There are many reasons someone may book a short-term rental. Maybe they’re traveling for work, visiting a friend, or taking a vacation. There could be other reasons too. In most cases, they are probably from out of town and would love a little welcoming to the area.
One of the ways you can boost your review ratings, keep guests coming back and make them feel welcome, is to offer a gift basket upon arrival. You may be wondering what you should put in this gift basket, though. In this blog, we provide some ideas of what you can include.
First, consider if you want to stick to a theme. Your theme could be based on the locale, seasons, or even nearby popular attractions. It could also be based on the season – targeting fall with pumpkin-spiced goodies or the summer season with a beach towel, sunglasses and flip flops. Your basket could also be movie-themed, including popcorn, a gift card for movie tickets and candy inside a popcorn bucket. You can even theme it for a particular time of day, i.e. morning – coffee, tea, and donuts. It could be a spa theme or a family theme. There are so many options you can choose from. Selecting a theme first can make choosing what to put in your gift basket much easier.
Your theme could also simply be local goodies. You could talk to a local restaurant and specialty food stores to find out if they would give you a discount on some goodies or a gift card in order to help advertise their business. Receiving this discount will of course help your wallet, but it also allows the local business to potentially bring in new customers. Talk to local business owners and see if anyone is willing to work with you.
There are a number of local goodies that could work well in a gift basket including jams, sauces, lip balms, honey, baked goods, and cheeses. Try to think of some of the best treats in the area that you can include for your guests to enjoy. You can also include local guides for your guests in the gift basket (or this can be something you have compiled that you keep in the short-term rental for all guests to see). Fun little souvenirs can also be included like keychains, mugs or postcards.
Another fun and useful gift basket idea is to create something with all the toiletry items they’ll need for traveling. You can put travel toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, travel deodorant, lotion, shampoo and conditioner in these baskets.
You may also want to consider your opportunity to advertise. You could have branded merchandise made like water bottles or tote bags that you could include in your gift basket.
When you’re done creating your gift basket for your guests, don’t forget to include a nice note for them. They’ll appreciate this extra personalized touch.
Providing a gift basket isn’t required, but it is a nice extra that can really boost your competitive edge. If you’d like someone to help manage your property and make sure your guests get the best possible treatment upon arrival, please reach out to us: https://www.breckenridgevacationrentalmanagement.net/. We’re here to help with property management and guest satisfaction.
