1st Home Exchange.com Newsletter - June 2008

Welcome to the first edition of the 1stHomeExchange.com newsletter. We plan to publish this newsletter on a regular basis (although not too often). We'll be covering topics such as what's new on the site, swap tips, and home exchanging in general.

Special Offer!

If your home exchange listing is about to expire, has expired, or you are currently subscribed to the Basic plan, we have a huge money saving offer for you.

Pay for a 12 month Premium membership at our already low price and get an additional 12 months for free. That's the equivalent of a 50% savings.

With 13,000+ members in 130 countries our Premium membership is one of the best ways to save thousands on your next holiday.

1stHomeExchange.com Featured on CBS - How it Happened, An Inside Look

In early May, CBS News contacted 1stHomeExchange.com (as well as several other home exchange sites) wanting to find someone already on a swap between New York - London or New York - Paris.

Here's the message from CBS that started it all:

I'm a producer with CBS News in New York. We are looking to do a story about home vacation swaps. This idea came to mind as we're working on a series about how Americans are trying to save money on travel - with the dollar being so weak, and thought you might be a perfect subject.

Here is how the piece will come together logistically. We have crews in both the New York and London areas, so we would like to visit two members at their respective homes to get a sense of what their vacation is like, and why they've opted for the swap.

The idea that we have is much like the movie, 'The Holiday' - with Cameron Diaz. Visually - we would like to show viewers how it works on 'both' ends. And, possibly even record a telephone conversation between the two parties.

We are really excited about this story. Please get back to me at your earliest convenience. We are in great need of someone who is traveling within the next two weeks.

Many thanks,

Marie

Some e-mail exchanges and a follow-up call to CBS New York to clarify the objective and off we went to work. To minimize the number of e-mails sent we only contacted members in the desired areas.

After a couple of days and numerous replies later still no word from anyone currently on a swap. Then late Saturday afternoon, we receive an e-mail from Vincent (translated text):

Hello,

I'm actually on a home swap. I'm from Paris and currently in New York until Sunday May 11. Leah, a New Yorker is living in my home until the same date. You can contact me to participate in the CBS report.

Regards,

Vincent

After confirming that Leah is also interested in participating, we contact CBS to confirm that they are still looking for someone. CBS' reaction when we tell them we found someone:

They told us this was impossible to do on short notice and you guys came through!

The filming takes place before the end of the week and two home exchange stars are born!

We'd like to thank Vincent and Leah for participating (certainly makes for a memorable exchange). We also wish to thank all the members who took the time to respond. (We received well over 200 replies - this much interest leads us to believe that everyone secretly wants to be a Hollywood star!)

Take a Few Minutes to Update Your Listing

If you're considering a late summer or autumn swap, now is the ideal time to update your listing. Are your desired destinations and dates up to date? How about adding some new photos. Photos are key to selling your offer! An updated listing ensures that it is correctly displayed for relevant searches.

If you've already concluded one or more exchanges, let visitors know by adding this information to one of the text boxes.

No plans to swap anytime soon? You can easily indicate this by setting your offer to concluded.

Summer House Swaps

For those of us in the northern hemisphere summer holidays are almost here. With the ever increasing cost of travel, a home exchange makes even more sense. It's not too late to arrange a swap for summer 2008. New home exchange offers are added every day.

Here are 4 tips to help you land a house swap:

• Update your listing. A comprehensive well written description is a door opener.
• Include lots of photos. Photos show off your home and neigborhood. Many members skip offers that have no photos. So avoid being passed over.
• Use our advanced search to identify the listings you are interested in. Try to be flexible with your destination and dates.
• Contact, contact, contact, … Unless you have the perfect home in the most desirable location, you'll need to send a lot more than 3 or 4 e-mails. Waiting for someone to e-mail you regarding a dream swap rarely happens.

1st HomeExchange.com, Constantly Evolving!

Haven't been by recently? Early in the new year 1stHomeExchange.com had a facelift as well as a new identity - a logo - homes of the world. We've also been very busy adding new features.

We'd like to thank everyone who sent us suggestions. We continue to enhance the site so drop by often to see what's new.

Here's an overview of some of the more recent additions:

Your membership expiry date is now shown in the member's area. Simply log on.

You can now create a favorites list. A single click adds a listing to your favorites list located in your member's area. And with another simple click you can display the details and contact form of any favorite listing.

Save your advanced search parameters (Premium members only). Yet another time saver!

Planning to book a fight soon? Find the best deal on a flight in seconds. Our FREE flight search engine googles flights from 450+ travel sites! Yet another great way 1stHomeExchange.com saves you money!

If you have comments or suggestions that you think will improve the site, let us know.

Your Stories From the Trenches

Did you recently participate in an exchange? Tell us about your swap.

We also want to hear about any funny anecdotes and photos you want to share. With your permission we'll share them with other members via future newsletters.

Tell a Friend

Would you like even more home exchange offers to choose from? Tell a friend about 1stHomeExchange.com!

Word of mouth is the best way to build awareness regarding this vacation alternative.

If each member convinces one friend to list their home, we can easily double the number of offers on the site. The result, more selection for everyone.

We even have a Tell a friend form you can use.

Navigate 1stHomeExchange.com

Premium Membership
To learn more about the Premium membership.

Logon and Subscribe to the Premium Membership
To subscribe to the Premium membership plan, simply log on and click Premium from the member's menu on the left side of the page.

Forgot Your Password?
If you can't remember your password, try resetting it. Or e-mail us and we'll help you get logged on.

And Finally

Don't want to receive future newsletters? Log on to the member's area, edit your profile and select I do not want to receive the e-mail newsletter.

If you have questions, please feel free to e-mail us.

Happy home exchanging!