Advertiser frequently asked questionsIf you've not used an online accommodation-only website like HolidayBank before - relax! We're here to make it easy for you to get your holiday home seen by thousands of keen holidaymakers all over the world. Below are a few of the most commonly-asked questions by other owner/advertisers on HolidayBank:
Will you check my property details before they are published on the site?Answer: We will briefly check the content of your property pages, but the accuracy of the information is up to you. The best way to ensure that you don’t have any spelling, grammatical or typographic errors, is to type the copy first into a word processing package such as ‘word’, which will allow you to check for spelling etc, before you then copy and paste it into the details box on your property set-up page. We want your property to look fantastic - because the better the property is presented, the more interest and bookings you will receive. Can I update my property details after I have submitted them?Answer: Yes, with your user name and password, you can log into your own property pages via the Advertisers Administration Section and make any changes to your property details that you want. You will need to keep your Availability Calendar up to date, so we suggest that you get into the habit of visiting your property page on a regular basis – at least daily during busy booking periods. What type of pictures should I use?Answer: The pictures that you show make the all-important first impression to a potential client about your property. Good photographs get people interested and inspire them to picture themselves relaxing by YOUR pool or sipping a cool beer on YOUR terrace – rather than someone else’s! Pictures should be well lit if interior shots or taken on a sunny day if external. Try to give a good impression of the size of the rooms and outside areas. Make sure that everything is clean and tidy before you take your shots, with vases of flowers etc.to make the property look inviting. If you are using a digital camera – take lots of shots and then pick your favourites. If you are using 35mm film – take more pictures than you think you might need, and extra roll of film is cheap to buy and have processed. It often pays you dividends to have your property professionally photographed – as good lighting and photographic skills can bring out the very best in your property. Can I advertise more than one property?Answer: Yes, if you have more than one property, we can offer you highly competitive, discounted annual rates. See our prices to find out more. Each property must be entered onto their own property page. Even if they look identical from the outside, they will each have benefits/features that need to be described separately. Can I put a different property in an existing advertisement?Answer: No. Each advertisement has a specific property number and is linked to a specific property. Changing the property for a given property number would lead to confusion and possibly misrepresentation. You need to set up the new property in a new set of property details. Why do I need to keep my Availability Calendar up to date?Answer: We cannot stress to you enough how important it is to keep you availability chart up to date – you will receive a better quality booking enquiry from genuinely keen enquirers if you do. Potential clients are far more likely to make a booking enquiry if they trust that your availability calendar is up to date. It saves them – and you – wasted time and effort. How much does advertising with HolidayBank cost?Answer: Our prices start from just £85 per year – this includes up to 12 photos, availability calendar, email booking request links and up to 5 additional pages about the property. In addition, you can opt for special promotions like our ‘Featured Property Spot’ on the home page or relevant county or regional pages. How many photographs can I add?Answer: You can add up to 12 photographs of your property, one of which will appear on the summary search results. The summary search picture needs to be the best external picture you have – it’s this picture that prompts potential customers to view your property in more detail! Do I have to add 10 photographs – I only have one?Answer: Yes – you can add only one photograph if that is all you have, BUT – it is a fact that the more pictures you have – from both outside and inside your property, the more booking enquiries you will receive. And since on HolidayBank we don’t charge you for loading up to 10 photographs on your property page – then you should take full advantage of it! Can I put captions on my photographs?Answer: Yes. Just type what you want to appear in the caption box underneath each picture and then click the ‘update’ button. Why don't you offer a free trial?Answer: A number of less well-established websites will offer free 3 or 6 month trials in order to encourage new owners to sign up. This helps the website bulk up the number of properties that they say they have on their website, but does nothing to ensure that the properties being shown are of good quality. At HolidayBank we know from experience that a property that is well presented, with clear, good quality photographs and helpful informative text, offered at a reasonable, competitive rent for the location being offered, will get interest from holidaymakers and will receive regular bookings - and we would rather encourage these properties. If your property is not attractive to the holidaymaker, you will not get bookings and no amount of free trialling will change this. However, we are also keen to help our owners maximise the number of bookings they get from HolidayBank visitors and so we are only too happy to spend time checking your text, advising on your photographs and pricing if we are asked to do so. Our advice can help a struggling property to receive higher numbers of booking enquiries by just making a few changes to the copy, pricing or photographs. Why don't you offer HolidayBank in other languages?Answer: HolidayBank has an audience that is primarily English speaking. Since 1987, the vast majority of our customers who come to HolidayBank to book holiday properties worldwide come from the UK and the Irish Republic. We also have growing numbers of European and American visitors to the site. Can you help me with my property details?Answer: The process that we have designed allows you to build your own property details and it is very easy to use. Simply follow the steps we give you. We can’t write your property description for you – we don’t know all the wonderful things about your property that you need to tell your potential clients. It’s your property and the very best descriptions are written by the owners themselves – people who KNOW and love their properties and have spent many enjoyable holidays in them. Also, tell people about the local area – what are the local beauty spots, where are the best beaches, what history or points of interest? The more information and things of interest you add to your pages, the more people will want to spend time at your property – that’s what it’s all about. How do I place my property on HolidayBank?Answer: To advertise your property you will need to register. You will then be sent (via email) a confirmation of your user name and password – this will enable you to log into the advertisers section of the website, where you can build your property details, upload your pictures and maintain your property’s availability. |
