It seems like everyone is talking about their “brand” these days. Influencers aren’t just people, they’re brands. Companies, of course, have a brand. Even pets can have a brand. Anyone who’s selling something has some kind of brand. If you want people to see your RV as a great rental and to reserve it – you’re selling something! Which means, you need to establish your RV brand.
Understanding the Importance of Building Your RV Brand
Building your RV brand simply means letting people know about your RV and why they should rent it! What makes it special?
Just as important as attracting people who will love your RV rental is weeding out the people who won’t be a good fit for your rental. If you have a luxury Class A motorhome, don’t spend time trying to convince a minimalist #vanlife lover to rent your vehicle. They won’t appreciate it, and you’ll have wasted time going after customers who aren’t your audience. Your people are out there. Let’s go find them!
The Competitive RV Market Landscape
RVshare is the first and largest peer-to-peer RV rental marketplace. There are more than 100,000 RVs and more than 60,000 RV owners across the country who list their RVs with RVshare. We have more than 3,000 makes and models of RVs, vans, trailers, and campers listed. So there’s a fair amount of competition out there as far as people renting out their rigs!
But don’t despair. There’s also a great market of people out there wanting to rent. RVshare conducted research on 2023 trends and found that the number of people considering an RVshare RV rental continues to grow. People are looking to rent RVs for bucket-list trips, for quick getaways, for festivals, for tailgating, for trips to national parks…and for a variety of different reasons. There’s still a great market out there if you want to rent out your rig! Building your RV brand will help you find your customers.
Key Steps to Building a Strong RV Brand
So you want a strong RV brand that will stand out to customers looking to rent an RV! You also want an accurate brand. Definitely emphasize the special features of your rig, but exaggerating your RV’s good qualities or underplaying bad ones isn’t a good strategy. It might work to rent your camper once. But unhappy customers are definitely not repeat customers, and they can leave negative reviews that will impact future rentals.
Identifying What Makes Your RV(s) Special
To build your RV brand, you want to let people know what makes your RV special! While you don’t want to overstate its features, you can certainly let everyone know the great qualities of your setup.
When you’re doing this, think about the different types of people who might rent your RV. Is it well-suited for families? Perfect for a honeymooning couple? A great rig for a girls’ weekend or a festival trip? Mention any features you think would stand out to certain groups.
You’ll also want to mention any amenities you offer. If you’re targeting a festival crowd, offering to set up ahead of time could be a huge perk. Have a toy hauler with space for ATVs or kayaks? Mention that! If you’re including the kayaks or other toys in the rental, be sure to mention that, too!
Let guests know if you include all dishes, sheets, towels, or other indoor items they’ll need on their trip. Make sure they know if you have outdoor chairs for them to set up, an outdoor rug, an awning, or anything else that will make the space just outside the RV as comfortable as the space inside.
Creating a Memorable Product: Your RV Listing
The first step of building your RV brand is going to be your RV listing itself. You don’t want to just throw up a few pictures and some quick descriptions of your camper and leave it be. You’ll want to set aside the time to take some really great photos and craft your words to draw curious customers in.
RV Details
The first part of your RV listing is the RV Details. These are simply the specifications of your rig. This includes the year, the make and model, and the length. This helps a renter know at a very basic level whether this RV will fit their needs on this trip.
RV Amenities
RV Amenities include things like kitchen supplies, linens, sleeping arrangements, camping equipment, outdoor gear – anything that’s included in the nightly rate. This is where you’re letting the renter know all the perks you’re providing. The more you can help a renter make their vacation easy and comfortable, the more attractive your RV is going to look to them!
Finally, you’ll want to describe your rental listing so that customers searching for your kind of rental can find it. RVshare’s rental database works similarly to Google, which means you’ll want to match the words you use to describe your rental to the words someone might use when searching for it.
RV Description
This is the written section where you can really market your RV brand to renters. Help them to see themselves in this rental! It’s very helpful at this point to think like a renter. What were the things that drew you to this RV when you bought it? What makes it stand out over other RVs that are about the same size and price point?
You can also stand out with your rental by providing little extras that don’t cost much but indicate a thoughtful touch. A welcome basket with s’mores supplies, a bottle of wine for a couple renting a campervan, or a package of snacks for a family with kids don’t cost much but make your renters feel special. Make sure to mention these little extras in your description and take pictures of them as well.
Pictures of Your Rental
Speaking of pictures, having good ones of your rental is a quick way to establish your RV brand! Your photos will be the first and strongest impression most renters have of your RV. Make sure your RV is repaired and clean when you take pictures. You can even stage it a little. You’ll want lots of natural light to make sure your pictures come out well. Get into corners of your RV so you can get more of the room in the photo. Get high or low to show different features.
Take pictures of every part of the RV – renters will want to know what the bathroom, each sleeping area, the dining space, and the other areas of the RV look like, as well as the outside. Show your RV with any outdoor amenities set up, awnings opened, and slideouts deployed so guests really know what they’re getting. If you can set up somewhere scenic, even better.
You might also scroll through RVshare or look online at RV social media feeds. These can give you good ideas of what kinds of pictures to take and how to make them look good!
And definitely take more pictures than you think you need! You can always delete photos, but you won’t want to have to go back and reshoot anything that didn’t turn out. You’ll want a minimum of 20 pictures of your RV that you use in your listing, but
As you begin to get renters, you can also ask them to share any photos they have of your RV as they use it. Many people are happy to oblige!
Building a Strong Online Presence
Your RV Listing
Your RV Listing is the most important part of your online presence and your RV brand! It tells potential renters what to expect with your rental. You’ll also have all the power of RVshare’s online presence behind you. People looking for similar rentals come to our website, and they may find you while they’re searching.
You can do a few things to raise your visibility on the website. The more positive reviews you have, the more likely you’ll rise to the top of searches for vehicles like yours. RVshare wants to make sure customers have a great experience when they rent a camper, so the more you can help make that happen, the more they’ll promote your listing as well.
Also, the more boxes you can check for your listing, the better! Are you willing to allow pets? Can you make your RV kid-friendly? Will you set up your RV for your customer if it’s within a certain distance? These can all add value for renters (and might mean you can even charge a little more for the conveniences!)
Social Media Strategy
Another big way to let people know your RV exists and is ready for the road is by posting about it on social media! Social media marketing strategies can definitely raise your profile and get people interested in your listing.
Find an audience
Before you get started, you may want to follow some other RV accounts on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or other platforms. You may want to join some RV Facebook groups and begin making online friends. Engage with them, talk, and ask questions. However, don’t just join Facebook groups so you can spam them with links to your rental page! Create real connections with people. Many of these groups do talk about their rental tips and issues, and will often refer each other listings when their own vehicles aren’t available.
Create content
Also, create useful information for your followers. Share a link to tips on visiting a national park. Create a TikTok video showing a creative RV storage solution or a quick fix to a common problem. Share a pretty picture of your RV in a gorgeous setting that just makes people feel calm and happy. When you create helpful or interesting content, people are likely to share it…and likely to remember you when they need a rental.
Survey your customers
SurOnline posting is also a valuable way to get feedback on your rental. When you use social media, you don’t need to guess what your customers want – you can ask them outright. If you’re wondering whether it’s worth the money to add a kayak to your listing, or to include cookware in your rental, or any number of other upgrades, ask your audience!
Be consistent
If you’re trying to grow your social media audience, you’ll also want to post regularly. You may even want to sit down and plan out what you’ll post each day. And while some posts can be well-thought-out videos or stellar photos, they don’t all need to be. You can post a quick note, or even share other people’s posts (with a link to their original post and attribution!)
Enlist your customers
Finally, ask your customers to post pictures of them in your RV. They can tag you, or you can set up a hashtag they can use. That increases your reach even more.
Standing Out in a Competitive Market
It’s true that finding customers in a crowded RV market can be a challenge! One of the ways to really stand out is to get your happy customers to want to promote your rental themselves.
Leveraging Customer Reviews and Testimonials
One way to stand out is to share customer reviews. You can ask renters to leave reviews on your listing when they’re finished. This is a great way for potential customers to see whether you are a trustworthy person with an RV worth renting!
Customer reviews and testimonials are also great content to share on social media! Make sure you have a customer’s permission to share their words, but then don’t be shy – toot your own (RV) horn a bit.
Offering Exceptional Customer Service
Of course, to get great reviews and testimonials, you’ll need to offer excellent customer service. RVshare has some great feedback here on what other owners do to ensure their renters have a great experience. One owner provides free parking at the RV pickup site, so renters don’t have to worry about their car while they’re gone. Many owners stock special business cards with their contact information in case the renter has a question about operating the vehicle. Owners may also have a binder or manual with all the information renters need about the rental. Some have checklists for setting up and tearing down, and many owners suggested stocking items like paper towels, toilet paper, first aid kits, and pens and pencils.
Innovating and Adapting
You can also adapt by highlighting if your RV is near a major event. Post on social media if there is a festival coming up near you (and use the festival hashtags so people can find you!). Share helpful tips for traveling near you, or consider offering delivery and setup of your RV at their site.
Listing your RV on RVshare is a great way to make money on an RV that might otherwise be sitting empty most of the year! Approach your listing as a small business, and with a little concentration on building your RV brand you can ensure your rental stands out in a crowded field of campers!
Get started with RVshare. We offer a platform that reaches millions of renters, one-on-one support, a secure platform and more!
FAQs:
How do I get started with RVshare?
You can get started with RVshare by visiting their Rent My RV page. Put some of your preliminary information in the pop-up box right on the front of the page, and you can get started on renting your RV!
Will RVshare help market my RV?
RVshare will help you market your RV! The company has one-on-one training and coaching with a team of rental experts. They can help with everything from setting up your listing to giving guidance to answering questions. RVshare also shares links to rentals in their social media feeds.
