Understanding Different Types of Swimmers

Your guide to knowing who your guest is

Swimply Swimmers use the platform for a variety of reasons. When making the decision to become a host, take a moment to think about who would enjoy your pool most, and what kinds of guests you can accommodate. This way you can set up your listing to best engage with ideal guests.

Here are some of the most common types of swimmers Swimply gets:

The Family Unit - Families make up the largest portion of Swimply guests, because who loves to swim more than kids? Instead of turning to public pools when the weather gets warm, parents can book a swim through Swimply, where they know they’ll have a private experience and be able to watch their kids without external distractions or concerns.

• Tips for a successful booking: make sure pool toys, floats and games are ready for use and accessible to guests. Provide poolside shaded seating to ensure adults can monitor children. Reiterate any safety rules you have before the reservation start time and answer any questions they may have.

How to market:

• In terms of your listing itself: Use words like “fun” or “family friendly” in your title or description. Advertise to potential guests that your pool is a good spot for families, and tell them why! Show guests that your pool is family friendly by taking photos that include your pool toys and floats, pool-side games and other amenities that are family oriented.

• In terms of social media: When marketing on facebook, join family activity oriented groups. On other sites make it clear that your listing is family friendly by stating it early in your post or even in your title.

The Solo Swimmer - These are usually individuals looking for a pool to relax and unwind or get a workout done. Swimmers of this type are generally attracted to simpler pools with fewer amenities and a lower price. They usually only book for an hour or two, and are very likely to use multi-dip.

• Tips for a successful booking: make sure your space is quiet and private. For the most part, these types of swimmers are low-maintenance, and just require a clean and quiet space to relax or workout.

How to Market:

• In terms of your listing itself: Use words like “private” “relaxing” or “getaway”, or use words like “exercise” or “fitness” in your title or description - find a balance that works for you. If you’re looking specifically for swimmers who want a workout pool, definitely go ahead and market it as an exercise / fitness space. But, if you want to leave it open to a broader audience, leave the wording more vague, as you can get a wide range of swimmers using words like “relaxing” etc.

• In terms of social media: When marketing on facebook, find groups of individuals looking for activities, spaces to relax or workout in alone. These can be any sort of group you can imagine - from workout groups to book groups. For workout pools, there is an added layer of marketing you can do - post flyers in gyms or fitness centers with a QR code to your listing, or partner with Physical therapists to find people needing a pool or rehab, or low impact exercising.

The Friend Group - These types of swimmers go hand in hand with the family unit. While they present different needs, they are similar in terms of the spaces they’re looking to rent. Like families they are likely looking for a pool with a nice seating area, and other amenities such as games, fire pits, grills and more.

• Tips for a successful booking: make sure seating areas are clean and comfortable, set up speaker options and have wifi available, make sure games are available, and grills and fire pits are ready to use. Communicate with these guests clearly ahead of their booking to reiterate any rules you have.

How to Market:

• In terms of social media: This group of swimmers pose a significant opportunity to expand your market exposure. This is because they are young and likely to be active on social media. Add a sign with a QR code and handle to your listing’s instagram account in your backyard. Request that they tag your account in any photos they post to Instagram. On facebook, general buying and selling groups are a great place to post, as well as groups specific to people looking for activities in your area.

The Couple - These swimmers are usually looking for a romantic, quiet space to have a date. These swimmers make up a small percentage of Swimply users, and often overlap with the family unit, friend group and solo swimmer categories. They will likely be attracted to listings with a romantic aesthetic or element to them, such as a beautiful sunset view, spa, or cozy seating area.

• Tips for a successful booking: Many hosts create date night packages, where they provide the guests with flowers, charcuterie or dessert, romantic lighting and more. This is a great way to communicate to potential guests that your pool is a great spot for a date, without indicating it in your title and description and cutting yourself off from other markets.

• How to Market: In addition to creating a special “date night” amenity on your listing itself, you can post some photos showing what a date night at your pool might look like on your Instagram account. You can also find facebook groups oriented towards couples looking for things to do and post your listing there. And of course, you can use the fans feature to let your guests know your spot is great for a date, or even run a marketing campaign for Valentines day or other parts of the year.

Parties & Events - Swimmers from all of the above categories use Swimply pools for events all the time. From birthday parties or family BBQs to bridal showers or watch parties, hosts and swimmers have collaborated to do it all. While events require a bit more effort and coordination, they can be extremely lucrative. The guest count is higher & more amenities are likely to be booked - in fact, some hosts create party package amenities or cleaning fee amenities that guests are required to select if they want to host an event.

Here’s how to ensure an event at your pool goes well:

• Communicate clearly and frequently with the guest leading up to the event. They may want to see the space, discuss event logistics and any amenities they need.

• If they want to see the space you can: have them reserve a 1 hour swim at a discounted rate (using fans feature), video call them, direct them to your pool’s Instagram page for videos or more photos of the space.

• Reiterate rules you have regarding your space. For example, communicate your rules around glass by the pool, alcohol consumption, adult to child ratio for kids parties or requests for a lifeguard after a certain number of guests.

• If you find that your listing is a popular spot for parties, it might be worth investing in some features or amenities that help facilitate these types of events. For example, invest in some birthday banners or themed decorations. Create a package for specific kinds of events so you are not only indicating to potential guests you’re open to hosting events, but even providing them with a way to make planning and execution easier.

• Or, if you find that you love hosting parties, and you only want to allow event bookings, you can raise the number of guests allowed under your base price so your listing is geared toward swimmers looking to host parties.

As you can see, Swimply users vary greatly in their needs and wants. There are tons of ways you can cater a booking to a specific swimmer type, or even set up your entire listing so it’s specified to a specific category.