My goal is to help you to create the most successful vacation rental business you could possibly imagine. Whether you own a single property or are a property manager with several or even hundreds of vacation homes, let me help you be the best.

I’m passionate about this business. Probably because I’ve been there and done it. Six times in all.

So where did it all start?

It all started with a stunning sunset, a large gin and tonic and a vision of investing in property and running a successful vacation rental business. And many years later life has never been better.

Back in 1998 Ontario cottage rentals were basic. Really basic. Mouse poop came as standard and an indoor toilet was a luxury. And the water access cabin we rented for our trip to a family wedding had both the standard offerings and that bit of luxury. And it was the best vacation ever.

On the last evening, my sister and I took a drink out to a rock and sat and watched the sunset, and decided we could do it better. Six weeks later I flew back to Canada and bought my first cottage. The rest is history.

I learnt more from each property I bought; how to create a better experience for guests; new ways of marketing and strategies for boosting occupancy.

And that’s how I help individual owners and property managers achieve great success with their vacation rental businesses.

Check out my show:

Vacation Rental Success Podcast –

Hosted by Cottageblogger.com

Podcasting has changed so much in the past few years. The days of tinny-sounding recordings have been replaced with high quality radio-like audio and the range of topics is outstanding. There is now a podcast on just about every subject you can think of, but the one category that is grossly underserviced by the podcasting industry is travel.

This means the opportunity to get into your prospects ears are huge, and with some creativity, an individual owner or property management company can capture the market as the local expert in their area.

I spent time learning from the best in the podcasting world starting with studying under Cliff Ravenscraft a.k.a. ‘The Podcast Answer Man and his program – Podcasting a-to-z. I also joined John Lee Dumas’s (Entrepreneur On Fire) membership program Podcasters Paradise. Both of these are excellent resources for getting started with podcasting.

So in 2013 I launched, Vacation Rental Success, a weekly interview show mixed with the occasional solo episode. Focused at the vacation rental industry, owners, agencies, real estate agents and other players in the market, the podcast has taken off in leaps and bounds.

It is great fun interviewing some of the biggest and up and coming names in the vacation rental industry including Antonio Bortolotti (Vacation Rental World Summit), Alan Egan (Google Plus), Tyann Marcinck(Photography), Beth Carson (Author) and Matt Landau (Vacation Rental Marketing Blog), and many more. Collectively there have been just under 20,000 downloads  of the show with each episode getting around 500 – 700 downloads. (as of Aug 2014). 

As a bonus of having my own show and helping my audience achieve their Vacation Rental goals, I have also been featured on several other podcasts.

You can check out some of my podcasting episodes here:

Vacation Rental Success Podcast

Vacation Rental Renegades – Episode 006: The Past, Present & Future Of Vacation Rentals

Overseas Property Insider Podcast – Heather Bayer on Vacation Rental Strategy and Tactics

As a result of my prolific podcasting I was also invited to speak at the Podcast Movement Conference in Dallas in 2014.

I hope to continue a long career of podcasting and inspiring others to get their podcast started as well.

 

Public speaking is a passion of mine and ever since I took the stage for the first time I have loved every presentation and every opportunity to share personally with you.

Attending a live event is so much more powerful than watching a YouTube video, listening to a podcast or reading a blog post. The feeling you get sharing knowledge, networking and absorbing an event is a very potent cocktail that helps drive action and change to you and your business.

I have been attending different events for decades, whether they be self-improvment, investment or general business and marketing. I have always come away with some amazing pearls of wisdom that havecreated actionable ideas that have driven me and my business.

I welcome the opportunity to speak at your next event, be it on the subject of Vacation Rental, Real Estate Investment, Business Management or simply the subject of Entrepreneurship.

 

This is a great video of a presentation I made at the ‘CottageLife Show’ in the spring of 2012.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nguQFVEE6gY

 

Upcoming Events Where You Can Find Me:

Podcast Movement 2014 (Panel Speaker) – August 15-17 2014 – Dallas TX

NMX 2015 (Attendee) – April 13-16 2015 – Las Vegas NV

 

Psychology, marketing, customer service, training, operational and strategic management……………

That’s my work history and it’s what I bring to the table
From a psychotherapy practice to running a management training company, creating a UK-based tour operation to managing one of Canada’s leading rental agencies, I’ve developed skills that I want to share.

Whether you are looking for help renting out your first property or are moving towards your own property management business, let me be your go-to person.

Heather is regularly called on for expert opinion on any aspect of the vacation rental business.  She has appeared on CTV Breakfast, Global News, Rogers Daytime, and Chex TV; in the Toronto Star, Ottawa Citizen, the Globe and Mail, MSNBC online and Fox Business as well as CBC Radio and numerous local radio shows.

As with anyone working in the online space I am very easy to get hold off on multiple different mediums. So please use the method you like best and that you feel most comfortable with.

 

1. Voicemail
This link will take you to the voice mail app I use for my podcast. Just make sure your microphone is plugged in and working before starting to record your message ;o)

 

2. Twitter
I am active on my twitter account pretty much daily. So send me a direct message or simply give me a shout out when you follow me.

3. Facebook
Again I am active daily on Facebook. Send me a friend request and we can converse in a Facebook message or two.

4. Google+
I am still getting to grips with Google+ but have seen some great success with effective communication. Add me to your circles and send me a message there.

5. Email
The good old fashioned way is sometimes not always the best. I do receive many emails on a daily basis from many businesses and will try to get back to yours as soon as possible.