How To Write a Compelling Vrbo Listing Description (Beginner’s Guide)
Putting some time and effort into your Vrbo description will help to increase the visibility of your listing, boost the number of bookings you receive for your property, and increase your revenue as a result.
Read on to find out how to write an engaging Vrbo description, and improve your listing.
How Do I Write a Description on Vrbo?
To write your description of Vrbo, you need to consider the target market that your property is aimed at. What features and amenities will they be especially interested in? Highlight these in your Vrbo description, along with the unique features of your property and the story behind it. Ensure that your description is easy to read, and doesn’t contain any grammatical or spelling errors. Don’t repeat yourself, and make sure to include a few commonly-search keywords that relate to your property. Be honest and transparent about the downsides of your property, and finish with a compelling call to action so that your guests know what to do next.
How to Write a Good Vrbo Listing Description
In order to write a good Vrbo vacation rental description, you should write with your target market in mind, taking into account the unique selling points (USPs) of the property, the story behind it, and all the various amenities it has. You should keep it short and sweet, grammatically correct, and make it scannable for the reader.
Need help crafting the perfect listing description? Check out my Vrbo listing description copywriting service.
Description Length
Keep your short-term rental description concise and to the point, and avoid waffling just for the sake of it, as this will lead readers to abandon it halfway through. The description should be between 700 and 1000 characters long, roughly 100 to 250 words.
In the example above, the Vrbo host has written a descriptive and compelling listing description, but it is just 45 words long. It could be improved by including more information that is relevant to the property and the target Vrbo guests.
Sell Your Unique Selling Points
Make a list of the most exciting features of your property, and make sure you include them early on in your description. For example, this could be:
- Swimming pool/hot tub
- Beachfront location
- Incredible views
- Proximity to local attractions
- Recent refurbishment
- Cultural/historical significance
- Games room
- Pet-friendliness
Write with Your Target Market in Mind
Think about your ideal guest, are they a young family, couple, or group of friends? Different amenities and features are important to different types of guests. If you’re trying to get more families to book your vacation rental property, for example, mention the convenience of having a highchair and cot ready for them at the property.
Read how to attract more guests on short-term rental sites like Airbnb and Vrbo.
Research Your Competitors
Take a look at what your competitors are saying in their descriptions, especially ones with lots of great guest reviews. Focus on their amenities and unique features, and make sure you sell yours as much as (if not more) than they do.
Tell the Story of Your Property
Potential Vrbo guests are more likely to buy into a property’s story than anything else. Answer the following questions in your Vrbo description, where relevant:
- When was the property built?
- Who built/converted the property?
- Why did you buy the property?
- Why did you decide to let the property on Vrbo?
- What is special about the local area?
Read how to make your Airbnb or Vrbo property stand out.
Don’t Repeat Yourself
In order to keep the attention of your guests throughout the Vrbo description, avoid repeating yourself. Guests will be able to view a full list of your amenities, so you don’t need to mention them all in your description. Think about which ones are most important to your guests (i.e., Wi-Fi, parking, or a washing machine), or which ones are particularly unique, and include only those.
Get Creative
Experiment with your writing style, injecting some personality into your Vrbo listing description to capture (and keep!) the attention of your Vrbo guests. Use creative adjectives such as ‘glamorous’, ‘bohemian’, ‘magical’, ‘chic’, ‘industrial’ or ‘eco-friendly’, rather than adjectives like ‘good’, ‘great’ or ‘modern’.
In the example above, the Vrbo host has been creative, including a drone video of the property for the ad. This is something that not many hosts do, which will spark the interest of potential guests and keep them reading. They could have broken up their larger paragraph to make them easier to read.
Grammar and Spelling
Make sure your vacation rental description has been spell-checked and proofread for grammatical errors before uploading it to the site. These kinds of errors, though small, can make you seem less professional, which doesn’t help to build trust.
I recommend Grammarly to easily check for grammar and spelling mistakes.
Make it Scannable
The attention of those reading your Vrbo listing description will be short, as they’ll likely be reading through a number of listings. Break up your text into short paragraphs, including asterisks and bullet points to make it more digestible for readers. If there are a few features that are deal-breakers for your guests, they will be scanning through your description to try to identify them. This is much more difficult if they are presented with a big chunk of text.
In this example, the Vrbo host has broken up the text into sections, and has included a bullet point list of ‘things to do during your stay’. This means it is easy for guests to pick out key information that is important to them. The paragraphs are concise, and all of the key features that guests look for are listed.
Include Keywords
Consider the keywords that your guests will be using when searching for your property, and scatter these throughout your description, ensuring that it still sounds natural. For example, if your short-term rental is a beachfront property on a popular surfing beach, you could include the following keywords:
‘Beach front house’
‘Beach front holiday house’
‘Holiday house for water sports’
‘Holiday home with sea view’
‘Surfing holiday house’
Download The Airbnb SEO Bible to maximize your bookings today.
Be Honest
Make sure your vacation rental description is honest and authentic. You want to exceed the expectations of your guests, in order to get five-star guest reviews. This means that the more honest you are upfront, the more likely you are to get the right guests at your property, and some great reviews after their stays. For example, you could say:
- ‘Due to the location of this property, it is not suitable for those with poor mobility
- ‘This property isn’t pet-friendly due to the lack of perimeter fence’
- ‘Guests should bear in mind that the nearest supermarket is a 15-minute drive’
- ‘Please consider that there is only one parking space available at the property, although there is a multi-story car park nearby’
Learn how to respond to negative guest reviews.
Include a Call to Action
Lastly, make sure you include a call to action, and instruction for what to do next, at the end of your rental description. This could include:
- ‘Enquire now to book this property’
- ‘Get in touch for more information’
- ‘Drop me a message if you have any questions’
Vrbo Headline Examples
A good Vrbo headline should be approximately 70 characters (10-20 words) long, be attention-grabbing, and give a few details about your vacation rental property. Some Vrbo headline examples include:
- ‘Cosy Wood Cabin in Mountains w/Hot Tub & Log Fire’
- ‘Eclectic Beach House *Perfect for Families* w/Games Room & Garden’
- ‘Chic Townhouse in City Centre – Pet-Friendly & Recently Renovated’
- ‘Characterful Victorian Manor on River for Large Groups & Families’
Read the five golden rules for writing a compelling Airbnb title.
In the example above, the Vrbo host has included a unique feature, ‘total privacy’, location details, ‘beautiful country views’, and information about the target guest, ‘perfect for the Mothman enthusiast’.
How Do I Improve My Listing on Vrbo?
If you’re finding that your Vrbo listing isn’t performing as well as you’d like it to, consider the following:
- Is your listing optimized?
- Have you uploaded relevant, high-quality photos?
- Is your title eye-catching and descriptive?
- How many amenities have you tagged for your property? You should include as many as possible.
- Have you included keywords related to the location of your property?
- Is it easy for guests to book?
- Do you have ‘instant book’ enabled?
- Are you fast at responding to messages?
- Have you got a low cancellation rate?
- Is your booking calendar always up-to-date?
- Do potential guests trust you?
- Are there spelling and grammar mistakes on your listing?
- Is your Vrbo listing description authentic and honest?
- Do you have lots of good guest reviews on your profile?
- Are you a Vrbo Premier Host?
- Can you apply power-ups to your listing?
Make some changes to your listing based on the results of the questions above, and test and measure your results. It comes down to making sure your guests trust and like you, and that they are able to book quickly. You also need to make sure your listing is performing well in Vrbo’s search algorithm, by reducing your cancellations and responding quickly to inquiries.
Learn how to rank higher on Airbnb search.
Summary
When you’re writing your Vrbo listing description, make sure you have focussed on your ideal guest. What features and amenities will they need? What is unique about the property? Why should they choose to book with you? Make sure that your description is scannable, doesn’t contain any grammatical or spelling errors, and isn’t repetitive. Include some commonly-search keywords and finish with a compelling call to action.
If you want to ensure that your Vrbo listing performs well and generates lots of bookings, get in touch to find out more about my Vrbo listing copywriting service.