Updated on August 3, 2021
Community. It’s a word I hear a lot these days. And I can’t help but wonder: is it based on principle and substance, or just a buzzword to suit a marketing agenda? What does it really mean in the travel industry in 2021?
It will always be used by some as a buzzword, it’s an easy addition to marketing collateral. But when it’s used with intent, when it’s matched with action, it’s powerful.
On so many levels the world is more divisive than it’s ever been. Yet it’s also more collaborative than it’s ever been. And whilst division can (and does) breed communities that further polarise society, its ultimate gift is to strengthen communities built on positive principles and substance.
– Andy McNulty, Touch Stay
Excerpt from What is a Community in 2021?
Community with Intent and Action
Andy and the team at Touch Stay are good friends of Rent Responsibly, so it’s no surprise his words describe what we do better, and more beautifully, than we sometimes can ourselves: Community, when used with intent, when matched with action, is powerful.
Our Intent
If you’ve followed our newsletters for a while, you may have noticed small but meaningful evolutions with each new issue. We’ve brought clarity to our word choices, refined our processes, and expanded our suite of tools.
Yet our intention has remained not just a constant, but our north star: to build communities. We exist to empower short-term rental hosts and managers in every town to create a successful, self-sustainable STR community.
If this resonates with you, keep reading for new actionable resources to join us on this journey. Amongst them:
👉 In addition to our Happy Hour / Lunch and Learn series, we’re launching a new seminars specifically for STR alliance and organization leaders (or those of you who would like to become one!) Check out our event calendar for upcoming seminars.
👉 Community-building is like exercise: necessary and good for you, intentionally tough, but also fun – if you find the right workouts for your style. Flex those muscles with our newest resources:
- Do some core (values) work with 360 Blue
- Sharpen your mind with The Distinguished Guest
- Hone your hearing and eyesight with SeaBreeze’s Watchdog Program
- Score a new personal best with Santa Fe STRA’s top hosting tips
👉 Speaking of Santa Fe, we’re rolling out a new alliance management software platform to centralize everything needed to build an STR community organization, from sign-up flows to resource libraries to event calendars and discussion forums. If you’re in the Santa Fe area, check out your new platform here! (PS. Interested in learning about our platform for your alliance? Send us an email ✉️)
And Action
As I write this newsletter, it’s 10:35 at night here on the East Coast, and the entire Rent Responsibly team is online cheering on our friends at the Virginia Beach STRA as they testify against a harmful ordinance ahead of their City Council’s anticipated final vote.
Side note: If you want to watch a masterclass in public comments, watch our friend Elaine Fekete’s killer testimony starting at 2:21:00 here. Side *side* note: Hear directly from Elaine in our recording of July’s Leader Seminar: Building Bridges (coming soon)!
We’re watching from around the country not because we are testifying, but because the Virginia Beach STRA and its leadership team are a part of our community. We’ve worked closely with them over the last year to get to this meeting, hosting meetups, sending letters, sharing education, driving petition signatures, crafting meeting recaps.
But tonight, at the end of the day, the essence of community isn’t about talking points and ordinances – it’s simply standing together, elbow to elbow, Zoom square to Zoom square, with intent and action.
David Krauss & Alexa Nota
Co-Founders, Rent Responsibly
What’s New in the Library
How Major Anthony Gantt Jr. Puts Military Members At Ease in Short-Term Rentals
In the spring of 2018, Major Anthony Gantt Jr. made his 14th permanent change of station (PCS) move. The Marine couldn’t face cramming his wife and their six kids into yet another hotel room for a month, so this time he booked a short-term rental where they could spread out, enjoy a private backyard with a pool, cook meals, and each have some privacy, all for far less than a hotel would cost them. But when Anthony went to submit his expenses, he made a costly discovery: the PCS reimbursement program did not accept short-term rentals as approved lodging.
He realized that at the intersection of this massive need for military families and the astronomical savings potential for the Department of Defense sat a simple solution: verified properties. So, he launched At Ease, a short-term rental booking platform for military personnel approved for reimbursement.
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How The Distinguished Guest Curates the Art of Hospitality
Alanna Schroeder believes that hospitality is “a state of mind” that begins “the moment you decide to create a short-term rental business.” Her website, The Distinguished Guest – a trusted and consistent source of information for new and experienced hosts – espouses that philosophy in all of its content, from classes and one-on-one consulting sessions to Alanna’s blog posts and product recommendations.
What set her apart was her meticulous research. “You must learn from the very beginning to become a mind-reader – someone who uses empathy to anticipate your guests’ wants, needs, comfort levels, and fears, and then deliver an experience that deeply understands them,” she wrote in a recent blog post.
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How 360 Blue harnesses the power of strong company values
From the outside, 360 Blue is known for stellar customer service, sleek marketing content, and stunning photography of their luxury vacation rental listings along Florida’s Emerald Coast. The roots of 360 Blue’s marketing success, however, go much deeper – to its values that build trust with customers and employees.
“Every employee was asked to submit what they believe defines 360 Blue’s values,” said Emily Fieser, director of quality and culture. “Whether these were one-word submissions or paragraphs depicting who and what we are, we knew it was important to establish these values based on feedback from all facets of the organization.” The process helped the company identify eight core values from lead with distinction to pay it forward and self-care is not selfish.
Partner Spotlight
Rest Easy
One of the worst feelings in the world is waking up to alerts or a phone call after the fact that your guests created a property-damaging, neighbor-disrupting disturbance. Thankfully for STR operators everywhere, NoiseAware created the “smoke detector for noise,” the first and only privacy-safe noise monitoring solution.
NoiseAware sits quietly in the moments where problems arise, giving you insight into places that weren’t possible before, and the tools to solve issues before they go too far. With NoiseAware you can rest easy knowing your properties, profits, and peace of mind are protected.
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