"MyVR took my business from an amateur homegrown operation to a professional management system that looks fantastic and works seamlessly." ~ Jane Shattuck, Barbados Beach Vacation Rentals

Barbados Beach Vacation Rentals has been around for a decade and its inventory has grown 50 percent since property manager Jane Shattuck started using the MyVR platform two years ago. But Jane, a vacation rental owner herself, has more to think about than building her business: "I have a grandchild now - he's one-and-a-half - and I'm besotted by this little guy. I just want to spend more time with him."

As she takes more frequent and longer trips away from Barbados to visit family and to travel, Jane's confident her guests and her day-to-day operations are taken care of:

• Her partnerships with other local businesses ensure that her on-the-ground needs are met, from greeting new arrivals to cleaning and maintenance
• Her use of MyVR software enables her to manage her channels, process her bookings and communicate with her customers seamlessly.

Instead of getting bogged down in admin tasks, Jane can focus her time on the work she loves most: building relationships with her clients and their guests no matter her location.

Results

Scale your property management business smoothly

Love is what first drew Jane to the Caribbean island she now calls home. Her vacation rental business started shortly after her move from San Francisco, when Jane and her Barbadian husband, Gary, purchased a second unit in their condo building.

She didn't know the vacation rental business, but she quickly learned it suited her entrepreneurial spirit perfectly. "I'd never done that kind of work before, but it tapped into my entire skillset: a love of marketing, a love of people, a love of selling, a love of decor. And, really wrapping my head around something I believe in, which is this island," Jane said.

Within a few years, her portfolio had grown to seven units and it's continued to expand since. "I never want to be too big that I can't handle all of what I currently do and do it wherever I happen to be," she said. "Without MyVR, I wouldn't have been able to scale my business as easily. Certainly not without a lot more headaches and a lot more stress."

You don't need to build the actual car

It's easy for a property manager to get sidetracked by details - and totally unnecessary. Jane says owners don't come to her because she can set up a website or connect separate systems. "My job is vacation rentals and really making the guest experience as good as it can be." she said. I want something that's all setup that I can get in and drive. I don't want to build my car. That's what the MyVR platform does for me."

"I like how my business looks online: polished, warm, inviting, fun," she said. And the business she's generated directly through her online presence has helped drive her revenue growth, now accounting for nearly 50% of her total bookings. "With MyVR, I have a professional presence without a lot of work, so I can deliver very personalized service to people."

Automate the details and focus on people instead

"I don't like asking people for money!" Jane said, laughing. That puts MyVR's booking and payment engine at the top of her favorite features. "when I first started, I used a calendar to keep track of when different people's payments were due." she said. Now, that process is automated through MyVR so she only needs to jump in if a guest needs more of a customized arrangement.

And Jane says "At least a third of my time I used to spend manually is work now performed by MyVR. And in addition to the actual time saved, MyVR to actual time saved, MyVR gives me peace of mind - that nothing is slipping through the cracks." MyVR automatically looks after workflow details such as:

• Responding to inquiries
• Managing the calendar
• Processing bookings and payments
• Communicating with customers before, during, and after their stay

"This is such a personal business, there's a lot of trust involved with both owners and guests," she said. That means being both responsive and engaging - something MyVR's alerts help with. "Guests bond with me. They feel like they're coming to a place that's not a strange place," Jane said. "MyVR's automation enables me to be personal at scale do my guests are looked after."

And the icing on the cake? Even as she's taken on more units, Jane has seen her revenue per property increase 3x year over year during the high season. "I've been able to invest the time I've saved into marketing activities that hep me get more bookings," she explained. "Now I'm looking for ways to attract guests in the off-season. Visitors are staying with someone and I want it to be me!"