Even though both launching and maintaining a successful Airbnb listing takes planning and effort, as a host, doing some simple things can help you earn more, stress less, or both. Here are ten helpful tips for happy hosting.
Make it personal
Your personal interaction with guests can make the difference between a so-so stay and a memorable experience. Try to get to know a little about your guests before their stay and make it clear that you’re available to answer any questions they might have about the Airbnb or the area.
Greeting them upon arrival to make sure they’re settling in well can help establish a personal relationship and provide an opportunity to make sure they have everything they need for a wonderful stay. Even leaving a note to welcome them can work to create a much more personal experience.
Keep it clean
Your Airbnb should be absolutely clean for guests, every time. This means the bathroom should be spotless, wastebaskets should be empty, there should be no dust anywhere, and there should be no sign of previous guests. If you have a cleaning service, it can be a good practice to have a checklist of things that need to be done during each cleaning to make sure nothing gets neglected.
Guest first
The best hosts know what it’s like to be guests first. So, before you jump into hosting with both feet, book your stays on Airbnb for your next trips. Experience the entire process from start to finish as a guest — from searching on the platform and booking to checking in and checking out. Note all the moments you felt confused, irritated, relaxed, or elated. These moments can point to both things to replicate or avoid in your practice as a host. Even better, enjoy a few “staycations” by booking reservations at existing local listings in your city.
Offer more than promised
Promise the stars and deliver the moon? Disappointment! Successful hosts who wow their guests consistently know to properly manage expectations with their listing profile and their communications with potential guests. This means having great but honest photos and descriptions and then offering little but unexpected extras for the guests. Offering killer home-baked cookies? Fresh roasted coffee beans from a local restaurant? Let your guests discover them as surprises when they arrive.
Touch base with your guests regularly
For every guest who reached out to you directly with a question or complaint, there probably were a few more with the same question or complaint who didn’t reach out to you. Some people are shy. Some don’t want to feel bothersome.
Send a short and inviting message to your guests like, “Good morning! Just wanted to see if you had any questions or requests. Call/text me anytime. Here for you,” the day after check-in and at least once every three days. Doing so lets the guests know it’s more than okay to reach out to you if they need something.
Use tiny helpful labels
Checking into a stranger’s home after a long day of travel, many guests will want to settle in and relax before the next day’s adventures. But that can be tough if they don’t even know which switch works for which light or if they have to open all the cabinets just to find the extra trash bags.
Always have extra supply
Not having an extra supply of essentials like toilet paper, paper towels, soap, and all linens will ruin an otherwise great Airbnb experience for your guests. No one will enjoy having to make a trip out to the local store to get toilet paper because the host provided only a starter roll.
Disclose and highlight potential negatives up front
Getting long-term success for your listing is as much about avoiding the wrong kind of guests as it is attracting as many guests as possible.
Have an extra friendly dog in the neighborhood that likes to greet guests? Talk about it in the descriptions and add a photo. Yes, doing so will turn off many guests who don’t want to encounter it. But it also will make your listing more appealing to guests who love dogs, or don't mind it.
Honest disclosure enables you to both attract the right guests who would appreciate the listing as it is and discourage those who wouldn’t enjoy it from booking in the first place.
Little things matter
Small gestures can have a big impact for your guests. When you welcome your guests with a complimentary bottle of wine or deliver cookies to their door for breakfast, for example, the small cost is far outweighed by how this gesture makes your guests feel about your Airbnb. It’s the unexpected, thoughtful touches that can really set your Airbnb apart from the competition.
Komentarze