Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast

Join host Gil Chan on 'Booked Solid,' the podcast dedicated to helping short-term rental operators and property managers maximize bookings and scale their businesses. Each week, gain actionable insights from industry experts, uncover proven strategies, and learn the secrets to achieving more nights booked. Elevate your rental business and stay ahead in the competitive market with 'Booked Solid.'

Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast is a business podcast hosted by Gil Chan, with 123 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Gil Chan hosts Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast, a business show with 123 episodes published.

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  Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast

  AI Native Direct Booking Website Lessons From Building Hostaway's Pro with Rick van der Plas

  Sep 30, 202649 min

  "You also need to just be a marketer." ️ A beautiful website won't book itself. Rick van der Plas, Chief Technology Officer at Hostaway, sees direct booking sites go live across one of the largest PMS platforms in the industry, and he knows which ones actually get found. In this episode, Gil and Rick compare notes on building an AI native direct booking website. They cover why load speed quietly decides your conversion rate, how guests now discover properties through ChatGPT and Gemini, and why some design choices are best left to data. Rick shares the three principles behind Hostaway's Booking Website Pro. He also gives one simple exercise every operator should try this week: search for yourself the way your ideal guest would. Whether you're launching your first site or tuning one that already books, this conversation will change how you see the site you have today. Connect with Rick van der Plas Rick describes himself as "not a very social media person," but he welcomes connections and feedback. LinkedIn: Rick van der Plas Email: rick@hostaway.com Hostaway: hostaway.com

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  Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast

  Direct Booking Fundamentals I Learned Over 30 Years in Vacation Rentals with Michelle Marquis

  Sep 24, 202642 min

  "Direct bookings should be their steak, and Airbnb should be the icing." Michelle Marquis has spent three decades in vacation rentals. She started out faxing inventory to Expedia and now advises Guesty and PriceLabs through The Marquis Effect. On this episode of the Booked Solid Show, she makes a case that almost sounds radical right now: slow down on AI and get your direct booking fundamentals right first. You'll hear her three part framework of eyeballs, conversion, and revenue. She walks through a client she took from 0.25% to 0.85% conversion on stays worth about $17,000, explains why phone calls still close high consideration bookings, and names the one thing she'd have you evaluate today. Connect with Michelle Marquis LinkedIn: Michelle Marquis Website: The Marquis Effect Project: Shortlistr

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  Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast

  Luxury Direct Bookings Past 60% Built One Guest Connection at a Time with Rachel Alday

  Sep 17, 20261h 3m

  "The goal is actually deeper connection." Rachel Alday started Abode Luxury Rentals with her husband during the 2008 financial crisis. Eighteen years later, they manage around 200 luxury homes across Park City, Jackson Hole, and Sun Valley, and over 60% of their bookings come direct. In this episode of the Booked Solid Show, Rachel tells Gil what she wishes she had known sooner. She explains why she hires for the hospitality gene, and why she treats every guest issue as a chance to earn a lifelong client. You'll also hear about the property lore project that gives each home its own story, and the simple branding move you can set up this afternoon. ️ Connect with Rachel Alday LinkedIn: Rachel Alday Instagram: @aldayrachel Email: rachel@abodeluxuryrentals.com ️ Website: Abode Luxury Rentals Book: Please Do Disturb , releasing November 10

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  Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast

  AI Search Visibility Is Rewriting the Hotel Booking Funnel with Kin Sio

  Sep 10, 202659 min

  "Direct booking is a commercial system, not a website project." That's the line Kin Sio opens with on this episode, and it sets the tone for one of the most tactical conversations we've had on AI search visibility yet. Kin runs revenue and marketing operations for more than 40 independent and boutique hotels through his firm, Lights On Digital. In this episode, he walks through how hotels define their booking funnel, why rate parity quietly kills more direct bookings than any marketing mistake, and what his AI search research is turning up across dozens of properties, including why TripAdvisor and OTA listings are outranking hotels' own websites inside ChatGPT and Perplexity answers right now. If you manage anywhere from one property to a hundred, this conversation will change how you think about where your next guest is actually discovering you. Connect with Kin Sio Website: lightson.co Podcast: The Lights On Podcast LinkedIn (his most active channel): linkedin.com/in/kinsio Email: kin@lightson.co

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  Booked Solid Show - Short Term Rental Podcast

  Local Content Direct Bookings: The Bar Guide That Booked 16 Months with Damian Sheridan

  Sep 3, 20261h 7m

  "We are the local experts." Damian Sheridan spent eight years doing SEO for property managers before he built one of the biggest education brands in short term rentals. He knows the technical side cold. So it says something that his best story about local content direct bookings is a 600 word page about which bars in his Spanish village show football. Nobody would call that a booking strategy. It brought him a guest who stayed 16 months. In this episode of the Booked Solid Show, Gil sits down with the co founder and CEO of Scale to unpack what actually gets properties found now. Gil shares fresh research from roughly 24,000 AI search queries and a finding that surprised him: the sites getting cited had fewer backlinks than the ones that did not. Damian explains why that feels fairer. You will hear how pre arrival guest questions become a content calendar, why the lowest hanging fruit in your business is the email list you already own, and the 30 second video almost nobody records that quietly converts browsers into bookers. Whether you are running two units or two hundred, this one gets specific fast. Connect with Damian Sheridan LinkedIn is his platform of choice, and Scale has migrated to a new home. Damian Sheridan on LinkedIn Scale

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