Top 5 Vacation Home Website Mistakes

these sites are so embarrassing, that it would be better for the vacationer to never see the site at all. Keep in mind that a vacationer may see dozens of nearly identical homes when he searches for a place to stay, and it is the little things that differentiate them. Right now, a great way to stand out from the crowd is to have a stellar website. A modern, usable website shows that you care enough about your business to make sure every facet of it is in good order. This puts a vacationer's mind at ease when evaluating how trustworthy your business is. 1. Missing Site The simplest mistake I see with vacation homes is a  lack of a website. Either they just don't have one, or they have some kind of error preventing it from being displayed. If you have a website, go check it now to make sure it is up and running. If it isn't up, here are some common reasons: Typo. Make sure everyone who links to you, all listing sites you are on, every brochure you make, and your business cards all have the correct spelling. Make sure the top-level domain (that's the .com or .net part) matches your site. Forgot to pay the bill. Pay the bill. Simple websites shouldn't cost you much more than $20 per month, and can lead to more bookings and more repeat vacationers. There is an error. If you see a message like "500 Server Error" on the screen, then it is time to call your hosting company, webmaster, or web designer. 2. Contact form does not work Does your site have a contact form? I recommend that it should, because it lets vacationers contact you without giving them your email address. Go check your site's contact form now. Fill it in and make sure that you receive an email. If you don't get the email, then your form is broken and you should contact your webmaster to fix it. Test your form every few months. 3. The site doesn't work in all browsers or on phones Not everyone who goes on vacation uses Internet Explorer. In fact, more than half don't. Look at your site in other browsers like Firefox and Chrome. If you have a smartphone (like an Android or iPhone), look at your site on it. If not, borrow one from someone you know, and look. If your site does not work, hire a web designer to fix it. Tell them you want it to work in modern browsers and on smartphones. 4. Burying the lead I see this on almost every villa website I see, and it may be the simplest to fix. Burying the lead is a term for having the unimportant content shown first, and the most important content show later. Here is a list of things I have seen listed before important information on villa sites: The owner's life story. The name of the owner's dog. A picture of the owner. A description of Disneyland. A half-page sized image of an American flag. Pictures of roller coasters from a nearby theme park. An article about how vacation homes are better than hotels. A picture of the villa with the text "Click on the picture to enter the site." A flash animation that plays music and after 60 seconds redirects to the actual information. Think about this kind of content. What purpose does it serve? Does it help the vacationer learn about the vacation home? Does it help them make a decision to book? No. This kind of content just slows the vacationer down, and makes your site seem unprofessional. What is the most important content for a vacation home? The location. If the vacationer is looking to vacation in Orlando, and your vacation home is in Branson, Missouri, the vacationer needs to know that right away. Don't waste her time clicking through several pages to find out where your property is located. The description. This includes information like bedrooms, occupancy, and accommodations, as well as professional photos of your home. The availability calendar. So many websites bury this on another page, and as a vacationer, this is very important information to have. Rates. Vacationers need to know this information. Don't hide the rates on a different page. Contact information. If you want them to book, they have to get a hold of you. Whether your preferred contact method is a contact form, an email address, or a phone number, put it on the front page. I have seen hundreds of vacation home websites put each of these five vital pieces of information on a different page. Don't do it! It just frustrates vacationers who have to flip between one page and the next to get all the information they need. 5. Ugly or Outdated Sites A lot of recent research suggests that website appearance has a significant impact on attitudes of trust and credibility. In other words, if your website looks outdated and sloppy, visitors will assume your vacation home is outdated and sloppy as well. If your website has any of the following, it's time to call a web designer: A copyright date before 2003. Pictures of flags. Anything animated. Images smaller than half of your computer's screen. Pastel background color. Tiny text that is cramped in the center of the page. Anything that a SEO specialist or "guru" told you to put on there. I would recommend a professional web developer. Prices for website design can vary wildly depending on the quality of the designer. There are some do-it-yourself places that look quite nice. You may try Gutensite, Virb, or Squarespace. There are also many web designers that specialize in vacation home website design. Just Google "vacation home website design" and find one you like. Also, some rental management software comes with a free website. Bonus mistake: Poor spelling or grammar Poor spelling and grammar affects not only the perception of visitors to your site, but can also affect the ranking of your site in search engines. One very inexpensive way to improve your site is to hire an English major from a local university to proofread your page. Conclusion Your vacation home's website needs to reflect the professional, clean, and fun environment of your vacation home. By avoiding or correcting these mistakes, you can ensure that visitors to your website are left with a good impression of your property. A well-maintained website implies that you care enough about your business to keep your home well-maintained. A great website increases your credibility and trustworthiness in the eye of the consumer....