Building Employee Culture in Rural Markets with Amanda Look - Vacation Rental Show
Update: 2025-12-16
Description
In this episode of The Vacation Rental Show, host Lynell Gordon speaks with Amanda Look, founder of Salt Air Properties, about building a 100-property portfolio in Bar Harbor, Maine with a fully employed team rather than contractors, maintaining culture in seasonal markets, and learning when to say no to growth opportunities.
What You'll Learn:
- Why hiring cleaners as W-2 employees costs more but delivers stronger reviews and higher quality control
- How to solve the isolation problem that drives turnover in cleaning positions
- Creative employee appreciation programs that build loyalty in seasonal markets
- The suggestion box system that captures frontline insights from 100 properties daily
- Why Amanda refuses to onboard new properties after June 1st in her market
- How leadership training programs prepare seasonal workers for expanded management responsibilities
- Building proprietary trash and concierge programs when national vendors don't service rural markets
- The transition strategy from owner-operator to CEO with delegated daily operations
- Why running occasional field shifts keeps you connected to operational realities
- How to become selective about growth after proving your business model
- Managing compressed booking windows that shift from 180 days to 36 days
- The support systems required to balance business scaling with family and personal sanity
Amanda Look is the founder of Salt Air Properties, managing 100 vacation rentals in Bar Harbor, Maine with two office locations and a staff of 30 people. She started in 2009 while working full-time at a bank, managing long-term rentals on the side before testing short-term rentals with her first property. When it booked solid within three days, she knew the model worked. By the time she attended her first major industry conference, she had grown to 40 properties and realized she could transition to full-time property management. Amanda made the strategic decision early to hire all cleaners as employees rather than subcontractors, believing that presentation and quality control are everything in this industry. She now focuses on leadership development for her management team, building proprietary service programs, and transitioning from day-to-day operations to strategic ownership while staying grounded through occasional field work.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to:
- Subscribe, rate, and review
- Share this episode
👉 Apple - https://apple.co/3lYc2gU
👉 Spotify - https://spoti.fi/3InYanV
👉 Fame Host - https://bit.ly/hwg-podcast
👉 iheartradio - https://ihr.fm/3Z8qqlg
👉 RSS - https://feeds.fame.so/the-vacation-rental-show
👉 Spotify - https://spoti.fi/3InYanV
👉 Fame Host - https://bit.ly/hwg-podcast
👉 iheartradio - https://ihr.fm/3Z8qqlg
👉 RSS - https://feeds.fame.so/the-vacation-rental-show
The Vacation Rental Show is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
Previous guests include: Jim DeVos of Best Beach Getaways, Stacy Wesson of Cascara Vacation Rentals, Michael Friedman of The Simple Life Hospitality, Steve Caron of Inhabit, John An of TechTape, Jessica Gillingham of Abode Worldwide, Justin Ford of Breezeway, Mahwussh Alam of One Perfect Stay, Lisa Stinnett of Inhabit, and many more.
Check out the three most downloaded episodes:
- Vacation Rental Stories: Episode 63 - Driving Innovation and Partnership
- Homeowners Become Family with Michael Godfrey, Owner of Michael’s Vacation Rentals
- Life in Maui as a Property Manager with Scott Jordan, Owner of Maui Life Realty
Are you a vacation rental industry leader looking to share your expertise? We're seeking innovative voices to join our conversation about growing and scaling vacation rental businesses.
The Vacation Rental Show reaches thousands of property managers worldwide. We're particularly interested in perspectives on:
- Scaling your vacation rental portfolio
- Optimizing guest experiences
- Revenue management strategies
- Industry trends and market insights
Comments
In Channel
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store
United States00:00
00:00
x
