One of our most frequently asked questions is how can you maximise the popularity of your van. Here's the answer...
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If you’re at the start of your conversion journey you may be wondering what to include in your camper to maximise its popularity. Even if you have a completed conversion you might want to know if there are any additions you can make.
While there are no hard and fast rules, there are some patterns we have observed over the years...
Size
MWB and LWB vans tend to be the best performing vans as most people like space and functionality. Vans with more berths can cater for a wider audience of people (couples, families and groups).
Vehicles over 3.5t tend to do less well as they require a C1 licence but this can be counteracted by having more seats/beds and a toilet/shower.
Location
The campervan pick-up location is important and will have an impact on occupancy.
We used to advise that certain geographical areas were more popular than others. However since the pandemic and the explosion in the whole vanlife world we are now saying 'everywhere is great!'.
Generally speaking vehicles located in close proximity to large centres of population is good, as are connections to major transport links (motorways, train station, international airports). Most customers want to pick up near home and drive to their destinations, so remote locations tend to be less popular.
That being said, demand in the summer outstrips supply by more than 100% so customers just find ways to get to wherever you are.
For most of us our location is not something we can change but it is still worth being aware of what impact your location might have on the popularity of your campervan.
Functionality
Berths - quite simply the more people your campervan can seat and sleep, the more bookings you will open yourself up to. We get a lot of enquiries from families and groups of friends. In particular you are likely to be booked up for the school holidays.
You'll do even better if you can provide flexibility with flip-down seats and removable bunks so that they don't take up space for customers who don't need them.
Do bear in mind that if you want to accommodate more people you will need to put even more focus on your weight allowance. There is no point having a camper that sleeps 5 with a payload of 150kg. Our blog on weight is a must read.
Heating - will make a significant difference to the number of off-season bookings you get. Winters will always be quieter but the occasional long bookings come through of a month or more, and having heating will mean you’re in the running to get them.
Couples often appreciate the romance of a woodburner but families with young kids can be a bit nervous of them. Depending on who your camper is targeted at, that may affect the heating option you choose.
Read our blog on heating options here.
Toilet/shower - while some of our campers don't have a toilet or shower, the ones that do tend to be popular. If you don't do so well on the other criteria (location, berths) then consider including these even if the shower is an external portable show with a pop up tent.
Style
It is of course the ‘quirky’ style which sets our website apart from any other campervan hire agency. Hopefully you’ve gathered by now that if your camper looks like any old factory-fit conversion, it’s not for us. Apart from that it's up to you, the more creative the better! We would however recommend thinking through a coherent look for the whole conversion and choosing just a handful of colours that are then carried throughout - from any painted elements, to the fabrics to the appliances.
You might even consider making use of an interior designer to help with this - we have people we can put you in touch with if so.
Exterior
It is essential to keep on top of rust and scratches/dents. When customers have paid hundreds of pounds to hire your van they expect it to look shiny and new (even if it's an old van). Historically our coloured vans tend to be more popular than white vans.
Photos
Photos are vital to your success! Quality photos have been a key part of the Quirky Campers brand from the beginning. We have since been privy to data from a huge agency in the US who studied their 40,000 listings and discovered that the biggest single indicator for success was photo quality.
Don't cut corners on this one - hire a professional. There's no point spending thousands on your conversion then scrimping on the photos. A single week-long booking will more than cover the cost. We have a list of excellent tried and tested photographers you can access here.
If you are commissioning a photographer not on this list, ensure you do the following:
Check that you like their work
Ask them to look at the vans on the Quirky Campers website