BenStay Blog

Direct Bookings

2 articles

Building a Brand Identity for Your Japan Short-Term Rental Property

· 6 min read Intermediate

I want to tell you about two properties I visited recently. The first was a clean, well-priced apartment in Shinjuku — great photos, good location, solid reviews. The second was “Yuki House,” a renovated machiya in a quiet alley near Nishiki Market in Kyoto. Both charged similar rates. One had a 70% repeat guest rate. The other was fighting for every booking.

The difference wasn’t the property itself. It was whether the host had decided to build something — or just to list something.

short-term rentalbrandingJapanSTRdirect bookingshospitality

Building a Repeat Guest Strategy for Your Japan Short-Term Rental

· 7 min read Intermediate

There’s a guest I remember from our first property — a product manager from Singapore who stayed for a week every quarter on business trips to Tokyo. He found us on Airbnb the first time. After that, he messaged us directly. Same room, same price, zero commission to the platform.

That’s the dream for any short-term rental operator. But building toward it takes deliberate effort, especially when OTAs are sitting between you and your guests by design.

operationsguest experiencerevenue managementdirect bookings