Summary: If you want to become independent of the big OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) like Airbnb and booking.com, then you need to start capturing guest emails. You'll increase direct bookings and build a real brand. I decided to write this StayFi Review because I believe it's one of the best tools for collecting valuable guest data like emails and phone numbers.

Starting at $0/mo for 1 property with purchase of hardware

The UI on Stayfi is super easy to use and customize.

Whether you manage one property or a couple hundred, you’ve probably thought about how you can generate more direct bookings for your vacation rental business.

One of the best ways to get more direct bookings is by remarketing to your existing guests. However, OTAs like Airbnb and Vrbo don’t make it easy to obtain guest emails.

This is where StayFi comes in. StayFi not only improves the guest WiFi experience, it also collects emails from every guest. As a result, if you have six people staying, you're probably going to be getting six emails!

StayFi is designed to work in vacation rental properties. Every guest logs in to the WiFi with their name and email address on a branded captive WiFi page. It's the same type of system in an airport, coffee shop, or hotel.

Through StayFi’s easy-to-use customer portal, you can create your own custom splash pages with your own branding. This allows you to introduce your brand to every guest when they use the WiFi for the first time.

Lately, a lot of you have been asking about the importance of direct bookings and digital branding. So, I thought I’d give a full StayFi review!

Why should you collect guest emails? 

It seems like common wisdom in the vacation rental industry that direct bookings are vital to the health of your business. You collect guest emails, and then you can market your direct booking site to them in the future!  Before I dive into the StayFi review, I want you to know why it's actually important to collect the data anyways.

Starting at $0/mo for 1 property with purchase of hardware

OTA Independence 

For most vacation rental owners and operators, OTAs like Airbnb, Vrbo, and booking.com for instance, will always be part of the demand mix. However, building your own database of guests is going to be the best way to start shifting your bookings to more direct stays. More Direct Bookings = More Freedom!

Customer Acquisition 

Hosts that use email  to connect with guests are more likely to get repeat customers because they build a connection. Guests  will know where to book with you directly, and you'll build your brand. If you use this with cohosting, homeowners will be impressed that you have a real strategy to generate repeat direct bookings for them.

New Revenue Streams

Once you collect the emails from every guest in a property, it gives you a new pathway to market other services and items to your vacation rental guests.  StayFi gives you the ability to set up automated emails so you can to market these additional revenue opportunities whenever a guest logs into WiFi for the first time.

The Guest Experience

I like to use tools that work, and work well. WiFi is something everyone seems to have a problem with, myself included. I was excited about this StayFi review is because the system works effortlessly, and I don't want you guys to have a bunch of problems.

So when a property manager or vacation rental owner uses StayFi, what does the experience look like for the guest?

Step 1: Guest selects the guest WiFi Network

StayFi keeps everything simple for you and the guest.

You can set a guest network name that all of your guests will use to sign on to the WiFi, so your WiFi instructions will be the same in all the homes you operate!

Step 2: Splash page loads automatically

Once guests select the guest network name, your splash page will automatically load on their device.

First, the guest easily fills in their information and selects the ‘Connect to WiFi button’. Then, once the guest connects, they are sent to the WiFi success page where you direct them to your direct booking website.

Step 3: Redirect to your personal website

You can redirect to a guestbook as well, or add-on services like bike rentals or extra cleanings.

When the guest selects the button, they are launched into any website you select. The possibilities are endless!

Once you've collected your emails, you can setup an automated welcome email sequence. It's a pretty cool thing to do, and because it's automated, you can pretty much set it and forget it. StayFi has a detailed write up on that if you're interested. I love automation, so I'll always recommend things like this!

Starting at $0/mo for 1 property with purchase of hardware

What else can StayFi do?

I'm writing this StayFi review because I'm really excited about their email capture tools, but they do a lot more. Beyond collecting guest email, StayFi has many features that vacation rental owners and managers can use.

Here is a full-breakdown:

Remote WiFi Monitoring

Easily and quickly keep tabs of your WiFi status! This is especially important right now.

Automatic Modem Power Cycling

One of the most common fixes for residential internet issues and outages is power cycling the modem. Stayfi solves this for you.

WiFi Consolidation with Mesh

Many StayFi customers use the mesh technology to consolidate internet subscriptions, covering multiple rental units with one hardwired internet subscription.

Email Platform Integration

StayFi integrates with most common email marketing tools so you can send automatic marketing emails.

Custom-Branded Splash Pages

The core functionality of StayFi is the splash pages guests will use to log into the WiFi. This is like your WiFi homepage essentially.

Remote WiFi Monitoring

Guest complaints about WiFi is something that StayFi can dramatically reduce or eliminate. Once StayFi is installed in your properties, you will have an easy view of the status of all your wireless networks.

From this portal, you can easily see if there are internet outages in any of your rental properties.

The guest network is open, meaning by default, anyone can access it with their name and email. But, you can add a password if you want it to be extra secure. My favorite part is the fact that the WiFi network is the same for every property, so you only need one set of WiFi instructions. As a side note, you can still keep your personal WiFi up and running!

If you want to see how many guests are staying at your place or get additional insight, you can check out the Connected Devices tab.

Starting at $0/mo for 1 property with purchase of hardware

WiFi Consolidation with Mesh

All of the access points StayFi sells have the ability to wireless mesh automatically with any other access points in the area. Therefore, you can set up one giant meshed WiFi network to cover multi-family rental units! It sounds complicated, but it makes a lot of sense once you realize it's like creating a WiFi link between your properties.

Here you can see the connection between the WiFi networks – looks pretty neat!

For example, imagine you have two townhomes next to each other. In one townhome, you keep your internet subscription and place a StayFi access hardwired to the router. In the neighboring unit, you place a StayFi access point just plugged into power. The second access point will automatically connect and for a wireless mesh network covering the second property.

Email Platform Integration

StayFi collects the names and emails of all of the guests. You can also opt to collect things like phone numbers. The best place to send this data is the tool you use to send marketing emails. After you have a list of guest emails, you can start marketing! Most importantly, StayFi integrates with all common email marketing tools:

StayFi guarantees they will integrate with any tool that has an API. They have integrated with Hubspot, Blue Tent, Track, Salesforce, and many other tools that are not listed here.

Starting at $0/mo for 1 property with purchase of hardware

Automatic Modem Power Cycling

If you have a lot of WiFi issues in your vacation rental property it can lead to poor reviews. StayFi uses something called the UniFi Smart Plug to automatically connect to the closest StayFi access point, so you don't have to figure it out.  When the the unit detects no connection for over 5 minutes, it will automatically reset for you! No more unplugging and spending time places you shouldn't be.

Custom-Branded Splash Pages

The core functionality of StayFi is the splash pages guests will use to log into the WiFi. You’ve probably used similar types of splash pages at airports, hotels, or coffee shops. The splash page builder has many features a savvy vacation rental operator can use.

• Unique splash pages for each property
• Redirect URLs to any site
• Facebook & IG Ad Retargeting

There is no limit to the number of splash pages you can create with StayFi. Each page is also fully customizable, so you can show off your short term rental brand with pride!

You can edit the logo, background image, text, or edit the input fields to whatever you want!

After you have customized all of your pages, it's simple to select which property you want to use the page for. All you have to do is select the property and assign a splash page to it.

Once your guest connects to WiFi, a new page will pop-up notifying them of the connection. Here, you will have the ability to redirect the guest to your Direct Booking site – or anywhere you want! If you don't have a Direct Booking website, that's okay too.

StayFi offers integrations with digital guestbooks like Touch Stay and Hostfully, so that you can redirect guests to the specific guestbook for that property.

Starting at $0/mo for 1 property with purchase of hardware

Usually you can only send the guestbook link to the primary booking guest with these tools. With StayFi, every guest gets access! You might not see the reward from this right away, but guests LOVE convenience.

Facebook & IG Ad Retargeting

StayFi also offers the ability to place a Facebook retargeting pixel into your splash page experience. The Facebook pixel is placed on the success page and then you can create a retargeting audience in the Facebook Ads Manager. This means you can target every guest that stays in your property with Facebook & Instagram Ads.

Final Thoughts on StayFi

Above all, this StayFi review should show you how much StayFi can help you create an actual short term rental business. For vacation rental managers or owners who are looking to increase direct bookings, StayFi is a must-have product. Once you have a direct booking website, email marketing is the best channel to generate more bookings. StayFi makes all of this easy, quick, and scalable for any sized short-term rental business.

Join the #BookDirect revolution

Start using the Vacation Rental WiFi that collects valuable guest data. Your first property's service is free. Get started today!