According to research, 28% of travel-related searches happen to be of a fun and “browsy” nature. People want to be surprised and inspired, and are looking for something out of the ordinary. As a website owner specializing in holiday rentals, there are a couple of things you can do to attract and convince people to visit your destination and possibly stay at your holiday apartment or cottage, but here’s what you need to understand:

This is the internet, and in this neck of the woods, attention is finite. Earn it.

Yes, you heard me right. People have no time to read long-winded posts about how great your establishment it. People need quick fixes, flashes of color and being able to make a connection with the content. Now that I have your attention, let’s get this show on the road.

1. Relate, Don’t Hesitate
The first rule in making any type of connection is to be able to put yourself in the shoes of the visitor to your website. How do you do this? Simple, I just did it. Ask a thought-provoking question. People love answering things and solving problems. If someone lands on your site and is met with a post that has a question for a header, they’ll stop to think. Make sure that the question is relatable on a human level. For example, when was the last time you heard the sound of waves? What is the perfect holiday plan in your opinion? Do you have travel goals? All these questions are the type that will nag at the existential persona inside all of us and make us want to read on and explore the site for more information. Remember, most “browsy” travelers who tend to search the internet for spots that are not considered too touristy have full-blown wanderlust, and by asking them these kinds of questions, you are able to make a connection, a connection that makes a prospective customer a loyal one who will most likely tell his or her friends about the destination they unearthed while idly browsing the internet, looking for great holiday deals.

2. Beautiful Images and Color = A Hit Website
It’s not enough that you have a website – I mean, websites have been in existence since the nineties. What will set you apart? Something a little bit extra. Have some beautiful large images on your website (without compromising on site speed!), and throw in a tune that corresponds with the website theme and destination. For example, if you own a holiday rental in Barbados, create a hit website which, if someone were to click your link straight off Google, they’d be taken to a homepage that comes alive with color and moving images, and a light, breezy, tropical tune. People are attracted to visual things, and what would make your site even better are beautiful images showcasing what you have to offer as a holiday rental. They may even decide to pinterest your holiday images thus extending your reach.

Layer the site in such a way that it becomes intuitive to the end-user and a surprise of sorts. For instance, one click could take the user to a section of the site where they could play a quizz about your destination. This is basically the inclusion of gamification, a novel approach at attracting website visitors to your travel website and winning their attention by playing games.

So there you have it – two simple, powerful ways in which you can earn and keep the attention of travelers and inspire them to visit your region and stay at your holiday rental. Get to work, and when summer rolls in, you’ll be ready to reel visitors in by the hundreds. Good luck!