Competitive Analysis on Facebook for Vacation Rental Managers: Techniques, Learnings, and Implementation

In the vacation rental industry, observing the social media activities of your competitors, from local rental management companies to industry behemoths like Airbnb, can offer valuable insights. Here’s how you can analyze your competitors, learn from their strategies, and leverage these insights for your own Facebook strategy:

1. Utilizing Facebook’s “Pages to Watch” Feature

Facebook’s Page Insights includes a “Pages to Watch” function that allows you to track your competitors’ performance.

What to Learn:

• Observe their total and new page likes, number of posts this week, and their engagement level.
• Scrutinize their successful posts to decipher what type of content engages their audience.

How to Apply the Learnings:

• Benchmark your page’s performance against your competitors to spot opportunities for improvement.
• Replicate the successful elements from their posts into your content strategy.

2. Monitoring Competitors’ Facebook Ads

The “Page Transparency” section of a Facebook page lets you see the current ads a page is running, providing a peek into their advertising strategies.

What to Learn:

• Analyze their ad formats (image, video, carousel), the content of their ads, and any running promotions.
• Notice how they showcase their properties and any unique selling propositions they highlight.

How to Apply the Learnings:

• Identify effective messaging and promotional strategies and incorporate similar elements in your ads.
• Highlight your own unique selling propositions based on what appears to resonate with your target audience.

3. Studying Engagement on Competitor Posts

By examining the likes, shares, and comments on your competitors’ posts, you can discern what resonates with their audience.

What to Learn:

• Spot trends in the types of posts that receive high engagement.
• Observe their approach to customer interactions and service on their page.

How to Apply the Learnings:

• Adopt popular content types and themes that seem to engage their audience.
• Use their customer service interactions as a learning tool to improve your own approach.

4. Evaluating Their Posting Frequency and Timing

Monitoring when and how often your competitors post can give you insights into optimal times to engage your audience.

What to Learn:

• Monitor their posting frequency and timing.
• Watch how engagement fluctuates with different posting times and frequencies.

How to Apply the Learnings:

• Experiment with similar posting frequencies and timings, adjusting based on the engagement you receive.

5. Analyzing Their Page Setup and Use of Facebook Features

Inspecting how your competitors have configured their Facebook page and the features they use can offer additional insights.

What to Learn:

• Examine their page setup, including the profile picture, cover photo, about section, and use of call-to-action buttons.
• Note unique features they use, such as Facebook Shop or booking features.

How to Apply the Learnings:

• Consider incorporating elements from their page setup that appear effective and appealing.
• Experiment with Facebook features that you currently aren’t using and gauge their impact on your engagement and conversion rates.

By strategically observing your competitors on Facebook, you can glean insights from their successes and failures, stay informed about industry trends, and continually enhance your Facebook strategy to outperform them.