Dominique Hart (3:00)

Thank you so much for having me, Liam. I'm so excited to be here today.

Liam (3:04)

I'm excited to have you on here today. So Dominique, what you want listeners to take away from from this episode?

Dominique Hart (3:11)

Yeah. One of the main things that I want everyone to take away from this episode is how you can truly accomplish an extraordinary and a dynamic business being exactly who you are. And no need to shift or change that for anyone because that's how dynamic brands are created.

Liam (3:29)

I love that. I love that. So I've given you a little bit of an introduction, but can you give us a bit of background like how did you come to be both short term rental host and so good at running?

Dominique Hart (3:41)

Yeah. And especially with a question like that, it's so loaded. But to be brief, on the professional side of things, I've always been one who's always creating something new. Right. Creating a new idea or thinking of new perspectives just along my journey, growing up and paying attention to that about myself. And as it came about in those coming of years when you're in high school and going off into college, I said, what is it that I want to do for the rest of my life where I will not be bored, where it'll be thrilling every day and every day won't be the same. And as I did that, I uncovered advertising, believe it or not. And I went on to college and got my degree in advertising and I went to Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for my international peeps out there. And that is in Philadelphia here in the States. And I then went on to achieve my master's in branding from the School of Visual Arts here in New York City as well. And so I'm originally from New York, born and raised for the majority of my life. And I am a first Generation Jamaican American. And so with that, my world has definitely won a first and full of discovery and which is one of the main reasons that I've seen along this professional journey why I said at the top of the show that I want everyone to make sure that you are taking away as much nuggets as you possibly can from today. But that understanding who you are as a person and how that can exude through everything you do is what makes this world that you live in and the world that you're trying to create for yourself and your family, it's what's going to transcend for generations to come. And I think who we are as people can get underestimated in this world of branding and marketing and trying to be this, you know, big figure that doesn't come about just because it comes about because you are fully aware of who you are as a person and standing 10 toes down on that, hopefully that just kind of wraps that bubble up. And as a part of being an entrepreneur in this branding and marketing space, being a short term rental owner, along with my other partners, there are partners that we do have in the lavish and live experience that being family, My dear cousin Celia Lindsay, as well as my mother, Marcia Williams, and my mom first and foremost has been in real estate for as long as I could breathe. And so that influence in the power of real estate and what it can actually do for families from generation to generation has been a major influence. And then my cousin is a beautiful decorator, beautiful interior designer, creative mind behind the lavish and live experience. And so they're so passionate about this space and me being the branding person that I am, they're like you coming on board. And so here we are after some really amazing units so far and a journey that I'm sure we're going to be diving into today. So load of question, Liam, but I love it, love it.

Liam (7:14)

It sounds like you're from a really talented family. I mean like my. I speak to my cousin and the most creative they get is when they mix tomato ketchup with mayo and create a new sauce. But having a creative family and bringing people on board who have got skill is so important. So before we move on to more of the kind of design questions I've got for you. Sorry, the branding questions I've got for you. But the, the question I'd have is where is your short term rental units? How many are there and yeah, what are they like?

Dominique Hart (7:45)

Yeah. So for the lavish and live experience, lavish and live being the core brand name, we currently have as of today have two units that we're really proud of and excited about because they have been really popular. Like as soon as we wisdom we've, we've been getting brand booked and we're excited about that. We actually just started back in November of 2023, so we're freshly new compared to other counterparts. But just from the two units alone we're doing some really good. We're having some really good booking numbers and we're excited about where it's going. And, and some breaking news. We have unit number three that we just got approved for. So congratulations. Thank you, thank you. I literally just found out yesterday while I was traveling and really excited about it. Just looking forward to the expansion. And we're starting in Connecticut even though I'm in New York, short distance in downtown Stamford is where we're starting and the plan is to go eventually nationwide across the different cities. That's the long term vision. But even longer term vision is to go international. I mean we're an international family so we would be remiss if we didn't cross borders and share this lavish and live experience with as much people as we possibly could.

Liam (9:12)

I love that. I love the vision and I'm definitely feeling it. So how is building a strong personal brand helped you within short term rental but also in, in life so far?

Dominique Hart (9:24)

Yeah, so for my personal brand, if you haven't noticed already, I, I love a lavish thing or two and, but that is a part of what makes me me. Right. And so, and that is for every. As the same for every client. Right. We all have these unique things about us that people gravitate to us. I mean for, you know, it's for all my business professionals out there, when you are at, you know, networking events or if you're around friends or if you're around family or if you're on your colleagues, people gravitate to you for unique special things about you that even you might not be aware of. And that's where self assessment really comes into play. Right. And self awareness. Why self awareness, especially in personal branding is so important? It's because of the fact that if you not if you're not aware of the gifts that you have, how in the world is everyone else supposed to know what they are? How in the world is everyone else supposed to benefit from that? How in the world is is that unique ability that you have or that essence that you bring to the life, how are people supposed to incorporate that into their own lives and learn from that and grow from that or even be changed or transformed from that. I mean, I can count off the top of my head a list of people where every time you are around them, you just can't help but feel good. You know, you can't help but feel excited or leave feeling inspired. Right? And the thing is, they're not trying to do it. They do it without even thinking, because that is the core of who they are. And so what makes it powerful, Liam, is when you recognize that, harnessed it, own it, and are willing to share that. And so when we talk about personal branding and lavish and live, that is, you know, me being the brand manager of the. Of the company, I paid attention to each of our personalities as a family. I paid attention to each of our personalities in terms of how do we want people to feel, right? I paid attention to my mom and my cousin and how in our culture, we serve people with love. You know, if you've ever been to Jamaica, pretty sure a lot of people have. If you haven't, what's going on? Get down there. Okay? But in Jamaica, we serve people with love, and we have this vibrant culture that people just embrace. Why? Because that's the core of who we are as a people, and so we share that with the world. That is a personal brand in a cultural sense, but one that can absolutely be implemented in everyone's life. And so as I paid attention to these things, how my family, how we serve people, how in my culture, we serve people, and what experience we always want people to feel as they leave our homes, as they leave our presence. I was just like, oh, my goodness. Like, yeah, like, we want people to not only just enjoy our units and our space, but we want them to live, you know, just live this ultimate, great life that you want. So we've had people in our units who came for birthdays. They did, like, little cute family, little birthday get together with just their immediate family, like, five of them. And they. And they shared as they're leaving. Oh, my gosh. We had such a great time. Thank you so much. This was such a great place, like. And we make sure that in our decorating of the place that it is vibrant, it has a unique touch to it. It's very homey, but it's also touch of decadence, too, right? That lavish aspect of the company as well. And so when you pay attention to these things about you, you'd be surprised how magically it can show up in different parts of your brand, even in your messaging, even in how you interact with clients and how you interact with people. It Comes up in so many different ways. And I was very, very intentional about that with the lavish and live brand.

Liam (13:37)

I really do like it. And it's very clear to see. I mean, I've seen your listings and, you know, it is very clear to see that the brand is consistent all the way through, which is, I think, is super important that people get the vibe off the brand. And it's also important when I say vibe, people are going off emotion more than, you know, logic. You know, everyone tends to buy with emotion. If not, we wouldn't do some of the decisions we. We do. You know, people get nice cars not because they're economical, because it's the way they make them feel, you know, and. And that's exactly when they book a stay. People want to feel a particular feeling, and that's why they. They come and stay there. Now, whether that is group stay with a big family and they want to be, you know, the. The head of the. The family to. To invite the rest of the family together or whether or not it's a group going away is, you know, a group of friends, or whether or not it's just a romantic couples retreat, you know, all these different things. It's about trying to make people feel something. And it's really clear as well, Dominique, that the. For those who are listening on the audio, you won't be able to see, but Dominique, in the background of her zoom that we're on at the moment, has got a QR code. So it's very easy for people to go and find her brand. She's got the logo in the other corner, so it's very easy to identify the brand once they get there. It's got the name and the position of the company. So there's. There's so much on there which is very clear. And like you say, even the way that you present yourself, Dominique, with I love the earrings and you know, like that it does is consistency across the brand. So for the hosts who are listening to this, and I get to meet people, especially as new members of Boostly, I mean, we always talk about you really got to identify your target avatar, but we don't always talk about. You've really got to identify your brand and your business's brand quite as much. And this is where I think people listening to this is, you know, can learn from. So for those hosts out there who go, do you know what? I don't want to put myself into my brand. I don't want to, you know, go out there, maybe do interviews and podcasts. And, and do lives and social media posts and all that. What would you say to those people? What advice would you have for those.

Dominique Hart (15:47)

Yeah, I think, you know, and I get this question often with different interviews that I do. And I really want people to understand when you pay attention to your strengths, you literally can build your business around that. Just because you see me here, you know, doing interviews today, that might not necessarily be your strong suit. Your strong suit might be customer service and you do a knockout job with that. But when it comes to a camera, you like shrivel up and kind of you're nervous. That's you being nervous in any kind of capacity is not going to be something that's going to advance your brand forward, Right? You have to pay attention to your strengths. That's why you see that I'm here doing my interview today because for my mother and for my cousin, that's not necessarily their strong suit. Everyone does a beautiful job at what they do best. And when it comes to growth in business, you want to pay attention to that, right? And whoever can pick up where the piece is in their own strength, let them do that, right? And so for everyone watching, pay attention to that. And as you do that, you'll begin to see this places where you might not necessarily want to live in every day. And then you can start to build out the pieces of your business from there. And so just understand that when you see a formula working for another short term rental owner doesn't mean that it has to be your formula, right? But understand the building blocks that make successful businesses, right? And understand where do I fall in the mix and how can I make this my own? The beautiful thing about being an entrepreneur is you get to set the limits, you get to set the terms. You get to say, this is how I want to show up in the world and this is how I want my brand to show up in the world. But also do not be remiss about what are the successful pieces of what makes a company great and build accordingly. It's very different when you shift from going from employer to the, from going from employee to employer. It's very different, right? You're used to being in a world when you are the employee where someone else is telling you what you need to be good at, how you need to show up doesn't matter, just get there, just get it done. And I want it done in this time and during this time of the day when you are the employer, right? When you're coming into this world where you get to set how many hours before someone gets to book you get to set how people book with you. When they book with you, do they need a deposit? Do they not need a deposit? A lot of decisions to be made, but all a part of how do I want to cultivate this experience so that other people can experience the business and the vision that I want to put out there in the world. And the beautiful thing about that, especially in short term rentals, yes, we're all in the same industry, but we do not have to do business the same way. For some you, you guys are owning hotels, many hotels, branded hotels. For some of you, you're just starting out like how we are with two or three units or maybe just one. For some of you is for Covid, right? Covid birthed your business because you had property that you were sitting on, right? And you're like, what are we going to do now? Right? And here is this world that has now opened up to you. Opportunities like this show up all the time. But when you are an entrepreneur, it's how you step into those opportunities that make all the difference. And when you pay attention to who you are as a personal brand, it's going to shine through all throughout your business if you let it.

Liam (19:29)

I think the most important thing there is, you've just hit the nail on the head, is that you get to decide as a business owner, as entrepreneur and, you know, employer, how you want people to experience your brand and ultimately your brand and your values and everything like that will shine through based on that experience that you want them to have. And the great thing is it doesn't have to be logical. You know, like if everything we did was not putting our own flare and our own kind of stamp on it, then you may not have some of the decor that you've got, or you might not sign off your messages the way that you sign them off. You know, all these convey, you know, is it informal, is it formal? You know, and all these type of different vibes people can, can convey. And that's the, that's the sandbox. That's the fun of, of doing it, isn't it? You know, you get to create something in the world that simply would not exist if you didn't come along and put some of these elements into it. And even, you know, every, every good business, there's usually a team behind it. I mean, in the early days, there's usually one person run, run ragged, but there's a good team behind it. And it's relying on each person's, you know, area of unique skill and their spark of genius, which can help put it into the soup that is the business to, to really make a success out of it. And I think there's hosts who really need to hear that, that you don't have to copy what everybody else does. You really don't, dear. And actually by doing something completely different and tearing up the, the book than doing something that you want to do, you may find that you're happier doing it, hopefully more successful doing it as well.

Dominique Hart (21:12)

And something else, Liam, just got me excited for a second because you've, you're touching on a few things and I don't, I don't want to, I don't want the moment to pass by. You mention about these experiences that people want to have. Right. And why people may book. And I really want to just talk about that for just a moment if that's okay, because I want people to understand. This whole industry blossomed and bloomed and I'm going to get a little technical on some branding things here, so get your pen and paper a little bit here. But this whole industry blossomed because there was an underlying need for that was not being met in the hospitality industry for a very long time. Okay. Why do I say that? Because we've all heard the stories and we've all had the experience of going to these hotels before the Airbnbs of the world, before the booking.com of the world and so on and so forth. You go to these hotels and they all kind of look the same, right? They have the same carpet or they have the same frilly, frilly, you know, oil painting that nobody knows what this oil painting is like, what is that? Why is it here? Or it's the decor that just looks like the other hotel chain brand and it's just, you know, you just kind of get used to it and you just utilize the space, do what you got to do and move on, right? But here comes Airbnb and these other short term rental sites and other places where people can have these alternate experiences during their stays that are being provided by the everyday person just like themselves. And they're like, I would love to stay at this place. Not only it might be a little cheaper or might be a little bit more, but it's nothing like what I'm going to see at Marriott. It's nothing like what I'm going to experience at insert hotel chain here, right? It's, it's nothing like what I'm going to experience there because it feels homey or it feels vibrant or it, this seems Like a fun place to be. Book. Yeah, I'm going to book right now. Like, oh, this looks fun, this looks intriguing, this looks interesting. Everyone's looking for an interesting experience, whatever their version of interesting may be, even if that's in corporate America or the corporate world, right? Just because you're traveling for business or work doesn't mean that everyone wants to stay in like a really plain, dry, starky, you know, kind of room or house, right? Sometimes people want a little pizzazz. They may want a little neon on the walls, you know, they may want a pink bed, you know, they may want these vibrant experiences that they're just not going to get at another hotel chain. And so this need that people have always had was identified using some words here, was identified in the listings that were put up by short term rental homeowners just like you and me. And so why does that matter? Because if someone didn't step up and say, I want to curate these types of experiences for people and be bold enough to put it out there, someone out there in the world would not have been able to see it for themselves, perceive it for their own meaning as to what this is gonna, what this stay is gonna mean for them and be able to say, I would love to stay here. Click. I would love to stay here. Book. But can you imagine a world where short term rental owners said, oh, I don't wanna compete with Marriott, or I want to compete with Marriott, let me give them the same Marriott experience. Not saying Marriott is a horrible establishment or anything of that nature, but just for the general hotel experience, right? Let's say we just all decorated our units like the major hotel chains, then we'd be part of the problem, right? When in business you want to be part of the solution. And so creating these experiences not say that you have to break the bank in order to do that, but if you are purposeful about creating these experiences, it should show up in your business. It should show up in how you communicate to your, to your guests. It should show up in how you're designing your spaces. Because at the end of the day, people are looking for amazing experiences no matter what their endeavors are. And that's a unique aspect about being dynamic because it's not what we put out there that sets the tone, it's what that means to the person buying it that means everything for our bottom line. And so I want, I didn't want to pass up that moment. Liam.

Liam (26:10)

No, no, it's cool. And you know, there's some points there which I want to touch on and then shortly we'll come on to what the hosts can do, you know, in their own business to help with their personal branding. But before we do, I just wanted to touch on, on some of that which is, you know, the hotel industry is definitely, I think start to take notice of what short term rentals are doing because now you start to see hotels with brightly colored, you know, slightly different, these apartment hotels which are all coming around. Which is really cool to see that the industry is moving on, isn't it? It's starting to, starting to mature. And the other thing which is so true about what you've said, there is any of these aspects which somebody picks up and that means something to them and they come and book it grabs their attention. And one of the people that I follow always says that money follows attention. At the end of the day, if you're bland and boring and you follow the status quo, then unfortunately you're going to get what the status quo gets. But if you're brave and you mentioned the word bold and I think bold is a great word for, for this, if you're bold enough to put out your idea, your brand and you know, your design into the world, then you're going to attract those people who where that means something to them and the money will come along with it.

Mark Simpson (27:25)

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Liam (28:58)

So the question is, how can hosts who may not consider themselves bold, but start to get the confidence to go out there and to create their own either personal brand or add touches of their design and branding into their homes, their short term rental homes?

Dominique Hart (29:15)

I want to break down the word bold for a moment, right? So we hear these, these words in the industry all the time. Bold, big, powerful, right? We hear, we hear those words. Bold can be in the form of colors you may use. It can be bold in terms of the tone of voice that your brand actually has, right? How what your advertising may look like. Bold can be in how you show up. The fact that you're showing up, right, is bold because there are a lot of people who say they want to be in this industry and they're nowhere to be found, right? They're still googling around, right? But the fact that you're showing up and you're doing this, that is bold in its own right, right? And so understand that bold doesn't even have to be your moniker. I mean, you can be a person who really loves plaid, okay? This is real. You can be someone who really loves plaid. And in each of your units, there is not in a way that's going to hurt the eye, but. But with some really good interior design, that could be your signature mark every time. Maybe it could be a plaid couch, it could be maybe a painting or something. There's a unique moniker, a unique identifier that really lets people know, oh, this is a X, Y and Z establishment, right? This is, this is, this is a, you know, XYZ hotels, boutique hotels, like, like, oh, I love staying here. I know how to find them. I know, I know this thing. Or, you know, it could be just, even just the logo, right? There are so many ways in which you can show up. It could be maybe you like pastel colors and you're decorating your units utilizing pastel colors, right? But in a way that's really pleasing for the eye because you might have a cozy home type of aesthetic that you may want to exhibit with someone for someone else. You may go the drastic route with the eons and the Bold. And the. Because that is the brand that you want and the experience. Notice I keep saying experience, but this is the experience that you want your guests to have or guests like that are looking for, right? And so how you show up when you identify the people that you want to serve, you are also defining how in which you want to serve them. And so you're paying attention to what they like, pay attention to their social media, right? Hey, if there's someone on social media, oh my goodness, I would love if this person would come and stay at our establishment. Okay, what kind of, what kind of pay attention. Every time they post their hotel stays, what is it about the hotel stay that they love so much? If they did stay at an Airbnb, what was it about that Airbnb that they love so much? How can you put it into your units? How can you put it into your properties, right? In a way that still communicates your brand but also serves them in the process, right? So it's a two pronged approach, right? It's not just only just serving the guests, right? It's also how are we communicating our messaging in a way that fully serves them. And so we're both getting the best out of this exchange, right? And so because here's the thing, when you're in short term rental industry and you're serving your guests, you don't want to serve so much to the point where you lose the love of the industry and the love of your business in the process, right? You want it to be something that you're excited to get up and continuously do every day, but at the same time, you still need to make sure that you're paying attention to the guest experience along the way, right? And so I really want people to understand that there's a two pronged approach to how you are being successful with your personal brand as it relates to your audience. It's paying attention to what they like, what they need, why do they need it. And the best brands do it before they even know that's what they need, right? But that takes research, right? That takes paying attention, that takes listening, right? To. To all of my relationship dwellers out there and my relationship gurus. You know what I'm talking about, right? In order to have the best relationship, you have to be the best listener. You need to continuously work on listening to what they need and how you can provide that service for them, because that's how you're going to beat out your competition every time, right? So when people, for example, go back to lavish and live one More time with our units. It's always decorated lavishly, but we also make sure that we're not breaking the bank while we do it right. So when people stay at our units, they're staying because, like, oh, this looks so interesting. Oh, this is nothing. We've. We have these reviews and you can look it up. This is nothing like any of the other Airbnbs that I've stayed in before. This is nothing like any of the other places that I've rented before. Why? Because we give it a homey feel. It doesn't feel like bare minimum, like we just threw something into a unit and said, rent it. We understand that in this industry, we have to start from somewhere. So if that is a situation where you were in, hey, I just got started. I just put together what I knew could work. There's nothing wrong with that. Because as an entrepreneur, everyone, and I mean everyone has a day one. Everyone has a day zero. Everyone has a day one. What matters is how you approach the next day and the next day and the next day after that. That when you accumulate all those next day experiences and how you show up every single day, that is what sets the momentum of how your business is going to grow, how it's going to expand, and how people gravitate to you. Because you are continuously identifying these needs in a way that only you can and in a way that this experience can only be had by us. And we completely own that.

Liam (35:23)

I love it. Yeah. And I completely agree that at the end of the day, there's people out there who have got, you know, day one, they're learning this for the first time. There's people who have been doing this a while. How would somebody measure the success of their kind of personal brand and design? Is there any kind of telltale signs that they can look at their own business and go, you know what? I know I could improve this. Is there, is there places they should look or is there kind of feedback they should get? How do they kind of measure the success of, I guess, their own personal brand, but also that of their hospitality brand?

Dominique Hart (35:56)

Yeah, you can measure a couple ways. Actually, you can measure your personal brand success based on the feedback that you receive. And I want to make sure that I'm really specific here. I want you to pay attention to the words that they're using when they're describing their experience. After staying with you. No matter what your establishment is, if it's a large, you know, vacation home or if it's a small unit that you are, that you are listing or Hosting. If you are doing corporate units, if you have a boutique hotel, pay attention to the words that they're using after they've stayed with you. Why do I say that? Remember that two way conversation, that two way street that I was talking about? We're serving our guests, but we're also making sure that our brand that we've created, this is our baby, this is our brain child. This is our, you know, this is our moneymaker here, right? That how that is being portrayed into the world. If they're using the same words that you would ultimately want people to say as you are putting your brand out there, you know, you're having a good conversation. You know that, okay, I'm on to something here because they love it. This is also what we're serving out. And they're naturally, without prompting, without you telling them what to say, they're naturally using that same language back with you. It could even be in the verbiage that they're using in terms of how they speak, right? If you, if, if you're like, hey, where the hey bro brothers, just throw this out there, Leah. Right? We're the hey brothers, you know, hospitality group, right? And then every time someone says, oh my goodness, this was amazing, or this was such a bang out experience, like, hey bro, we love it so far. And they might have whatever question they have while they're staying with you, but you notice that they're using that language back with you and you guys are now having a certain tone of a conversation now. You know, okay, we're onto something because they're picking up the language that we are dishing out and they're using it back with us. Or let's say you like to have a brand that has like a touch of elegance. Like let's say you're like touch of elegance hospitality group. And you know, you have someone who says, oh my goodness, this was such a lovely day. This was so elegant. It was so nice. It was so serene staying here. We just loved it. You know that they have received that, the experience that you have wanted to give out, right? And so we noticed that in our units and especially at the lavish and live experience here, we noticed that with our clientele. So with our clientele, they'll always say, oh my goodness, this was such a lavish day. You had all the amenities that we need. We love the gold utensils. Lavish, right? Whereas our counterparts might have silver or it might be a little on the cheaper side, right? Ours, it feels like quality and it's a touch of gold, right? In our establishments, we always have a touch of gold in each of one of our units because that's also a part of our brand. That's also part of our manicure moniker as it relates to lavish and lips. So you're always going to see a touch of gold in our establishments, right. No matter how what direction we try to go in with that decor. So pay attention. What language are they using? Pay attention to the reviews. What language are they using in your customer service interactions? No matter how large your corporation is or how small your business is, even if you're a mom and pop shop, it does not matter. Pay attention to that. If they are, if you are each up and you want them to get a mom and pop feel. We don't want to grow beyond five units. We don't want to grow beyond our one unit. That is you defining the brand that you want to have and letting people feel that that catered to experience. Are they saying that in the reviews that matters, right. When they're on social media and they're posting your your units, Right. How are they talking about it? That matters. And for you on the listening end, whatever language they are using, you want to make sure you reflect that. Especially if you feel like that is a part of your brand, reflect that in your messaging. Switch it up on the website a little bit, right? You can say our customers love X, Y and Z. They use words like this, like, you know that you can say these things in every aspect of your business. And if you do have a team, I'm talking to my larger businesses out there. If you do have a team who is interacting with guests on your behalf, you want to make sure that they are also embodying that because that is a part. When I say that, I mean the messaging and the tone in which people are experiencing. So if you say that we're this lively brand, but when it comes to your customer service, you sound like really dry and corporate. You may want to switch that up a bit, right? Because there, that is a piece. When you talk about identifying, right, that is a piece of the brand. That is a piece of the business that needs a touch of that brand that you said that you were intentional about. It needs to be a part of that. Because the whole point is people are not just booking with you because you're the most convenient. That may be part of the decision. But notice when it comes to short term rentals, we're very big on the images that are being used on each of these platforms because we want to make sure that we're communicating clearly the guests or potential guests. This is the experience that you're going to have with us, and we want you here. So if that's what we're going to be intentional about, we need to be intentional about that all throughout. Throughout the process. And so pay attention. It's going to cause you to, you know, peek in on some conversation. It's going to cause you to pay attention to those reviews that you're getting, not just seeing the fact that the review came across your email, right. To say, oh, so and so left you a review. Great, that's fine. But what did they say? Make a. Make an Excel spreadsheet. Excel spreadsheets are still good for this, right? Especially when it comes to your brand. What are some common words that people are using? How can we embody more of that in our brand? And that's how that better iteration of your business continues to grow and accelerate. And that's where this, here's the thing, Liam. The brands that we know and love do exactly this. So I want everyone to understand in the world of branding, this is what the major brands are doing that I want to make sure that you're doing in your. And Liam wants to make sure that you're doing in your business. Right? Because in order to grow, however, that growth, that type of growth looks for you. Right? Again, not modeling yourself after other people's businesses, but defining it for yourself, whatever that growth looks like for you in your mind of where you're trying to get to, you need to be paying attention to what people are saying about you so that you can continue to deliver that great experience that only you know how to do also.

Liam (43:09)

Definitely, definitely. And I think it's such good advice. I mean, ultimately, your brand and if, if they're using the kind of language in the reviews and responding to your brand in the way that you want them to respond, that is a really good measure of success. And in general, I just think that is so important for everybody listening to this. And you've inspired me, Dominique, with, you know, you see people where they're scaling like 300 units. You don't have to be that person needing to scale 300. You could have a brand which goes, look, this is what the brand is and it'll grow when the properties are right to bring those on to represent this brand. And you can just get really known for those for that kind of feel. One side question, which, which I know people would be asking, is if you're a brand, if you're a host manager, a lot of the time you get given stock which doesn't necessarily represent all your values, you know, or offered stock, which doesn't represent all your values. So it might not quite fit. You might have a more hospitality, you know, Instagrammable kind of brand that for places, but somebody might offer you a corporate home. Would you say to those people, do you know what if it doesn't fit your brand, maybe don't confuse the brand? Or would you say, do you know what, as you grow, does the, kind of, does the brand, I guess what does it, does it water down a bit as, as, as you get more stock? Or how do, how would you prevent that?

Dominique Hart (44:38)

Yeah, you prevent the watering down of your brand by setting the tone and setting the standard and making sure that it's a part of every touch point as you grow. I mean, by that, because here's the thing. If you are not embodying it, let's say, let's, let's skip ahead. Okay, let's skip ahead a little bit. Let's say you are that big company. Let's say you have grown to whatever that looks like for you. Right? If you are not embodying what that brand is supposed to be from the top, everyone below you, they're not going to be able to identify what it should be either. So let's rewind, let's come back to a day like today where you're just starting out or from wherever you are. Because even if you are at that big stage of a brand, it's not too late to change. And I can also share with you how we can help change that and kick that into gear for you. But before we do that, it's important to know that you have to set the tone from the very beginning. You have to set the tone from day one. And so for those of you who are thinking about getting into short term rentals and you're hearing me for the first time, congratulations, you're in a better seat than a lot of people right now. But if you have already gotten started and you're saying, dominique, I just got started with wherever I could, however I could, and I'm trying to figure this out, you're still in a really good place because you can start to define what that brand is today. You can define how is it that I want to interact with my customers, how do I want to interact with my guests in a way that really communicates the ultimate vision and the ultimate experience I want them to have. Right. You can start to define that. It could be through, you know, just using Plain old Google Docs, right? Just setting the tone. Every time someone messages us, I want to make sure that we always leave them with an inspirational quote or something like that. Or every time someone has a question, we always want to make sure that we have this signature at the end of our messages. Whatever, start defining what those little things are. Because as someone comes on board, guess what instruction you're going to give them? You're going to give them that instruction every time. For example, with customer service, every time someone messages us, I want to make sure that you're using this signature and I want you to always leave them with an inspirational quote. Here's a bank of inspirational quotes that I've put together that you can utilize or feel free to add to this list so that they are a part of that band brand building experience as well. Right? But if it's not defined, there's nothing to pass on. Right? And so that's really important. If you have a certain type of color scheme, for example, in our company, there is a specific hex code, and a hex code is a hashtag with a series of numbers and letters, right. That defines a specific color in the grand scheme of colors in our online and offline world. And so especially online when it comes to hex codes. And so what is that specific color could be crafted from your designers, it could be crafted from even yourself. Like, hey, I just saw this color on the color wheel and I liked it. And I just. That's fine. If that's what you did, go back and figure out what exactly was that color, because that needs to show up on all of your communications. It needs to show up on your websites, your flyers, your social media. That needs to show up everywhere. So that way, if you have a creative person coming on, if you have an assistant or a social media marketing team, right, they're taking your direction. They may not be employees of yours, but they are hard as your teeth, right? And so they're taking your direction. But if you haven't defined what that standard for your color scheme is, then they're just going to be choosing any old color that matches your red. They're going to choose any old color that matches your blue, they're going to choose any old color. And next thing you know, when you really look back over all of your collective marketing body of work, which I suggest you to do, pick up what I'm putting down, look at your collective body of marketing work and look back and say, can I say that this branding has been consistent throughout? If the answer is no, you know, you have work to do. If the answer is yes, but we can be a little better, then you know you have work to do. Right. And that's fine because again, we're always showing up right in the next day and the next day we're showing up better. We're showing up better because we're creating that momentum that's going to create these dynamic brands and experiences that people are going to have. So you want to make sure you're defining the foundation so that way as your brand continues to grow, it doesn't lose its thunder. It only gets better. That's how you make it happen. Boom.

Liam (49:39)

That is. There's so many people who needed to hear that. And Dominique, that is really, really a good answer. So I want to make sure that everybody listening to this can come and find out more information from you. And then I'm going to squeeze in one fun question and one inspirational question before we call it and a time on this. But so Dominique, how can we find out more from you and let us know any services that you do for. For people listening.

Dominique Hart (50:06)

Yeah, absolutely. So again, my name is Dominique Hart. I am actually by trade a visual brand strategist as much as I am an entrepreneur and now short term rental owner as well. And so with that, I also do speak at various engagements for, especially for entrepreneurs and my corporate trainings as well. So for those of you who do have corporate brands and you're like, we a little bit of that Dominique judge coming in here. Fantastic. Feel free to reach out. You can absolutely do that. And also for if you actually want to actually have an agency do this for you, I got news for you. We do that. We do that. We do that every single day in my branding agency and digital marketing agency called Dynamic Endeavors. And that is because we help create Dynamic endeavors for our clients each and every day in their brands and their businesses. And so with that, you can actually reach out to us at Dynamic Endeavors. Com. Now in Dynamic Endeavors it is spelled a little differently because we are a little different and we do things magically over there. And dynamic is spelled with a K. So D Y N A m I k endeavors.com and I know, Liam, you will be sharing all of that information with everyone in the notes below and or if you're listening, it will be there in the show notes for you as well. But head on over to dynamice endeavors.com and feel free to schedule a consultation. It would just be you and me or one of my strategists and we will absolutely be Happy to help you along this beautiful, dynamic branding journey. And that goes for if you're just starting out or if you are a major brand or if you have your boutique hotels or if you have your many, many units and you're like, you know, we've had this amazing success, but I feel like our brand can be better. Or I see. Or I see these mini pockets and I don't know what to do about them. Let's have a conversation so we can fully revamp in a way that's really going to center your brand dynamically so that your guests and your people can really identify you for all that you are, not just some of it and not for some of it that's left hidden. We want that on the forefront and we want it shown dynamically. So feel free to reach out in that way. And for those of you who just want to take a peek at lavish and live and all that we're doing, head on over to lavishandlive.com and so thank you for everything today. And I and Liam, this was a really great conversation. And I just get giddy about these conversations because I think about all the possibilities for everyone listening and what's really possible for their business and what is truly awaiting everyone who's listening out there. I just. It just. I'm on a high. I'm on a high for sure.

Liam (53:09)

You took the words right out of my mouth. I mean, first of all, yes, the links will be in the show notes for anybody listening. But also, I think people are going to be drawn to. To you, Dominique. I think your. Your high energy, the experience you've got is evident. And ultimately, it's about putting your own brand, your own touch into your business and putting that out there into the world, which. Which is super exciting. And I'm really pleased to have had this. This chat with you. So, last two questions, just very briefly, what is your karaoke song of choice when you go out?

Dominique Hart (53:42)

Okay, okay. This is. This. This takes the cake here, people. Karaoke means nothing, nothing at all without a good journey, so.

Liam (53:53)

Oh, nice. A bit of Don't Stop believing. That's a hard one.

Dominique Hart (53:56)

Don't stop believing. It's not karaoke until you sang that song or any. Or any Celine Dion song. I mean, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston. You can't go wrong, people. But Journey tops it for me every time just to just have a good hoorah moment that love a good journey.

Liam (54:20)

Hey, it matches the brat. You know, like, it's very, like, flamboyant and, you know, sort of out there, which is cool. So the last question to, to take us, to take us home. What motto or quote or a kind of lesson which is stuck with you. Would you like to share? Everybody to see us out?

Dominique Hart (54:39)

Yeah, it's, it's. I, you know, I think about so many of them, but absolutely. It's kind of on theme with journey a bit. Right. But don't stop believing. And I think, you know, in this journey, it, there's a lot of things that catch you off guard, especially if you're learning on the spot and you can, you can have some doubt along the way. Am I doing the right thing? Should I even be here? You know, is this going to last long? These, these, these thoughts may come in your mind, but what's important is how you speak to yourself and how you treat yourself is going to matter more than you can imagine. Because being an entrepreneur, entrepreneur is not easy. It's not for the faint of heart. And so as you are walking this journey, it is important for you to understand how you are defining this journey for yourself and not according to the negative speak that's out there or the way in which other people, whether they know they're doing it or not, may put down other people. It's important how you see yourself in this world. It's important how you see yourself in this industry and owning it. And that's where that confidence comes from. Not from being someone that you're not or not feeling the pressure of being someone that you're not. If, if you're not into the lavish things of life, don't show up lavishly, right? If, if, if you, if you like. I like a good down Southern home, honest living that is brilliant. Walk in that. Own that show up as that. Because the world needs that someone needs that experience in their, in their world and they're waiting on you to do it. And so own your experiences that you want to have and own how you want to show up in this world. Because a lot of people who are saying that you can't, but there's more than one success stories out there of people who said, yes, I can. And so I want you to be.

Liam (56:45)

One of them too, Dominique, you know exactly that. Don't, don't listen to the naysayers and don't stop believing. So this has been so much fun and I will, I look forward to listening to this back. Thank you for listening to this on the Bruce Lee podcast. If there's people you know who would get value from this, please do share it with them. And we'll see you on the next episode. Thanks again, Dominique.

Dominique Hart (57:07)

Thanks, everyone. Take care. Live dynamically. Bye.