Who Won the iPad 2? LiveRez.com Announces the Winner of its 2011 VRMA GiveAway
And the winner is….
LiveRez.com Founder and CEO Tracy Lotz congratulates Margy Roe of Ocean Properties and Vacation Rentals, Inc. on winning LiveRez.com's iPad 2 giveaway.
Margy Roe of Ocean Properties and Vacation Rentals in New Smyrna Beach, Florida is the winner of LiveRez.com's iPad 2 Giveaway at the 2011 National VRMA Conference. The announcement took Roe completely by surprise.
"I was very excited. I had no idea. I kind of forgot I even put my card in there," she said. "So, this is nice. Thank you!"
Trends in Vacation Rentals: Y Partnership Shares Some Interesting Stats During the 2011 VRMA Conference.
Chris Davidson of Y Partnership shared some interesting statistics about the vacation rental industry during his speech Tuesday at the 2011 VRMA Conference.
Chris Davidson, Chief Client Officer of Y Partnership, offered some great statistics and spoke to some emerging trends in the vacation rental industry Tuesday during the morning session of the 2011 VRMA Conference.
Some of the larger trends he spoke to were price sensitivity of travelers during tougher economic times, the emergence of technology and social media, the influence of children on vacation choice, and the increasing importance of flash sales.
Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the more popular statistics he shared:
What are the major obstacles to traveling?
- 55 percent of travelers interested in vacation rentals cited household budget as a major obstacle.
- 41 percent cited airfare prices.
- 44 percent cited gas prices.
Many people were going on vacation to celebrate special life events. The three most popular were:
- Milestone birthdays
- Milestone Anniversaries
- Weddings
Children are having a big influence on the choice of where and how to vacation:
- 50 percent of people interested in vacation rentals said children had a significant effect on their decision of vacation destination.
How much lead time do people need in advance of a vacation? Many people are making last-minute travel plans.
- 38 percent said they have taken last-minute vacations (made arrangement six days or less prior to stay) in the last year.
Making Connections at the 2011 VRMA Conference
LiveRez.com had a whole host of SWAG available at its booth during the 2011 VRMA Conference in Orlando, FL.
The national VRMA Conference offers an unmatched opportunity to meet with vacation rental managers from all over the United States and beyond. This year, LiveRez.com is doing a number of things to connect with professional VRMs. But these communication efforts can be used by just about any business to share its solution and connect with the people it can help.
Here are some of things we’re doing this year:
Stand Out: At LiveRez, we’re proud of our partners, and they have come out in force at this conference. To showcase our partners, we are giving them LiveRez lanyards and ribbons that say “LiveRez Partners.” In a conference setting, it’s always nice to let others know what groups you’re a part of; it really helps facilitate the networking process. One thing that can help LiveRez partners network outside of the conference is the LiveRez Network group on LinkedIn.
VRMA Gold Sponsorship: We think the VRMA is very important for vacation rental managers across the company, and our primary goal is to serve professional vacation rental managers. Many of our partners are VRMA members, as well. So, it only makes sense for us to give our support to the VRMA.
Adding Your Blog to Directories
Submitting your blog to blog directories is a great way to increase readership of your blog, and it can even help with search engine optimization.
One way to increase readership of your blog is to submit your blog to various blog directories. Blog directories allow readers from across the internet to find you and your blog, and start following your posts. One of the foremost directories to have your blog listed on is Technorati. According to its website, Technorati is the leading blog search engine and directory, indexing more than 1 million blogs.
Claiming a blog on Technorati is relatively easy. First, you need to start a free account. Once that is established, you simply go to your profile, scroll down and enter your blog URL under claim blog. You'll fill out some more information on the next page, and then Technorati will send you an e-mail with your claim token. The token will likely be a 12-character code (like this NPXV3YVFM2AB), and you'll need to list it on one of your blog posts to prove to Technorati that you write for that blog.
Submitting to blog directories is generally free and takes only minutes of your time. It's a great way to increase the visibility of your blog, and it even helps with search engine optimization. You can find a list of free blog directories by doing a simple Google search. It's really that easy.
The Property Posting Tool: Get the Most out of Your Online Property Advertisements
Create professional looking listings for classified sites with the LiveRez.com property posting tool.
With the advent of free classified listing websites like CraigsList.org, marketing your vacation rental properties for little or no money has become increasingly easy. And at LiveRez.com, we’ve made it even easier.
Posting to free classified sites is a snap with our property posting tool. It’s as easy as sorting through your properties, finding the property you want, and clicking on “copy html.” Now that you have the code, you can easily paste it into any form that accepts html. On property posting websites, the resulting listing looks professional and sets you apart. And, with one easy click visitors can move right to your website where they can begin the booking process.
And, if you’re doing this for multiple properties, we’ve got you covered. As soon as you copy the html code, the system highlights that property so you know that you’ve already posted it. The property will remain highlighted for four days, helping you keep track of how long ago you’ve advertised the property.
The property posting tool is just one of the many ways LiveRez.com can make your life easier. To learn more about how LiveRez.com can help your company, visit our website, LiveRez.com, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter. And, check back here for more LiveRez.com news.
Meet Luis Vicente of Villa4Less.com in Orlando, Florida
LiveRez.com designed Villa4Less.com's website to reflect how close its properties are to Disney World.
Villa4Less.com
Location: Orlando, Florida
Website: Villa4Less.com
Quick Quote: “It was just so easy to get something that was based online, where all you had to do was log in from anywhere and continue to work.”
With 20 years of property management experience under his belt, Luis Vicente of Orlando’s Villa4Less.com knows a thing or two about offering his guests the most convenient and affordable accommodations available.
Located close enough to Disney World that many of its guests can watch the theme park’s fireworks show from their back yard or out their windows, Villa4Less.com offers much more than just a place to stay.
“We don’t only rent them a home, we rent them a whole experience,” Vicente said. “We’re a one-stop shop for everything.”
LiveRez.com Partner Andres Zagarola Wins Bracket Challenge, Takes Home New iPad
Andres Zagarola, manager of KZ Cabins, plays with the new Apple iPad he won in LiveRez.com's March Madness Bracket Challenge.
LiveRez.com partner Andres Zagarola, manager of KZ Cabins, used his college basketball know-how to win the first annual Partner March Madness Bracket Challenge. After beating a field of 59 competitors (limited exclusively to LiveRez.com partners), Zagarola took home the grand prize: an Apple iPad.
Zagarola will be able to use his iPad to access the LiveRez.com system, which is compatible with a number of mobile devices. All you need is an Internet connection and some way to access it (desktop computer, laptop, iPad, smart phone, etc.) and you have LiveRez.com’s industry standard end-to-end SaaS platform at your fingertips. Upload property photos and descriptions directly to your website, generate a wide variety of reports, manage reservations and more – on the fly.
What’s better than that? Well, I guess getting a free Apple iPad is nice, too.
Learn more about the industry’s leading vacation rental software at LiveRez.com.
A Wonderful Western VRMA
Once again LiveRez has had another successful conference. This time the Western VRMA conference in Sacramento, California. Along with great seminar presentations, tradeshow exhibits, LiveRez handed out another iPad 2. The Winner was Heather Weiermann from Southern California Vacation Rentals! So congratulations to Heather!
We also want to express our thanks and appreciation to the VRMA staff and VRMA Board for another perfect show.
Another highlight of the show was Tyler Hurst's remarks during the seminar opening session. During this presentation Hurst talked about and displayed the TOP 5 Priorities of LiveRez.com.
Here is a copy of LiveRez's Top 5 Priorities and the Video from the seminar.
Top 5 Priorities of LiveRez.com
1 – Serve Our Property Manager Partners
2 – Build the Best SaaS Application in the World
Supported by a World Class Organization
3 – Build the LiveRez.com Network to unlock
New Revenue Opportunities for our Partners
4 – Continue to be Industry Thought Leaders
and Support the VRMA
5 – NEVER FORGET PRIORITY #1
The Video:
Meet Chris Murphy, sales manager at Seabrook Cottage Rentals in Pacific Beach, Washington
Seabrook Cottage Rentals 
Location: Pacific Beach, Washigton
Website: SeabrookCottageRentals.com
Quick Quote: “Every element of the website is geared toward customer service and that’s what sets us apart."
Innovative is one word that comes to mind when talking to Chris Murphy, director of sales and marketing at Seabrook Cottage Rentals in Pacific Beach, Washington, a growing vacation destination on the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
Could it be because the development on the Washington coast is a brand new concept in the western United States? When Seabrook was constructed, planners kept in mind that many travelers want a beautiful relaxation spot and not necessarily a launching pad for other destinations.
In short, Murphy and the folks at Seabrook want guests to spend time enjoying the ocean views, meeting with friends, and relaxing, rather than on long road trips for supplies or sightseeing.
With that idea in mind, Seabrook was built to have everything a traveler could need within a short distance. "A guest's basic needs can be met with in a 5-minute walk," said Murphy. Cars are welcome, but are usually quickly exchanged for a pair of flip-flops and a beach cruiser.
The town's website sums up the concept nicely. "Towns do not become great by accident. The best towns are inspired by our innate need for community, combined with easy accessibility to goods and services," says the Seabrookwa.com. The town embraces the idea of "new urbanism," which is an effort to integrate work and community through diversified mixed-use developments.
"It's a return to a simpler time, before cars, when people lived near where they shopped, celebrated the arts and good food, and placed great importance on green space," concludes Seabrook's site.
While Seabrook seeks to provide mixed-use living to residents, Chris and his team are dedicated to creating one of the best vacation spots in the area. “We got into the business to create coastal experiences unlike anything on the Washington coast,” said Murphy.
How does SeabrookCottageRentals.com achieve that objective? A combination of the “new urbanism” concept and great employees and staff. “Customer service is the foremost concern of Seabrook,” said Murphy. “It’s something for which we strive daily.”
Seabrook even provides beach cruisers to guests to help them enjoy their stay. “It adds an element of relaxation,” Murphy noted.
Seabrook has chosen to partner with LiveRez for its vacation rental software because the platform is one that many guests find very informative. “We want people to have as much information at their fingertips as possible when they come on site,” said Murphy. “The site LiveRez built for us helps make that happen.”
The LiveRez website is also built to help Seabrook better serve guests. “Every element of the website is geared toward customer service and that’s what sets us apart,” explained Murphy.
It seems that Seabrook has found a way to combine innovation with simplicity, both on the web and on the ground of the community.
And that really does set them apart.
Win a free website and reservation system in LiveRez’s March Madness bracket challenge
Who says nothing in life is free?
Not LiveRez.com, that's for sure.
LiveRez, an emerging leader in the vacation rental software industry, is sponsoring the 2011 March Madness Bracket Challenger and the winner of the contest will take home a free website and reservation system, a prize worth $5,000*. The second place winner will receive 1/2 off the regular setup fee for a website and reservation system, valued at $2,500*. Third place receives a 1-year paid membership to the VRBO.
Entry is simple and can be completed in a few easy steps. 
Step 1. Register for a free CBS Sports account by clicking here.
Step 2. Enter the pool password: morebookings
Step 3. Complete bracket challenge and remember to save your work!
Step 4. Sit back and watch the points roll in. It's that easy.
Like every contest, there are a few rules you must know before entering. LiveRez allows one entry per person and if there is a tie, a winner will be drawn at random. LiveRez employees are eligible to play, but may not win prizes. Only those participants who are not LiveRez partners are eligible to claim prizes.
There is no entry fee for the contest and anyone can play. Entries must be completed by March 17 at noon EST.
Winners will be announced the week of April 4.
Note: VRBO is not associate with and has not endorsed this contest.
*Monthly services charges may apply.
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