Public relations can yield great results for your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts through cultivating back links.

Public relations is an important component of business development. Getting your company publicity is a great way to connect with new customers and increase brand awareness. But, many businesses fail to realize its importance for search engine optimization (SEO).

Distributing press releases that includes links back to your website can help create back links, one of the most crucial components of how Google and other search engines rank your website in search results. The quality, quantity and relevance of sites linking to your website (called back links) help determine your own site’s authority in the eyes of Google and other major search engines.

News websites tend to have a lot of authority in the eyes of Google. A link to your website from an article on a major news website could give your SEO efforts a big boost. For example, if you’re a vacation rental business and you manage to score a mention in an article in USA Today’s Travel section, the back link you receive from the article would be rated highly by Google in terms of both authority and relevance.

But, getting into major newspapers is not easy. It requires great news judgment, solid news monitoring and the formation of working relationships with journalists. The good news is that you can start doing all of this for free, and get back links in the process.

Step 1: Write the Release

First, you’ll want to learn how to draft a news release (it’s becoming the preferred nomenclature for press release). Publicity Insider offers some great advice on writing a press release.  In addition to their advice, you’ll want to get a working knowledge of Associated Press Style (AP Style) – the specific style news articles are written in. Writing in AP Style will make it a lot easier for writers and editors to reuse content from your release.

But the single most important thing you can do to make your release successful is to highlight the news-worthiness of what you’re writing about. This requires you to have sound news judgment – that is, know what is news and what isn’t news. And, as you’ll see in the next section, news-worthiness will vary by the journalist and the news outlet.

Step 2: Distribute the Release

Links to your site from other sites, called back links, are important to search engines because they view these links as a vote of confidence in your website.

Next, you’ll want to create a list of journalists who write about topics related to your business. You can do this through monitoring news coverage and doing some quick searches online. Once you have their e-mail address, you can begin to send them releases.

A word of advice: Don’t send releases to reporters that don’t pertain to their topic areas, or beats as they are referred to in the journalism industry. For example, if the reporter just covers travel in Idaho’s Treasure Valley, don’t send him or her a press release announcing the hiring of the new sales manager at your vacation rental company in Florida. The one exception might be if the manager used to work for a prominent travel business in the Treasure Valley.

For even better results, if you have a story idea specifically targeted to an individual journalist, send him or her a brief note with your pitch. But, keep it brief; reporters tend to get a lot of e-mails.

Paying close attention to which journalists you send releases to will help you build relationships with journalists. Show them that you’ve done your research on what they cover, and let them know that you’re there to help make their jobs easier. There are plenty of public relations professionals that fail to recognize the importance of this, and they quickly lose their credibility with journalists.

Step 3: Post it Online

In addition to e-mailing journalists, there are plenty of ways to distribute a press release online. You can pay to have your release distributed on news wires like PR Newswire, PRWeb, MarketWire, etc. These services are generally pretty spendy, so exercise sound judgment in utilizing them.

Alternatively, there are plenty of websites that allow you to post press releases for free. And, if you do your homework, there are probably other news sites in your industry that let you post your own news stories. You’ll have to investigate which of these sites allows you to put live links in your release. Remember, you’re looking for back links to your website.

HINT: Reserve your less news-worthy press releases for free online sites. This will keep you from harming your relationships with journalists by sending them “junk,” but at the same time make a public announcement that can be pulled up directly by the consumer in searches – and maybe even reposted. And again, you’ll also develop back links.

Results

You never know what will happen when you write and distribute a news release. Be prepared to accept calls from journalists and be ready to answer their questions. They may ask you to provide them with more material, like in-depth statistics or images. And remember, when talking with a journalist, don’t say anything that you wouldn’t want publicized, even if you think it’s “off the record.”

If done correctly, your public relations efforts will win you coverage eventually, but don’t expect to get a story from every release you send out. Chances are that many of your releases will not get picked up by the media at all. That’s normal, especially for small businesses. If you judge your public relations efforts purely on news placements, you’re bound to be disappointed. Remember, public relations is about building relationships – both with your target consumers and with the key influencers of those consumers. Work on building these relationships by releasing consistent news about your business and respecting the role of journalists, and you'll be on the path to public relations success. And, along the way, you’ll get plenty of back links, too.

Information presented in LiveRez.com's Guerrilla Marketing webinar is now available for download as a white paper.

On Wednesday, Aug. 31, LiveRez.com hosted a webinar entitled “Guerrilla Marketing: 5 Tactics to Grow Your Vacation Rental Business Now.” Nearly 180 vacation rental managers from across the nation signed up for the free educational presentation.

If for some reason you missed the webinar or want to brush up on some of the things the LiveRez marketing team went over, you can download the webinar as a white paper.

Download the white paper here >>>

During the webinar we received numerous questions, and many people were sharing their ideas for how to implement these Guerrilla Marketing tactics to help their individual businesses. If you have questions or want to share your ideas and brainstorm with other vacation rental managers, check out the discussion on our Facebook Page.

Join the Discussion on Our Facebook Page >>>

And for timely updates and expert advice from LiveRez.com, follow us on Facebook or Twitter (@LiveRez), or check back here at the LiveRez.com blog.

Cocoa Beach Best Condominium Rentals experienced dramatic increases in search engine placement, website traffic and web bookings in just its first few months with LiveRez.com

When Sheila Hobart of Cocoa Beach Best Condominium Rentals signed up for LiveRez.com’s SEO/SEM service, she had a clear plan in front of her for the customer demographic she wanted to reach – she just wanted a little helping getting her company in front of them.

After working with LiveRez.com SEO/SEM Manager Sam Martin to nail down her target audience, Hobart let LiveRez.com’s SEO/SEM service design and execute a custom plan.

And, in just a matter of weeks, Cocoa Beach Best is starting to see results.

“Our website is hitting its targets, and our numbers look good,” Hobart said.

In just over one month with LiveRez.com’s SEO/SEM service, Cocoa Beach Best’s search engine placement for seven strategic keyword phrases increased by 316 percent. On May 19, Cocoa Beach Best had an average search engine ranking of 75 among those seven keyword phrases. But, as of July 1, its average ranking has increased to 18.

Quick Stats on Cocoa Beach Best's success with the LiveRez SEO/SEM program.

Thank to LiveRez’s efforts, one of those keywords phrases – “Cocoa Beach FL Vacation Condo Rentals” – has moved from a No. 83 placement to a No. 8 placement, essentially skyrocketing the business from an eighth-page placement to a first-page placement in just over one month.

These results have given Cocoa Beach Best some great search engine visibility, and have helped monthly traffic to cocoabeachbest.com more than double.

“We were unknown before, and now we’re on the first page of Google,” she said.

These elevated placements – along a mix of intelligent in-house marketing and the addition of Martin’s Google Adwords campaign – have helped Cocoa Beach Best yield some astonishing increases in online business. From May to June, Cocoa Beach Best’s web bookings exploded, yielding a 2,900 percent increase in bookings and a 3,855 percent increase in nights stayed.

With her online business booming, Hobart couldn’t be happier with the value she’s getting from LiveRez’s SEO/SEM service.

Said Hobart: “Sam has been worth every penny.”

LiveRez.com let Victoria Smith of Alpenglow Vacation Rentals worry less about her day-to-day business and gave her more time to spend enjoying the amazing outdoor activities in Bend, Oregon.

Alpenglow Vacation Rentals
Location: Bend, Oregon
Website: http://www.alpenglowvacationrentals.com/
Quick Quote: “It (LiveRez.com) gave me my life back.”

Time is an important commodity for Victoria Smith of Alpenglow Vacation Rentals in Bend, Oregon.

As a professional vacation property manager, a hair stylist and an outdoor enthusiast in beautiful Central Oregon, Smith doesn’t have a second to waste.

So, as her vacation rental business started to grow, she turned to LiveRez.com.

So far, Smith’s recipe for success is a combination of price, quality, location and customer service. She offers quality homes at competitive prices, and specializes in the west side of Bend, which, she says, is the most desirable location in the area, due to its great scenery and close proximately to both the mountain and the town.

In Bend, there’s no shortage of things to do. Among other things, the city offers  amazing food and drink, a wide variety of shopping opportunities, beautiful scenery and unmatched recreational activities, which include hiking, biking, horseback riding, rafting, skiing, rock climbing, fishing and hunting, and even the opportunity to explore nearby caves. And, all of Smith’s Bend homes are centrally located to these activities.

But another ingredient in Smith’s success story is her LiveRez.com website.

“I’ve picked up more homes because of my website,” she said. “Definitely people on both sides – the guests and the owners – like the website.”

Alpenglow's LiveRez-powered website reflects the incredible outdoor adventures visitors will find around every corner in beautiful Bend, Oregon.

However, managing vacation homes hasn’t always been as easy for Smith, who also manages a few homes in Mexico.

At first, Smith was hesitant to get into vacation properties. She already had a very successful career as a hair stylist that required a good amount of her time. But, a few years ago, she had received a request to help market and list a vacation home. As it turned out, Smith was an instant success.

Soon after, she went out and got her property management license and began managing vacation properties in the Bend area. But, it turned out to be a lot of work.

Smith, who also has experience as a legal secretary, was writing her own forms, creating her own end-of-the-month reports, doing her accounting by hand and creating her own website through GoDaddy.

“And it was just this mounting thing,” said Smith, who at that point was working full-time as a hair stylist. “I think I had reached six houses, and I had coordinated really well that far. But, I was using so much of my free time.”

Finally, Smith decided that she needed to do something different, and she started looking for a solution that fit her needs. Smith stumbled upon LiveRez.com, and after many conversations with the sales team – where she says she asked every question under the sun – she decided to become a LiveRez.com partner.

Alpenglow Vacation Rentals offers its guests amazing accommodations, like the ones seen here.

How did it work out?

“It gave me my life back,” Smith said.

But, she admits, she had her doubts at first.

“The trust issue was a big thing for me. I felt like I was handing it over to someone else – and I didn’t want to do that,” she said. “But it was the best thing I’ve decided to do – because I’ve made more money and picked up more houses because of the look of the site.”

One thing Smith loves about LiveRez.com’s content management system is that it allows her to put video on her website – something that gives her a competitive advantage. And, Smith has used video to great effect as visitors see when they view her property listings.

“Not all the software companies I was looking at offered video integration,” Smith said. “And, LiveRez was competitively priced, if not better, than people like Escapia.”

But, in addition to the look and feel of her website, LiveRez.com’s end-to-end SaaS platform has saved her time by taking care of nearly everything she used to do by hand.

And, that’s given her more time to enjoy the beautiful area where she lives and works.

The LiveRez-designed Casas de Santa Fe website reflects all the beauty of Santa Fe that keeps guests returning year after year.

Casas de Santa Fe
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico
Website: CasasDeSantaFe.com
Quick Quote: “Being the bookkeeper in the office, my biggest thing is that it attaches to QuickBooks. That’s my favorite part.”

For Rebecca Alexander of Casas de Santa Fe, integration is important.

Just like how the town of Santa Fe blends rich history with modern-day luxury, Casas de Santa Fe offers a mix of old-school customer service and the convenience of a cutting-edge website with online booking. Integrating those things is something the business does exceptionally well.

You see, Alexander and the staff at Casas de Santa Fe go the extra mile in offering their customers a personal touch. It’s a traditional approach that not all businesses apply these days.

Casas de Santa Fe offers accommodations in traditional Santa Fe style.

“We just take the time to visit with them personally on the phone,” she said. “We ask the right questions to find out why they’re coming to Santa Fe.”

Based on those needs, Alexander and the staff at Casas de Santa Fe can recommend properties and activities best-suited to make their guests’ stays as enjoyable as possible.

“We try to get back to people quickly,” she said. “And we try to personalize the service as much as possible, so that everybody feels like they have a voice.”

Casas de Santa Fe specializes in downtown Santa Fe and high-end properties. And they understand that their guests visit the town for a variety of reasons, whether it is to enjoy the historical churches and museums, to trek out on a set of skis, or to enjoy the many festivals that take place there throughout the year. And understanding the customer is something that sets Casas de Santa Fe apart.

“I think it makes it easier for you to get repeat guests when you have really good customer relations,” Alexander said.

According to Alexander, LiveRez.com’s integration of their website and reservation system has aided Casas de Santa Fe in providing a high-level of customer service.

A beautiful living room in one of Casas de Santa Fe's many luxurious vacation rentals.

“Things get updated faster,” she said. “I think that helps with the customer service because people are able to see what’s available and when it’s available a lot easier and a lot quicker.”

But that’s not the only integration component she likes.

“Being the bookkeeper in the office, my biggest thing is that it attaches to QuickBooks,” she said. “That’s my favorite part.”

However, if you ask others around the office, she says, they’ll tell you different things. It could be the online reservation system or the owner’s portal, which let’s owners make their own online reservations and view statements at their convenience.

“It’s very user-friendly, and it’s quick and efficient,” she said.

And it’s integrated. Just like Casas de Santa Fe.

Put this one on your calendar: On Wednesday, March 2, LiveRez is hosting its second webinar of 2011 and you're invited.  Because we are always looking to share strategies to help you drive your bookings, this brief meeting will teach you how to close more of them over the phone.  This is a critical skill that will help you bring more guests to your properties.

Registration for the meeting is simple.  Visit us here to sign up, or call us at 1-800-343-2891 to make your reservation.

The meeting is slated to start at noon (MST) and should run for about an hour.

With things on the information superhighway speeding up each day, it's more important than ever for companies to be fast and efficient in turning prospective customers into solid guests.  This is especially true in the vacation property arena, where clients have a myriad of choices before them.

LiveRez.com websites employ a three-click booking procedure which makes it easier for potential guests to make reservations on your site.

Here's how it works: Potential guests come to your website looking for a vacation rental for a family trip.  In your site's simple format, they decide what kind of property they are looking for, how many people it must fit, and the dates and location of the trip.  Then with the first click, potential guests are one-third of the way through the entire booking process.

Next: Guests are treated to all your property listings matching desired specifications.  They don't have to search over your site to find what they need; it's all in front of them in an eye-pleasing configuration.  Properties are shown with clear, detailed images and easy-to-understand descriptions, outlining various amenities.

Finally: In the last step, potential bookers are converted into solid guests, achieving your ultimate objectives: full properties.  Before purchasing, guests may read longer descriptions of homes or condos so they know exactly what they getting for their money. LiveRez partners can also embed videos and virtual tours into these pages, allowing guests to experience homes or condos in vivid detail.

The process is simple, clear, and easy for guests to understand.  The Easier the process the more booking the property managers will get.

Three-click booking is just another reason LiveRez is an emerging-leader in the vacation rental software industry.  We continually strive for easy-to-use platforms that drive customers to your website and turn them into additional revenue for you and your properties.  To see what LiveRez can do for you, visit our website here or call us at toll-free at 1-800-343-2891.

At last week's VRMA East event, there was a wonderful discussion on Repeat Guests.  In a recent industry study, it was determined that it costs 6x to acquire a new guest vs. booking a repeat guest. 

That is some serious money.  I can add from experience, that the multiplier is much higher in the general eCommerce industry.......more like 10-15x.

Holding on to your guests and keeping them coming back is not rocket-science according to the recent discussion at the VRMA conference.  It is about making it a priority, and starting the sales process for the next visit, the moment they book with you for the first visit. 

The guest experience was broken into several stages, with ideas on each stage.

• Pre-Arrival - find out why they are coming, who they are bringing
• Arrival - 'welcome home', let them know how happy you are to see them
• Stay - treat them like family
• Check-out - provide special offers
• Post-Stay - stay in touch with emails, newsletters, offers

In my April Webinar, I will cover each of these areas in detail.  Please join us for this event on Thursday, April 23.  See details and chance to sign-up below.

Webinar:  Repeat Guests - 9 Ways to Make the Most of Guest Relationships

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I am excited.  Very excited.  VRMA, the Vacation Rental Manager's Association, is reinventing itself and bringing together our industry like never before.  VRMA has launched a new website at www.vrma.com - check it out.  It is a great source of info about the industry.

VRMA has also launched Discover Vacation Homes as a national public awareness initiative for our industry and to make vacation homes a primary vacation option for travelers. 

Be a part of it!  Vacation Managers have the opportunity to become a part of VRMA - check it our at www.vrma.com.  In addition, Discover Vacation Homes offers vacation managers a position at the leading edge of marketing and positioning the vacation home rental industry.  Don't sit on the sideline, be a part of the goings on. Check it out:

WATCH Video For More DetailsCreate more business for YOUR company, YOUR owners, and YOUR destination.  Don't miss out on the many benefits of this national campaign!

      Join the Cause!

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Earlier this week I was researching some travel information on Travelocity for my trip to Charlotte, NC for the Eastern VRMA show at the end of this month.  I got some flight and hotel information for my budgeting plans.  I will make the actual reservation a bit closer to the travel date.

The next moring, while I was spinning on my trainer in my garage and listening to music on songza......SURPRISE!!!......up pops a Travelocity ad about going from Boise to Charlotte. 

Personalized Travel Ad Based on a Previous Search

This is truly amazing marketing. 

Targeted marketing from Travelocity on a completely different website, on a different day, and at a different time.

This is amazing stuff and is setting the expectations of travelers as to how they will interact with their vacation provider.

Kudos to Travelocity.
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