So you’ve listed your property and you’re wondering why you’re not getting as many booking requests as you might have wanted. Or maybe you’ve noticed that you’re way down in the search results on Airbnb? If you don’t know what we’re talking about it’s a good idea to try it. It’s like Googling yourself and we’ve all done that. Haven’t we?
Essentially, Airbnb rewards you for providing a great guest experience. The better the experience, the more they will reward you by making your listing more visible to potential guests. Here are the top 6 tips that will help you achieve that illustrious high search result ranking (and more bookings).
Keep onto those messages
You have to always be on top of those messages coming in from potential and current guests. You should be aiming to respond to all messages within an hour and Airbnb gives you 24 hours to respond before your official response rate starts to drop, along with your search result ranking. Potential guests also want a rapid response and when they don’t hear back from you they’re likely to book with another host who has responded.
Don’t cancel bookings
If you cancel confirmed bookings this works against you in the future search result ranking. Only confirm a booking if you’re sure that the property is available and that someone will be there to help the guests settle in.
Turn on Instant Booking
This makes the booking process for the guest similar to a hotel. Turning this setting on will get you a higher search ranking and more bookings. Word of caution here though, fully understand what Instant Booking means before turning it on.
Guest reviews
Guests are now expecting more from Airbnb properties and hosts so it’s even more important to ensure that you get that all important 5* review! To get this you’ll need to be on top of your messages to answer all the questions from your excited guests before and during their stay; your property must be spotlessly clean; your listing must accurately portray your property and your guests must have a good welcoming experience.
Regularly update your listing
Airbnb wants to ensure that your listing and, more importantly, your calendar are up to date and they reward you for this. Updates should be made at least weekly to keep these Airbnb brownie points.
Details, details, details
Every little detail matters to Airbnb as it all adds to the great guest experience. Ensure that you list all amenities that you have available to increase your chances of matching a guest’s requirements and therefore improving your search ranking. Items such as a hairdryer, satellite TV and WIFI can actually make a big difference.
Straight forward? Well maybe not but it is important that you can do all of these things (or enlist the help of someone who can) to keep your listing high in the search results and to keep those bookings coming in. Now, who might that be able to help with all of these things?
Want to know more? Get in touch, we're full of useful information and hints and tips that will help your property stand out from the crowd.
