When you fly across the country to stay with one of your best friends for a week’s vacation, they typically roll out the red carpet treatment. They’ll have a full itinerary planned, full of fun activities, the best local eateries and hot spots, while also being receptive to your need for some relaxing downtime. This is what we call a successful Airbnb host.
Now, imagine you apply this same kind of attitude toward your guests as an Airbnb host. Creating a memorable experience for your guests will convert them into return customers and generate the coveted five-star reviews that will make you a successful Airbnb host.
Here are 6 tips for creating a top-notch Airbnb experience:
1. Craft a Friendly Profile
To become a successful host, you’ll need to start by capturing travelers’ attention to stand out among the ever-increasing competition. Besides filling out the standard forms and providing professional-quality photographs of your home, consider creating a short video to introduce yourselves and your home to potential guests.
Of course, the emphasis will be different if you are hosting guests in your home while you are there, while you’re away, or if your Airbnb is a separate location that you’ve set up strictly for short-term rentals.
If video work is something you enjoy, you could set up a YouTube channel with a variety of videos about the home, the community, the neighborhood, etc., that potential guests could enjoy at their leisure. Let the guests know who their Airbnb host is.
2. Create a Relaxing Environment
Even the most adventurous of travelers like to have a space to retreat for a little relaxation, even if they pack their days and evenings with activities. Offering your guests a patio or casual dining area where they can sit back and unwind will make them feel welcome and at home. Set them up with a station to make tea, coffee, or cocktails.
If you are hosting guests in your home, you could invite them to join you for a cocktail hour or a nice dinner where they have no responsibilities for making choices, dealing with unfriendly waiters, or cleaning up afterward. Get acquainted with your guests and you might make friends for a lifetime.
3. Share Your Community Pride & Knowledge
Most travelers love the experience of tasting the flavors of the communities they visit, but it’s much easier to do when they have a local to guide them.
Create a neighborhood map that points out all the special places you love to hang out, meet with friends, indulge in the best finding dining, or grab a quick bite. Here’s another place you can shine by creating a video tour of your favorite sites posted to your YouTube channel.
Along with an interactive map, you can provide links to their websites where guests can place online orders or book reservations. You can set this up for your guests right from the Airbnb app.
If your guests are not so tech-savvy, provide brochures and business cards to local attractions and establishments to help them find their way to the top spots.
4. Inform Them About Transportation Options
Many guests will be unfamiliar with your city or will arrive without their own vehicle, so be sure to let them know which transportation options are available.. Provide a link in advance to information on mass transit as well as a list of taxi companies with phone numbers.
You also could surprise your guests with an Uber pickup at the airport or train station to provide them a quick tour of the city or neighborhood before dropping them off at your residence. If you can schedule an Uber/Lyft driver you know, it could turn into a trusted source for them to use for transportation during their stay and give your favorite Uber/Lyft driver a little boost in business.
5. Communicate Well as an Airbnb Host
It’s important to touch base at key times before and during their visit, without being too invasive or overwhelming. Be welcoming when they inquire about booking and answer all questions quickly and thoroughly. Check in to see that they have arrived on time and found the accommodations just as described. It’s a nice practice to check in the day after they arrive to ensure their first night’s stay was comfortable.
Be sure they know you are available anytime via phone, text or email if something goes wrong at the home. If you are not in town during their visit, make sure to have emergency contacts who are available.
Don’t forget to communicate after their stay as well. Encourage them to give you a positive review, and do the same for them. Your guests become your biggest ambassadors when they enjoy their stay in your Airbnb.
6. Emphasize Your Guests’ Safety
As we are hopefully coming into the home stretch of the pandemic, guests still will be concerned about safety as they venture away from home. Let’s face it, even after the pandemic subsides, we’re all going to be more concerned about our health and safety when we travel.
Hopefully, you already follow an enhanced cleaning process, which you should point out to your potential guests. Providing hand sanitizer is also a nice touch.
You can further expand your guests’ confidence by offering contactless or low-contact locks to your property so guests don’t need to be handling keys or keypad entry systems.
Many smart locks are available that open with a phone app or proximity detection. Goki offers a smart lock that uses both an app entry or a 99.5% germ-free keypad. Be sure to let your guests know if they are allowed to have visitors and whether they can share their passcode with others.
Following the steps in this guide will help ensure your guests have a memorable stay in your Airbnb and encourage them to recommend you to friends, family, and other travelers.
We’d also be happy to help you set up your Airbnb with safe entry locks that can ensure your customers’ safety and satisfaction. Click the button below to learn how easy it can be to convert to locks to Goki contactless locks.
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