away from your property or are prevented from visiting it in the unlikely event of a pandemic.
THE RISE OF RISKY RESERVATIONS IN THE VACATION RENTAL INDUSTRY AND HOW TO AVOID THEM
With owners of large properties desperate to attract bookings in this Rule of Six world, don’t let people planning to use a property for a large illegal party slip through the net. And if they do, have you taken steps to ensure you cannot be held liable? HHere’sa pertinent article from Rentalscaleup. It originated in Canada, but it is still relevant to UK shores. If you don’t want to read it all, scroll down to the essential bits, which begin with “Tips on how to protect your rental property from risky reservations.”
MINIMUM CLEANLINESS SCORE: BOOKING.COM TO DE-RANK AND DE-LIST DIRTY PROPERTIES
Do you advertise your property on Booking.com? Here’s a real incentive to maintain the highest cleaning standards. All of your properties are now subject to Booking.com’s Minimum Cleanliness Score. You should know that properties that persistently score low points will now get penalised. Click on the title to read what those friendly people at Rental Scale-up have to say on the subject.
LEGAL & COMPLIANCE
NAUGHTY OR NICE: YOU CAN STILL HOLIDAY IN THE UK THIS CHRISTMAS
You probably have all the Christmas COVID rules firmly engrained right now, but if you need a refresher, here’s a list covering the rules about the letting period between the 23-27th December when the existing tier restrictions are relaxed.
MARKETING ADVICE
23 QUESTIONS GUESTS SHOULD ASK TO ENSURE YOUR SWIMMING POOL IS RIGHT FOR THEIR HOLIDAY
It does what it says on the side of the pool: This blog article is intended to help people find and book a holiday cottage with a swimming pool that meets their needs. If your property has a swimming pool, here are some questions you can now be ready to answer. If, in your experience, we’ve omitted any other frequently asked questions, please send them to us (preferably with a good answer). We’ll add them to the list and give credit where it is due!
TWELVE COMPELLING REASONS WHY UK STAYCATIONS ROCK!
After last year, most of us need a boost, and it’s looking good for business already.
But don’t just assume that you will get many bookings because more people plan to take a UK Staycation in 2021.
The trick is understanding why people want to stay in the UK - and what they are looking for. Then, they position how you market and present your property to fulfil one or more of these needs. Then shout about it!
Here are twelve good reasons why more people will be booking a holiday in the UK – and some handy tips on how to appeal to the staycation market.
WE ARE HERE FOR YOU
As you know, we pride ourselves on our ability to respond to and help all our advertisers. If you need any help or advice or want to suggest ways we can improve the site, just get in touch.
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