At My Favourite Holiday Cottages 90% of the business’s growth has come from referrals, which we hope implies that we do a good job for our owners. At My Favourite Holiday Cottages, we pride ourselves on being good at what we do, and by using smart marketing we can achieve an above average number of bookings for our clients; but we honestly believe it’s how we treat our clients, and the relationship we have with them that really makes the difference.
Part time rugby dads, (they met on a touchline whilst watching their sons playing), Harry and Rick both had an impressive track record in marketing and customer care, they were also successful holiday property owners. Both had come to believe that the traditional agency model, with its high commission rates, was being slowly rendered obsolete by the opportunities afforded by the growing influence of the Internet.
Their vision for the future arose through their shared experience in owning self-catering properties and establishing a successful approach to achieving high occupancy levels. After frequent approaches for help from local owners wanting to share their success, they decided to set up a company to help other holiday property owners, and in 2010, My Favourite Holiday Cottages was born.
Running an independent holiday cottage business by yourself can be rewarding but also time consuming. It can be challenging and full of pitfalls. What Harry and Rick wanted to do was to give owners their own small team of experts to draw upon, offering advice and doing most of the legwork when it comes to marketing and booking.
Since 2011, to accommodate the increase in business, Rick and Harry have been joined by two full-time and three part-time staff members, as well as some freelancers with much appreciated niche skills. The chances are, if you call the office you’ll speak to Harry, Sarah,Rachael or hear Amanda’s dulcet West Country tones. The team are also on-call in the evenings and at weekends as they answer phones and e-mails from 9am-8pm (often later) 364 days a year. Just don't call them on Christmas day!
At the same time as developing the Complete Cottage Marketing side of the business, Rick and Harry have also created a successful Holiday Cottage Directory to provide a user-friendly service for owners and potential bookers. This side of My Favourite Holiday Cottages emerged in 2011, and now features almost 1000 holiday cottages.
In July 2015, My Favourite Holiday Cottages moved to a converted kiln in Barnstaple – in the heart of holiday property territory. The new offices provide the My Favourite Holiday Cottages team with a great central location, but more importantly allows us to promote the brand via signage on the building, and we’ve even sponsored the roadside gardens on both sides of the building.
The company continues to go from strength to strength and now proudly looks after the marketing of more than 85 properties, and this number is only increasing.
