Branded & Booked

The holiday season is here, but is your marketing strategy ready? In this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm sharing practical ways short-term rental owners and boutique hotel operators can use the holiday season to drive more direct bookings, create memorable guest experiences, and get ahead of the slower winter months. Drawing from my background in e-commerce and my experience operating vacation r...

What does it take to get your hospitality business featured in major publications? And what happens when one Instagram reel completely changes the trajectory of your personal brand? In this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm welcoming back Katie Cline, a hospitality PR expert, short-term rental owner, and former communications leader for brands like Ritz-Carlton, W Hotels, and St. Regis. We're divin...

Airbnb has been making some big changes lately, and if you're a short-term rental owner, co-host, or property manager, there are a few things we need to talk about. In this episode of Branded and Booked, I'm breaking down Airbnb's recent policy changes, including restrictions around Wi-Fi portals, guest data collection, rental agreements, and third-party tools. I'm also sharing my thoughts on Airb...

What happens when a vacation rental investment turns into a portfolio of boutique hotels? In this episode of Branded & Booked, Steph sits down with Tony Stancato to talk about his journey from buying his first short-term rental in 2020 to purchasing three boutique hotels in three years. What started as a way to offset travel expenses quickly turned into something much bigger as Tony and his busine...

One of the reasons we decided to spend this year traveling full-time in our RV was because Collin and I have talked for a long time about eventually buying a campground. I knew living this lifestyle would teach me a lot. What I didn't realize was how quickly it would change what I'm actually looking for. We're only about two months into this trip, we haven't toured a single campground for sale, an...

What actually happens when you stop treating your short-term rental like a property and start building it like a hospitality brand? In this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm sitting down with Debra Getts, owner of Shiny Apple Cabins in Blue Ridge, Georgia, to talk about exactly that. Debra and her husband have built an incredibly clear brand around being some of the most dog-friendly stays in their...

For the first time, I'm pulling back the curtain on what our first full peak season actually looked like at Cabins on the Cumberland. There are so many conversations online about buying boutique hotels, building micro resorts, and creating passive income, but very few people are willing to talk about the numbers behind the scenes. In this episode, I'm sharing ours. I break down our June and July p...

What separates a hotel that's simply beautiful from one that guests can't stop booking? In this episode, I sit down with hospitality designer Courtney Petrovich, founder of Deanery Designs, to talk about the role design really plays in the success of a hospitality brand. We dive into why boutique hotel design is so much more than selecting furniture and finishes, how thoughtful design can help att...

We're officially recording our first podcast episode from the camper, and after more than two weeks on the road, it's safe to say this adventure has already taught us more than we expected. In this episode, I'm sharing an honest behind-the-scenes look at what it's been like transitioning into full-time RV life with our family. From unexpected truck delays and finding a long-term tenant for our hom...

Everyone wants more direct bookings. But what if the question isn't "How do I get more direct bookings?" What if the real question is, "How do I build a business that guests want to book from directly?" In this episode of Branded & Booked, I sit down with Rose Taika, founder of Your Family's Place, a vacation rental company in Ohio's Amish Country that generates roughly 70% of its bookings through...

In this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm pulling back the curtain on the real booking and revenue numbers from May at Cabins on the Cumberland. If you've ever wondered whether investing in direct bookings is actually worth it, this episode provides the proof. I break down exactly where our bookings came from, how much revenue each channel generated, and why direct bookings continue to outperform A...

I genuinely think the hospitality industry is entering one of the biggest shifts we've seen in years — and the hosts who survive over the next 3–5 years are going to think very differently than the ones who thrived during the Airbnb gold rush. In this episode, I sat down with Gil Chan, founder of Crafted Stays, to talk about where hospitality is headed, how AI is changing the way guests search for...

We're about 30 days away from leaving for a year-long camper trip with our boys… and honestly? Life feels a little chaotic right now. In this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm sharing a very real behind-the-scenes update on what's been happening as we prepare to leave "normal life" for a completely different season. From our disastrous first RV test trip to truck issues throwing a wrench into our p...

Most short-term rental owners spend all their time thinking about branding, bookings, design, amenities, and guest experience… But almost no one talks about the legal side of this business until something goes wrong. In this episode, I sat down with STR attorney, host, and co-host Katie Johnson to talk about the legal mistakes we see owners and property managers making all the time and honestly, s...

Influencer marketing is not just about getting pretty content. It's about creating a moment people want to be part of. In this episode of Branded and Booked, I'm breaking down what boutique hotels, micro resorts, and short-term rental brands can learn from companies like Virgin Voyages, 818, COMFRT, and Colorescience when it comes to using creators in a way that actually drives attention, demand,...

I feel like everywhere I turn right now, someone is talking about AI…how fast it is, how efficient it is, how it can replace entire roles on your team. And while I do think there's a place for it (and we're absolutely exploring that on the operations side of our businesses), I've had this growing tension around how it's being used in marketing… especially in hospitality. Because here's the reality...

If you've ever answered a guest message at the dinner table… in the middle of a family moment… or felt like you're "on" 24/7 in your hosting business… this episode is for you. In this episode, I'm joined again by Marissa Grover, and we're getting really honest about what it actually looks like to grow a co-hosting or property management business without the right support in place. We talk about th...

Peak season is here, and I know a lot of you are gearing up the same way you always have… watching your calendar, adjusting pricing, and hoping the algorithm works in your favor. But in this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm challenging that entire approach. Because the biggest shift you can make right now isn't tactical, it's foundational. You're not just managing listings. You're building a busin...

A hot tub is not your strategy. Neither is a game room. Or a pickleball court. Or checking every box on Airbnb. In this episode of Branded & Booked, I'm calling out one of the biggest mistakes short-term rental owners are making right now: confusing amenities with strategy. Because here's the truth… Amenities might help you compete, but they are not what positions your brand. And if your entire ma...

Want more direct bookings… fast? Not from chasing trends. Not from posting more on Instagram. But from leveraging what you already have. In this episode of Branded & Booked , Steph breaks down the number one strategy that will drive direct bookings in the next 30 days: email marketing. And before you roll your eyes… this isn't about sending a "newsletter." This is about building a system that capt...

$100K in bookings in the first 60 days. Not from luck. Not from "just listing it on Airbnb." But from building something intentionally different. In this episode of  Branded and Booked , Steph sits down with  Yash Bhatt  to break down what happens when you approach your short-term rental like a hospitality brand instead of just an investment. After launching their property,  Altitude 22 , in Decem...

Influencer marketing is one of the most polarizing topics in the short-term rental industry. Some hosts swear by it. Others say it's a complete waste of time. In this episode, I'm sharing what influencer marketing has actually looked like for our clients... and the results it's produced when it's done strategically. We're talking about a boutique hotel campaign that generated a  3.7x ROI , and ano...

What happens when you take an underperforming boutique hotel… and completely reimagine it? In this episode, I'm joined by former client Andrés Pérez, co-owner of The Iceberg Tahoe, and we're breaking down the story behind transforming what was once the Avalon Lodge in South Lake Tahoe. Andres spent nearly a decade working at Google before transitioning into real estate investing. Like many investo...

You don't have a marketing problem. You have a branding problem. I know that might sound bold, but after dozens of strategy calls with short-term rental owners and boutique hotel founders, I can tell you this with confidence: most marketing issues are actually brand clarity issues. As we head into peak season, so many of you are thinking about ads, influencers, social posts, email campaigns, SEO....

Colin and I just spent two nights at Bolt Farm Treehouse and I'll be honest… I can't turn the hospitality side of my brain off. If you're in the short-term rental or boutique hotel world, you already know their story. It's talked about a lot. But this episode isn't about the hype. It's about what it actually feels like to check in as a guest at a high-end brand everyone admires. What surprised me....