Artificial intelligence (known as ‘AI’) is moving fast.
From chatbots that provide customer service to users on holiday booking sites to AI-generated photos and videos, the AI genie is out of the bottle.
Chat GPT is the latest tool in the AI suite and is currently a hot topic in the world of marketing. It’s been named as the fastest growing app of all time, gaining over one million users in just five days.
But Alexa, Siri and “Hey, Google” are part of our everyday interactions, so what’s the big deal with Chat GPT and, as a holiday let owner, why should you care?
It’s free and can be used for a variety of tasks including:
- answering questions
- generating text
- translating languages
- crafting different kinds of creative content
Chat GPT (which stands for ‘Generative Pre-trained Transformer’ in case you were wondering) is a natural language processing tool that can hold human-like conversations.
It can help you compose emails, brainstorm ideas for social media content and even explain Einstein’s theory of relativity.
Let’s take a deeper dive into how Chat GPT could make your life easier as a holiday let owner.
1. Blog post ideas for your website
Publishing new content on your website is essential for staying relevant and boosting your online visibility. But it takes time to come up with ideas, draft a useful and informative article, and publish it on your website.
What if I told you there was a way to outline a blog post in less than a minute?
One way Chat GPT can help is by creating a quick bullet-point outline of a blog post that you can adapt for your own site. Simply enter your query and let the bot do the work.
What I typed:
Suggest ten things to do on holiday in Cornwall
Not bad, huh?
But of course, there is the risk that every holiday cottage blog in the UK will be swamped with auto-generated content from Chat GPT. Keep yours relevant and unique by customising the style, including your own photos and sharing personal stories.
You could also use Chat GPT to suggest an idea for a blog post, rather than asking it to write the whole post.
Here’s what I mean:
- Ask Chat GPT: “Give me quotes about the importance of taking a holiday”
- Find one that resonates
eg. “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes…including you.”
– Anne Lamott
- Write a blog post with the quote as an opening, suggesting ways for guests to properly unwind and recharge while staying with you
2. Content ideas for social media
Constantly coming up with fresh ideas to share to your social channels can be a challenge. You’re already stressed about a busy change-over day, keeping your availability calendar up-to-date and adding new photos to your listing on AirBnB.
So the possibility of a shortcut to social media utopia is tempting…
What I typed:
Suggest social media posts for a holiday cottage
Notice I didn’t mention a place in my original question but Chat GPT assumed I was talking about Cornwall following my previous search. The more you use it, the more it learns about you and what you want.
Nothing scary to see here. Nothing to worry about. Keep reading.
I wasn’t wowed with these suggestions – they all sound a bit ‘salesy’ to me, which is a big no no for social media. Nobody is going to engage with your account if your posts are a long stream of adverts.
Sorry, Chat GPT, I’ll stick with writing my own social media posts.
3. What about tips on getting PR?
What I typed:
Can you give me some tips on getting featured in a national newspaper?
No ground-breaking insights but some useful pointers to get started if you’re new to PR.
4. Pretend to be a guest with queries
What I typed:
I am expecting a call from a potential guest looking to stay in my holiday cottage. Can you pretend to be the guest and ask me questions?
If you’ve been letting your holiday cottage for a while, you will likely know the answers to most questions asked. But if you’re new to this it could be a good way to anticipate the most likely queries.
5. Website copy
What I typed:
Write me a product description for a holiday cottage
Writing content for your website can be time consuming and daunting. It’s not just about giving your potential guests an insight into your holiday accommodation; it’s also about getting across all the benefits without waffling.
You may not be in a position to pay a copywriter to undertake this task for you, but Chat GPT can give you a broad outline that could be tweaked to suit your property and surrounding area.
In conclusion…
Like it or not, Chat GPT is here to stay – the tasks it can undertake are increasing every day, from providing customer service to writing social posts and even translating your welcome emails to guests.
Try Chat GPT for yourself – you will need to create an account, but you can use your Google account for speed and simplicity so it only takes a minute. Once you’re done, ask it anything and see where it takes you.
PS Just remember to use caution and common sense. Just because Chat GPT says it’s true doesn’t mean it is!