The Bay House Retreat

Brand Development, Direct Booking Website, Paid Ads, Social Media Marketing & Graphic Design

Founder-led project | Menominee, Michigan

ONGOING PARTNERSHIP SINCE JULY OF 2023.

Project Overview

The Bay House Retreat is a waterfront vacation rental in Menominee, Michigan, founded and operated by Mikayla and Austin Vieth. This project was built from the ground up as a fully branded short-term rental designed to attract direct bookings and reduce reliance on OTA platforms. From naming and brand identity to website development, social media strategy, and custom guest-facing materials, every element was intentionally created to support long-term growth and ownership.

The Bay House Retreat also serves as a real-world example of how strategic marketing—without heavy reliance on third-party platforms—can drive direct bookings through social media and search.

The goal was to create a recognizable, experience-driven brand that could stand on its own outside of Airbnb and VRBO. Key objectives included:
- Building a complete brand identity from scratch
- Developing a conversion-focused direct booking website
- Creating a social media strategy based on a clearly defined guest avatar
- Designing custom graphics for marketing and guest communication
- Driving direct bookings through organic social media and search
- Reducing dependency on OTA platforms and their associated fees
We built a fully owner-controlled marketing ecosystem designed to support visibility, trust, and direct conversions—both online and in the guest experience.
This included:
- Naming, brand visuals, messaging, and tone development
- A fully optimized direct booking website designed for conversions
- Social media strategy and content creation as the primary traffic driver
- SEO-friendly site structure to support Google discovery
- Custom-designed marketing and informational graphics, including signage, brochures, welcome-back cards, house rules, and in-home materials
Each touchpoint—from social media to the guest’s stay—was designed to feel cohesive, intentional, and aligned with the brand.
Direct Booking & Website Performance (2025)
- 30% of total bookings were direct bookings
- Nearly $35,000 in direct booking revenue in the first full year of consistent social media marketing
- 1,500 website visits
- 2,400 page views
- 500+ website visits driven directly from social media
- 300+ visits from Google
- 200+ website clicks from keyword searches
- 3,300 keyword search impressions
Social Media Performance (Jan 2024 – Dec 2025)
- 30,300 accounts reached
- 700+ link clicks
- 3,600 profile visits
- 150+ followers
These results were achieved before fully implementing email marketing, reinforcing the effectiveness of social media and organic search as primary drivers.
The Bay House Retreat demonstrates how intentional branding, strategic marketing, and a direct booking ecosystem can significantly reduce reliance on OTA platforms. By owning the brand, website, guest communication, and booking experience, the property keeps more revenue in-house while building long-term brand recognition and guest loyalty.
This project now stands as both a successful vacation rental and a living case study for sustainable, owner-controlled growth in the short-term rental space.