As a professional property manager or property owner, you work tirelessly to ensure exceptional guest experiences in clean, welcoming homes. With a reliable cleaning crew, it's possible to provide the spotless experiences your guests expect. However, you need a system to manage your cleaners effectively while ensuring quality control and quick turnarounds.
Linking vacation rental websites like VRBO with TIDY makes it easier for property management companies to automate cleanings and elevate guest experiences. In this article, we delve into the benefits of integrating VRBO with TIDY to simplify rental property management and optimize bookings at investment properties.
VRBO, short for Vacation Rental By Owner, is an online marketplace and software for property management that facilitates short-term rentals of homes, condos, cabins, villas, and other properties.
With over 2 million whole homes available for short-term rental globally, VRBO is similar to other vacation rental sites like Airbnb in that it connects travelers with places to stay. However, VRBO differs from Airbnb in that it primarily caters to families and groups seeking spacious, amenity-rich accommodations in traditional dwellings. In contrast, Airbnb includes unconventional property listings such as shared spaces and campsites.
Many property management companies rely on VRBO to advertise their short-term rentals, manage the booking and payment process, and streamline the reservation process. The platform assists property owners looking to fill vacant rentals and provide comfortable, luxurious accommodations.
For busy owners or rental property managers, listing a home on VRBO can increase the exposure and visibility of properties among a broad audience of vacationers and working professionals.
Listing a property on VRBO is a simple process for owners or vacation rental management companies. Individuals and home rental companies alike can sign up for free and begin advertising one or multiple locations in a few clicks.
When you have a vacation rental property to list, you can easily add an online listing with property descriptions, amenity highlights, high-quality photos, rates, minimum stay requirements, house rules, availability, and other property details. Renters can search for properties that meet their needs, contact property owners through the platform, inquire about availability, and book their stays.
As a host or channel manager for a vacation rental company, you can manage bookings, rental agreements, and payment processing through the VRBO app. You can also navigate guest inquiries and guest communications before, during, and after stays. With built-in communication tools, you can help ensure every guest is satisfied. You can also respond to any feedback, whether positive or negative.
VRBO charges an annual subscription fee or a pay-per-booking fee of a percentage of the total booking cost. Guests also pay a guest service fee. In addition, hosts may add guest fees such as cleaning fees or a deposit for any property damage.
As easy as VRBO makes property management, you might need additional resources when it comes to getting rental properties cleaned and sanitized following guests' stays. Common challenges of property maintenance and cleaning include:
Integrating TIDY with VRBO addresses these challenges, streamlining the cleaning process, enhancing communication, ensuring quality control, and allowing property managers to focus on other crucial aspects of property management. By linking TIDY with VRBO, you can access tools for administering cleanings after guests depart. Below are some benefits of connecting your VRBO account with TIDY to simplify and automate turnovers between reservations.
One of the most significant advantages of integrating your VRBO account with TIDY is the ability to streamline and automate the post-guest departure cleaning process. Once you link your VRBO account with TIDY, you can automate cleaning services immediately after your guests check out. Easily invite all your favorite cleaners onto the app for free, set up cleaning requests, save time, and avoid phone tag with your cleaning crew.
Here's how it works:
Enjoy streamlined turnovers as your cleaners complete cleaning requests to your specifications. With cleanings on autopilot, you'll always know your properties are getting the attention they need as you manage the process online.
By automating the cleaning process, you save valuable time and reduce the hassle of coordinating cleaning services. TIDY simplifies turnovers as soon as guests depart, allowing you to focus on other aspects of property management while ensuring new guests arrive in a clean and welcoming environment.
Integration with TIDY lets you link your calendar in the app and configure it for each property's needs, including check-in and check-out times. From there, it's easy to manage cleanings and track the progress of every task — from upcoming cleaning jobs to pending and completed requests.
TIDY also enables efficient communication between property management and cleaning professionals. Quickly relay important instructions, changes, and other communications through the app, and never miss important messages from your cleaning pros.
Stellar stays in clean, welcoming homes mean repeat bookings, positive reviews, and referral business. Connecting VRBO with TIDY helps ensure you can exceed guests' expectations and set your property apart from the competition.
With more positive reviews, attracting new bookings on VRBO also becomes easier. Research shows that a large percentage of travelers read online reviews before booking their stays, making positive feedback vital to continued success on vacation rental platforms. Providing clean accommodations and a range of amenities increases the likelihood of earning positive reviews from satisfied guests.
TIDY allows property managers to improve and automate cleaning and property maintenance from anywhere. Our combination of software, artificial intelligence (AI), and human support and service helps streamline property upkeep:
Whether you have an existing team or need to build one from scratch, we can help get you up and running quickly. Follow the steps below to get started and begin seamlessly managing the cleaning process for your properties.
You'll need a TIDY account to get started with linking your VRBO account to TIDY's platform suite of services. You can begin the account setup process online, or request a demo to learn how the platform works.
Once you have an account set up, log in to both your TIDY and VRBO accounts to ensure seamless integration between the two systems.
Integrating via an iCal link allows you to sync calendar data and enable automatic bookings. To link your iCal calendar, copy your iCal link from your VRBO settings page. With automatic bookings, TIDY will attempt to book cleaning pros according to your priorities and specifications.
On your TIDY homepage, locate and click on "Integrations" in the left-hand menu bar. Click "Add Integration," and you'll see a new screen with various integrations. Select "iCal" and search for VRBO.
Paste your iCal link in the indicated field.
Fill in the form with your property's address to ensure matching with pros in your area.
Select "Automatic Booking," and configure the app for your specific requirements, such as check-in and check-out times and types of cleanings.
Automatic booking is one of TIDY's features, helping to turn over properties quickly and saving property management companies the hassle of coordinating cleanings between stays. With automatic booking, TIDY will automatically add a booking to your "Reservations" tab anytime the app detects a new guest reservation from your VRBO account.
After a check-out notification occurs, TIDY initiates a turnover cleaning, adhering to the preferences you've configured under the "Automatic Booking" settings. The cleaning professionals you've previously designated in the "My Pros" section of the app then receive a notification of your cleaning request. Pros can then accept the job in the order you've previously established.
Once a professional accepts the cleaning request, the pro can access your specific instructions, including the To-Do List if you've created one. Throughout the process, you and the pro can communicate through the app.
Once a professional completes a cleaning request, your property will be prepped and ready for the next guest, all without you needing to fret about any logistics. TIDY streamlines the property management experience, ensuring a seamless transition between guest stays.
Regular maintenance and care of rental properties is essential for creating incredible experiences for your rental property guests. By providing both the technology and access to professional cleaning services, TIDY allows property management companies to offer great getaways — while enjoying the peace of mind that comes with streamlined property maintenance.
At TIDY, we pride ourselves on providing software and helpful service that makes property management easier for our partners. We've earned the trust of many property managers who rely on our software and service to simplify the complexities of managing properties.
If you're curious about how TIDY can improve your property maintenance workflow, click here to learn more about integration with TIDY. With our help, you can streamline cleanings and improve both VRBO property management and guest experiences.