Diamond is leading the way with a fresh, revolutionary trend. Utilizing an alternative schedule pattern, Diamond is enhancing the guest experience, elevating the quality/cleanliness/upkeep of our owners’ properties, and fortifying our service-focused brand by streamlining our operations and maximizing revenue potential for homeowners. Learn how:
Guest benefits by deviating from Saturday schedules:
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Schedule conflicts restricts guests from traveling on Saturdays
Not every guest is looking for a Saturday-to-Saturday booking due to flight constraints, attending a Saturday wedding in Destin or 30a, scheduling around their kids' sports tournaments, or they simply preferring stays of different durations, shorter or longer than seven nights.
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Over 82% of guests surveyed preferred flexible dates
In a recent survey, a majority of of guests expressed a desire for kore flexible date options when planning their vacations. Many also recalled being required to book Saturday-to-Saturday in the past and were unaware of flexible date options.
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Avoid standstill traffic over the bridges
Guests now arrive and depart on days with lower traffic volumes, thereby avoiding standstill traffic gridlocks at our three bridges. Guests have reported waiting for up to 1.5 hours to pass these bridges on a busy Saturday.
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Guests get to experience more area activities and less crowded beaches on Saturday
Guests who arrive on days other than Saturday evenings have the opportunity to fully engage in the area's Saturday events, which include farmers' markets, nature activities, outdoor concerts, and nightlife. Additionally, due to the customary guest turnover, restaurants and beaches are typically less crowded during daytime hours on Saturdays, creating a more enjoyable experience for our guests.
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Reduced traffic equates to staff efficiency and lower homeowner cost
Staggering check-out days not only reduces traffic for our guests but also shortens travel times for our staff moving between properties and hardware stores. This results in reduced billable maintenance hours, increased productivity, and cost savings for our homeowners.
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Better results with full time housekeeping inspectors instead of seasonal contract workers
Given the extensive cleaning and inspection requirements for all Destin and 30A homes on Saturdays, there's a considerable demand for workers for Saturdays-only, which prove to not be reliable. However, with our alternative schedule, we have access to a more extensive pool of workers. We have transitioned from seasonal workers to full-time staff, resulting in a higher quality of work, care, and caliber of cleaning inspections and preparations. These dedicated employees are committed to upholding Diamond's service-oriented vision.
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Quicker appliance and mechanical repairs with more vendor availability within 24 hours of arrival
It's a well-known fact that most service calls tend to occur on the day of check-in. While we do have our in-house maintenance technicians available for Saturdays and Sundays, it's crucial to keep in mind that many repair and appliance companies (or their supply warehouses) do not operate during weekends. In the event that repair are needed, alternative arrival days enable us to expedite the process, with repair professionals typically addressing the issue on the same day or within one day of check-in. For guests arriving on Saturday, there's a potential wait time of up to two days for a repair solution. Even if guests arrive on Sunday, we can promptly arrange for a vendor to address the issue within one day.
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Well maintained homes equates to higher guest satisfaction: Diamond achieved a 4.9 star (98%) satisfaction rating
In 2023, our guest review scores have reached an impressive 4.9-star rating (98%). Our guests consistently cite our exceptional communication, spotless cleanliness, and meticulous home upkeep as the primary reasons for their high ratings and repeat stays with Diamond. This rating is very hard for any rental company to achieve when the homes begin to show wear at the end of the peak seasons, when a six hour window between guests on a Saturday, just is not enough.
Owner benefits by deviating from Saturday schedules:
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Increased search placement and appear on more search results
When a guest performs a search for stays ranging from 4 to 13 nights (or higher), your property will
now be showcased in the search results for all possible date combinations. In the case of luxury homes, yours might be the sole listing, creating a remarkable conversion rate! In contrast, under a Saturday-to-Saturday stay restriction, your property would only be visible if guests specifically selected Saturday-to-Saturday dates. This severely limits its visibility and bookings. In a second added revenue benefit, these listing sites reward properties that have high views and booking conversions with improved search placement. -
You achieve higher ADR (nightly rental rates)
We have observed a substantial increase in pricing for bookings of fewer than seven nights, with a 20% higher rate per night in our A/B testing. As a result, your property stands out among a smaller selection of homes, particularly in the luxury category, when prospective renters browse platforms like VRBO, Airbnb, or TripAdvisor. There is much less (if any) competition for guests to price compare your property.
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Higher rental revenue, but less wear on your home
Opting for shorter stays, where five nights of revenue is as much as a seven night Saturday-to-Saturday booking, ensures similar or higher revenue and also significantly reduces wear and tear on your property. Our staff is able to be in the home more frequently between shorter stays, to recondition the home. More revenue, less wear on your home, more time to keep up your home - it's a win for everyone!
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You get the areas' best cleaners
When most management companies compete for Saturday housekeepers, we have successfully spread the demand throughout the entire week. Our housekeeping teams are now eagerly seeking weekday cleaning assignments, giving us the advantage of selecting from the top cleaners who are enthusiastic about working with us.
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Our staff spends more time with your home
Unlike other management companies that must cram all their walkthroughs and repairs into a tight 6-hour window, we are able to alleviate the workload for our staff on Saturdays. This approach also allows our homes to have more time for maintenance reconditioning and deeper cleanings, when the turnover days are distributed across the week.
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Enjoy more frequent cleaning and less wear in the Kitchen
The increase of shorter-length stays brings an advantage of more frequent house cleaning. We see an increase of up to 25% more cleaning occurrences, resulting in homes that are cleaner and better maintained. Additionally, we have noticed that groups staying for shorter durations tend to dine out more often, reducing the wear and cleaning requirements in the kitchens.
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Quicker access to vendors and repairs, which equates to better guest satisfaction
We open up more opportunities to schedule pool maintenance professionals, appliance repair technicians, handymen, and upholstery cleaners during the week. This is an advantage because these services or necessary parts are often unavailable on Saturdays and Sundays.
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Worried about orphan (vacant unrented) nights? Don't be, these are in demand!
Don't fret about having vacant nights in your rental property. We've discovered that there's substantial demand for shorter stays, and we frequently fill these gaps. Whether it's guests in town for business, military personnel from the nearby air force bases, wedding attendees, those on work retreats, or individuals seeking a brief remote work-play escape, we have a proven history of successfully booking these shorter stays. Guests want more options than a hotel or condo, even for a short stay. As we get close to a guests stay, if there are any unrented nights, we are proactively offering guests a discounted rate to extend their stay, which fills these gaps. Also keep in mind that our rates for a five-night stay are nearly equivalent to the cost of a full seven-night Saturday-to-Saturday reservation.
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Still skeptical? We have proven results.
Our track record speaks for itself. We have been utilizing this schedule since 2019, and now over 85% of our homeowners have adopted the alternative schedule - including our Gulf Front homes and our other most prestigious properties. As a result, both our homeowners and guests have experienced enhanced home quality, and homeowners are reaping the rewards of increased revenue.
