Are you one of Airbnb’s 2.9 million hosts, or are you thinking about becoming one? You’ve likely worked hard transforming your property into a successful vacation rental, and you want your hard work and investment to be worthwhile. Therefore, it’s vital you also take steps to ensure you get plenty of bookings on Airbnb.

 

READ MORE: How to Start an Airbnb Business

Why Aren’t You Getting More Airbnb Booking Requests?

So, you’ve listed your vacation rentals on Airbnb, and you wait for booking requests…. and wait… and wait some more. Why aren’t guests booking your property? There are multiple reasons why your Airbnb listing might not be getting booked, including:

Strict guest requirements – Implementing overly-strict criteria may lead to the exclusion of many quality guests. For instance, if you choose not to accept bookings from first-time guests or those with even one negative review, you could significantly limit your potential market.
Minimum stay – Many Airbnb guests only want to book a vacation rental for one night or two, so if you require a minimum stay of three nights or more, you might be missing out on a lot of potential bookings.
Uncompetitive pricing – By pricing your Airbnb vacation rental too high, you will lose potential guests to hosts with better pricing. At the same time, if you price your listing too low, potential guests will assume there must be a problem or the property is of lower quality. It’s important to research the local competition when setting your rates.
Unimpressive title – If potential guests are unimpressed by your listing’s title, they might assume they’ll be just as disappointed in your vacation rental. Instead, write a catchy and descriptive Airbnb title to attract more users.
Low-quality photos – The images in your Airbnb listing provide an opportunity to highlight all the remarkable features of your property. Using low-quality or unrelated photos only results in missed chances.

How to Get More Airbnb Bookings

There are several strategies you can use to enhance the visibility of your Airbnb profile and draw in more guests to book your vacation rentals. If you’re looking to maximize your earnings from listing your vacation rental with Airbnb, the tips below may be beneficial.

Optimize Airbnb SEO

Do you want to ensure your listing appears in Airbnb search results? Much like Google and other search engines rank websites, your search ranking is based on the Airbnb algorithm, and you can optimize your listing for a better outcome. Research the most relevant keywords and use them in your listing title and description.

Turn on Instant Book

With Instant Book, hosts allow guests to book an Airbnb immediately without waiting for pre-approval. By turning on Instant Book with Airbnb, you ensure your listing appears in more potential guests’ search results and demonstrate your flexibility as a host.

Keep Your Airbnb Listing Current and Complete

The Airbnb algorithm considers all parts of your listing, so it’s important to complete the title and create a thorough description. A complete Airbnb profile also appears more professional to potential guests. Further, it’s important to keep your listing current by regularly updating it.

Create a Comprehensive Listing

It’s insufficient to provide just a short property description to entice guests to book on Airbnb. Make the most of the available space by including comprehensive details about your vacation rental and its amenities. The more vividly you describe your property, the better potential guests can imagine themselves enjoying their stay.

Keep Calendars Up to Date

Regularly updating your Airbnb booking calendar is essential for making sure your listing is visible to potential guests whenever it’s available for relevant dates. By maintaining current calendars, you signal to the Airbnb algorithm that you are active on the sales channel.

Display Professional Photos

Vivid, descriptive photos can inspire potential guests to book your Airbnb listing. In fact, according to Airbnb, 60% of listing views start with a guest clicking on a photo, and more than 40% of the time, when guests choose not to book a listing, the last thing they click on is a photo.

Set Competitive Prices

When potential guests compare Airbnb listings, one of the major factors they consider is the rental price. A price that is competitive with similar listings in your local market makes your listing more appealing to potential guests. Remember to regularly update your price to reflect market changes or seasonal demand, ensuring you remain competitive.

Inspire Positive Reviews

Like most industries, Airbnb guests value the experiences and opinions of other customers. The more guests who leave good reviews of your property, the more you will increase your bookings on Airbnb. Therefore, try to create exceptional guest experiences that inspire high praise. Also, ensure you professionally respond to any negative reviews in a friendly manner.

Manage Response Rate

By quickly addressing inquiries from both current and prospective guests, you demonstrate that you are an engaged, dependable, and legitimate property owner. These qualities can encourage more Airbnb customers to choose your listing. Additionally, responding to inquiries within 24 hours can enhance your ranking in search results, further increasing your booking rate. This is essential for learning how to get more bookings on Airbnb.

Increase Flexibility

By being flexible with your minimum and maximum length of stay requirements, you can attract a wider range of potential guests seeking short-term rentals. Lowering the minimum stay and raising the maximum stay will result in your listing appearing in more searches, leading to increased booking opportunities.

More Tips for Increased Airbnb Bookings

The goal of an Airbnb listing is for property owners to host guests and make money, but that can’t happen without factors like a competitive price and flexible cancellation policies. Read on for more tips on improving the Airbnb experience you offer and how to reach Superhost status.

Don’t Cancel Bookings

To increase your booking rate, it’s important to avoid canceling bookings on Airbnb. When you cancel a booking, you not only inconvenience your guest but you hurt their experience and increase your chances of receiving a negative review.

Increase Social Media Presence

Like all search engines, Airbnb’s algorithm gives preference to listings with more links around the web. By sharing your property on social media and linking back to your Airbnb listing, you can appear more often in Airbnb search results.

Offer More Amenities

Many Airbnb customers look at the amenities the property offers guests when choosing their booking. Fortunately for hosts, many of the tickable options require very low investment. You can increase your bookings simply by outfitting your vacation rental with basic amenities like a hair dryer or a steam iron.

Add Listings to Other Websites

After you’ve established yourself as a host on Airbnb, you can expand your market reach by listing your property on other websites, such as Vrbo or Booking.com. Make sure you also use an app like Channel Manager to sync your booking calendars.

Provide Exceptional Service

By providing an extraordinary guest experience, including customer service, you inspire loyalty among your clientele, who are more likely to become repeat customers. In fact, studies indicate many Airbnb hosts receive up to half of their bookings from repeat guests.

Start a Mailing List

Contacting guests following their stays at your property helps improve your chances of repeat bookings. Ask guests for their email addresses, and add them to your mailing list. Then you can send periodic updates, as well as personal contact with past guests, reminding them of their positive experience.

Update Decor

Airbnb users seek out comfortable yet modern accommodations. In fact, how you furnish your vacation rental can impact your guests’ overall experience. Therefore, updating old-fashioned decor can have a positive impact; just don’t forget to update the photos attached to your listings.

Remember the Outdoors

The inside of your vacation rental isn’t the only part of the property that matters to your guests. They also pay attention to the landscaping outside. Be sure the lawn is mowed and any shrubbery is trimmed. If there is a garden, fill it with beautiful flowers and keep the weeds out. The aesthetic quality will have a positive impact on your Airbnb bookings.

Employ Latest Technology

Stay alert for emerging gadgets and technology trends that can enhance your guests’ experience. Incorporating smart home features like a smart thermostat, smart light bulbs, or voice assistance can help your property leave a lasting impression and differentiate it in the minds of your guests.

Achieve Superhost Status

Airbnb hosts who consistently achieve positive reviews and guest experiences can achieve Superhost status and boast an orange badge on their rental listings. This badge not only shows potential guests that you are a trustworthy and active host, but the property will also appear in targeted Superhost searches on the website.

Do Superhosts Get More Airbnb Bookings?

Airbnb Superhosts’ listings get more visibility, which increases their bookings and earning potential. Every 3 months, Airbnb reviews its hosts’ ratings, response rates, cancellation rates and total bookings over the previous 12 months. Those who achieve a 4.8 overall rating from guests, a 90% response rate, a cancellation rate of less than 1% and at least 10 completed stays are awarded Superhost status.

Superhosts receive a recognition badge that they can showcase on their Airbnb profiles, enhancing their credibility and visibility. In addition to this, they enjoy exclusive rewards, such as a $100 Airbnb coupon each year they maintain their status and an additional 20% above the standard referral bonus.

Were Airbnb Bookings Down Recently?

Although some hosts have claimed that their bookings have dropped significantly recently, the overall Airbnb market is still robust. According to AirDNA, demand for Airbnb and Vrbo rentals increased 24% compared to the previous period, and it was 26.6% higher compared with the same month in the past. If you are looking for how to get more bookings on airbnb, these trends are encouraging.

However, the increasing demand might not be keeping pace with the additional supply as more and more property owners list their vacation rentals with Airbnb. For instance, the available short-term U.S. listings on Airbnb and Vrbo have risen to 1.38 million, reflecting a significant increase compared to previous periods. This trend highlights the importance of understanding how to get more bookings on Airbnb.

Image: Envato Elements

This article, “How to Get More Bookings on Airbnb” was first published on Small Business Trends