Do you upsell any extra services?

[Liv]

Hey everyone, 

A few Hosts have been experimenting with selling extra amenities and services to guests - apart from the stay itself. This got me thinking and I’m curious to know if any of you have ever tried or thought about doing something similar.

It could be an optional meal that you cook yourself, a ride to the airport that you charge for separately or perhaps some paintings made by a local artist.

Either way, I’d love to learn more about extras you might offer guests. Do you upsell anything in your listing? How do you advertise it to guests?

Thanks,

Liv

[Max144]

@Liv  I have in my listing pick up and drop off from airport for small charge put no requests since covid plus offer motorcycle tours and 4 wheel drive tours, i am a licensed taxi operator.

[Sandra126]

If you have paying guests in your regular car with regular insurance, you might find yourself in trouble in case something happens. I have given lifts, but I stress to guests that they are in the car as friends. Easy if you are a taxi driver already, such as @Max144 !

[Sarah977]

@Laura2592  "We don't want anyone to feel like we are hustling them for extra $$ while they stay."

I detest the term "upsell", because that is exactly the connotation it has for me.

[J-Renato0]

Up-sell - To persuade the customer or guest to buy (or booking) something more expensive.

I.g. -You book a 1-bedroom apartment and when you arrive the host want you to upgrade your accommodation -> Kind of "If you pay a litlle more you can stay in an apartment with 2 bedrooms and balcony."

Cross-sell -> Offering sightseeing packages,  pick up and drop off from airport 

Up-sell and Cross-sell are different concepts.

As a guest, I would not feel comfortable if a host tried to persuade me to spend more than what I am already spending to book something, being it cheap or expensive.

If a host tried to persuade me to upgrade my accommodation or services that I already had booked, I would not feel comfortable and would inform it to Airbnb or would write it in the review.

To me "UP-SELL"  is not acceptable! 

As for cross-selling I agree with Laura2592 - ""We don't want anyone to feel like we are hustling them for extra $$ while they stay."

I may change my mind in a future. It is a complicated matter.

[Naomi370]

@J-Renato0 I agree I wouldn’t want the guests to feel pressured that I’m trying to “sell” them. I am open however to including a few breakfast items for a little more like muffins coffee, danishes and some fruit. I would only include that if a guests request when booking or asks me. I’m interested to see what other hosts offer. 

[Edward598]

People are trying to get away from the real world on vacations and should not be bothered by up selling, slide selling, or any other selling.  I feel Air BnB should be a santuary away from all that stuff.  Dont you ever just want to relax and "check out" for a while.  Really? And Air BnB has to be part of that area in life where you can go to get away from it all.  ....I feel Air BnB host should be engaged in trying to get anything out of the guest except a booking anf serving the guest.  My home is a place of rest and realation over looking the Pacific Ocean, calmnes, tranquity and greater feeling of awareness with once self.  It must be a  totally enjoyable without experience or else why do it, just get a hotel.  We as host are part of the vacation experience most of the time.  We do not participate in gimmicks, sales, or other entanglements with our guest.  Do you or do you not get it!   Perhaps establishing a new standard of not bothering your guest with anything but harmony and relaxation is in order. Leave the commercialism where it belongs, when our guest get back to the real world.  I mean dont people beserve a break!. After all they are on vacation, meaning VACATION!

[Sarah977]

@Edward598  I quite agree. But I don't see anything wrong with a host letting a guest know an extra service is available, it just definitely shouldn't be "sold" to them in any way.

A host might want to offer an airport pickup, for instance. If the airport is 5 minutes from the Airbnb, no big deal, it's a nice unexpected perk for guests (I pick most of my guests up at the bus station- it's a 5 minute drive for me. I don't offer it in my ad, I just offer to do so when we're communicating about their eta, and they always appreciate it)

But if picking guests up at the airport entailed a half hour drive each way for the host, and $30 worth of gas, there's nothing wrong with a host offering a service like that, IMO.

My neighbor used to offer that service for other hosts in the area- the airport is a 45 minute drive from my town, and he charged $50, which is half of what the taxis charge. Plenty of guests took the hosts he was doing this for up on the offer. The hosts weren't actually making any money off it- they just let guests know it was available and if they wanted it, the hosts arranged it and the guests paid my neighbor directly.

[Fiona243]

We offer cooked and "continental" breakfast for an extra charge. We don't really make any money off it, just charge enough to cover our costs. About a third of our guests book breakfast when they make the booking, and occassionally we get a guest who asks when they check in if we offer breakfast, in which case I will tell them the prices and they can make up their mind to have it or not.

We don't actively pursue guests who have not booked breakfast. If they have not read our listing in enough detail to find out that we offer breakfast, I'm not going to risk annoying them by asking them when they make the booking, or worse, when they check in. as @J-Renato0 says, I think this would come across as hassling guests for more money and would be most unwelcome.

We occasionally give guests a lift in our car, but we have never charged as I think this would cause insurance problems. I've also lent a winter coat, scarf and gloves to a guest who arrived without them, but that was as a coutesy and I would not have dreamed of asking her to rent my coat!

[Elisabeth40]

At the beginning of my Airbnb hosting I had a deal with a local French cafe to service my guests a breakfast. The breakfast was prepaid by me and included in the room pricing. Because I didn’t charged extra for the breakfast I defined a fix amount I spent per guest. It was more headaches as not having breakfast at all. Guests tried always to modify the prepaid breakfast package and never wanted to pay for anything they ordered extra at the cafe, so I got complaints from my cafe owner friends. Secondly guests include reviews about breakfast and complaint that they wish they would gotten a big cafe latte but never wanting to pay something extra. I just stopped providing it and have no headache anymore. 

[Robin488]

I experienced the same, we offered k-cups for the first morning coffee, we included one per guest. We even have in our welcome email that we provide one single serve per guest, to get them through the first morning… I had 3 different guests state in the private message that they would have liked, more varieties of coffee or a couple more k-cups, one lady even stated that we should provide more coffee, because most people don’t have the Kcups at home? Our coffee maker is a duo, it can make a pot or singles.  (We provide filters).   I added a small plastic stand up sign next to the coffee maker that says, please enjoy a cup on us! Low and behold, haven’t heard a peep since.  Fortunately none of the guests that said anything about the small amount off coffee left, actually reviewed us down for it, but I found it so strange that people complain about something that they didn’t complain about before I left any coffee for them.   Give and inch I guess…

[Sedleigh0]

Songs like an opportunity to expand on your  entrepreneurship opportunities. My wife is a great cook she's a  Shuff by trade, our 16 year old daughter is wonderful artist  good talent and myself pick up drop off airport. We're all for exceptional service to our guest. If our guest would like to enjoy a night out and have a good time and need car service, it's a no brainer. Now your guest are counted for, they can go and enjoy themselves safely.

[Connell-Davids0]

In reply, I offer a transfers from the airport to my apartment and I have had great success, before the Pandemic of course, and now since our removal from the UK red list (South Africa) I’ve had three bookings, one of which includes an airport transfer. Check your local shuttle services prices and you can charge a much cheaper rate.

[John5097]

@Liv  I don't but perhaps in the future might like more interaction with guest and could figure out some kind of additional service or something. Haven't quite figured out what that might be, but guest are already a very positive influence for me, and I would be inclined to interact more to enjoy it rather than extra income. 

[James2566]

When we build our six holiday studios we decided to build a small office next to the laundry room which is turning into a shop now. We can accommodate up to 14 guests on our property so it makes sense to have a small “cantine” on our property.

We sell Turkish beach towels which are gorgeous, these are mentioned in our digital guide and often requested.

Guests also purchase more of our local Cane Dog Coffee, they get one sample in their room and it’s really good. We worked with the roasters on a grind and bag size that makes sense for short stays, and that’s selling like crazy. 

Now we’re selling things that guests need and some curated locally made souvenirs cause all they see at the airport is made in China crap. 

Guests also purchase our Sweet Dreams cookies by the dozen. We leave one on each nightstand on arrival and after midstay cleaning visits. 

We use TouchStay digital guide and have a shop section so there’s no pressure. Guests usually discover we sell things when they come to my little office. Not everyone can have an office onsite but the digital guide allows us to have a sort of pre-arrival “shop” where we can have things ready in the room. 

You can see some of our offering on our Instagram for sea salt studios.

[Arzu0]

These are great ideas indeed! 

Great to hear that Turkish beach towels made their way to Barbados. Are they easy to come by?