How to Identify Your Ideal Guest for Your Hospitality Business

​Often when I talk to vacation rental hosts, one of the first questions I ask is:

“Who is your customer avatar?”

The most common answer?

“Couples… families… maybe digital nomads?”

That's a good start, but...

A true customer avatar is a complete person—someone with routines, frustrations, desires, and daydreams. The kind of person who reads your listing and instantly feels like it was made for them.

When you define this person clearly, everything you create becomes sharper:

• Your photos highlight what matters to them

• Your description speaks their language

• Your title stops them mid-scroll

• Your design choices start serving a purpose

Trying to appeal to everyone is the fastest way to disappear into the feed.

Why It Matters

Your customer avatar is the foundation of your brand, your guest experience, and ultimately your pricing power.

When you skip this step:

• You attract mismatched guests

• Your value becomes harder to communicate

• You default to features instead of feelings

• Your space loses its story

When you define your avatar:

• Your listing gains focus

• You create clarity in your messaging

• You begin to build something people want to return to

This single choice—who you’re building for—can affect every decision you make.
​

The Two Hosts

Let’s imagine two hosts. Both own cabins in the woods of upstate New York. Same layout. Same view. Same access to the lake trail.

But their approach—and their results—are dramatically different.

Host A builds with the market in mind.

The listing reads: 2BR Cabin | Pet-Friendly | Near Hiking | Fast Wi-Fi​
Photos show the rooms in sequence, brightened and edited. The tone is professional. The reviews are fine. But the calendar feels unpredictable—booked one weekend, empty the next. Guests leave notes like, “It was nice,” or “Had everything we needed.” Host A built a space for anyone. And now she gets everyone. And no one in particular.

Host B builds with someone specific in mind.

Let’s say Host B created a customer avatar and called her Clara.
Clara is 36, lives in Brooklyn, and works in publishing. She’s good at her job—focused, responsible, dependable. But over the last year, the pace has worn her down. The subway feels louder. The meetings more draining. Her creativity has gone silent. She needs space to reset—mentally, emotionally, creatively.

She wants to spend a weekend in nature with someone she loves. She wants to cook slowly, read for hours, walk without checking her phone, and finally return to a half-finished short story she started two years ago.

So Host B builds a place for Clara.

She names the home The North House.
The first photo shows a linen-covered table with a ceramic mug, an open journal, and morning light streaming through the window.
There’s a writing desk by the bookshelf.
A shelf with tea and poetry books.
An outdoor table where someone could eat slowly or sketch for hours.
The house has warmth, texture, presence.

Host B isn’t trying to impress everyone. She’s trying to serve one person fully.

And because she does that so well, guests like Clara find her. So do others—those who may not match her exactly, but who want the same feeling. They book. They stay. They return.
They leave reviews that say things like:

“I came here to slow down. I left with new ideas.”

How to Create Your Avatar

Here’s a process I use:

1. Start with what you already know​
If you’ve hosted guests before, reflect on:

• Who left the most heartfelt reviews?

• Who took care of your space?

• Who seemed to get what you built?

2. Think beyond surface-level traits​
Go deeper than “remote worker” or “a couple.”
Ask yourself:

• What does this person need when they book?

• What are they running from—or running toward?

• What kind of moment are they seeking?

• What would they say to their partner on the drive home?

3. Give your avatar dimension​
Name them. Picture their job, their commute, their favorite time of day.

This is Clara. She works in a creative field, but feels disconnected from it. She’s not looking for luxury—she’s looking for meaning. She values presence. She wants time to reconnect—with her work, her partner, and herself.

Now imagine designing your property just for her.

What Changes

Once you’ve defined your avatar, you’ll notice the decisions come faster and with more confidence.

• Your title isn’t generic—it’s intentional.

• Your photography doesn’t document—it evokes.

• Your messaging stops explaining—and starts connecting.

Most importantly, your property starts to feel less like a listing—and more like a destination with a heartbeat.

That’s how you create something worth returning to.
That’s how you stand out.