the no BS podcast

Francois Gouelo is the real deal and we're lucky to have the CEO and Co-Founder of Enso Connect join our podcast.His road to Enso started out as a class project/competion at University with a 10k prize going to the winner. A ski trip where he didn't necessarily master "pizza and fries" solidified the project focus and as they say... the rest is history. Francois is on a mission to redefine guest experience through connectivity. In his words, "we're the zapier of guest experience". What does that actually mean? Think if/then statements. If this thing happens in one technology, then make it do this thing in another technology... Enso connect is the middle-ware that makes it happen.Such a great conversation with a man that cares about how efficiently tech is working for users in vacation rentals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we sit with John An, Founder & CEO of TechTape, and dive into all things STR Wealth Conference!This was year two for the hard-hitting conference that takes place in Nashville.Kudos to all involved for getting over 1000 people to attend while other shows in our industry are struggling with attendee-to-vendor ratios and attendees in general.This show was WAY different than any others that we have attended with HIGH ENERGY and a focus on hosts. We talk about what it does right and where it misses.Other vacation rental conferences and organizations can learn a lot from what STR Wealth is doing.We're big fans of John and get to know his and TechTapes' story a little better in this episode. What impresses us about John is how he has immersed himself (the right way) in things that make a real difference from day one and this is why he has found success as a short-term rental thought leader. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How does one go from a ship broker with a degree in maritime law to CEO and Founder of Fülhaus Inc? That's one of the many questions we dive into with the fantastic Andria Santos in this episode.Fülhaus, pronounced like the 80s and 90s sitcom with Danny Tanner, Uncle Joey, and Uncle Jessee, started out like most in this industry...kind of by accident. A declined job offer that turned into a design and furnishing opportunity led to her starring role.There's so much to unpack with Andria and a ton of excitement around a new product that has the potential to really change the way look at and attack furnished real estate.Andria and her team have the logistics under control and you'll want to listen up to get the full scoop.A wonderful interview! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We finally got Arthur Colker CEO and Founder of StayFi on our show!A great conversation touching on his entrance into #hospitality and more importantly the evolution to bring actionable value to #propertymanagement companies.What started as a consulting/marketing gig for Heirloom turned into a product a vision to capture the email addresses of all individuals who tap into the wifi in specific #shorttermrentals.Email is the best way to help drive direct books through retargeting email marketing campaigns and StayFi gives managers a leg up on the competition.We also dive into brand focus, recession-proofing your business, the importance of charging for your #marketing costs, and how #data wins all.We really love this episode and it's exciting to see how StayFi has transitioned from a cool tech option that captures emails to a full-blown marketing platform giving property managers the tools to crush! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we chat up and deliver a great interview with Dustin Abney CEO of Portoro!Dustin's resume is littered with companies like dotloop, Zillow, D. Alexander, and Avantstay before launching his 2nd startup Portoro.We talk about what gave him the "Airbnb" bug, how to differentiate oneself, the days of sleeping on couches, and the lessons learned working at early startups through acquisitions and exiting.Portoro started with the idea of getting behind BRAND and bringing hotel-quality luxury and amenities to all aspects of property management.Portoro has put together a super team of industry experts and backed it with well-thought-out technology to deliver high-end experiences for both guests and homeowners across every touchpoint.A great episode you don't want to miss! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A quick listen this week where we dive into our new roles.John Stokinger is the new Director of Sales at Direct, an award-winning property management software and Mateo Bradford is the Head of Fund Development for Guestor a platform designed that allows anyone to easily invest in vacation rentals.In this episode, we talk about the reasons behind our moves, their impact on the vacation rental industry, and why our love for short-term rentals makes us perfect for the tasks at hand.https://www.directsoftware.com/https://www.guestor.com/https://www.derailedpodcast.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We had a great time catching up with the one and only Robertin Nunez, Co-Founder at CoHost Expert and LivingQuarters.net.If you get the opportunity to grab some time with Robertin at a show or during his travels, you really should prioritize it.There are short-term rentals, vacation rentals, corporate housing, and business travel, and most people we know lean one way or another. Robertin proudly straddles the fence and has found a way to meet the needs of all still with a focus on B2B travel.How do you win with B2B? Trust and Accountability. - Recurring theme here lately on our show!In the game of hospitality and accommodations, there are Hotels and then there is everyone else. Are we team Alternative Accommodations?A really great episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we talk with our good friend Matt Durrette the CEO of Cozi Real Estate Group. Like most, Matt stumbled into vacation rentals in a unique way too.It's a great story that starts with a trip with friends. They decided to rent a camping spot from Airbnb for South by Southwest. This trip made him realize how much the property owner was bringing in on the platform by making his property available for others to enjoy. There's more to this story that will give you a good laugh s well.From Baltimore to Texas Hill Country, Cozi Real Estate Group is making a name for itself and it all started to really click by focusing on focus on Top Down Operations.Matt prides himself on Cozi's company culture and has found success with by focusing on Homeowners, Employees, and Guests, in that order.You don't want to miss this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we are joined on the podcast by visionary and dreamer Annie Munro Sloan, Co-Founder & CEO of The Host Co.Annnie's trip to hospitality and short-term rentals came via many interesting career stops which she says are all actually tied with roots in hospitality.Companies that she has her fingerprints on include, Discovery Inc for HGTV, Twitter, Facebook (Meta), and Lucasfilm to name a few... we geeked out over the latter!Annie and her partner saw a need to develop a way for hospitality brands to sell items to guests while putting a Point of Sale in their hands. Enter The Host Co. It’s the “easy button” for upsells.There is so much to her story and the sky is the limit with the offerings. During the interview, we actually came up with a few good ideas that we think could be game-changers!Really cool person, and an awesome product offering!Make sure to check out this episode!THE HOST CO Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A big important episode this week as the amazing Vanessa De Souza Lage Founder and CEO of Sustonica join us.Vanessa talks about how she went from corporate marketing to emerging into the tech side of the vacation rental industry. Vanessa and her team were early pioneers in providing distribution tech options for short-term rentals.From there, we transition into gender rights, standing up for those who experience domestic violence, and the importance of sustainable vacation rentals.This episode tackles topics of importance from different spectrums that Vanessa has had a huge personal and significant impact on.Sustonica, her newest venture, is the 1st sustainability certification specifically for vacation rentals. Participating with this accreditation platform proves to travelers, owners, employees, and investors, that you’re committed to environmental sustainability.This is a must-listen-to episode!Is my vacation rental green? Take the test! - https://form.jotform.com/223455114636352Domestic Violence Resource page - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_xCBNpXAoLFtLecZ5RCD2yMQGv-DXZXlkbvIGvsV-eM/edit?usp=sharing Sustonica - https://sustonica.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode, we sit down with Tim Koninckx, International Sales Manager at Doinn.This Belgian-born startup helper got his first exposure to short-term rentals pre "Airbnb" during the couch surfing movement. This sparked his interest and career moves in servicing hospitality.A recurring issue he encountered was finding good reliable housekeeping so joining a start-up that helps hosts and property managers contract housekeepers to help turn over their properties quickly and efficiently was a no-brainer.Tim is based overseas with extensive experience working for companies here in the states. We discuss the differences between the two markets (US and Europe) as well as their similarities in terms of management style, tech stack, and much more.Listen to the end to catch Tim's unpopular opinion of which US-based fast-food company has the best "french" fries in his opinion.A cool episode with an all-around great guy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We've been wanting to get today's guest on for over a year now and finally, the stars align, and Chris Maughan CEO & Founder of I-PRAC joins us on the pod.As a young lad, Chris got his start in health spa management. A trip to Canes to explore the possibility of expanding that business for the company he worked for exposed him to entrepreneurial excitement and endless possibilities. As the business trip came to an end, Chis didn't want to move back up north and at just 25 years he went all in on figuring out this short-term rental game.His short-term rental property management company made some bold moves early on to gain traction and these early efforts paid off. The mantra of if you can't get in the front door, go around back resonates with Chis.His learnings from property and event management with some of the biggest companies in the world (MTV, Google, Disney...) exposed that business is won by trust and reputation and not necessarily product. This is where I-PRAC comes in.Keeping clients through service has never been more important in the vacation rental industry and certifying your inventory through his I-PRAC removes uncertainty.I-PRAC is now in 28 different countries and is the industry's only trust accreditation. A lot of amazing brand nuggets here to digest in this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we sit with William Parry, CEO and Co-Founder of ALTIDO. Will and his business partners have been making their presence known throughout the vacation rental (holiday let) industry.With a total of 50 units year one to 2500 properties (13,000+ beds) today is no small feat that this team accomplished. ALTIDO is an acronym for "A Life I Dream Of" that just happens to be in our opinion, one of the most powerful brand names in hospitality.This short-term rental company is continuously growing and expanding worldwide through thoughtful M&A . Their guided partnership approach is unlike most and we're excited to see the splash they make this year.We talk a ton about Brand and vision in this episode... one you don't want to miss!Our podcast Is doing a survey to get to know our listeners more! Use this link to fill out the survey! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2022 has been an amazing year for the no BS short-term rental podcast, and John & Mateo have a ton to be thankful for!This episode recalls some of their favorites in this record-breaking year!51 episodes totaling 15k plus downloads! That's a lot of content!We wouldn't be here without you, our listeners, and our amazing guests sharing their stories on the pod!Our top 5 episodes with regard to downloads are listed and we both share our favorite episodes of 2022... we love them all, but the ones we list take top honors this year.Who made the cut? ... you'll have to listen to find out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we ROCK out with the one and only Marcus Räder, Founder and CEO of Hostaway.Growing up in Finland with his single mom, Marcus embarked on his entrepreneurial journey early at age 11 selling a week's worth of candy in advance to fellow students at high-interest rates. Note: the school administration did not condone such behavior.Lessons learned from astute observation and a willingness/ability to talk to anyone laid the groundwork for Marcus's future endeavors.Marcus talks about his entrepreneurial wins and losses and his drive and focus leading up to the creation of his short-term rental property management software, Hostaway. When you have to sell a product you can't just sell it to a couple of people, you need to be able to sell it to everyone and that's something he learned over time.He talks of luck and timing as the secrets to success (his father disagreed stating that he has been planting seeds his whole life) and we break down what that means exactly.You don't want to miss this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode, we sit down with Rebecca Lombardo and Travis Wilburn, Co-Founders at Blue Cedar Partners.We all know how COVID impacted our industry and forever changed the way property managers manage their short-term rentals. The last couple of years had Travis thinking about how to bring BRAND into the picture giving the community a way to compete with the giant players in vacation rentals.Rebecca and Travis's introduction to one another is unlike any other story we've ever heard in that Dave Matthews was a factor, if not the main reason they decided to join forces.Their alignment manifested The 100 Collection giving independent property managers that meet Gold Standards a way to shine and differentiate themselves.Branding, marketing, and trust all come into factor making The 100 Collection a refreshing and unique endeavor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode, we sit with Michael Goldin, our good friend and Managing Director at Storied Collection and our first repeat guest!Researching ancestral lineage is the 2nd most common hobby in the world and Michael is bringing history to hospitality.Storied Collection is a collection of 45 properties with about 2,200 rooms available for rent. Castles, Estates, Manor Homes, and Historic properties are just the tip of the iceberg.Events, experiences, and new and exciting partnerships are on the horizon making it possible for lineage sleuths to dive deeper into their family history than ever before.We're huge fans of what Michael and Storied are doing and can't wait to see what is next! Amazing Episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For real, what is it...really? If you've had the privilege of viewing or listening to one of Evan Dolgow's presentations, you've been both highly entertained and informed on the topic. Today dive a bit deeper with the Head of Predictive Hospitality at AIDAPTIVE.Like pretty much everyone we interview on our podcast, Evan eventually made his way into the vacation rental industry via a unique path. Starting out as a medic he transitioned to real estate, and added a sprinkle of drone photography with a side of a Master's in Real Estate Sustainability.... oh yeah, let's not forget warehousing.With the world around us constantly changing it's very important to stay up to date in our businesses. We discuss what exactly machine learning is and how you can leverage it to acquire more bookings.In an industry that is hesitant to change it's important to understand the analytics behind your business and how to capitalize on the retention game. Personalized recommendations are where it's at we break down why using AI (artificial intelligence) is so important in our and all industries.We end the pod on a personal note that is near and dear to Evan's heart by talking up the importance of donating bone marrow and how he plans to help those diagnosed with Cancer.We love this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Big news on our 80th episode as we're joined by TravelNet Solutions CEO & Co-founder, Ryan Bailey!The TravelNet suite includes Track Hospitality Software (Track PMS and TRACK Pulse), Atlas Digital Commerce, Resorts & Lodges, and new to the mix, Rented.This acquisition brings a world-class revenue management partner under its hood led by CEO Andrew McConnell. Rented’s Automated Rate Tool (Art) is a powerful and flexible pricing tool that will enhance Track’s functionality while giving their customers control and insights related to pricing.We've been wanting to get Ryan on for quite a while and finally are able to share his 22-year "overnight success" story.Twists and turns, failures and triumphs, Ryan has led his "Navy" through treacherous waters surrounded by a loyal and capable crew.This founder's story from a driven college kid to Blue Star Innovation Partners acquiring a majority stake in the company this past summer to today's acquisition announcement of Rented is not to be missed.As to what is next for TravelNet Solutions and Ryan Bailey, his reply "I'm not done yet!" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode we sit down with Ginger and Hunter Harrelson, the owners of Beachball Properties on the Alabama Gulf Coast. A surprising revelation with this interview is that we are treated to a #CuteMeet story and it defiantly sets the stage.Much like many other success stories in Vacation Rentals, the Harrelson's had to go all in on their business when their safety nets began to collapse. They sold everything in order to focus on their newly acquired 20 property management company and took a long hard look on how to differentiate themselves from the "old guard" that had been setting the pace locally.By deep diving into social media, outside the box marketing, and a new focus on brand, Hunter and Ginger were able to hit 100 properties in just under 3 years. Now with around 200 properties they have their sights on 500 by 2025.There's a lot you can learn from their journey and eyes are on Beachball as they were just named VRMA Vacation Rental Management Company of the year! Their secret? They put hospitality in Southern Hospitality. You don't want to miss this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices