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Being Relentlessly Proactive: Your Shortcut to Excellent Reviews in 2026 · Host Planet: Airbnb, Holiday Let, and Vacation Rental Insights

0:00
Welcome to Holiday Let Insider, the podcast that takes you
0:03
behind the scenes of the holiday letting industry.
0:06
Brought to you by House Planet and Sykes Holiday Cottages, this
0:09
show is packed with expert insights, real world strategies,
0:13
and actionable advice to help you succeed as a holiday Let's
0:17
host. I'm James Farley, the founder of
0:19
House Planet, and in each episode we'll dive into key
0:22
topics like property management, guest experience and revenue
0:26
growth, and we'll be joined by industry experts who know what
0:29
it takes to to thrive in this sector.
0:31
In today's episode, we'll be talking to Rachel Brennan about
0:34
how to secure those all important five star reviews.
0:38
Are you looking to take the hassle out of holiday letting
0:41
while setting yourself up for success with Sykes Holiday
0:44
Cottages, you benefit from working with a team of real
0:47
people with vast experience and knowledge, or providing a unique
0:51
service to support you every step of the way.
0:54
Eleven time consecutive winners at the best Large company for UK
0:58
holiday home rentals at the British Travel Awards.
1:01
Sykes uses industry leading pricing systems, dedicated
1:05
account management and a network of more than 700 booking
1:08
partners to help get the most out of your investment.
1:12
Sykes aims to combine trusted experience with local expertise
1:15
to help make your holiday let's a success.
1:18
Get in touch today to find out more at the
1:21
sykescottages.co.uk/letyour Cottage for further details.
1:30
Hello and welcome to Holiday Let's Insider.
1:32
Today's special guest is Rachel Brennan, the senior manager of
1:36
sales and portfolio growth at Sykes Holiday Cottages.
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How's it going, Rachel? All good.
1:41
Thank you. How are you?
1:43
Very well, thank you. All right then reviews, here we
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go. What are the biggest drivers of
1:50
Five Star Reviews? So this is where my sort of
1:54
three CS come into it. So it's care, clarity and
1:58
cleanliness. So when I talk about care, I'm
2:01
talking about service. When you go on holiday, you
2:05
wanna feel looked after, you wanna feel valued, you wanna
2:08
feel thought of. And we're not talking about big
2:11
things here, you know, it could be quite small things, just
2:13
really well thought out welcome pack with some great attractions
2:19
or local restaurants or nice walks nearby.
2:23
Even just little bits on the instructions of knowing exactly
2:26
where everything is in the property so that you haven't got
2:30
to call or the the host, you know, every 20 minutes, you
2:33
know, to make sure you know where everything is, but also
2:35
that you've thought of everything that they need in the
2:37
property. And that could be your pizza
2:40
slicer, your egg cups, that there's enough crockery for
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everybody so that they don't want for anything.
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Even when it comes to olive oil, spices, or you know, the salt
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and pepper. I've done it so many times where
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I go to a property and then I'm at the local supermarket buying
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everything that I have in my own house that I then have there and
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it just gets wasted. So having these little bits on
3:00
hand is just, is just fantastic and can just lead to a really
3:03
easy holiday. Then when I go to clarity, it is
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talking about accuracy. So I'm talking about listing and
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photo accuracy. The customer should know exactly
3:13
what they are getting before they go, and it should meet
3:15
those expectations. It should be truthful, it should
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be honest. It should be transparent in your
3:20
description, in your photos so that there's no hidden surprises
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when I get there. You know, that's that's gonna be
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key to all of that as well. Again, that the instructions are
3:29
easy to follow that I can get into the property nice and easy.
3:32
I know exactly what to do when I'm leaving.
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And again, just for for ease and then cleanliness.
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And that's the biggest one for me.
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That's the one where customers aren't forgiving.
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And we're not just talking about a spot clean, you know, just a
3:45
once over wipe over. We are talking about a hotel
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standard clean here. We're talking in the cupboards,
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in the fridge, you know, open and all the drawers open under
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the beds, under the furniture to make sure that when you go in,
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you know that it's cleaned and it's being looked after.
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And that's that's the big one. I think when with reviews, I
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think people can get confused about luxury sometimes and think
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reviews are always, you know, it's, it's on the luxury side.
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But I very really read reviews where it's sort of talking about
4:13
the marble tops or it's talking about the thread count of, of
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the sheets. It's more that everything
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worked. You know, it was so easy to get
4:21
in. The owner had thought
4:23
everything, you know, I didn't need to contact the owner at all
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and if I did it was great responses, you know, really, you
4:30
know, fantastic restaurant recommendation, you know, we had
4:33
the best time. That's what you would more see
4:36
in those reviews. So I think when you go on
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holiday, the review's more about how that person felt when they
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left. So they've left feeling relaxed.
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It was stress free, it was hassle free.
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So it's not about luxury, it's about removing those friction
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points that could be there and how the customer felt.
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I think that's a really good point, especially on the
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recommendations. I'm thinking about the reviews
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that I've had and so often if a guest has taken a recommendation
5:01
to go to a local restaurant or pub or whatever and they've
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enjoyed it, they will mention that in the reviews.
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That's really appreciated. Yeah, cleaning, of course, you
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just cannot compromise on cleaning in this game.
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And I think with the the point you make there about the
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instructions for everything, I think that's really valid.
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And might it in relation to instructions, QR codes, if you
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can grab AQR code so people can, I don't know, maybe you've got a
5:26
cooker which is a bit finicky or the washing machine or whatever
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you've got in there. Use AQR code.
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It'll make your life easier right then.
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So at what points in the guest journey are reviews really won
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or lost? Oh, so for me it's the 1st 10
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minutes and the last 10 minutes. So 1st 10 minutes is first
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impressions and they are lasting impressions.
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So I'm talking about arriving at that property.
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How easy was it for me to check in?
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Was the parking on site as I've walked in?
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What was the temperature like? What was the smell of it like?
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How clean is it is exactly as I expected it to be?
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If I, you know, is it almost sort of like picture perfect to
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what I've seen online that can be make or break for you within
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the 1st 10 minutes and then the last 10 minutes.
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I think for me it is all about again how they felt.
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So it was a nice easy checkout time and time again when owners
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haven't left, you know, instructions, customers can then
6:27
feel really confused. Do I, where do I put the
6:29
rubbish? Where do I, what do I do with
6:31
the, the bedding? Do I take it off?
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Do I put it here? Do I leave it on?
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Do I make the beds? So, you know, it's that
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confusion of just ease and they should, as I said, be leaving,
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you know, your property rested, relaxed, recharged, you know,
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thinking about the fantastic memories that they've just made.
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I think also one of the points is that when something goes
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wrong in the property, I think that can be, you know, important
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as well. I think that could be a sort of
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make or break moment too. But it's not the problem itself,
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it's how you fix that problem. And when I talk about that, I'm
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talking about attitude and I'm talking about the speed at which
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you're fixing it as well. So that when that's been raised
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to you, what was the attitude like?
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Has it gone in defensive mode and said it was fine when, when
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I last checked? And what are you trying to say
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with that comment that maybe the customer's not right, you know,
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and that, you know, that there's, there's not a truth
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there. It's almost sort of like, you
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know, not understanding. There's no empathy there to what
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that customer's then going through.
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And then what was it? What was the solution like, you
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know, are you a fixed focused, you know, host that's going to
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make sure that that's done and and resolved and sort of
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tactical tip there I would say is a first night check in or
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maybe shortly after, you know, that they've checked in to say
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is everything as it should be. I think this is a key one to
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pick up on small little hiccups that might have gone cause we're
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all human, things happen, but it just stops it from snowballing
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into something big. And often you know, in reviews
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where there has been these little small hiccups, as long as
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the attitude and the speed's been right up when they've been
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reported, then it can actually go into a glowing review at the
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end. Slight little issue here, but it
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was all fixed and all resolved within within an hour.
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So I think that is, yeah. My tactical tip is to do either
8:16
a first night check in how was your first night's sleep or
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shortly after them checking in to say is everything.
8:22
They should be happy with everything.
8:24
Yeah, 100%. I was speaking to a property
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manager based in South Africa actually a few months ago and he
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said never waste a good crisis. You know, that's your
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opportunity. If if, if something's gone
8:33
wrong, you put it right quickly and with the right attitude, you
8:36
can turn a maybe 3 or 4 star experience into an instant five
8:40
star experience. And I think your point there
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about the first impressions is so important.
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And, and I would really encourage people to, you know,
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make sure that they visit their own properties, their own
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rentals. Some, some people, of course,
8:53
they'll be there all the time. It might be next door, it might
8:56
be the annex for other people. They might not be going as
8:58
often. I remember I hadn't been to one
9:00
of my properties for months and months.
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And I walked in and there's just a couple of little things.
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And I thought, do you know what? They need to be sorted out ASAP.
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Because if I'm getting that when I walk through the door, guests
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are definitely gonna feel it as well.
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So so visit visit your own properties.
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Even if you can't get there, I think that, you know, friends,
9:18
family, send a spy in for you, you know, to just go, even if
9:21
it's for even if it's just for one night, to just go and go.
9:24
What would you have thought? You know, and you need to pick
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somebody who can be brutally honest with you, you know, and
9:29
look for these fine details. But absolutely, you know, send
9:32
your spy and you know, if you can't get that yourself, send
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somebody else in to do it for you.
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Definitely send your inspector round.
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All right then, Rachel. So what do you think the best
9:43
reviewed holiday let's consistently do differently from
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the rest based on your experience with Sykes?
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So I think they probably run their holiday let's as they
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would if they were doing project management.
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I think for me, they anticipate they pre empt problems before
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they are a problem. And, you know, this could be
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anything from knowing that they're in, you know, an area
10:07
where there's lots of walk in, there's lots of rain.
10:10
It would be putting, you know, umbrella by the door or dog
10:13
towels by the door to make sure that that was, you know, things
10:17
that they thought of or a rainy, you know, sort of day package,
10:20
board games and those things in it.
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Also things like, you know, sort of cleaning.
10:25
So it's talking about welcome packs there, but actually like
10:27
cleaning care packages. The more that you leave, the
10:29
more that the customer's actually going to look after
10:32
your property as well. You know, if you've got
10:33
everything on hand to clean the unit with so they don't have to
10:36
go out and buy it all again, that's going to be key as well.
10:40
So making sure that there's extra bin bags in there, there's
10:42
enough toilet paper and anything that has gone wrong before or
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you know, that's come up in your expecto visit there that you are
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anticipating what could be a potential hiccup and you are
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planning to that. Another one that they do is they
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then standardise things. So it's the same for everyone.
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And this could come down to communication.
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And I'm not saying it's got to be this boring template that
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goes out every time. It could be warm, it can be
11:07
friendly, it can be personalized, you know, to your
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taste, your language, you know, to you as a host.
11:12
But everybody should be getting the same treatment.
11:15
I know when I had booked a property once there was this
11:18
beautiful photo of an amazing welcome pack, you know, actually
11:22
on the listing and then in the reviews, they would talk about
11:26
how fantastic this welcome pack went.
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So to my disappointment, I didn't get a welcome pack when I
11:31
went. It was almost worse, as if there
11:33
was no, no expectations set to begin with, because then I
11:37
didn't feel valued that time, you know, as others maybe felt
11:41
and I didn't really feel thought of.
11:43
So it's making sure that if you're going to do things, make
11:46
sure it's going to be consistent that you can do it.
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So, you know, putting things in your welcome pack and you know,
11:50
you're going to be able to do time and time again, you're
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going to be able to get the same produce.
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Just make sure you do it for for everybody.
11:57
Now, the final point would be on the personalisation.
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So that is this is a care signal, you know, in this one
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with the with the personalisation, this is a we
12:07
thought of you moment. And this could just be a plaque
12:11
with the guest name on it. You know, it could be as simple
12:14
as that, as I said, a really well thought out, you know,
12:18
recommendations for things to do in the area or it could be
12:21
looking at the party sizes as well.
12:23
So is the a dog included? Could you put some dog treats in
12:26
there is the children. And this is where small details
12:29
can come into quite big impact again of going back to when,
12:34
when I tell I go on hold it quite a bit.
12:36
But when I when I went on holiday, I have two young boys.
12:41
So they'd actually set the table up and I don't know if they knew
12:45
that I'd noticed, but two of them had the wearing glasses for
12:47
the adults. The other two had children's
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glasses, Very small detail, but I thought, actually that set out
12:54
for a family meal. That set out for me.
12:55
That's perfect. Whereas if it was all wine
12:58
glasses, I'd been worried about getting, you know, one of them
13:00
knocked over by the kids. So that was really thoughtful.
13:03
And that same owner, we actually went around Easter time and they
13:06
had actually hidden little Easter eggs in the house for the
13:10
kids. And there was a little note on
13:12
arrival to say a couple of hidden surprises.
13:15
Happy Easter and the kids loved it.
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And to be honest, there was no hiccups on that holiday.
13:21
But if there had of been, our forgiveness levels would have
13:25
been so high because we'd have just been like, OK, there's, you
13:29
know, that stray cobweb up there or there's something that's not
13:33
quite working. Look how thoughtful the owner
13:35
had been. So I think some of these little
13:37
extra touches can just buy you a little bit in that sort of
13:40
forgiveness scale that can, again, really, you know, sort of
13:44
help to recover. Any reviews if if a hiccup does
13:46
happen? Absolutely.
13:48
They give you so much credit in the bank.
13:50
And what I love about those is that the owner, the manager has
13:55
kind of looked at the clues. You know, they can see the
13:58
bookings come through. It's two adults, two children,
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they set the table accordingly. And of course with the Easter
14:05
eggs. What a brilliant tip.
14:06
I mean, leaving chocolate for kids, especially an Easter egg
14:10
hunt as well, stuff that they can fight, you know, gamifying
14:13
it as well. Brilliant.
14:14
I think that's an absolutely superb, superb thing to do.
14:18
Moving on then, I mean you've mentioned welcome packs quite a
14:21
bit. I mean how much do you think
14:23
small details actually matter? Like welcome packs, whether it's
14:27
the communication tone, the check in instructions, how much
14:31
do they move the. So as I said, small details
14:35
equals the signal of care. You know, it is a what you're
14:39
being thought of, you're being looked after.
14:42
And I think they can have a huge impact.
14:45
And as I said, they don't need to be expensive or big or grand
14:49
gestures. You know, they could be
14:50
something that's quite that's quite small and welcome packs.
14:54
As I said, it's a great way for forgiveness, but it's also a way
14:56
of showcasing, you know, the local side of things, because
14:59
you could put things that's either local treats in there,
15:02
you know, from and, and it can also showcase some of the local
15:05
restaurants or local shops that you can buy all these bits from.
15:09
So I think that's always a nice, a nice touch, but it doesn't
15:13
even have to go that far. It could just be as simple as to
15:15
be able to have a hot drink after you've just had, you know,
15:18
maybe a not so great journey there.
15:21
We know what the traffic can be like.
15:23
So it's just even if they could just have a hot drink when they
15:26
arrive, you know, and that they don't have to go to the shops
15:28
again, It could just be something quite small.
15:31
Tone is again super important. I think it is.
15:36
It's just that it's warm, friendly, honest, transparent,
15:39
but also, you know, condense, concise and just straight to the
15:44
point because people don't want to read walls and walls and
15:46
walls of text and they want to make sure that they get to the
15:49
point. And I think sometimes, you know,
15:51
you do read, you know, some of the sort of tones that's used
15:54
either in communications or in the welcome pack.
15:56
And it will be, you know, for the door instructions.
15:59
Go and look at appendix, you know, sort of 1 no, just tell
16:02
them what it is. The code is this you have to
16:04
turn it to the left. It'll show a green light and
16:06
then you'll know it's closed. So you just got to be really
16:09
clear summarize it, you know, make it make it easy.
16:13
And then, as I said, instructions is is is just key
16:17
to everything. Think, you know, when I think
16:19
back to some of my arrivals, one in particular stands out from
16:23
when I'd gone away where beautiful apartment, it was a
16:28
gated complex and we didn't have a code for the gate.
16:33
We had an old code and security had actually changed that code.
16:36
And again, travelling with two young children, you know, after
16:39
hours and hours, we just wanted to get in.
16:41
We just wanted to get showered. We wanted to get fed.
16:43
And we had to always just sort of stand outside and wait for
16:46
somebody to let us in. And we were calling, you know,
16:49
the host. There was no response.
16:51
There was a bank holiday. So it was just it, it just
16:56
didn't set the tone for for the stay.
16:58
It just didn't set it on the right on the right foot.
17:01
Whereas if that had been easy, then it would have been would
17:03
have been a different story. So again, it goes back to that
17:06
almost project management of anticipate preempt.
17:09
If you know that your security, if your complex changes the code
17:13
every single month, how are you getting that code and how are
17:15
you getting that to your customers?
17:18
How are you getting that to your agent?
17:19
If you're using an agent, what is that communication loop going
17:22
to be like? And again, it could be that
17:24
don't give a code and just tell them that they need to call you
17:27
or that you will text them the code if if it if it is a risk of
17:31
it being the wrong 1 so it's pre empting your problems is is it
17:35
just goes back and back to that. Definitely, yeah.
17:38
Turn it into a military operation if you can.
17:42
You've mentioned this a bit with photography and you seeing the
17:47
welcome back in one of the photos and then not receiving 1.
17:50
So what role do you think expectation setting plays in
17:55
achieving those five star reviews?
17:57
I think it's the foundation. I think it's one of the the most
18:01
critical pillars of that because you know, they have looked at
18:06
your property and they want to spend their hard earned cash on
18:09
your property, you know, and that could be their one holiday
18:11
that it's got to be. It's got to hit the mark.
18:14
And I think the key important thing is to be honest and be
18:16
truthful. Don't worry about cropping out
18:19
the bins on your photos. If the bins are placed there.
18:22
Don't worry about cropping out the car park because it's there.
18:24
Actually let them let them know you know that that's OK.
18:28
You know, we should be honest and and transparent.
18:30
We shouldn't try to sugarcoat anything in in listings and
18:33
reviews, but one thing I think you can do to almost soften that
18:37
is a bit of a trade off. So I know of a property that is,
18:42
you know, sort of sea front, the most amazing sea views.
18:45
But first thing in the morning it is seagull chaos, you know,
18:48
there. So it could be fantastic, you
18:50
know, views ignore the seagull chaos of the morning.
18:53
So you can trade off, you know, for something that might be
18:57
deemed as as as a bit more negative to something that's
18:59
actually really, really positive as well, but it's just being
19:03
honest. So if your property is small,
19:05
charming and cozy, say it is small, charming and cozy.
19:09
Just be honest and transparent because as I said, they are
19:13
spending money on that and if it was a service that they spent,
19:16
you're providing that service, they are paying for that
19:19
service. That service doesn't meet their
19:20
expectations and they've got every right to say that.
19:24
So expectation setting from the first get go is key.
19:29
What I would say is under promise ever so slightly and
19:34
then over deliver generously. And and if you're worried about
19:38
even like the star rate and tick rating of a property, I've said
19:41
it to so many owners that they've sort of said, oh, I feel
19:44
like I'm in between the two. I feel like I'm a four, maybe
19:48
pushing A5, go with the four and then you know, you will see your
19:53
views. Oh God, this is phenomenal.
19:55
If they'd have gone with the five, they could have been an
19:58
underwhelming 5. And then people say, no, I'm
19:59
just not quite not quite what I was expecting.
20:02
So you know, if you feel that you are border, as I said under
20:05
promise over deliver always. That makes sense.
20:10
From getting good reviews to bad reviews now, they are inevitable
20:14
from time to time. Anybody who's been hosting for a
20:17
while knows sometimes you're going to get a bad review.
20:20
Sometimes it's deserved, sometimes it isn't.
20:24
What's the right mindset do you think, for owners and managers
20:28
when a bad review comes in? First, I think you've got to de
20:33
escalate yourself. So I think breathe and take a
20:36
moment. There's no point in responding
20:39
when emotions are high because it is going to drive the wrong
20:43
response where you are going to almost even unknowingly go into
20:47
defensive mode, you know, for it and and sort of treat it as a as
20:51
a sort of personal attack. That's absolutely not what you
20:53
want to do. So I would de escalate that as I
20:57
said, by taking a beat, taking a breath and actually find the
21:00
signal. So find what was the problem,
21:02
fix that problem and then report on fixing that problem and
21:06
record that. And then that is where your
21:09
feedback should be very specific to the problem.
21:11
So it's not, it's not the review that you are trying to fix, it's
21:16
the problem that you're trying to fix.
21:18
And I think a key point here is to note that your audience is
21:22
not just the person who wrote the review.
21:24
Your audience is your future guest.
21:26
So you want to be writing to them to let them know of a
21:30
reassurance. OK, a little problems happened
21:32
here, but this is how I take care of it and reassure them for
21:36
the future. So yeah, take a beat, get
21:39
yourself in the right mindset. Just it doesn't even need to be
21:41
a same day response. Fix the problem and then report
21:44
the fix. That's my.
21:47
Problem sounds like very good advice.
21:50
What are the biggest mistakes you see hosts making when
21:53
responding to negative reviews and how should they be handled
21:58
instead? Is it?
21:59
Is it just replying too quickly and too emotionally?
22:04
Exactly. So going into that defensive
22:06
mode of this has never been reported before.
22:09
You know, I don't know how this has happened.
22:11
It wasn't like that for the last guess.
22:13
It wasn't like that when we we did the changeover has said sort
22:16
of almost going into that shifting of blame is absolutely
22:20
not where you want to be. But also writing, you know,
22:25
again, pages and pages and pages of text.
22:28
Nobody wants to read that. So I think my, my biggest tips
22:31
here and again, sort of tactical tips is breathe, thank and
22:36
acknowledge, you know what the problem was and be really
22:39
specific and fix focused. So this was the problem.
22:43
This is how I've fixed it and then offer that reassurance of
22:46
it won't happen again. And that's all you need to do.
22:51
Other times where you should respond publicly and times when
22:56
you should just handle things privately and just kind of, I
23:01
don't know, let sleeping dogs lie, I guess.
23:04
Yeah, so I think I'd always go public when it is for your
23:09
future guests. So it's reassuring your future
23:11
guests. So I think it's anything to do
23:13
with listing accuracies, you know, problems that might have
23:16
arised standards, cleanliness and you know, access issues,
23:20
anything like that. So anything where you're wanting
23:22
to tell your future guests this has been fixed and it will not
23:26
be a problem for you that I would ensure that you keep that
23:30
public. Private for me is when there's a
23:33
lot of back and forth. So this could be really complex
23:36
issues. You want to take that offline
23:39
and deal with that privately. Also where there's personal
23:42
data, you know, involved or details and where the emotions
23:46
are high on either side of with that, you're wanting to make
23:50
sure that that is dealt with privately.
23:52
And also where there's refunds or compensation that could be
23:54
due. Again, keep that private.
23:57
But if it's something that is is, as I said, something that
24:00
you want to reassure your future guests on public is fine.
24:05
And if you're looking as a guest as well, I'm thinking from my
24:08
own experience, I kind of look at the overall score and I might
24:12
look at a couple of the reviews that have been written.
24:15
But so long as the overall score is pretty decent and the rest of
24:18
the listing looks good and the photos look good.
24:20
Sometimes we can probably, I mean reviews obviously
24:23
incredibly important in this business, but we can probably
24:26
over egg how important the specific review is.
24:29
You know, so long as your scores are high and trending in the
24:32
right direction, it can be okay, right?
24:35
Absolutely, absolutely, 100%. You can easily turn a bad review
24:40
into a into a into a good one. You know of it sort of saying
24:44
that yes, there was a problem, but look how much of A
24:49
proactive, responsive owner I am at getting this fixed and
24:52
getting it sorted. So you can quite easily turn
24:56
that, I think for myself again, like you and you.
24:59
Look, I don't expect perfection. Actually, I think it would, it
25:03
would almost make me not want not trust if there was
25:06
absolutely nothing and customers can read through where it's
25:09
preference is. You know, I know me, my partner,
25:12
you know, we, we like different sort of like firmness on the bed
25:15
mattress. We like different pillows.
25:16
Like you can tell when it's personal preference and that
25:19
that's just pushed aside. But where there is an issue
25:21
that's gone wrong, as I said, that you're not wanting to see
25:25
perfection. You want to see that the host
25:27
can competently recover from that, and it's good to see that
25:32
sort of proactive side to go, OK, if anything does actually go
25:35
wrong here, I'm in safe hands, I'm in good hands.
25:37
They're going to fix it for me and that's what can change it to
25:41
a positive. Really good advice.
25:45
Finally, then, Rachel, So if you could give hosts just one piece
25:48
of advice to consistently earn better reviews in 2026, what
25:53
would it be? Be relentlessly proactive.
25:58
So, you know, run it like that project manager, you know,
26:01
anticipate, preempt, standardize, and then make sure
26:05
that you are looking for little snippets of personalization that
26:09
you can do consistently, regularly to a really good
26:12
standard for every single guest. And as I said, it could be as
26:15
small as just writing their name on it.
26:18
But make sure you are running it like we said, as an operation so
26:22
that you've got your checklist of everything that you need to
26:24
sort. You've almost got your photos
26:26
ready to do a photo reset, so it is going to look exactly as it
26:30
is in the photos. Even if it comes to bedding, you
26:32
know, if you've got lovely crisp white linen on your photos,
26:37
don't let your customers then arrive to big flowery, loud
26:41
colours because that's not what they thought that they were
26:43
booking. They thought they were booking
26:44
this and it's something as small as that that could actually mean
26:48
a lot to people. And we've said it again that
26:52
these, they are rare, but they do happen, you know, when we
26:54
get, you know, a slightly poor, you know, sort of review on it.
26:58
The only thing I would say is that if you are starting to
27:01
consistently get those, those sort of poor reviews or there's
27:05
a little snippet in each of the reviews get.
27:07
And then something does need to change.
27:09
And you've got to look at that as as a host, as an owner to
27:12
sort of say, OK, I need to do something about it.
27:15
And that's where if you are listed with somebody like
27:17
ourselves, an agency or a property manager or anything,
27:21
you should be speaking to them and say, what, what can I do?
27:25
You should be working together to sort of come up with a bit of
27:27
a improvement plan so that you can get back to it.
27:30
Because you know, you don't want to get negative reviews.
27:32
You want to get really good ones.
27:33
So how do you get there? And again, it could be really
27:36
small fixes. And that's where you know,
27:38
whether you do have a dedicated account manager who would help
27:41
you to dissect that, come up with a plan.
27:43
They might even send a consultant around free of charge
27:46
to sort of have a little look and make some suggestions to
27:48
just make sure that you're moving in the right direction so
27:52
it is relentlessly being proactive.
27:56
So many great tips in this episode.
27:59
Be proactive people. Rachel, it's been a pleasure as
28:02
ever. Thanks for joining us.
28:04
Thank you so much. Bye now.
28:05
Great to chat with Rachel Brennan there from Sykes Holiday
28:07
Cottages. I hope you found that episode
28:10
useful. All right, that's it for today's
28:12
show. If you're keen to work with
28:13
Sykes Holiday Cottages, head to sykescottages.co.uk/letyour
28:19
Cottage. And for more free, free
28:21
education tips and trends from the STR industry, visit
28:24
Houseplanner dot Club where you can sign up for our newsletter,
28:28
listen to our podcasts and download a suite of ebooks for
28:31
hosts and property managers. That's it for today's edition of
28:34
Holiday Let Insider. Until next time, happy hosting.