Hey there,

Let me take you back to the summer of 2010, the summer my daughters Savannah Jane, Kati, and I still call the "Summer of Pies."

That was the year my Bigmama (that’s Southern for Grandmother) moved in with us after getting kicked out of her Dallas Skyrise assisted living (for smoking - SMH) So, we found ourselves with four generations under one roof in my parents' big farmhouse in Wimberley.

Bigmama was a character, and she was also one hell of a cook. When she moved in, she brought decades worth of recipes—hundreds of them, written by hand on faded recipe cards, clipped from magazines like Southern Living, not to mention stacks and stacks of cookbooks! We soon realized that Bigmama had a serious sweet tooth—more than half of her recipes were for pies, cakes, and cobblers.

One day, feeling nostalgic and hungry for a Buttermilk Pie, Bigmama offered to buy all the ingredients if we did the baking. And so, the "Summer of Pies" was born.

The girls (Kati was 7 and Savannah was 14) made a mess of the kitchen—flour and sugar on the floor and at least one pie that never set (we had to eat with a spoon). There were triumphs too, like the Coconut Cream Pie, three-layer Banana Cake, and my Great-Grandmother’s Bread Pudding with rum cream sauce, which to this day might be the best thing I’ve ever tasted.

But here’s the thing: not every pie turned out perfectly. The ones that flopped? Those were the ones where we didn’t follow the recipe.

Turns out, baking a pie without a recipe is a lot like trying to run a business without a plan—you might get lucky, but more than likely, you’re just making a hot mess.

I learned that lesson the hard way. That same summer, I was also trying to get my first PR agency off the ground. I didn’t have a niche, a brand, or even a clear idea of who I wanted to work with. I was just hoping clients would find me through word of mouth or at local chamber events. The result? A lot of stress, a dwindling 401K, and way too much time spent wondering where I’d gone wrong.

Although I had plenty of pie, I didn’t have a marketing plan, and it showed.

I was a full-fledged hot mess, with the t-shirt to prove it.

But, I dug into everything I had learned in my previous job and created a marketing plan that worked for me... garnering clients across multiple industries, until finding my perfect fit helping hosts like you!

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Listen up, buttercup - you need to hear this...

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If you’re waiting for guests to find you on Airbnb/VRBO, social media, or through your website, without a solid plan, you’re setting yourself up for failure and frustration.

This is not a marketing plan:👇👇👇

• Using social media kinda-sorta-maybe-sometimes
• Sharing your rental in Facebook groups whenever you remember
• Sending one or two emails every six months to previous guests
• Randomly updating your lead photos or headlines
• Building a website and throwing up a few blog posts

If you want to kick ass in the off-season (or any season), you need a marketing plan that increases your bookings, grows your bottom line, and puts more profits in your pockets.

That’s where my workshop "Bookings Blueprint - Create Your 90-Day Marketing Plan" comes in.

If you’re tired of feeling like you’re just throwing spaghetti (or pie) at the wall to see what sticks, it’s time to get serious about your marketing. This workshop is your recipe for success—guided by someone who’s been in the kitchen, cooking up successful marketing "recipes" for vacation rental hosts since 2013!

Look, you don't want to be a hot mess with your marketing. Let's get you on the right track!

Click the link and get the invite for my free workshop, "Bookings Blueprint - Create Your 90-Day Marketing Plan" (I did this live at the STR Virtual Summit For Women last year and people loved it!)

TLDR;

Planning is essential for any business, and vacation rentals / STRs are no different. If you ever want to stop depending on being a listing on someone else's website (Airbnb), stop worrying about where your next guest finds you and stop crossing your fingers with one-off strategies that don't work.

Then get your invite and grab a spot in my upcoming Workshop!

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YOU SNOOZE, YOU LOSE Marketing Tips For Off-Season Bookings! Check Out My Latest Instagram Reel Tips for boosting bookings in the off-season! If you are on IG, you can share this reel with other hosts and get a gift (A personalized Instagram mini-audit video) ​ ​ Savvy Host Podcast Fall Into Success - Creative Ideas For Seasonal Bookings This episode is packed with tips you can implement immediately to increase bookings, so grab a pumpkin-spiced beverage and get ready to learn how to make your property stand out and attract more bookings this fall. Leave a review on this episode, or any of my podcast episodes and get a personalized mini-audit of your website or social media profile. ​ ​​​ ​

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FREE WORKSHOP:

Stop being a hot mess with your marketing and create a marketing plan that works for you!

​Get your invite to - "Bookings Blueprint - Create Your 90-Day Marketing Plan"​

What You’ll Learn:

• Key Tactics: We’ll explore the marketing strategies that move the needle, from attracting the right guests to crafting irresistible offers.
• KPIs that Matter: I’ll teach you how to set and track the key performance indicators (KPIs) that show you’re on the right path and help you adjust when needed.
• My Proven C-3 Formula: Discover a step-by-step process that you can use to keep your bookings rolling in, season after season.

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“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!””

~ Benjamin Franklin

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"Skipping the plan is like baking a pie without a recipe—you might get lucky, but more than likely, you’re just making a hot mess!"

~ Jodi Bourne

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PS - Are you worried about low bookings in the off-season, or any season?

Here's how I can help:

• Get on the waitlist for Vacation Rental Marketing School & Mentorship​
• Book A Free Strategy Call
• Get your invite to my free workshop and create a bookings-boosting marketing plan!
• Give you an amazing Buttermilk Pie recipe that will make you forget your troubles, at least for today! (reply to this email if you want it!)

PSS - My hubby and I went and saw what remains of Van Halen last weekend in Houston - Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Jason Bonham and Joe Satriani. It was FANTASTIC! Here's a video from the show (not mine) - one of my favorites from the Sammy days.
🤘🤘🎸🎸🎶🎶

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Wait, who am I? Why are you getting this? I'm Jodi Bourne and well, you probably signed up for one of my freebies like my popular Perfect Guest Avatar Workbook or you purchased a course or program, or maybe you just signed up for my newsletter and tips for no reason cause you heard I'm pretty awesome. I try hard not to fill up your inbox with crappy content but if you hate getting tips, tools, and resources to help you with your vacation rental / short-term rental business, then by all means, unsubscribe. I won't hold it against you. But I promise I'm full of valuable info and tips + I'm usually pretty entertaining. And even if you don't love this email, you are bound to love the next.

Who am I? I'm a business coach, marketing strategist and website designer, educator and speaker for the vacation rental industry (going on 11 years plus 3 years of tourism marketing before that!). I'm also a mom, wife, daughter, sister and dog mom. I love to travel and I've stayed at more than 60 vacation rentals, glamping tents or boutique hotels, so I know a thing or two. If you want to know more about who I am, my experience in the industry or business values, check it out here!

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112 SOAPBERRY DRIVE, KYLE, TX 78640-5937
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