Happy Guest

Warning: this episode may cause spontaneous upselling and extreme guest happiness ???? Michael O'Connell joined an all-star lineup of Happy Hosts to spill the tea on turning little extras into big wins ???? It’s dropping tonight at 8 PM ET, so grab your popcorn ?? #HappyGuest?Benjamin Coleman Rebecca Ballart Kanan F. Whited IV

I've been dreaming about this day for a long time now... Guest what!!!?? Happy Guest is hiring!!! ?????? This is a rare opportunity to own, build, and scale our entire Customer Success department from the ground up. If YOU or someone you know has experience in Customer Success, hospitality tech, or short-term rentals and loves working with hosts and property managers, let’s connect! Fully remote, high impact, and a chance to shape the future of short-term rentals. Excited to find the right person for this journey! ?? Rebecca Ballart Benjamin Coleman Kanan F. Whited IV

?? Speaker Announcement: Would you like fries with that? Upselling stays, services, and shopping… Learn how to boost revenue easily by upselling premium stays, services, and experiences, while fostering partnerships with local businesses to drive secondary spend. Join Madison Rifkin, CEO of Mount, as she leads an expert panel featuring: ?? Laura Muse Muse Escapes - Award Winning Peak District Stays, Founder of Muse Escapes ?? Michael O'Connell, Founder of Happy Guest ?? Siddhi Mittal, Co-Founder of yhangry ??? Get your ticket now: https://lnkd.in/dmy8G7jv Join the STAA - the Short Term Accommodation Association!

The 2025 Shortyz Awards are here, and I’ve somehow found myself nominated in the Rising Star category! ?? But before you rush to vote, I want to make sure you’re making an informed decision… so here are 7 reasons you absolutely, definitely, 100% should NOT vote for me: ????Cast your votes here: https://lnkd.in/es9NJYGf #TheShortyz #ShortTermRentals Sam Cooper Paul Stevens Mark Simpson STAA - the Short Term Accommodation Association Bart-Jan Leyts Blendi Muriqi Casey Evans Jeff Iloulian Jodie Odlin Mahwussh Alam Unwind Luxury Vacations Happy Guest AutoRank HostGPO Mount Delegate One Perfect Stay Hospitable.com Hospitable Hosts Short Stay Summit SCALE Julie George Bart ShortTermRentalz Kanan F. Whited IV Scott Liebman Benjamin Coleman Rebecca Ballart

?? Happy Guest swag has officially arrived and to celebrate International Women’s Day, we’re giving it all away!?? At exactly 8:03 PM, boxes of hoodies, shoes, hats, stickers, yetis, and tees landed, and we’re ready to send them your way! ?? In the comments below, tag a woman in the STR industry that you’re thankful for and tell us why she deserves the spotlight! ?? As a thank you, we’ll send swag to both you AND the amazing woman you tag!!! #HappyWomensDay #HappyGuest #VacationRentals #Giveaway

I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be speaking at the Short Stay Summit in London ???? on April 2nd! This event brings together the best minds in the short term rental industry, and I'm humbled to be sharing insights alongside Dale Smith, Lisa Roads, Bart-Jan Leyts, Mark Simpson, Vered Raviv Schwarz, Simon Lehmann, Justin Ford, Jessica Gillingham, Richard Vaughton, James Varley, Sally Henry, Leo Walton and so many more industry leaders! But that’s not all... Happy Guest + Mount have teamed up for the first ever "Beyond the Booth Fringe Event". This isn't just a tour—it's a real-time content workshop where you'll be paired with a professional content creator for an immersive local experience to help you master short-form video and apply it to your own property or business. Get your tickets here: Short Stay Summit- https://lnkd.in/e5EwT6sa Beyond the Booth Fringe Event- https://lnkd.in/eY53XvMz #VRMA #STAA #Shortyz

Just dropped: A new RevLabs by PriceLabs episode! ??? Rebecca Ballart’s journey to becoming the COO at Rev and Research and Founder of Happy Guest is about bold moves, real experience, and data-driven decisions. In this insightful conversation with Kyle Driskell ??????, Rebecca shares: ? Her path from handling guest inquiries to strategizing revenue at scale ? How to compete in over-supplied markets ? Why looking past pricing is the key to staying ahead Curious how these insights can transform your approach? Watch now! https://lnkd.in/gf5Emd5Y #RevLabsByPriceLabs #PriceLabsforEveryone #RevenueManagement #ShortTermRentals

I'm excited to announce Happy Guest as our newest sponsor for the First Ever Beyond the Booth Fringe Event happening in London on April 1st before the Shortyz and the Short Stay Summit. This is going to be THE event for pre-conference networking in a small group of 15-20 people. All while experiencing one of London's hidden Gems. Here is the link to more info: https://lnkd.in/e8xX-bak If you are interested in sponsoring DM me. I hope to see you there!

I’m spilling the tea on how upselling actually works. Take a second and look at your guidebook software. Does it have a little button that says “add local experiences”—and suddenly, poof, you’re earning a 5% commission? Here’s what’s actually happening behind the scenes: Your software company partners with a third-party OTA like Viator. They use an API to slap their experiences into your guidebook, white-label the whole thing, and now it looks like you’re offering amazing local experiences to your guests. But here’s what you probably don’t realize: 1. These experiences aren’t vetted, so it’s completely hit-or-miss. 2. Viator takes around 20% in commission, then splits that with their white-label partner, and then you get whatever’s left. Is that 5% (or less) even making a difference? 3. You’re paying a software fee, and then that software is also making money off your guests by taking a cut of these upsells. 4. Local businesses get hit the hardest. They lose a huge chunk of revenue to OTAs just to be listed. You want direct bookings? So do they. It’s all backwards. That’s why Mount is doing it differently. We curate the best local businesses, verify every experience, and pay hosts based on guest count—not bookings. No more unpredictable commissions. I’ve never been one to stay quiet about this stuff. The old-school way needs to go. If you want to join me - Happy Guest and Mount just partnered to be the first in our industry delivering Local experiences book directly with the business. Let’s shake things up. Michael O'Connell and Kanan F. Whited IV

Paul, the mastermind behind OwnerRez, was tired of hosts juggling guest messages like a circus act ??—so he built the ALL NEW Unified Inbox to do the heavy lifting! Now, instead of scrambling through emails, texts, and carrier pigeons (okay, maybe not pigeons???), everything is in one place. No more missed messages, no more copy-pasting the same reply 27 times, and definitely no more "Oops, wrong guest!" moments. Just smooth, organized, and professional communication that makes you look like you actually have your life together (unlike Benjamin & Michael). Your guests will love the prompt replies, and you’ll love not losing your sanity. Check it out here:https://lnkd.in/guA8A745