Critique my listing - Leah from Perth, Western Australia

[Leah774]

Please critique my listing! I'm not getting many bites  - majority of my bookings are coming through via booking.com. I'd much prefer to use this platform, please help!

airbnb.com/h/modernbassendeanabode

[Daniel14755]

Hey Leah,

First of all, that place is beautiful! Photos are fantastic, although I’d love to see some drone shots from above if possible, and also some shots of something around there that would be the attraction for me to stay there (drone shots of the city skyline, hiking trails, etc). 

It’s not often that I say this, but the description left me wanting more. Tell me why I need to stay there. I know I can go downtown from the house, but “why”? What’s around you that should drive me to stay there (those are your photo ideas)? Don’t write me a book, but give me a little teaser of what’s offered nearby at least. Get me excited!

The only thing I might suggest that I saw in the photos was the kitchen counters. There’s a good plenty of stuff on them, and while I want to see a couple things, less can be more (at least on the island and one space of the wall counter). 

From what I read, you have good traction, just not here where you want it. I wish I had a magic bullet for that one, but I sure don’t. All I’ll say is to make sure your pricing is on point, and keep collecting the 5 star reviews. Traction has to come when you operate at a high level, and it sounds like you do!

I do agree that a 2 night minimum might help, although I understand the headache of cleaning for a short stay. However, I might offer a little perspective shift just by saying that’s also cash in your pocket thanks to the cleaning fee. It’s still work, but at least it’s a bonus for you when you clean it. We interviewed 3 cleaners (4, but one didn’t show and made their own decision for us) and made it VERY clear what we expect. The first one we used was a recommendation, and did exactly one clean for us before we let her go and chose a different one that fit our style and service approach (we set a very high expectation for service). Maybe there’s food for thought there at least. 

Not a whole lot of value to add from any of us really (outside different opinions and ideas for you to consider) since you’ve done such a great job with the place!

Wish you all the best,

Daniel

[Leah774]

Thank you Daniel for your interesting point of view. 

I absolutely agree with you that the kitchen area probably looks a bit overcrowded and I'll have to get some new professional photos taken with the space looking a bit clearer.

Interesting take with drone photos! It's not something I've seen in other local listings and it doesn't seem to be as much of a focus - from what I can tell - that guests would like to see. I don't have a drone but perhaps I should invest in one and make it my point of difference!

The area the property is in is a mix of industrial and suburbia, hence having a "home away from home" sort of feel to it, I tried to emulate comfort for small families to enjoy. Despite the large, open state of WA, we all seem to want to cram houses as close as we can to the metro area so space is quite a luxury in certain areas of Perth. I'm very lucky to have what I've got, where I have it and to boast having a nice backyard is quite the thing!

Surprisingly, a lot of my demographic is visitors from country WA or interstate so a lot of people know what they are coming out to most of the time. WA is known for its slower pace of lifestyle and the amazing beaches (which are still approximately a 30 minute drive away from the listing!) I appreciate your point that I haven't broadened my audience far enough towards international travellers and I will 100% find a way to remedy that!

The suburb the listing in doesn't have massive shopping centres or anything like that to draw people to so having the public transport links is a selling point to get them to attraction spots such as Perth city, Fremantle, beaches etc. My point is that you will always need to travel a lot regardless of where you stay in WA due to the sheer size if it! I've tried to reflect in my guidebook some of the things you might like to visit WA for, however its all a fair distance away and would only encourage guests to turn away from mine. My property is close to the airport without being directly affected by airtraffic so that in itself is a selling point.

I'm still on the hunt for a great cleaning provider, the ones that match my level of expectation are somewhat hard to find! The amount I charge guests for cleaning each booking never covers the cost that I have to pay for the cleaning companies either! Im looking at $400 per booking whilst I only charge guests $150 per stay to try keep my costs down.

Thank you for your input, definitely added to my list of considerations!

[Daniel12492]

Your listening looks great. There is not much to say... 
Maybe some pictures on the wall would make your apartment look a little warmer. 🙂

[David13337]

Hi @Leah774 , 

Great listing! The place looks really nice, clean and bright. I think you received already a lot of great advice. A few additional comments that may be helpful are the following:

- You can add some photos of the kitchenware and utensils that are available in your kitchen (a couple of selected photos showing your silverware or cooking pots will do)

- You added some great touch of warmth like the coffee mug, the plants and the flowers on the dining table. However, the photos of the garden look a little bit impersonal. You could try to better show the bbq or maybe take a photo with some plants or a pet. Just an idea, I am not sure if it would work 

- The calendar looks pretty much fully booked. It is possible that your booking.com guests are just outsmarting the airbnb.com guests

that are left with little to no availability to choose from. I am not sure if it is possible, but you could try to block out the calendar in some high season dates in booking.com but leaving them open on airbnb.com

Great job overall!