Eric was at an industry event talking to a seasoned operator: someone with a huge portfolio, a brand everyone knows, and years of experience. He asked a simple question: "What are you doing for revenue management?" The answer? "Oh, I use PriceLabs."

Eric asked again: "Yeah, but what are you doing for revenue management?"

That disconnect between having a pricing tool and having a revenue strategy is costing operators with $1M+ portfolios anywhere from $200K to $2M annually. And most don't even know it's happening.

In this episode, Jasper walks through the fundamental concepts that actually drive revenue performance, why 99% of portfolios audited leave 10-40% on the table, and how one skeptical client went from $20K to $68K in weekly booked revenue in just 4 weeks.

[ This is a replay of one of our most popular 2025 episodes while Jasper steps away from recording this week! ]

You will hear:

- Why comparing yourself to market averages creates false confidence while masking massive underperformance

- What pacing actually means and why it's the most overlooked fundamental in revenue management

- How restrictive minimum stay policies block 80% of your potential demand without you realizing it

- Why strict cancellation policies show you visible benefits while hiding invisible losses

- The real difference between booked revenue and stay revenue (and why it matters for measuring performance)

We also talk about:

- Why pricing tool algorithms can't correct bad baseline settings

- The Tesla self-driving analogy that explains pricing automation perfectly

- How to audit your portfolio in 15 minutes daily (the non-negotiable routine)

- When operators should hire in-house revenue staff vs. outsourcing to specialists

- Case study numbers: $117K to $206K in monthly booked revenue in 30 days

Mentioned in the Episode:

- PriceLabs: https://www.pricelabs.co

- Free Revenue Report: https://freewyldfoundry.com/show

- Freewyld Foundry RPM Service: https://freewyldfoundry.com

Favorite Takeaway:

(From an RPM client) "While running cash flow tonight, I was shocked with what I'm seeing. The volume of revenue is ridiculous. Makes me a little nervous actually, like it's a fluke. Pretty clear that what you're doing is working here. I was carefully skeptical and there's no denying the correlation of your start time and our most recent results." - Client testimonial

Want us to audit your pricing strategy?

→ Get your free, personalized revenue report at https://www.FreewyldFoundry.com/show

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Most STR operators want more direct bookings, but they're stuck in the OTA ranking battle, competing on price against every other listing in their market. The problem isn't demand. It's that everyone is fighting over the same search traffic.

Dustin Baker, founder of Hidden Gem Media, has built a systematic approach to breaking that cycle. His team helps property managers and unique stay operators drive discovery traffic through social media, capture leads via email, and convert them into direct bookings with trackable ROI. And his results are hard to argue with: one client with traditional homes in the Poconos went from $20,000 to $137,000 in direct bookings within a single month.

In this episode, Eric and Dustin break down exactly how the social media funnel works, why influencers aren't the answer, and how new paid ad strategies are compressing timelines from months to weeks.

You will hear:

- How to drive "discovery traffic" through social media instead of competing for finite search demand

- Why sending social traffic directly to your booking page kills conversions

- The email capture strategy that lets you attribute direct booking ROI to specific campaigns

- How Meta's ad platform outperforms influencer collaborations for reach and targeting

- Why niching down is the first step to making social media marketing work for your STR brand

We also talk about:

- Which property types perform best on social media (and which ones struggle)

- How giveaways work better behind a paid ad strategy than through influencer partnerships

- Crowdfunding strategies for funding new STR developments using Indiegogo

- The content creator vs. influencer distinction and where to invest your budget

🎯 Mentioned in the Episode:

- Hidden Gem Media — hiddengemmedia.com

- LaunchBoom — crowdfunding platform for lodging and hospitality

- Indiegogo — crowdfunding campaigns

🔥 Favorite Takeaway:

"Views and likes are great, but they don't pay the bills. Having a systematic way to really drive the traffic from social media to your email list and your website and retarget with Facebook ads — that's been the game changer."

📝 Ready to maximize your property's revenue?

Get your free, personalized revenue report at FreewyldFoundry.com/report

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