aaa Airbnb Guest Experience | Turno Guide for New Hosts https://turno.com/category/ultimate-guide/airbnb-guest-experience/ Thu, 30 May 2024 20:08:30 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://turno.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/cropped-turno-favicon-32x32.png Airbnb Guest Experience | Turno Guide for New Hosts https://turno.com/category/ultimate-guide/airbnb-guest-experience/ 32 32 How to Screen Airbnb Guests Without Compromising Guest Experience https://turno.com/how-to-screen-airbnb-guests/ Fri, 05 Aug 2022 23:27:14 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=9031 In the vacation rental industry, everybody talks about the importance of guest experience — rightfully so because, without guests, you’re not a host. But you can’t forget about your host experience either. It’s just as important. That said, finding the right balance can feel like a battle.
Below, learn tips for providing an excellent guest experience while still maintaining confidence that your short-term rental will be cared for.

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Balancing Security and Guest Experience 

The guest experience plays a big factor in either making your hosting experience successful and enjoyable or simply disappointing.

There’s the possibility that you might damage the guest experience by implementing too many security measures that are strict, invasive, slow, or not implemented properly. But without the right security, you’re leaving yourself vulnerable as a host. So, what is the right balance?

There’s a fine line between balancing security and guest experience. As an Airbnb host, you need to strike the right balance so that you’re protected with comprehensive security measures and there’s no negative impact on guests’ experiences.

vacation rental host smiling in greeting in doorway

3 Simple Ways to Balance Guest Screening and Experience 

With the right strategy and tools, you can adapt or develop a booking journey that ensures a great experience but also keeps your asset(s) safe. Here are three simple steps on how you can do it:

1. Put the Guest First and Prioritize Their Risk Profile 

It’s not rocket science. The guest is your customer, and if they have a bad experience, they may cancel their booking and even consider not booking with you ever again. Word travels fast, and Airbnb reviews travel even faster, so one bad experience can put a mark on you as a host to other potential guests.

Every guest comes with a different risk profile, so don’t treat them all the same. Decide what level of risk you are comfortable with and implement the right tools to help you deal with that level.

To do so, ask yourself the following questions:

  • What kind of behaviors and acts will you not tolerate?
  • What do you expect of guests?
  • What do you consider mandatory for all guests?

Once you have sorted your risk tolerance levels, tailor your security measures to that level. The best way to do this is to introduce a dynamic screening process to your guest booking journey. A dynamic screening process means that different guests do different types of verifications depending on their risk profile.

As an example, if a single Airbnb user was looking to book a four-bedroom house for a one-night stay, and you know that there is a festival happening nearby, this is an instant red flag. If you were unsure and wanted to go ahead with the booking to not miss out on the revenue, you could ask that guest to verify their ID, validate their credit card, and pay a security deposit.

But if a family sent a booking request for the same house for a week or longer, you might enforce fewer steps in your guest screening process, because the overall risk is lower.

The key takeaway from this is to think: Does the reward outweigh the risk?

2. Inform Guests About Security Measures Right From the Start

The key to providing a good guest experience when it comes to processes like screening and other security measures is to set expectations early.

If possible, on the Airbnb profile for your listing, outline your guest screening processes, any Airbnb security cameras, and the house rules that you require all guests to follow. 

To protect yourself further, reiterate this in any rental agreement that you have the guest sign, showing that they legally acknowledge the information you have provided.

By clearly communicating your security measures, you’re weeding out bad guests, as they will be deterred from booking. Your good guests won’t bat an eyelid when it comes to completing these measures if they have been made aware of your expectations. In other words, keeping guests in the know helps create a good guest experience.

3. Transparency About Personal Data Is Key

Even though we live in an increasingly digital world, people are still very wary about providing their sensitive information online. Unfortunately, the vacation rental industry is also plagued by crimes such as fraud and identity theft, so how you handle a guest’s private information is crucial.

To show that your processes are legitimate and secure, build trust with guests through transparency. Let guests know what personal information you collect during the screening process and what happens to that information, making it abundantly clear that your process is compliant with all privacy and data protection laws.

modern and minimalistic bedroom

Does Airbnb Do Background Checks? 

Every time a booking happens, hosts place their faith in Airbnb, trusting that the platform will adequately screen their guests. However, the harsh reality — which a lot of hosts have found out the hard way — is that Airbnb’s processes are not as thorough as they would like. 

Airbnb may perform an identity check, however, ID verification is not a mandatory part of the sign-up process for guests. In the same vein, Airbnb does offer background checks, but these are not available globally and are dependent on a lot of external factors.

According to Airbnb, they use a guest’s first and last name along with their date of birth to run a background check. The company also uses public state and county criminal records databases, as well as state and national sex offender registrations, for their investigations, but these are limited to the U.S. and India only. Airbnb checks all users of their platform on the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) list for terrorist designations as well.

This means that very little is done when it comes to screening guests who are booking from outside the U.S. Airbnb states: “We may, to the extent permitted by applicable laws and to the extent available, obtain the local version of background or registered sex offender checks.”

When Airbnb’s background check finds that a user has severe criminal convictions, they suspend that user’s account for further investigations or wholly remove them from the platform.

Why You Can’t and Shouldn’t Rely Solely on Airbnb’s Background Checks 

Hosts are ultimately responsible for who they allow into their homes, and, therefore, need assurances that their guests behave appropriately and are exactly who they claim to be.

Airbnb clearly states that their background checks should not be completely relied upon when it comes to accepting guests. As they rightly mention, a background check does not ensure the guest in question won’t commit a crime during their stay. Because Airbnb doesn’t continually check its guests, the validity of the background check can be called into question.

Here are the limitations of Airbnb’s background checks as stated by Airbnb:

  • Scope of search: Confined to just the U.S. and India
  • Guests of guests: Only the lead guest is checked
  • User information accuracy: Checks only work when people give Airbnb their correct full legal name and date of birth; if the ID is stolen, Airbnb has no way of knowing if the guest provides the details on the stolen ID as their own
  • Infrequent checks: Airbnb may only conduct the check once and this may be months before their booking with you
  • Inconsistent reporting: Due to variations in local U.S. laws and reporting systems, criminal record information that’s searched and reported in each type of check can vary by state and county
  • Incomplete search results: The databases they check may be incomplete

For these reasons, hosts need to look to specialized independent screening providers to make sure that every guest they host is vetted and screened fairly and comprehensively.

Make Your Hosting Experience Safe

Owning a vacation rental business can come with its own safety precautions. Hosts are consistently around strangers that are coming and going from their property. It is important that hosts feel comfortable and safe around all new and returning guests. This is why guest screening is so important to a host’s experience owning a short-term rental. 

Airbnb’s guest screening is a reliable tool to count on for an initial test of who your customers are, but it’s recommended to do guest screenings on each person staying at the listed property. This will ensure that the host is aware of every guest entering and leaving.

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Airbnb Messages to Send to Guests During Their Stay https://turno.com/airbnb-messages-to-send-to-guests-during-their-stay/ Sat, 30 Jul 2022 01:37:07 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=8982 Your guests have already checked in, so there’s no need to keep in contact with them, right? Not so fast. Failing to communicate with your guests during their stay means you don’t have the chance to address issues, which can then be recounted in negative reviews. Use the following in-stay communication strategies to enhance the guest experience, rack up five-star reviews, and bring in more direct bookings.

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How to Communicate With Guests During Their Stay

Guests appreciate attentive hosts, and attentive hosts make a point of finding a healthy balance between reaching out to guests during their stay and allowing them to enjoy their vacation in peace. It’s this balance that will set you apart as a host and have guests recommending you to their friends and visiting year after year. 

There are multiple times you should be reaching out to guests after they check in and before they check out. 

The following guidelines will show you exactly how to manage in-stay communication to create the best guest experience possible. 

Check In With Guests on the First Morning After Arrival

Your guests just checked in, and you want to let them enjoy their vacation — after all, it has only just started. But checking in with guests the morning after they arrive to gauge their first impressions of your property is incredibly important. 

Some guests may not think to reach out directly to you if they had a small problem with the property when they arrived. Maybe there was a dirty towel on the floor or a stain on the counter. Get this information from your guests instead of letting them complain about it in a bad review

This allows you to apologize for whatever they complained about and offer solutions or fixes if necessary and helps to develop a positive rapport with your guest while showing you care.  

Make Emergency Contacts Clear

Always be sure to let your guests know how they can reach you and in what instances they should get in touch with you in an emergency. It’s important to set those guidelines and boundaries, as what appears to be an emergency to a guest may seem more like a minor inconvenience to you. 

Sharing emergency contacts with guests is especially important if you don’t live in the area. Be sure your guests know who to reach in case something happens and you aren’t able to respond to the situation yourself. 

Check In With Guests Throughout Their Stay

If a guest is just staying with you for a weekend or so, it’s not necessary to check in with them various times throughout their stay (this would be the vacation rental equivalent of a waiter passing by your table to ask “How is everything?” ten times over the course of an hour-long meal). 

However, if your guest is staying with you for more than a week, send messages at least once a week to make sure everything is going well and they’re still pleased with your property.

Just like the message you send on the morning after check-in, touching base with guests throughout long stays helps you to reduce the risk of negative reviews by addressing these issues as they occur.

This is also an opportunity to offer upsells, like additional cleaning services and replacement linens, to guests who are staying for an extended period of time. 

Upsell Additional Services

Aside from the occasional message to touch base, there are some other compelling reasons to keep in touch with guests during their stay: upsells. If you advertise all your upsells in your listing or a pre-check-in message, there’s no way your guests are going to remember or take advantage of them. 

You should personalize your upsells so they’re relevant to your guest (you should have gotten to know your guest during the pre-stay communication phase). 

If your guests are a young couple with children, offer babysitting or other child-friendly services. Perhaps your guests flew in from out of town. Offer them the option to hire transportation services to take them to the airport when they leave. 

You can also offer general upsells, like late check-out and extended stays. Offering guests the option to stay an extra day at a discounted price is a great way to fill in gaps in your booking calendar, which helps you bring in more revenue while giving guests the chance to enjoy their vacation for even longer. 

The key here is to find a good balance between accommodating and overbearing. Make your guests aware of upsells that could be of interest to them without overwhelming or annoying them. A good way to do this is by sending all relevant upsells in one or two concise and informative messages instead of sharing them over the span of their stay. 

Send a Thank You Message the Night Before Check-Out

Your final communication with a guest before they check out should be the night before they leave. Send your guests a message the night prior to check-out to thank them for their stay. 

You can also use this as an opportunity to remind them of check-out times and inform them of anything they need to do before they leave (Do they need to take out the trash? Where should they leave the keys?). 

Finally, be sure to ask how their stay went. This is your last opportunity to smooth out any issues they may have had instead of being surprised when you find them in a review. 

Keep in Touch With Your Guests During Their Stay — They Will Thank You for It

In-stay communication doesn’t only keep Airbnb guests happy. It ups your chances of a glowing 5-star review and direct bookings in the future.

With the right balance between being attentive and allowing your guests to enjoy their stay, you’ll be able to market upsells and address problems before they end up in a negative review. All the more reason to make in-stay communication a priority for your short-term rental business.

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Understanding Airbnb Fees and Discounts https://turno.com/understanding-airbnb-fees-and-discounts/ Fri, 22 Jul 2022 02:29:08 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=8927 Offering discounts on your vacation rentals may seem tempting, especially during the slow season when bookings are harder to come by. But do discounts actually work for vacation rentals? Additionally, how can you charge fees that won’t prevent travelers from booking? A good strategy for discounts and fees will increase bookings and maximize revenue for you.

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Is a Vacation Rental Discount a Good Idea?

Some vacation rental industry experts argue that discounts aren’t very effective and may actually harm your reputation or your reviews. 

This seems counterintuitive — people love discounts. But studies have shown that for some consumers, any kind of sale, especially on lodging, can spark suspicion that there might be something wrong with the rental. What’s more, if a consumer makes the purchase, the “discount” might make the guest overly critical. 

In addition, some vacation hosts feel nervous about offering discounts for fear that guests will take advantage of them. For example, hosts worry that a guest who knows about discounts may demand a discount for a special event or because they were unhappy with their stay. 

Discounts vs Dynamic Pricing

You may wonder what the difference is between a discount and the pricing adjustments that occur in your dynamic pricing strategy

Dynamic pricing takes market factors into account to offer rates that are the most attractive to the right guests at the right time. 

In most cases, your dynamic pricing tool (along with the help of a revenue manager, if you use one) will handle lowering prices when it makes the most sense, and do so based on market sensitivities and current events. 

But that doesn’t mean that discounts don’t have a time and a place in the vacation rental industry.

When a Discount Actually Makes Sense

Using discounts for vacation rentals is like using salt in a dish: When used appropriately, it can add so much to the experience. Here are the instances when discounts may make the most sense for your short-term rental:

  • When a booking window is closing: A little extra discount on last-minute dates can be just what a potential guest needs to get them to book, topping off your occupancy and earning you a little extra income. Even if the price is much lower than you would typically go, a booked night is more profitable than an unbooked one.  
  • To incentivize repeat guests: Discounts can be a great way to engage with past guests and encourage them to rebook. You can structure these discounts to be more “exclusive” or loyalty-based, particularly if you offer discounts through guest referrals or an actual loyalty program. 
  • To encourage guests to extend their stay: Adding a free night to cap off a longer stay, like a fifth or seventh day free, can give potential guests a little extra incentive to book a longer vacation, particularly if the fifth or seventh night would have been the lower-priced night anyway. 

What About Airbnb Fees?

Extra charges that go beyond your nightly base rate are called vacation rental fees. Most often, these fees are used to compensate the host for providing additional services or amenities. There are two types of vacation rental fees: standard and custom. 

Standard vacation rental fees are the most common and can include extra guest fees, cleaning fees, and pet fees. Custom vacation rental fees are any charges that go beyond standard fees and could include pool heating as an example.

“When making adjustments to your pricing, consider what fees may be appropriate in your unique situation. Name these clearly in your listing so that there are no surprises. These instances might include early check-in fees, late check-in fees, or pets.”

Futurestay

Do Airbnb Fees Prevent Bookings?

When you charge a fee on OTA booking websites, the fee is added to the total price at checkout, which makes it possible for travelers to know how much money they will be paying for in total.

The traveler’s point of view is important when considering fees for vacation rentals. Imagine the frustration of trying to calculate a stay, only to have the total significantly increase at checkout due to fees. When travelers experience this frustration, they might abandon the booking process and look elsewhere.

Still, fees alone don’t prevent bookings. In fact, a study by Vrbo found it’s not just the cost of staying at your property but also how much you are charging per night which can make all the difference in whether someone books or not.

What’s important is that you put a strategy in place when deciding on your fee structure.

How to Set an Effective Rental Fee Structure

Vacation rentals that charge a single fee have a 30% higher conversion rate than those with three or more fees. However, you may need to charge additional fees to cover the cost of extra services.

Below, find tips to help you be strategic about how you charge rental fees.

Keep Separate Fees to a Minimum

This will help keep people from being scared away by seeing a lot of fees.

Roll Standard Fees Into Your Base Rate

This will make it easier for people to see how much they will be paying in total, and it won’t be as expensive as if they were charged separately. 

This strategy might be a little more tricky, however, as you’re going to have to include your cleaning or other expenses into the base rates for the property. In turn, potential guests browsing properties may be more drawn to similar listings that have a lower nightly rate — even though all the extra fees will be added at booking time. 

Know When to Include a Discount or Fee

Discounts and additional fees may seem like a good opportunity, but they can sometimes have a significant amount of backlash. Knowing when the right time is to offer a discount or fee is the best way to go about this type of pricing strategy. 

Before attempting a discount or additional fee, get a feel for the way your target market responds to such things. Do they automatically assume a property is of cheaper value if a discount is offered? Are they easily frustrated by additional fees to a property listing? The answers to these questions will inform your discount and fee structure.

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Airbnb Welcome Letters and Other Pre-Stay Communication https://turno.com/create-a-beautiful-welcome-message/ Wed, 20 Jul 2022 08:05:00 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=2602 Communicating with guests before they book is your first opportunity to make a good impression. Pre-booking communication includes everything from your listing to guest inquiries, and it also gives you a chance to get to know your potential guests. The following pre-stay communication recommendations will help you to increase bookings and enhance your guests’ experience before they even step foot on your property.

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How to Communicate With Guests Before They Book

For many hosts, guest communication begins at the moment of check-in. However, pre-stay communication plays a key role in your relationship with guests, both potential and confirmed. 

A poor approach to pre-stay communication can mean losing out on bookings because of incomplete listings or unanswered questions. 

If you don’t speak with potential Airbnb guests before they book, you won’t be able to personalize their stay or identify potentially problematic guests you may not want to host. Plus, you need to be sharing important information with guests between booking and check-in that will set you apart as an attentive and thoughtful host. 

airbnb welcome letter

4 Pre-Stay Communication Tips 

The tips below will help you maintain helpful and consistent communication to turn inquiries into bookings. 

1. Ensure That Your Listing Description Is Complete

Every guest communication starts with your listing. This is probably the first time that a potential guest ever sees you, so you should be thorough and design your listing with your ideal guest in mind. 

  • Do you want families to stay with you? Point out why your property is so family-friendly.
  • Is your vacation rental geared towards couples? Highlight the romantic experiences in the area. 

Your Airbnb listing should be fluid, meaning that it is a dynamic description you should update as you gain more insights into what guests think of your property. While you want to be as thorough as possible when first creating your listing, you should also go through your reviews on a regular basis, discover what guests praise most often, and highlight that in your listing.

But never oversell or exaggerate in your listing. Being honest and realistic about your property is key to securing good ratings: When you falsely advertise your offering, guests lose trust. Plus, overselling is a surefire way to get a bad review, as you’re setting unrealistic expectations from the start. 

On the flip side, being up-front about what your property can and can’t offer is the best way to demonstrate your integrity to a potential guest. 

2. Respond to Inquiries Immediately

The average Airbnb user spends less than 12 minutes on the site. However, they visit about six listings during their visit, meaning potential guests will only spend about two minutes on your listing. 

Needless to say, it’s not enough to respond to inquiries within 24 hours — all inquiries should be answered within minutes before guests have the chance to find another listing and book with them instead of you. 

If you don’t want to be glued to your phone at all hours of the day, use a tool like Hospitable for automated replies so you can respond instantly to each guest inquiry without having to do any of the legwork. 

woman on her phone

To cut down on guest inquiries, and so you know you’re not missing any potential bookings, keep stock of the questions you most often get asked and work the answers into your listing. Remember, your listing is always a work in progress and should constantly be updated and improved. 

3. Give Potential Guests Access to FAQs

Even if you write a thorough listing that covers FAQs, many guests skim it, and they don’t hesitate to reach out directly to you when they want a question answered. Remember, you should be able to respond to these questions on the fly. 

That’s why you should work to create a set of questions and canned answers that can be copied and pasted quickly. You can also automate FAQ answers with a software that can recognize commonly asked questions and then automate responses.

You can also use these responses as a chance to sell your property. If a potential guest asks about the WIFI and you offer an exceptionally speedy connection, be sure to highlight that. 

For example, instead of responding “Yes, the Wi-Fi is good,” say something like “Our Wi-Fi connection is lightning fast. It will allow you to browse social media and stream your favorite shows while your kids are playing video games with no connection delays.” But again, be honest and avoid embellishing aspects of your property that fall short.  

4. Learn More About Your Guests

Vetting potential guests before they book isn’t an option if you have Instant Book activated. But if your listings are Request to Book, the final pre-booking communication stage is to learn more about the potential guests staying at your short-term rental. Discover important details about the people who want to stay at your property by asking simple questions like “What brings you to town?”. 

By doing this, you’ll discover if they are a good fit for your rental property. For example, perhaps you offer a family-oriented experience but the potential guest is planning a bachelor party. 

You’ll also be able to provide guests with a personalized experience: If you know their motives for traveling, you can offer them relevant upsells and recommendations. So, if your guest tells you they’re a young family, promote your partnership with local childcare services or kid-friendly tour providers.   

To continue, learning more about your guests helps you avoid bad stays. Does your guest live in town and is just renting your property for the night? Maybe they’re planning to throw a party, which is likely an issue for you. 

Plus, this gives you the opportunity to discover if there could be future booking opportunities with a guest. Is their office headquarters in town and will other colleagues be frequently visiting? Take this chance to collect information about potential future stays. 

How to Communicate With Guests Between Booking and Check-In

Now that you’ve scored a booking, it’s time to cultivate the guest relationship before they even check in. You can do that by setting expectations, collecting contact details, sharing a personalized guidebook, and sending a check-in message. 

Set Expectations on When Your Guests Will Hear From You

As soon as you send a booking confirmation or “thank you for booking” message, you should let your guests know when they’ll hear from you next. A simple message like “I’ll be reaching out a week before your stay with check-in information” will suffice. 

It’s counterproductive to send all of the information your guests will need in one long message on the same day they make their reservation. Tell your guests when you’ll be contacting them, and send information in smaller, more digestible segments. 

Ask for Your Guests’ Contact Details

Be sure to collect your guests’ emails and even phone numbers when they first book to better be in contact during their stay. Not everyone checks Airbnb messages while they’re on vacation, so having the right contact information is key to making sure you can reach guests if needed. 

vacation rental host using guest screening app

This is also an opportunity to collect emails to send marketing messages later on to encourage direct bookings and share promotions. However, be sure that you’re transparent and get consent before using any personal contact information for marketing purposes. 

Send a Guidebook a Few Days Before Check-In

If you want to take the guest experience to the next level, it’s all in the details. One great way to do this is by sharing a curated guidebook a few days before their stay begins. 

Send your guests a PDF with all the helpful information they could need to begin preparing for their trip. This can include packing lists, house rules, things to do in the area, and restaurant recommendations. This not only enhances their stay but also helps position you as an attentive and thoughtful Airbnb host.  

Send a Welcome Message on the Morning of Check-In

Your final pre-check-in communication should be a guest welcome letter on the morning of check-in. There are plenty of Airbnb welcome letter templates online that you can use for inspiration.

Depending on what time check-in is, send this message early enough for them to see it a few hours before heading to your property but late enough for it not to wake them up. 

Your message should include a reminder of the check-in time, detailed check-in instructions, and anything else guests should know when they arrive at your property. This is also an opportunity to offer early check-in if there’s no turnover that day. 

Get More Bookings and Build Trust With the Right Pre-Stay Communication

As you can see, guest communication begins long before a potential guest even sends you a message. 

From your property listing all the way to the message sent on the morning of check-in, pre-stay guest communication sets the tone for the entire guest experience, which is why you need to prioritize it as much as you would in-stay or post-stay communication.

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Airbnb Checkout Messages and Other Post-Stay Communication https://turno.com/creating-the-perfect-checkout-message/ Wed, 20 Jul 2022 06:31:00 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=2717 Guest communication doesn’t end when your guest checks out. In fact, post-stay messages play a critical role in the guest communication process. Aside from making sure you get a review, which is obviously a key goal of post-stay communication, keep in touch with guests after they leave to guide them to your direct booking website and encourage them to recommend your properties with referral promotions.

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How to Communicate With Guests After Check-Out

Post-stay communication is your opportunity to build guest loyalty and increase the chances of your guest, their friends, and their family booking with you in the future.

With post-stay communication, timing is everything. Aside from thanking your guest for their stay right after they leave, you’ll want to ask for a review, guide them to your direct booking website, and also strategically time referral promotions.

With the following tips, manage your Airbnb checkout messages like a seasoned professional and watch the direct bookings roll in.

young woman sitting at a kitchen table looking at her smartphone

Ask for Reviews at the Right Time (And Don’t Be Afraid To Follow Up)

Reviews are one of the main reasons to refine your post-stay communication approach.

The words of an individual reviewer can influence a potential guest’s choice of whether to book with you far more than your listing or your website. Knowing how and when to ask for reviews is the best way to harness this incredibly important factor in a potential guest’s decision-making process.

Be quick to publish your review right after a guest checks out. As you know, the guest receives a notification to leave a review as soon as you publish yours. While they would ideally write theirs the moment they receive the message, we all know it doesn’t always happen that way.

That’s why you need to be comfortable following up with guests as many times as necessary to get a review. Many guests do not realize how important reviews are to the success of a vacation rental business, so don’t be afraid to tell them. Explain how much reviews help you get more bookings and improve your properties.

If you list on Airbnb, for example, guests only have 14 days to leave a review, so make them aware of that deadline. People are busy (especially when they just return home after vacation), so don’t take it personally if they keep forgetting, but do emphasize that leaving a review only takes a few minutes and would mean a lot to you and your business.

Perhaps you had a guest that wouldn’t stop complaining and was clearly displeased with their experience at your property. If you sense a guest is going to leave a bad review, publish your review at the last minute. This gives them less time to write their review and decreases the chances of them doing so.

You can use guest messaging software to automatically manage your reviews and send reminders to guests.

Get rid of the heavy lifting on what can sometimes be a tedious task. Many software options can even help you automatically delay reviews when you sense a negative review coming on.

Guide Guests to Your Direct Booking Website

Getting guests to book directly on your website is short-term rental industry gold. While a guest may have found you on a booking portal like Airbnb or Vrbo, let them know they should head to your website if they want to book with you in the future.

The key here is to ask your guest for their email address before their stay (which is one of our recommendations for pre-stay guest communication). That way, you can send them marketing messages and encourage them to book directly on your website the next time they come to town.

You can even offer discounts on future bookings to encourage guests to book again with you. Just be sure you have the proper consent to use a guest’s email address for marketing purposes before doing so.

Time Your Emails Well

With post-stay communication, nailing your timing is the best way to get more direct bookings. We’ve already seen how you can time guest communication to increase the chances of getting a good review, but what is the best timing strategy for getting direct bookings?

Don’t send a guest a booking reminder or discount a month after their stay when they probably don’t need to use it. Instead, reach out to them 60 days before the one-year anniversary of their stay, which is when the booking window for that period opens.

Here are some examples of post-stay emails that can be conveniently timed to increase the chances of a guest booking with you again:

  • If a couple booked with you to celebrate their anniversary, follow up with them about 10 months after their stay and offer a special package, which can include a booking discount and coupons for a local restaurant.
  • Send an email detailing discounts or perks to a guest who booked with you to attend a convention or annual business event a couple of months before it takes place.
  • For a guest that booked with you to attend a music festival or another local event, send them an email when the concert lineup or event details come out, and then again when the booking period opens (about two months before their stay).

People get a lot of emails, so while your direct booking discount email may get lost in a guest’s congested inbox, they’re sure to notice an Airbnb message notification on their phone. You can inform them in the Airbnb message that you sent them an email with a special promotion if they book with you the next time they visit your local area.

Consider automating these Airbnb messages so you can be sure your message gets to them months after their stay without having to set a reminder for yourself to reach out.

Offer Discounts for Referrals

OK, you got a former guest to book with you again, and on your direct booking website no less. That’s amazing! Take it a step further and get their family and friends to book with you as well.

Offering family and friend referral discounts is an excellent way to multiply your bookings (and profits). Send a referral discount in a post-stay promotional email, but don’t wait until months after check-out to do so.

During the first few days after a guest has left your property, their experience is fresh in their mind. So once their review is published, thank them for staying with you and leaving their review, and share your referral discount with them.

How you want to structure your referral discount is up to you, so decide whether you want to offer the Airbnb discount just to referred friends and family or the referring guest as well. What’s important here is that you’ll be upping your direct bookings and creating loyal customers.

family eating together on vacation

Increase 5-Star Reviews, Direct Bookings, and Guest Referrals

With the right approach, post-stay communication can make a huge difference on your reviews, direct bookings, and referrals. Starting before a guest books until months after they check out, guest communication should be a key part of your operational procedures.

And remember, you can use automation tools to make post-stay communication a breeze. What’s important is that you make it a priority to keep reaching out to guests long after their fantastic stay.

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How to Get 5-Star Airbnb Reviews https://turno.com/how-to-get-a-5-star-airbnb-review/ Wed, 06 Jul 2022 18:54:00 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=1954 Guests trust other guests. Because of this, a steady stream of 5-star Airbnb reviews can highly affect a guest’s decision to book your short-term rental over another in a competitive market. It’s crucial to understand the importance of reviews and how you can provide guest stays worthy of five stars.

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Why 5-Star Airbnb Reviews Matter

“With more than 90% of consumers consulting reviews before they land on a decision, digital word of mouth is more critical now than ever.”

Futurestay

Airbnb reviews are essential in building your credibility as a host, helping to reassure guests they are making a wise decision booking with you. In turn, receiving a 5-star rating is what every host aims for.

Below, discover the top reasons why positive Airbnb reviews are valuable.

1. Ranking

The more positive reviews you have as a host, the higher you will rank in Airbnb’s search results. A higher ranking means increased visibility and bookings for your short-term rental.

2. Superhost Status

A host needs to have an overall rating of 4.8 stars or above based on at least more than 10 stays in the past 12 months to obtain and retain Superhost status. In other words, it is important to have positive reviews and maintain them.

3. Upgrade

You can use reviews to your advantage and as information for improving and upgrading your vacation rental.

Reviews allow you to get feedback on amenities, communication, and many other aspects of a guest’s stay. You can then take this feedback and improve the quality and functionality of your short-term rental home.

4. Trust

In the short-term rental industry, trust is earned, not freely given. It is earned by having authentic reviews to showcase in your listing.

Positive guest reviews from previous guests help prospective travelers gain trust and encourage them to choose your listing. Reviews will communicate to others that an experience staying at your vacation rental would be worthwhile.

How to Get 5-Star Reviews from Your Guests

Discover some of the top suggestions you can follow to encourage satisfied customers to spend a few moments submitting a review of their stay.

Ask Nicely

The first step to a good review: ask.

If you’re confident that a guest had a good experience in your rental, ask them to leave a review. Get in touch with the guest soon after checkout to thank them for staying at your rental. Let them know that you would love to read about their time at your property in the form of a review.

OTAs like Airbnb and Vrbo allow you to send messages to guests through their platforms, but if you requested a guest’s email or phone number, you can request a review through those routes.

“Consider reviewing all of your guests, so that they receive an email with your review and feel compelled to offer one for you in return. If you’d like to be even more proactive than that, consider offering a checkout message to your guests asking them to provide feedback on their experience.

By offering multiple checkpoints to your guests, you will set yourself up to have the best chance of success in obtaining reviews.”

– Futurestay

Make Your Guests Feel at Home

Making guests feel welcome at your property helps them feel comfortable and at home. One way to make guests feel welcome is to leave a welcome note.

Leaving a short welcome note for the guest upon entry is an easy and thoughtful gesture. If you cannot drop off a note every time a new guest checks in, you can simply send them a message upon check-in asking if they are finding the accommodations to be satisfactory.

young woman using automation software on her phone

Provide Local Tips

By giving guests suggestions for places to go in the area, they will, in turn, have a better experience, and this will reflect in your rental reviews.

Some hosts provide information on their listing with suggested activities, restaurants, and sites in the area. Some hosts leave a guidebook in the home for guests to peruse during their stay. You can even go to local businesses to get coupons or discounts for your guests to use. These could be for restaurants or activities in your area.

Hold Cleanliness to the Highest Standard

One of the major things that hosts receive bad reviews for is a dirty vacation rental. Having a clean property is very important for the guests’ quality of stay and helps ensure that you, as a host, receive a 5-star Airbnb review. This includes clean dishes, linens, appliances, and more.

As a host, finding a reputable vacation rental cleaner that you trust to do a great job cleaning your rental can be a difficult task on its own. Once you have found a cleaner, it can be difficult to keep up with the scheduling of upcoming turnovers. Luckily, this problem can be solved by connecting with vacation cleaners through Turno.

Female janitor with vacuum cleaner in room

Remember: Communication Is Key

Good communication is key in establishing the trust of guests and gaining 5-star reviews. Responding quickly to guests’ inquiries will reflect positively on your hosting style as well as on your property.

The quality of communication is also important. When communicating with guests, you want to remain positive and friendly.

Don’t Deceive

In some cases, guests feel that a vacation rental looks different than what they were expecting. Ways to avoid this include taking professional pictures of your property, not exaggerating about what your home has to offer, and not leaving key information out of your listing description.

“Ensure that your listing is accurate. It’s important to manage expectations of your property. Nothing is worse than booking an all-inclusive stay and getting to a place with no sheets or towels.”

– Futurestay

5-Star Experiences Make for 5-Star Airbnb Reviews

“You know how to get reviews now, but it’s also critical to do what you can to ensure these reviews will be glowing accounts of a stay at your property.

For example, consider personalizing your guests’ experience by meeting them for check-in or sending a message an hour after they’ve arrived to ensure everything is going smoothly. These small, personal touches will go a long way toward showing your guests that you are deserving of their 5-star Airbnb reviews.”

– Futurestay

On the other hand, no matter how much effort you put into pleasing your guests with quality service, bad reviews can happen. As discouraging as they may be, every host should understand how to respond to negative reviews.

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How to Respond to Bad Airbnb Reviews https://turno.com/receiving-a-bad-cleaning-review/ Wed, 06 Jul 2022 16:43:00 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=3102 Receiving a negative review, whether it is a fair evaluation or not, is not pleasant to read. Unfortunately, no vacation rental host is prone to bad guest reviews, but it doesn’t have to be the end of the world. Below, learn why you should respond to bad Airbnb reviews and how to professionally handle them.

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Should You Respond to Negative Vacation Rental Review?

You should always respond to both positive and negative reviews. Receiving unfavorable reviews can be disheartening, but responding to and addressing them is a part of a great marketing strategy. It shows that you care for your guests and their experience at your vacation rental property.

Many guests trust online reviews just as much as they trust a friend or family member’s recommendation. This means that if they see a bad review with no response, they may continue searching for an alternative option.

woman looking at airbnb.com on a laptop

Steps for Responding to Bad Airbnb Reviews

It’s not easy to respond to negative reviews, but it is important. Taking the time and effort to reply to an unfavorable review can result in a 16% boost in customer advocacy.

Here are some tips that can make writing your responses easier.

1. Remain Calm and Read the Review Carefully

It is normal to feel angry, upset, concerned, or confused when receiving insults and criticism. However, it is important to avoid instant responses driven by emotion rather than formality.

Before responding to a negative review, take a moment to breathe deeply to help you remain calm. Read the review carefully for clarity and think about it. Taking the time to settle your emotions and formulate what you want to say can help tremendously, enabling you to deliver a better response.

A great tip shared by David Leroux, Airbnb coach, writer, and podcaster, reveals that “you don’t want to be confrontational. You don’t want to argue with them. You don’t want to be mean to them. You have to understand their issue and address it in a timely fashion to avoid a lot of escalation.”

In other words, getting back at the previous guest with an angry mindset might feel good in the moment, but a positive mindset is more valuable in winning over potential guests.

vacation rental host using guest screening app

2. Take Responsibility

When receiving a complaint or negative feedback, the last thing an upset guest wants to hear is an excuse. Whether or not a negative review is rational, you must view it as an opportunity to showcase your superb customer service and salvage your relationship with the unhappy customer.

Don’t retaliate even if their poor experience is not your fault. To address the situation, it’s best to take the client-centric approach by taking responsibility for their poor experience. Be willing to hear them out, and make sure you’re doing the best you can in providing a better quality service.

In return, you get to reinforce your excellent service and make potential guests feel reassured knowing you take complaints seriously.

3. Reflect on the Positives of Their Stay

If the upset guest left any positive comments in their negative review, take that opportunity to highlight that good comment, reminding them that their experience wasn’t all bad.

For instance, say a guest left a review noting that your property was extremely clean, but they were disappointed about the AC not being cold enough. You could acknowledge their appreciation and communicate that cleanliness is a priority for all guest stays. Then, include in your response that you are taking the appropriate steps to fix the AC as soon as possible.

Reflecting on positivity may encourage disgruntled guests to give you another chance and show prospective guests that complaints are taken seriously.

4. Tell How You Plan to Improve

To help ease the tension and make your guests feel heard, tell them how you plan to improve your service. This could be reimbursement or discounts, hiring more reliable cleaners, or prioritizing maintenance. By informing guests of your solution plan, you also show future guests that you are proactive, making them feel safer choosing your property.

Additionally, if you want to ensure customer satisfaction, you can also ask what could have been done better to make things right with them.

5. Thank the Reviewer

One of the goals in terms of marketing your vacation rental property is to have people talking about your property. A negative review might seem like bad news, but the truth is, whenever someone takes the time to write anything about your property, they feel strongly about your business as a whole.

Even when someone points out something negative about your property, you should thank them for giving you feedback about their experience. This gives you the chance to improve your vacation rental management for their benefit and to the benefit of your future guests.

Additional Tips for Responding to Negative Reviews

Now that we know how to handle negative reviews, the bonus tips below will help ensure you remain professional and courteous:

  • Don’t write generic replies, but follow a consistent format in your responses.
  • Be professional and thoughtful in your responses.
  • Wait around 24 hours before submitting a response.
  • Give discounts/compensate for really poor guest experiences.
  • Don’t take negative reviews personally.
  • Express why you disagree without deliberately making them look like a liar.
  • Ask them for a second chance or say that you hope they try your listing again.
young woman looking through bad airbnb reviews

Can You Remove Bad Reviews on Airbnb?

While you can’t remove any reviews on Airbnb, you can do the following options:

  • You can ask the Airbnb guest to revise the rating if they are open to it. Kindly let them know how they can find their former review and ask that they edit it.
  • You can ask Airbnb to remove the review only if the review violates Airbnb’s content policy. The policy includes any comments that relate to illegal or harmful activities or are explicitly graphic, violent, threatening, discriminatory, and harassing.
  • You can postpone leaving the guest a review as guests have 14 days to leave a review after check-out. Waiting at least a few days to prompt guests to leave a review will give them more time to cool down and encourage them to reconsider any harsh feedback.

How to Deal With Untruthful Vacation Rental Reviews

Every Airbnb host is susceptible to reviews that contain untrue incidents and false accusations. While you can’t remove false reviews, you can report them if you think they violate Airbnb’s review policy mentioned above.

When handling a false vacation rental review, it is best to keep a cool mindset. Bright Local’s consumer survey reports that 89% of respondents are more likely to favor a business that responds to both negative and positive reviews. This means that you should carefully deliver a response to an untrue review even when it is upsetting.

Again, a vital part of dealing with unfair and untrue guests is to never respond with anger. Instead, be calm, sympathetic, and thoughtful with your responses.

Preventing Negative Vacation Rental Reviews

Don’t wait for any negative reviews to escalate publicly for other potential guests to see. Instead, leave a guidebook in the living room or kitchen of your vacation rental home to allow guests to write about their stay.

Not only can a guestbook enable visitors to share positive aspects of their stay at your vacation rental home. It can also help you receive constructive criticism on how to upgrade your property moving forward. This approach will help you gain useful feedback offline and even prevent negative reviews from arising online for future guests to see.

Our tips for responding to bad Airbnb reviews will help you stay calm, acknowledge the issue, show that you care, and provide a plan of action to improve your service. Not only will you encourage previous guests to change their perception of your listing, but future guests will also be more likely to book with you knowing that you’re proactive.

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Tips on Writing Airbnb Reviews for Guests https://turno.com/airbnb-reviews-for-guests/ Wed, 06 Jul 2022 02:41:00 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=1509 Just like guests can write reviews about their experience at your property, hosts are also able to write reviews about their guests after check-out. Writing guest reviews is just as important as receiving them. Doing so can help other hosts make decisions about accepting guests and encourage a reciprocal relationship within the Airbnb host and guest community. That said, writing guest reviews can be time-consuming. Learn tips for writing helpful reviews in a timely manner.

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Why Write Airbnb Reviews for Guests?

Writing reviews for guests is a vital ingredient in generating more profitability. Discover several great reasons why writing reviews about your guests is beneficial.

writing airbnb reviews for guests

Encourage Positive Reviews

By taking the initiative to write a review for your guests, they are reminded by Airbnb to write a review in return. Especially in cases of positive guest experiences, writing a favorable review will cause guests to appreciate the gesture and be more encouraged to leave a high star rating for you.

Help Other Hosts

Writing guest reviews is very beneficial to the entire Airbnb host community. It helps you and future hosts to make wise decisions in accepting guests to their homes. For example, if a previous host wrote a negative Airbnb review about a guest, you may choose not to accept the guest’s booking to avoid potential trouble too.

“It’s no exaggeration to say that reviews are the glue that keeps the sharing economy together, instilling a potentially chaotic or unpredictable process with a sense of humanity and order.”

Seth Porges, Airbnb Host and former Forbes Contributor

Care about your guest experience? Make sure your Airbnb is professionally cleaned.

Impress Existing and Potential Guests

Spending time and effort to leave personalized reviews for each guest will impress not only your existing guests but prospective ones as well. This shows that you are a thoughtful and reliable host.

This will also communicate to your potential guests that you are committed to maintaining effective communication even after check-out.

What Does Airbnb Ask You to Review?

After a guest checks out, Airbnb will prompt you to leave a review by asking you to evaluate the following:

  • Experience with the guest(s)
  • How clean and tidy they left your property
  • How clear your communications were with them
  • Whether or not they followed your house rules and regulations
  • If you would be happy to host them again and/or would recommend them to other hosts
woman sitting on floor in front of couch using laptop

How to Write a Helpful Review for a Vacation Rental Guest

Now that you understand the importance of reviewing guests, learn our tips for writing comprehensive yet efficient reviews on Airbnb.

1. Be Patient

It is crucial to not rush into writing your review — check your property first to make sure that everything is in good order. An efficient way to do this is to ask your cleaner to report any damages they find during the cleaning process.

For instance, using Turno, a cleaner can utilize the Report and Share feature to notify the host of a broken TV with descriptions and photos. This way, you can write constructive feedback that may help the guest to be more diligent during future stays and inform other hosts of the experience you had.

2. Be Honest

If a guest disrespected your property and house rules, be honest and fair as you would not want them to come back to your property anyway. As the saying goes, “honesty is the best policy.”

Provide examples and evidence and ensure that your review is based solely on the events you have witnessed and experienced with your guests. After all, you want other hosts and guests to trust you so that you maintain a good reputation while being supportive and helpful.

3. Be Specific

In your reviews, be specific and factual. If you were pleased with your guests, for example, state how great or respectful they were by obeying your house rules and keeping your short-term rental as clean as possible. This way, you can communicate your standards to prospective guests about keeping the property in order.

On the other hand, you may have a negative encounter with a guest. Say, for example, you received noise complaints from your vacation rental neighbors and had to clean up trash left all over the house. You can share this specific information in your feedback so that other hosts are advised to avoid problematic visitors.

4. Be Helpful to Other Hosts

Most hosts always look through Airbnb guest reviews upon confirming a reservation to learn more about the guest — especially about their behavior and etiquette.

After being specific about an incident you had with a guest, decide whether you would want to recommend the guests to other hosts. Determine if there is anything about the guest you think other hosts should be aware of. For example, if a guest left empty bottles indicating that they had a party at your property, you’ll want to warn other hosts.

5. Be Efficient

Creating reviews for each guest can be time-consuming. Putting together templates for your Airbnb guest reviews, however, will enable you to save time and submit great reviews much faster.

Templates will come in handy when you’re on the go and your daily tasks start to pile up. They’re also crucial for when you’re receiving a high volume of bookings, especially if you have multiple listings.

woman smiling at a desk while looking at her wrist watch

Airbnb Guest Review Templates

Here are some templates you can use when writing Airbnb reviews for guests. Ideally, you should customize and adjust them as you see fit to make them more authentic and personalized.

Template 1

It was a pleasure to host [guest name]! They kept consistent communication and treated the home with respect. I would be more than happy to accommodate them again!

Template 2

[Guest name] kept my rental property clean and organized. Even my cleaner complimented how well-kept the house was when they arrived to complete the turnover. I highly recommend [guest name] to any host!

Template 3

I loved hosting [guest name]. They were kind, friendly, and extremely respectful. They were quiet the entire weekend — making my hosting experience a lot easier. I look forward to having them again when they’re back in town!

Frequently Asked Questions About Airbnb Reviews for Guests

Does Airbnb send hosts reminder emails to review their guests?

Yes, as long as the host signs up for reminders. When they do, Airbnb sends a few email reminders by default:

  • One on the guest’s check-out day
  • One if the guest submits a review first
  • A final one shortly before the review period expires

How can I write a review if I manage the property long-distance?

Managing a property long-distance should not stop you from writing an authentic guest review. For positive guest stays, you can use automation tools to easily submit templated reviews without any extra work on your part.

Keep in mind that your guest review does not necessarily have to be a lengthy one. You can write a brief note, as simple as “thank you for being an awesome guest.”

Can I edit or delete a guest review I wrote?

You can edit a review that you have written within the 14 day review period, or up until the guest submits their review within those days. However, you can’t delete a guest review once it’s published unless it violates Airbnb’s review policy.

How long after I leave a review will it be published?

Your review is published once both parties submit theirs, or when the 14 day review window has ended — whichever comes first. At that time, reviews are automatically published, and no changes can be made. Be sure to be as impartial as possible to avoid any worries.

Nothing ruins a stay faster than a dirty place.
Find Airbnb cleaners on Turno now.

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What Is an Airbnb Guidebook and Why Do You Need One? https://turno.com/airbnb-guidebook/ Tue, 05 Jul 2022 00:21:00 +0000 https://turnoverbnb.com/?p=5740 Communication is key from the time a guest inquires about your listing until check-out and beyond. That’s why guest guidebooks have gained in popularity. A guidebook is a guest’s roadmap for a successful stay, giving them all the information they need about the home, the local area, and activities and experiences they can enjoy before, during, and after their visit. Below, learn more about the importance of guidebooks and what to include in yours.

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Why Guidebooks Are an Essential Communication Tool For Today’s Hosts

The travel landscape is changing along with the demands and expectations of travelers. Today’s new vacation rental guests are the result of a couple of converging trends:

  • Business travelers are turning to vacation rentals. As many as 700,000 companies use Airbnb to manage travel for their employees.
  • Families are choosing vacation rentals more and more these days — and they’re staying longer. In 2021, families accounted for one-third of Airbnb’s bookings, up from just over one-fourth of bookings the previous year. Many families love the flexibility of being able to include their kids, friends, pets, or extended family during their travel.

These trends have sparked a new type of vacation rental stay: “flexcations.” Coined by Vrbo, flexcations tap into the reality of flexible and remote work and school schedules.

Whether a business traveler, family, or individual, each type of guest wants four things: choice, convenience, control, and comfort. They want a variety of amenities to choose from. They want information at their fingertips. And they want to know how to optimize the use of their rental for greater comfort. An Airbnb guidebook helps you achieve all of that and more.

In short, guidebooks are a necessity if you want to please your guests, build your brand, and create a solid base of repeat visitors.

man smiling at tablet while sitting in a desk chair

5 Ways Guidebooks Benefit and Build Your Airbnb Business

Guidebooks are not only a great communication tool, but they are also a good brand- and business-building tool. Here are five ways guidebooks can help you grow your business and win more Airbnb guests:

1. Establishes You as an Expert Host

It should be clear by now that good, old-fashioned hospitality can be achieved with a thoughtful focus on great communication and relationship building.

Once a guest makes a reservation, you become their virtual concierge, tour guide, and host. Chances are, guests won’t be familiar with your property, neighborhood, or city. They’ll need an expert to help them navigate their way to a memorable stay. Your guidebook is their gateway to all the cool things about your home and destination.

Many guests like to pre-plan to create their perfect trip itinerary, some in great detail, with every minute mapped out. A guidebook is their essential planning tool. Whether it’s the kid-friendly local coffee shop or the new art gallery in the town center, your guests will appreciate your insider’s view.

2. Launches You Into Your Local Small-Business Ecosystem

As a vacation rental host, you are part of your town’s small-business ecosystem. An Airbnb guidebook is one way you can support other local small businesses. Specifically, you can highlight local restaurants, grocery stores, shopping malls, and more in your guidebook, helping drum up business for them.

This can have a boomerang effect. When these shops and eateries feel the positive impact you are having on their businesses, they may start recommending you as a top lodging choice to friends, family, and customers.

Strong local word-of-mouth can set you above the competition and establish you as a viable member of the local business network. In destinations where there is friction between short-term rental hosts and the community, this can help relieve some of that tension and build bridges.

3. Builds Your Brand and Leaves a Lasting Impression

Your guidebook is the best brand-building tool you have. It allows you to sell the benefits and features of your home and gives your guests assurance that they made the right choice. It also offers a personal view of your guests’ destination and shows that you care about guests’ stays.

All of this makes for a lasting impression, one that is shared every time a guest talks about their trip. Be sure you manage that impression well.

4. Improves Your Review Scores

That strong word-of-mouth we discussed above is the key to building strong and positive reviews.

Review scores have an impact on how your listing is ranked on searches for your destination on travel websites. High review scores keep you higher in the rankings and make you more competitive. Since communication is one of the top criteria upon which reviews are based, an attractive, useful guidebook can help garner more 5-star reviews.

A digital guidebook is part of your Airbnb listing page, so it contributes to the general look and feel of your listing and increases your credibility as a host. The more your guidebook stands out, the more you and your listing stand out.

5. Opens the Door to Added Revenue Streams

A good guidebook is not just a digital FAQ — it is also the key to selling add-on services or upselling your conveniences.

Beyond your room rates, there are a number of additional services you can provide at a charge for guests. Some of the more obvious upsell services include:

  • Early check-in fees
  • Late check-out charges
  • Mid-stay cleaning services
  • Pre-arrival groceries
  • Airport pickup
  • Floral services
Spray bottle image

Use your imagination and listen to guests’ requests to create any number of positive revenue streams for your vacation rental business. There may also be affiliate programs with your local attractions that pay healthy commissions to hotels and other lodging facilities that send them guests.

The good news with these extended revenue sources is that you keep 100% of the dollars you make on the upsell.

Vacation Rental Guidebook Basics

Guidebooks have become one of the most critical hospitality tools for successful vacation rental hosts. They’re your virtual front desk, room service, and concierge — all rolled into one.

The ideal guidebook assures your guests that they are in good hands. It combines the traditional handbook, containing all the details about the property, with a good travel guide that has all the details about the destination.

With a good guidebook, guests can run the place, find a good meal, and find out where the action is in the area.

Digital vs Printed

Guests are becoming accustomed to fewer face-to-face interactions. This means that a digital guidebook option is the best way to go in this new Airbnb-centric travel landscape. In fact, the use of digital guidebooks more than doubled in 2020, becoming what is considered a best practice for vacation rental hosts.

Many hosts still provide a physical handbook, as some travelers, particularly older travelers, want a physical guidebook they can touch and feel. By and large, however, guests simply expect a digital guidebook these days. From the moment they check out your listing on Airbnb or Vrbo, they expect a guidebook to be present.

Many booking channels, like Airbnb and Vrbo, include tools to create a basic digital guidebook with all the key components. That said, there are a variety of software choices for more sophisticated guidebooks, including:

What Goes In a Guidebook: Content Must-Haves

An effective guidebook should contain a useable handbook and a reliable travel guide.

Traditional vacation rental handbooks contain:

  • Welcome message: For a host, a friendly welcome is par for the course. Make your guests feel at home and that you’ve got their backs.
  • Outline of the house rules: These can include the number of guests allowed, quiet hours, trash and dishwashing etiquette, and pool rules.
  • Emergency contacts: Let your guests know how to reach you and local service providers for any perceivable emergency.
  • How-to guide for using appliances and amenities: WIFI codes, cable instructions, and other tips for using appliances should be covered.

To continue, an in-the-know, local travel guide should include:

  • Best dining options: Be sure to include your favorite hidden local gems.
  • Local services: Local cleaners, salons and spas, gym, printing and delivery services, and transportation services should always be highlighted. Directions to the train or bus station and local car rentals are things to include.
  • Tours and attractions: There may be attractions in your area that the locals take for granted but visitors would find fascinating. Local historic tours or pub crawls are all perfect choices for the out-of-towner.
  • Upcoming events: What shows and concerts are in town? Provide a list of local fairs, charity events, farmers’ markets, parades, marathons, and other events.
  • Language: Consider adding a section in your travel guide dedicated to the language in your area. List some common sayings to ensure that your guest can interact with others if they do not speak the native language. You may also want to encourage guests to download a language translation app, such as TripLingo or HelloTalk.

Presenting Your Airbnb Guidebook to Guests

Here are three ways you may wish to display your travel guide:

Shareable Link or File

Create a link to your website or file to share information electronically quickly. Consider communicating with your guests in advance of their trip to assist them as they start planning.

QR Code

A QR code is a scannable auto-generated code that directs you to a website or webpage with more information. By creating a dynamic QR code, your guests will be able to view your travel guide electronically right from their own personal devices.

QR code being scanned on phone that is in someone's hand

Physical Book

Displaying a physical travel guide is an excellent add-on to any table. If you would like to get creative, use a website that can generate templates, customize fonts, and upload images. Next, print out the pages and add them to a binder or even publish them through an online company such as Snapfish or Shutterfly to create an impressive guide.

Guidebooks: The New Hospitality Normal

Given the rising popularity of vacation rentals, Airbnb hosts, new and old, have a tremendous opportunity to attract many new guests but also to achieve what hotels never can: true hospitality. Hospitality at its core is understanding and anticipating guests’ needs and making them feel at home.

A guidebook can help you achieve that hospitality. Make your guidebook personal and put yourself in the guest’s shoes. What would you like to know when arriving at a new destination? Always assume it’s a guest’s first visit to your location, and help them feel at home from the moment they arrive.

The post What Is an Airbnb Guidebook and Why Do You Need One? appeared first on Turno.

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