Blending Marketing Expertise with a Passion for Hosting: Libby Ross’ Journey

In this episode of the Hospitable Hosts podcast, we welcome Libby Ross, the owner of Co-Host Oklahoma, which offers expert STR property management services for hosts and investors. Libby is a seasoned marketer who discovered a hidden passion for hosting and guest management through her investments. Follow on Instagram.

Now, Libby manages 40 STR properties in Oklahoma and uses Hospitable to automate routine daily tasks. Libby shares her short-term rental journey, from buying her first STR property to launching a co-hosting business that has quickly positioned her as the Airbnb Community Leader for Oklahoma, and her plans for the future.   

Press Play now to discover how Libby transformed her side hustle into a thriving co-hosting business, and how Hospitable helps her with guest management.

If you prefer to read the highlights, we’ve got a summary of the key takeaways below.

How Libby Got into STR Management

Libby says her husband wanted to invest in short-term rentals some time ago, and she tried to talk him out of it multiple times. But finally, they bought a short-term rental in Norman, Oklahoma, and a year later, two short-term rentals at Lake Eufaula in Oklahoma. Along the way, her friends and family asked Libby to lend a hand.

At that time, Libby was a marketing professional, and she gradually realized that her passion was shifting in this direction. “So what I thought was my husband’s crazy idea ended up now turning into my full-time everything, and as I started to help friends and family, I just realized this is where I need to be, this is the space I belong in. And I’d like to say that I found my passion in an empty nest and began to grow. I started with Hospitable with just a handful of properties, and I am up to 40 now, so we’ve had some exponential growth in the last year for sure.”

Libby would like to add more properties to her portfolio, aiming to reach 50 by the end of the year. She notes that a significant part of the growth is attributed to the direct booking website. “Just had my first direct booking a couple of days ago, and now I’m kind of excited to see where that goes.”

A Passion for Hosting

Libby joined a co-hosting platform on Airbnb, and within the marketplace, she was able to beta-test her skills and grow, utilizing her marketing expertise to elevate the guest management experience.

“There’s just a huge part of marketing that comes into this,” Libby underlines. “What photos are we putting out there? What listings? How are we describing them and enticing the end user to make a purchase, to book with us? So I feel like I just got to niche out.

But what I like most is not chasing a paycheck, not having to invoice people often, and being able to split the money upfront with a booking. Stuff like that makes a big difference for me, and not having to deal with that, I guess, accounts receivable side of being a small business owner that I struggled in tremendously with my other business.”

Vetting Property Owners

“I've been the yes person, which in return turns into a no person because you’re so busy handling the poor owners,” Libby reveals. “I mean, some of them, they want to be slumlords and there's a slumlord in the short-term rental space.”

Libby thinks it’s essential to find a person who is passionate about the hospitality aspect of hosting and providing cool amenities, even though she offers economical stays, and she believes in them wholeheartedly.

“So I'm looking for someone who has got that passion about it. Maybe they want to learn. I don't mind teaching homeowners. I get a lot of homeowners who are here for the first time in this space. And so they have a lot of questions, and that's great. I want them to learn and be inquisitive, but I'm looking for a structure that won't be dilapidated.

So I'm not saying I take on luxury homes and perfect high-end homes. There's a space for the other ones, but someone willing to commit to the investment and not second-guess everything.”

About Using Hospitable

Libby says that at the beginning of her STR journey, she “had spreadsheet after spreadsheet of all the options that were out there.” She points out that Hospitable made things simple for her to start small.

“I didn't have any money when I started. I wasn't making a paycheck myself at that point, so investing in software was scary. But Hospitable made it simple. I was a web designer by trade before moving into marketing, and I found it to be very intuitive. What’s important to me is an intuitive piece of software. I feel like someone who has been in my shoes should be able to scope it out pretty quickly and make it happen. And I just dove right in and just found that it was so easy to get my guest experiences right, get all the messaging.”

Libby created rules to set automated messages and uses custom codes to personalize them. That allows her to get glowing reviews from guests who say that Libby was very attentive during their journey, although, in fact, she “never once typed up a message.” Libby also started using AI tools in the Hospitable’s Inbox to create “nice” responses when manually messaging her guests.

Tune in to the full episode of the Hospitable Hosts podcast to hear the inspiring story of an experienced marketing professional who has found a true calling in hosting and guest management.