Growing Direct Bookings and Expanding into the 30+ Day Stay Market for Ocean View Oahu

Background

Ocean View Oahu was founded by a former civil engineer who spent 15 years in construction management before transitioning into real estate and property management. With a passion for property renovations and hospitality, the company was created to offer high-quality, well-maintained vacation homes in Oahu’s St. Louis Heights and Kaimuki neighborhoods.

Properties including Hale Aloha, Hale Mahalo, and Hale Lillikoi are situated on the hillside and offer panoramic ocean views, which helped shape the vision for the business from the beginning.

As Ocean View Oahu looked to expand its presence in the 30+ day rental market and reduce reliance on OTAs, they partnered with BuildUp Bookings to manage paid ads and email campaigns—allowing their team to stay focused on operations and guest experience.

Opportunities & Areas to Address

Direct Booking Growth and 30+ Day Stay Expansion

Ocean View Oahu wanted to increase direct bookings, reduce reliance on Airbnb and Vrbo, and expand its presence in the 30+ day stay market. To support these goals, the company sought a marketing partner with experience in the vacation rental industry.

Ocean View Oahu wanted to aggressively grow direct bookings and reduce reliance on third-party booking platforms.

The business operates using OwnerRez, Fleetwire, PriceLabs, and Enso Connect, requiring a marketing partner familiar with the short-term rental industry. To keep housing and vehicle services legally and visually distinct, custom compliant landing pages were built for each vertical — ensuring clean conversion tracking and a professional brand experience across both operations.

The company was actively pursuing growth in the 30+ day stay market, particularly among snowbirds seeking extended stays in Hawaii. A cornerstone of this effort is a dedicated American Snowbird Campaign featuring targeted banner advertising and premium placements in the American Snowbird Association’s eNewsletter, reaching a subscriber base of 30,000+.

Goals

Planning & Execution

A Vacation Rental Marketing Partnership

BuildUp Bookings partnered with Ocean View Oahu to support direct booking growth through paid advertising and ongoing marketing support.

Manage Meta and Google advertising campaigns to reach qualified travelers.

Align Google Search campaigns with Ocean View Oahu’s focus on extended stays, including a dedicated American Snowbird Campaign with targeted banner ads and featured placements in the American Snowbird Association’s 30,000+ subscriber eNewsletter.

Provide landing pages, website updates, and tracking adjustments as needed.

Overall Results

Measurable Growth Across Traffic, Users, and Revenue

During the first year of the partnership, Ocean View Oahu experienced significant growth in website traffic, website users, and overall revenue while expanding its direct marketing efforts.

Website traffic increased by 191% during the first year with BuildUp Bookings.

Website users increased by 210% during the first year of the partnership.

Ocean View Oahu generated more than $250,000 in revenue during the first year.

Video ads created for Hale Mahalo contributed to a 179% increase in Facebook campaign clicks.

Targeted Google Search campaigns generated direct conversions from travelers seeking extended stays.

From the Owner:
A Conversation with Ocean View Oahu

Tell us a little about Ocean View Oahu and what inspired you to start the business?

My background is originally in civil engineering, and I spent 15 years in construction management. Because I have always enjoyed doing my own property renovations, from drywall repair to flooring, transitioning into real estate and property management felt like a natural evolution.

I started Ocean View Oahu to offer high-quality, beautifully maintained homes in the St. Louis Heights and Kaimuki area. Our properties, Hale Aloha, Hale Mahalo, and Hale Lillikoi, sit perched on the hillside, and sharing those incredible panoramic ocean views with guests has been part of the vision from day one.

What makes Ocean View Oahu different from other vacation rental companies?

Our biggest differentiator is our “Stay + Drive” turnkey package. We realized that coordinating transportation on the island can be a massive headache for travelers. So, we combined the two. Guests can book a luxury 3- to 7-bedroom executive home and arrive to find a fully detailed 2024 Honda Odyssey (an 8-passenger setup), a Tesla Model Y, or a Jeep Wrangler waiting right in their driveway. They skip the airport rental counter entirely. Because we manage both the real estate and the fleet in-house, we can ensure a 5-star experience across the board, which has helped us earn both Airbnb Superhost and Turo All-Star Host status.

What are some long-term goals you have for the company over the next five years?

One of our major goals is aggressively expanding our luxury fleet options—officially introducing those Jeep Wranglers, Chrysler Pacificas, Dodge Durangos, and Dodge Ram Trucks—while rapidly growing our ‘Own a Car in Hawaii’ Fleet Co-Hosting program. We are also expanding into ‘experiences’ and ‘attractions’ so we can serve as a true one-stop-shop, offering guests a dedicated personal concierge experience for their entire Oahu Oasis getaway.

How did you find BuildUp Bookings, and what challenges were you looking to solve?

I wanted to aggressively grow our direct booking volume rather than relying solely on OTAs like Airbnb and Vrbo.

I also run a fairly complex operational software stack that includes OwnerRez, Fleetwire, PriceLabs, and Enso Connect. I needed a marketing partner who understood the nuances of the short-term rental industry and could manage SEO, Meta ads, and email campaigns so I could focus on operations, fleet logistics, and guest experience.

BuildUp Bookings checked all those boxes.

How has working with BuildUp Bookings improved your performance?

We have seen tremendous growth in our paid social channels. Recently, we experienced a 179% increase in clicks on our Facebook campaigns, heavily driven by the video ads the team created for Hale Mahalo.

Beyond traffic growth, BuildUp Bookings has also been instrumental in supporting our strategic pivot toward the mid-term rental market. They aligned our Google Search campaigns to target 30+ day stays, and we are already seeing high-quality direct conversions from those efforts.

What has been the most positive part of working with the BuildUp team?

The communication and agility of the team have been incredible.

Whether we need to quickly swap out a hero image for local compliance reasons, build a dedicated landing page for an email campaign, or adjust our tracking, the team responds quickly and keeps projects moving forward.

The BuildUp team always keeps the momentum going.