September 2015 Newsletter
Feature Your Cottage in Our Blog
In addition to moving and re-building websites, we have appointed a new member to the My Favourites team, young James, who will take charge of our social media postings. He will be publishing a fortnightly news blog on the site promoting self-catering holiday destinations for those planning a holiday. Each blog will contain an image and a link to holiday cottages relevant to whatever the topic of the blog is about. This could be you! For an example, see our blog on British Beach Cafes or our latest one, published this week on Finding The Perfect Holiday Cottage. These articles attract a lot of attention as they are often shared by readers via Twitter and Facebook – not least by owners of the properties mentioned, as well as potential bookers. It is well worth being included if you have the chance. These blogs encourage more out-of-season bookings for you and your fellow My Favourite Holiday Cottages subscribers. When we publish a blog that includes a link to your cottage's listing, we'll send you an e-mail so you can share the link to your own databases and social media followers to help make your cottage even more famous than it already is. To help us help you, here is a list of the topics we are coming up with. If you think one of these is relevant to your cottage, here's what to do:
• E-mail us at info@mfhc.co.uk an image of your cottage (sized between 175-250kb).
• The cottage's name and the blog title you think your cottage should be included.
• The reason why it deserves to be included, e.g. for the blog about Christmas decorations and illuminations, it could be because you go to town with Christmas lights and decorations at your cottage – or a nearby town has illuminations worth travelling more than a few miles to see. If you've got an image of your cottage at Christmas - even better – send it to us. We'll endeavour to track down an image and further information about the event or place recommended, but if you can provide any help with that, it would also be appreciated and make it far more likely that your cottage will be included.
Blog 1: The Magnificent Somerset Winter Carnivals
If you've ever been to one of these, you'll know what a stunning phenomenon the Somerset Winter Carnivals are. For the uninitiated, the best are up there with Rio - and I say that in all sincerity! Let us know if you have a cottage within driving distance of one of the main winter carnivals in October and November, e.g., Bridgwater, Glastonbury, Weston-super-Mare, North Petherton, etc. E-mail us the details or web links and, if you have one or your own that you are willing to permit us to use, a suitable winter carnival photo. Don't delay, though – we need it soon!
Blog 2: Bonfire Breaks
Is there a large public or community bonfire celebration near you, e.g. Lewes, near you on bonfire night? Does your village have a community bonfire, fireworks and burgers on the green at which visitors staying locally would be welcome? Send us details, web links and, if you have one, an image of past events. Deadline Date: 7 October. Thanks to Alchemy Fireworks in Bedfordshire for this image from a recent Wedding Reception.
Blog 3: Christmas Cottages
Do you really go to town decorating your cottage with trees, lights, reindeer, etc? Are there towns or villages near you that do more than just a few Christ as trees and standard banners across the High St or have a notable Christmas Market worth at least a day trip to pick up last-minute pressies? For example, Harbour Lights at Mousehole in Cornwall or the Leamington Spa Yuletide Fair. E-mail us at info@mfhc.co.uk with details and/or web links with images of previous displays in and around your cottage – or details of the town or location. Deadline Date: 15 October Image: Reindeers and Tree lights fill the Courtyard at Parkgate Cottages
Blog 4: Valentine Retreats
Is your cottage perfect for a romantic escape? Do you offer anything special, such as candles, t-lights floating in the bath, rose petals scattered across the bedspread, or a bottle of fizz in the welcome pack? Send us a photo of a room made up for a romantic break and an image of your cottage, and we will do the rest. Deadline date: 3 December.
Blog 5: Spring Flower Breaks
Is there a woodland walk or country lanes brim-full of drifts of snowdrops, daffodils, primroses or great swathes of woodland bluebells sometime between late January and May somewhere new to you? In addition to an image of your cottage, all we need are location details and, ideally, a picture – or a link to somewhere we can go to get a suitably floral photo. You know the form by now: Send us your suggestion, preferably an image –or a link to a site that might be able to provide one, and we will do the rest. Thanks. I appreciate it might take a few minutes to do this, but, especially as there is no cost involved, it will help to attract more interest in your cottage so that it will be well worthwhile! Deadline date: 17 December
In Case These Slipped Your Mind...
More ways to enjoy Commission-less Online bookings: You can set up your listing to get commission-free online bookings. If you have an online booking facility on your website, displaying its calendar on your My Favourites listing should allow you to get online bookings (and, please note, there are absolutely no commission charges involved). There are, for example, over 100 cottages on the site using SuperControl calendars, and virtually all of them have enjoyed at least one or more online bookings over the past 12 months. Log into your members' area, select the calendar function and use the Third Party Calendar function to display it.
Upload Your Favourite Reviews
Reviews on My Favourites are different, and you can use them to good effect. We invite guests (or you to upload what your guests have said in your visitors' book) to tell us their favourite things about your cottage, i.e. what they liked or loved about their holiday there. There are no negatives – just positives. See the examples below for Derwent House in Matlock. They are easy to upload and attract more click-throughs to your website or enquiries. You can do this from your listing or members area. We will moderate them to ensure they comply with the policy, so there is no need to worry about asking guests to add a review and worry that it might be negative – give them the link to your listing page. As an additional incentive to upload reviews - because we moderate their content before making them live, we will also tweet the best to our Twitter followers with a link back to your listing.
Thanks!
That's it for this month. I look forward to receiving a bumper mailbox of ideas and images for our forthcoming blogs and a veritable tidal wave of reviews – all of which will push up our rankings and draw even more visitors to our site and your listing! Thanks, best wishes, and get those blog nominations coming!
Rick Bond
My Favourite Holiday Cottages