All political views aside, you got to like the fact that Pres. Obama stayed in a vacation home rental in Hawaii.  That is some great publicity for our industry.  You may think about using that as a tag-line or angle to campaign to some potential new guests (remember many potential guests have no experience in vacation homes – get lists of travelers from your friends and business partners).  “find out why the president stays at a vacation rental”, “have a presidental experience in a vacation rental”, “good enough for a presidential vacation”,……….you get the idea.

Now I lost my train of thought completely.  My post here was goign to be about 2009 plans and trends.  Recently, YPartnerships created an interesting list of predictions for the travel industry which I thought were worth looking at.  When looking at this, think about how it applies to you and your business – how it applies to what you can affect.

YPartnership Emerging Trends in Travel

• Value Is King – Remember that does not mean ‘cheap’ – it mean lots for their money.  All-inclusive, no extra fees, specials, etc.
• Trips Will Get Shorter – “staying fewer nights” is one traveler strategies they to still go on vacation.  Look at your min nights, be flexible, and be creative in specials. 
• Consumers Will Use The Internet Differently –  comparison shopping for competitive products and services from multiple Web sites
• Marketing Will Go Mobile – only 15% of cell phone users are Internet enabled. This percentage will rise with the popularity of the iPhone™, Blackberry Storm™ and similar devices.
• All Vacations Are Not Created Equal – vacations are increasingly perceived as an appropriate way to recognize certain life events (e.g., anniversaries, school graduations, retirement, etc.). 
• Travel Agent Usage Will Continue To Rise – traditional travel agents are not down for the count, three out of ten American travelers use the services of a travel agent
• Going Green Is Good For Business – fully 85%  of Americans consider themselves to be “environmentally conscious!” and ‘four out of ten’ stated they would consider shifting their patronage to a travel service supplier who demonstrates environmental responsibility. 
• Diversity Awaits Discovery – diversity represents an emerging market force, and one that will gain more prominence in the year ahead, particularly given the election of soon-to-be president Obama.

Again, this is only interesting when applied to your market, your business, and your success factors.

All the best.

Ralf
www.LiveRez.com