Strategies for Self-Managing STR's

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I'd like to compile a resource of strategies on self-managing STR's to maximize profits. I'm doing a lot of research currently but it's all over the place and as expected, very regional. So more than looking for any specific service I'm wondering what self-managers are doing to automate services related to their properties. Things such as:

• Turn-Over/Cleaning Services
• Linen Service/Laundry
• Keys/Access/Exchanges
• Calendar Syncing
• STR Advertising
• Additional Amenities Provided

If anyone could expand on what works and doesn't for them in regards to managing STR's I feel we could build a pretty good resource.

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If anyone happens to run across this thread again I'll detail what I've done:  

The homes I built are primarily on AirBnB. I've automated as much as I can and am still looking for automation solutions for a couple of things. Below are the tools I've used as well as others I've looked into:

Message Automation

The tool I'm using is http://yourporter.com

I currently have it set up to automate the following via AirBnB message and email:

• Inquiry response if I don't reply within 2 hours
• Verification message immediately upon booking
• Check in instructions two days before a stay
• How are you doing message one day after check-in
• Check-out instructions the day before check-out
• Large Group message to tell people to keep it down after 10PM for any reservations of 6+ people

It allows you to insert fields into the message such as guest's names and check-in dates that it populates into the message for you so it doesn't seem like a robot sent the message.

yourporter can automate messages via AirBnB, email and SMS

Cost is $5/mo/listing

I'm also using http://avivaIQ.com which is currently in beta and FREE and also does message automation but only through AirBnB's messenger. It sends a message to my guests inviting them to stay an extra night if a vacancy exists immediately after their checkout. yourporter has yet to implement this. AvivaIQ works through AirBnB messaging only.

I also looked into http://guesty.com which is much more than a message automation tool and has some robust property management features it seems but costs between 3%-5% of your booking. I'm very wary of tools that take a percentage based cut. They don't seem to want to pay me if I have a vacancy, assuming no risk, so I don't know why I'd reward them for the upside.  Guesty is a PMS system that connects to multiple booking channels

Pricing Automation

I'm currently using http://outswitch.com. It has a lot of features for pricing automation the best of which is a matrix that sets pricing up or down based on occupancy rates and immediacy of vacancies.

It also automates my minimum night stay requirements based on how far away reservations are made. For instance, between 60-90 days it requires a 4 day minimum, drops to 3 days between 30-60 and 2 from 0-30. It's smart enough to recognize gaps made by these minimums and will allow bookings that don't adhere to the minimum stay requirements for gaps. 

I manually set holidays and special events in outswitch and apply a multiplier to the base rental rate for that period of time.
Outswitch can connect to multiple booking channels but HomeAway/VRBO connection can only be done through RentalsUnited, a booking channel aggregator that I'm currently demo'ing but don't have enough experience to comment on yet. 

Cost for outswitch starts at $11/mo/listing but there are breakpoints. I'm currently paying $63/mo for 7 listings.

I also tried out http://beyondpricing.com which has a really nice interface and seems to have a good finger on the pulse of local events. It has an elegant calendar view that shows you exactly what it's doing to your price for any given day. Its cost is 1% of your bookings and I ultimately decided to stop using it because of what I wrote above about percentage based services.

I never tried out http://usewheelhouse.com because of the percentage pricing structure.

Guidebook

I've been using http://coral.life for a nice guidebook that I send along with my check-in message via yourporter. It works nicely on both desktop and mobile and for whatever reason it's free. I don't know if it will stay free forever. Its interface however is painfully slow in setting up the guidebooks but at that price, who can complain?

The other service out there I know of for guidebook is http://hostfully.com which seems like a nice service but I didn't spend much time on it as the price seems kind of steep for what it is to me, especially with coral doing it for free.

Task Automation

I'm still looking for a solution to automatically email my cleaners a list of check outs over a the next two week period, weekly. Yourporter has told me they're working on something like that.