04/02/2020

Instagram: a good promotional tool for your rentals

In the vacation rental industry, as in other sectors, the content preferred by Internet users are photos and videos. Why not correlate the two?

Summary

No time to read the article? Download it by clicking here

Always with a view to promoting your business and maximising your direct bookings, Instagram, the social network with 1 billion users monthly assets, is perhaps a promotional lever you would not have thought of.

As you know, Instagram is a social network based on the publication of photos and videos.

Why Instagram?

In general, all social networks are good levers for communication and promotion. Not only do they have millions of usersThey are not only dynamic, but also trendy, of all ages, all sectors and all nationalities. But Instagram is even better because even if it is not the number 1 network ????,  is the social network with the highest engagement rate (4x more than Facebook).

Instagram is a real source of inspiration for users but is also a great marketing a great marketing tool!

These a few figures are quite telling:

  • Instagram help 80% users to decide to purchase a product or service.
  • 83% of users say they discover new products and services on Instagram.
  • 50% of users follow at least 1 brand

Not to mention that we are talking about a totally free application!

How to do it?

Create your feed

First, if you have not already done so, create an account. Add your logo, your slogan (if you have one), and a link to your website. These are 3 essentials to post, if only to lend credibility and formality to your account. When travelers research and come across a site they like, they will often take a look at the brand's social media channels, especially Instagram. You can be sure that if your travelers don't find your Insta account, it can have a negative impact on your bookings.

After creating your account, which will be brand new and therefore empty, you will have to add photos. First of all, the photos you publish must be clean, professional, well framed, in order to show your rentals to their best advantage. (But I am not teaching you anything ????) Secondly, you must the photos published over the years form a beautiful ensembleand therefore a beautiful feed.

Your Instagram feed is the sequence of your posted photos, your Instagram profile, basically.

For some time now, we've noticed that Instagram feeds are becoming more and more polished, uncluttered, and in the same tones. Nowadays, we don't only apply ourselves to the photo in question that we publish, but to all the photos published. To have a beautiful feed, some rules must be respected :

  • Use one or two dominant colours for a nice looking set. I can see you coming, I am aware that all your rental properties are not in the same colours and that you do not offer that apartments with a purple sofa and curtains. (Although, if that's the case, so much the better!) Otherwise, no problem, choose a tone, and try to publish at least 9 photos with this tone to make a nice square. For example, if the highlighted apartment contains blue tones, feed your feed with photos of blue skies, tropical island landscapes, etc. While remaining consistent with what you propose, of course! Applications exist to preview your feeds before publishing. (Preview, Previagram...)
  • Edit your photos ! Or always use the same filter. The goal here is to create a consistent feed, with the same type and retouching on your photos. If you usually lighten your photos a bit, add the same brightness to each one. Conversely, avoid adding too much light, too much contrast, too much sharpness... Too much kills too much.
  • Don't post too many videos. Even if it's a very popular content, videos can quickly spoil the beautiful feed you took so long to build. (Unless you create a custom preview for each video). Publish them anyway, but not too many, because in any case, the stories are there for that. (More details later!)
  • Choose light tones. Light tones generate a positive feeling and a sense of calmness. Instagram profiles with light tones are always more pleasant to look at!
  • Don't forget the #hashtags. Even if they are often hidden by the description of the photo, they are well present a little lower and allow to improve your visibility. Don't hesitate to use them : #vacationrental #locationparis #locationparis #holidays #travel and many more ! The city names are important since many users search for the city they want to travel to via Instagram.
  • Publish at the right time. As with all social networks, certain days and times will be best. See what works best for you, but avoid posting a photo in the middle of the night or in the middle of the day when no one is looking at Instagram. Posting times can be quite complicated to estimate at first, but once you find them, they don't change!
  • Whatever whatever happens, stay consistent with your brand image. If on other social other social networks, you are used to adding a frame, a shape, a quote, whatever whatever, be consistent and keep the same graphic charter.

Building your feed over time is important, it can be the first thing people look at in a brand, and therefore the first impression.

The stories

While tending to your feed on a daily basis, there's another popular and even more dynamic Instagram feature: The stories. These are photos and/or videos, which are published and remain on your profile for 24 hours. These can allow you to communicate on events, news, or even just small information to pass on but which are not necessarily useful as a constant photo/video publication on your feed. For example, you're having a company lunch with your whole team and you want to communicate on it to highlight the human side of your company, show a part of your premises, or whatever. And hop, a little story! This allows your most loyal followers to know a little more about your business, while keeping a nice Instagram feedWithout the blurred team photo that you would have taken between two forks.

To optimize the use of stories, you can also encourage or suggest to your your current tenants to tag your brand in their stories!

Because yes, as I told you, this stories tool is very dynamic and allows you to geolocate yourself, display a date, a time, an emoji, a music, but also to tag brands or people. If someone posts a story and tags you in it, you can repost it on your account and showcase your rentals, thanks to your customers. Isn't that great?

Featured stories

Featured stories are a mix of your Insta feed and regular stories. A featured story is a basic story that you've posted, that you can "pin" to the top of your profile (and that will stay on your profile for as long as you want). These front page stories are pretty handy since it allows you to create "themes", "lists", a bit like categories of information. Many brands are using it in this way. Welkeys, for example, the high-end concierge 2.0 company we work with, uses front page stories to sort their rentals by city. This way, they put all their properties in front and users can choose to only look at apartments in Lyon and Megève, for example!

You can also use the front page stories to post your FAQs, or a "Did you know? "section, or your recruitment ads... anything is possible!

Advertisements

Instagram also allows you to advertise online! Much less expensive than a normal communication campaign, ads on Insta would also have an ROI (Return On Investment) higher than other social networks. The application allows you to distribute your ads to specific targets, according to their gender, age, geolocation, and behaviour, just like on Facebook, since the data of both companies are linked (same company group).

Many formats are available: a photo alone, a video, a photo carousel... You can also choose your location: in the news feed or directly in story, in short, there are many possibilities to advertise on Instagram, do not miss the opportunity to increase your visibility!

So even if you only rent two or three apartments from time to time, many opportunities are available on this social network, so you might as well put all the chances on your side!

Have we piqued your curiosity?

Discover Swikly, the #1 online bonding solution for rental professionals!

Legal information

Editorial references

The swikly.com website is published by SWIKLY, a simplified joint stock company with a capital of 10,000 euros.
SWIKLY is registered in the Lyon Trade and Companies Register under number RCS 819 514 076
The head office is located in Lyon (France), 92 Cours Lafayette 69003 - Telephone: +33 4 20 88 00 48 - email: contact@swikly.com
Director of publication: Mr. Shaun WOURM, President of SWIKLY - shaun.wourm@swikly.com.
The hosting of the Site has been entrusted to Microsoft Ireland Operations Limited (Microsoft AZURE offer), whose registered office is located at DUBLIN 18 99000 BLACKTHORN ROAD, Ireland, registered in the Trade and Companies Register of "Foreign company n/immat.RCS" under the number 419 423 728, reachable by phone at +353 1850 940 940.
SWIKLY - April 2016 - All rights reserved

Personal data

The creation of a personal account and the use of the site imply the collection of personal data and the processing of data.
The purpose of this processing is the management of the Swikly smarphone Application, of the Website Services and the activity of the SWIKLY company. This processing of personal data is the subject of a declaration to the CNIL by the Company under the number 1948037.
The following personal data of the user is accessible to any other registered user:
-first name and first letter of a user's name.
The following personal data of the user is accessible to any user who has accepted a Swik of the said user concerned:
-first name, last name and reputation of the user.
Personal data is transferred by the Company to its service providers and subcontractors, in accordance with the aforementioned declaration made to the CNIL. All access to the user's personal data by these subcontractors and service providers is subject to the use of a login and password, with the data also being transmitted via an encrypted link.
No personal data is collected for purposes other than those mentioned above, nor is it passed on to third parties without your consent or used without your knowledge.
In accordance with the law n°78-17 of January 6, 1978 modified, relating to Data processing, the Files and Freedoms, you have a right of access, of modification and suppression of the personal data concerning you (art.34 of the law).
These rights can be exercised with the Data Controller:
Service CNIL, Société SWIKLY - 12 rue de la Barre 69002 LYON, France - contact@swikly.com.
You will find all the information concerning your rights, duties and the protection of personal data on the website of the Commission Nationale de l'Informatique et des Libertés: http://www.cnil.fr
When you visit the Site, a cookie is placed on your computer. The Company uses cookies to enable and facilitate electronic communication, to provide features tailored to the needs of Users. The cookie is used to identify the user at each of his connections, and thus facilitates his access to the Service. The user can refuse cookies when accessing the smarphone Application or by changing the configuration of his browser. This may however alter the functionality of the smarphone Application, which the User accepts.

Contacts

To report any errors or anomalies on the site:
Webmaster: contact@swikly.com

Cookie policy

What is a cookie?

A cookie is a small text file and covers all types of tracers "deposited and read, for example, when a website is consulted, when an e-mail is read, or when software or a mobile application is installed or used, regardless of the type of terminal used". 

It may be placed by the server of the site visited or by a third-party server (advertising agency, web analytics service, etc.). Cookies do not compromise site security.

Cookies deposited by Swikly

When you connect to our Site, we may install various cookies on your terminal. The cookies we issue allow us to :

- Maintain the proper functioning of the Site

- Memorize the selected language version of the Site

- To record and adapt the functionalities of the Site according to your browsing preferences (identification, adapting to the types of devices used)

- manage the acceptance and retention period of cookies

In accordance with regulations, cookies have a maximum lifetime of 13 months.

Cookies issued by third parties

- Analytics cookies:

They enable us to track the number of visitors to our site and your browsing habits (Google Analytics cookies), and to generate statistical data on site usage. This enables us to improve the Site's performance.

 

- Cookies placed by our advertising partners : 

These cookies enable us to identify your centers of interest, and thus offer you relevant advertising content when you browse other sites. 

If you do not authorize these cookies, you will be subject to less targeted advertising.

 

- Social network cookies :

While browsing our Site, you may click on the "social networks" buttons to view our Facebook and Youtube profiles. These third-party applications may use cookies to offer you targeted advertising. By clicking on the social network icon, the latter may identify you. If you are connected to the social network while browsing our Site, the sharing buttons allow you to link the content you consult to your user account.

 

We cannot control the process used by social networks to collect information relating to your browsing on our Site. We therefore invite you to consult their personal data protection policies to find out how they are used and what browsing information they may collect.

 

- Cookies set by Hotjar

 

We use Hotjar to better understand our users' needs and optimize the www.swikly.com website.. Hotjar is a technological service that helps us to better understand our users' experience (for example, time spent on a page, links clicked, and more generally browsing habits, etc.). This enables us to improve our service. The data collected by Hotjar through cookies relates to the behavior of users and their devices (in particular the device's IP address captured and stored only in anonymous form), device screen size, device type (unique identifiers), browser information, geographical location (country only), preferred language used to display the website). Hotjar stores this information in a pseudonymous user profile. Neither Hotjar nor Swikly will ever use this information to identify individual users or associate it with other data. For more details, please consult Hotjar's privacy policy

Cookie management

When you visit our site for the first time, a cookie banner will appear, asking you to consent to or refuse the use of cookies.

Your rights

In accordance with the French Data Protection Act of January 6, 1978, as amended, and the RGPD, you have the right to access, rectify, oppose, delete and limit information from cookies and other tracers. To do so, please contact contact@swikly.com.

Free guide:

Seasonal rental PMS 2024-2025