Vacation Rental Social Media Marketing from a 13-Year Vrbo Insider
Jenn Mangold was an early employee at HomeAway and spent 13 years building the social media marketing programs that helped millions of travelers discover vacation rentals through the company's growth into Vrbo and acquisition by Expedia Group. She now offers social media strategy consulting and digital marketing for vacation rental owners and property managers who want more direct bookings, less OTA dependency, and marketing that performs.
Schedule a Free Discovery CallYour Property Is Great. Your Social Media Marketing Shouldn't Be the Weak Link.
You're posting on Instagram but can't tie a single booking to it. You've thought about running Facebook ads but don't want to burn money learning by trial and error. You know there are better ways to handle social media for vacation rentals, but between turnovers, maintenance, and guest communication, marketing keeps getting pushed to next month.
Meanwhile, you're paying 15-20% to OTAs for every booking and building their guest list instead of yours.
That's the gap this vacation rental marketing firm fills.
Your Vrbo Marketing Consultant: 13 Years Inside the Platform You List On
Jenn Mangold understands the vacation rental business from the inside: seasonality, direct booking vs. OTA dynamics, guest acquisition costs, and the difference between marketing a single property and a 50-unit portfolio. This isn't a generalist learning your industry during the first call.
She was one of the early employees at HomeAway, where she built their social media program from scratch and spent over a decade shaping how travelers discover and book vacation rentals through the company's growth into Vrbo and acquisition by Expedia Group. She's since led marketing programs at companies like Indeed and 3M that have driven $165M+ in revenue across social and paid media.
That depth of experience is what separates this from hiring a generic freelance marketer or a vacation rental social media marketing agency that's learning your business on your dime.
Three Ways to Work Together
Every engagement starts with understanding your property, your guests, and your goals. Choose the level that fits where you are right now.
The Clarity Call
$197A 60-minute working session focused on your property's marketing. You pick the focus: Meta ads strategy, social media, AI tools for efficiency, or all three. You'll leave with a recording and a clear set of next steps you can act on immediately.
No pitch for ongoing services. The call stands on its own.
The Marketing Audit
$497A diagnostic of what you're doing now and where the gaps are. Choose your focus: Meta ads, organic social media, or AI implementation. You'll get a written report with specific findings and a prioritized action plan.
No jargon. No generic recommendations.
Ongoing Marketing
If you'd rather focus on running your property and let someone else handle the digital marketing, this is the option. We scope a monthly engagement based on what your vacation rental needs. That can include any combination of:
- Social media content and management (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok)
- Meta ads setup, management, and optimization for direct bookings
- Email marketing to past guests and prospect lists
- SEO support for your direct booking website
- AI-powered workflows to reduce your marketing time
- Content creation (photography direction, video, copy)
Every retainer is scoped to your property, your goals, and your budget. Nothing is cookie-cutter.
Not sure which option fits? The Clarity Call is always the right starting point. We'll figure out together whether you need strategy, a diagnostic, or ongoing support.
Need Help With Something Specific?
Not every property needs a monthly retainer. If you have a specific project, like launching your first Meta ad campaign, building a social media content calendar for the season, setting up email automation for guest follow-ups, or getting your direct booking website found on Google, we do those as standalone projects. Pricing is scoped based on the work.
Book a Clarity Call to Discuss Your ProjectFrequently Asked Questions
Yes. Many of the most effective strategies work better for a single property because you can be more focused and specific with your targeting and content.
OTAs control the guest relationship and charge 15-20% per booking. Building even a modest direct marketing channel gives you lower acquisition costs, repeat guests, and a list you own.
No. The call delivers standalone value. Most owners implement the recommendations themselves. If deeper work makes sense, we'll discuss it, but there's zero pressure.
That's a fine starting point. The Clarity Call can map out a simple, manageable approach that fits your schedule.
Most agencies don't understand vacation rentals. You'd spend months educating them on seasonality, OTA dynamics, and guest behavior. Jenn spent 13 years inside the industry at HomeAway/Vrbo. That context is already there on day one.
It depends on where you are. It could mean setting up and managing Meta ads to drive direct bookings, building an organic content strategy for Instagram or Facebook, creating email sequences for past guests, or all of the above. The Clarity Call helps us figure out which channels will have the biggest impact for your specific property and market.
Not an agency. The Social Growth Group is a consultancy led by Jenn Mangold, who spent 13 years at HomeAway/Vrbo building their marketing programs. You work directly with her, not a rotating team of account managers. The work covers all digital marketing for vacation rentals, not just Vrbo-specific listing optimization.
You Know Your Property. Let's Fix the Marketing.
Book a $197 Clarity Call and get 60 minutes of focused, practical vacation rental marketing direction from someone who spent 13 years inside HomeAway/Vrbo.
Book Your Clarity CallIncludes full session recording and actionable next steps.
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