A curated short list — not a marketplace

Vacation Rental software that moves the needle.

Five hand-picked tools every short-term rental operator should know about. Personally vetted on real-world results — high return, low friction, no fluff.

See the short list → Meet the curator
The Short List Five tools. Zero filler. Each one earns its place.
Reva Reviews PriceLabs Dynamic Pricing Zpoint Guest & Owner Comms Direct Booking Tools Direct Bookings Guesty Native AI Agents
Why these five

Curated, not crowdsourced.

This isn't a review site or a directory. It's a short list — each tool chosen for one reason: it actually works. Personally vetted by someone who has been on both sides of this industry, as a property manager and as a supplier. Nothing makes the list by accident.

Personally vetted

Every tool is chosen on real-world results from the field — not on the strength of a vendor's pitch deck.

High return, low friction

These tools earn their keep — and then some. Inexpensive or uniquely valuable, and built to slot into how you already operate.

Transparent by design

Partners pay to be here. That means they're committed — and you know exactly where we stand. No one buys their way in without being genuinely worth it.

The Short List
Five tools. Zero filler.

Each one earns its place. Here's what they do — and why Michelle stands behind them.

Reva
Featured partner
01 — Reviews & Analytics
Review Management & Analytics

Reva

Vacation rental guest reviews can be overwhelming, making it hard to feel in control of your brand reputation. Reva's platform centralizes and automates your guest review strategy, giving you the visibility and control needed to uncover actionable business insights, save hours of work each week, and drive more direct bookings.

Consolidate every review from every channel into one user-friendly dashboard
Draft and publish review replies back to each OTA
Leverage AI for advanced review categorization and reporting
Act on suggestions for each review to close the feedback loop
Michelle's endorsement

"For years, guest review management got pushed aside in favor of maximizing occupancy and revenue. Understanding and acting on your guest reviews has never been more critical, and Reva is the best solution out there."

— Michelle Marquis, Curator, TheShortListSTR.com
Partner website: joinreva.com →
PriceLabs
Featured partner
02 — Dynamic Pricing
Dynamic Pricing

PriceLabs

PriceLabs is the gold standard in dynamic pricing for short-term rental operators. It analyzes market demand, seasonality, local events, and booking patterns to set the right price automatically — and for most operators, it pays for itself within the first booking.

Automated daily price updates based on real-time market data
Customizable rules so operators stay in control of their strategy
Integrates with virtually every major PMS and channel manager
Portfolio analytics to track performance across all properties
Michelle's endorsement

"PriceLabs is the one tool I recommend without hesitation. If you're still pricing manually, you're leaving real money on the table every single night."

— Michelle Marquis, Curator, TheShortListSTR.com
Partner website: pricelabs.co →
Zpoint
Featured partner
03 — Guest & Owner Comms
Guest & Homeowner Communication

Zpoint

Growth-acceleration software that brings owner acquisition, a guest customer-data platform, communication, CRM, and live call support together under one unified solution — built specifically for property managers.

OwnerPoint — growing your door count is the single highest-leverage move a manager can make; it compiles homeowner data into one multi-point data layer.
ContactPoint — a CRM built for property managers, with unlimited contact records plus sales & marketing automation, at a low, scalable price.
AnswerPoint — USA-based after-hours call coverage that pulls reservation, property, and guest details from your PMS. Professional coverage without the staffing cost.
Michelle's endorsement

"Most tools help you manage what you already have. Zpoint is one of the few I've seen that's a game-changer for property acquisition — the data depth is unlike anything else in the industry. Stack that with ContactPoint's AI-powered CRM and AnswerPoint's live call support and you've got a complete growth engine that actually works together. That's rare."

— Michelle Marquis, Curator, TheShortListSTR.com
Partner website: zpoint.io →
Direct Booking Tools
Featured partner
04 — Direct Bookings
Direct Bookings

Direct Booking Tools

Direct Booking Tools' Price Comparison Tool gives travelers what they need at the moment of decision: transparency, confidence, and proof that booking direct is the right choice. By clearly demonstrating value over OTAs, it builds brand credibility, reduces hesitation, and turns more browsers into direct bookers.

Real-time price comparison vs. Airbnb & VRBO
Direct-booking-to-website conversion optimization with trust & credibility
Website demand analytics
Drives marketing conversion rates
Michelle's endorsement

"More than double the online conversion rate. That's not a claim — that's a result I watched happen firsthand with one of my own clients."

— Michelle Marquis, Curator, TheShortListSTR.com
Partner website: directbookingtools.com →
Guesty
Featured partner
05 — Native AI Automation
Native AI Automation

Guesty AI Agents

Guesty AI Agents are built into the core of the platform — not connected to it, not bolted on. Every agent works from one real-time view of your business, so they act as a coordinated system with full context, not siloed tools. Trained on 13+ years of short-term rental operations and 500,000+ active listings, they handle the repetitive work so you focus on the guests and what actually requires a human.

Native to the platform — no sync issues, no duplicate data, no third-party monthly fee
Trained on 13+ years of real STR operational data across 500,000+ active listings
A coordinated system handling messaging, pricing, tasks, reviews, and owner updates
Agents share one real-time data layer, not bolt-on silos
Partner website: guesty.com →

Full transparency

Every tool on this list is a paying partner. That's by design — it means they're committed to this community and stand behind what they offer. It also means this list stays short. No one buys their way in without being genuinely worth it. Michelle's reputation depends on every single recommendation.

Michelle Marquis, curator of The Short List 2025 Pioneer Award · VR Women's Summit
The Curator

Michelle Marquis

Fractional CRO / CPO · Board Advisor · "ShortCut2$"

Michelle has spent 30+ years in tech-enabled hospitality and short-term rentals, including nearly a decade with Navis. Today she advises operators and software companies as a fractional revenue and product leader, and sits on boards across the industry.

The Short List is her answer to the noise: a tiny, vetted set of tools she'd stake her name on — because she has.

"I've seen every era of this business, and I know what actually works."
30+ years in STR & hospitality ~10 years at Navis Fractional CRO / CPO Board advisor 2025 Pioneer Award recipient

Skip the demos. Start with the short list.

Five tools, hand-picked to move the needle. Reach out and Michelle will point you to the right one for where you are.

Get in touch →