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[Maxine103]

Can anyone help? I am new to hosting! I have a booking and it's looking like I have had 40% discounts taken out of my booking! I understand the 20% off within the first 3 bookings! But why has there been more? 

[Emiel1]

@Maxine103 

I guess the reservation is for 7  nights or more ?

Your weekly discount is set by at 21% + the special offer 20% = approx. 41 %  !

Hope this helps,

Emiel

[Anna9170]

@Maxine103    Probably  @Emiel1  is right. Most likely, you have made a week's discount, as Airbnb offers by default and added a special offer. Airbnb summarizes any possible discounts, so please close your calendar and spend the evening checking your price settings!

[Helen3]

I would remove the introductory discount and reduce your weekly discount @Maxine103 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Maxine103 I would remove your weekly discount until after the promotion phase. Leaving the promotion phase discount in place to keep you up the search rankings

[Robin4]

@Maxine103 

Maxine, to Airbnb your property will never be cheap enough, they are not the slightest bit interested in whether you make money or lose it.....they just want a successful booking so they get their commission.

Remove ALL discounts from your listing, Airbnb will protest but, don't use 'Smart Pricing'.....don't take any notice of 'Pricing Tips' and don't use length of stay discounts.....Airbnb will double or even triple up on your discounts if you have enough in place  and you will end up essentially paying a guest to stay in your listing.

If the guest was worth a discount you can offer them a refund at the end of the stay when you can assess whether the guest was worth taking a dollar or two off for! 

Discounts are a shortcut to ruin......don't offer them!

Cheers.........Rob

[Maxine103]

Thankyou Rob for your reply! 

We have taken 20% off but they are saying we have to offer 20% for the forst 3 months so to get reviews! 

But in my weekly stays its still saying 21%! Can i get rid of all discounts then before the 3 months?

Maxine 

[Sarah977]

@Maxine103  You don't "have to" follow any of Airbnb price suggestions. They try to scare you into lowering your prices and offering discounts. I never had any discounts on from the time I started hosting and I had no problem getting bookings and reviews.

You have to understand that their price tips, pressuring hosts to use IB, etc. has nothing to do with your listing being successful for you- it's all about Airbnb getting more bookings on the site  and collecting their service fees. They don't care if you aren't making any profit.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Maxine103 You have absolute control over the price charged. Airbnb may strongly recommend pricing/discounts etc BUT you have the final say.

Having said the above you cannot modify any bookings already taken.

[Maxine103]

Hi I've taken the weekly and long stays discounts off now! I feel where we are the holiday homes don't offer discounts! We are in a grear area and near to beaches etc! We will see how it goes! But yes i will still honor my 1st booking! 

[Linda108]

When I first started hosting 5 years ago, I priced my listing about 15% lower than competition in order to get reviews.  It worked very well at that time.  However, there has been a change in the guest pool and many hosts have reported that troublesome guests have often been related to discounts and low nightly rates.  My suggested compromise is that you maintain a low rate for the first 5-10 bookings, but you do not use Instant Booking so you can vet each guest before accepting the reservation.  Later, you can add IB once you have a better handle on the business.  Just my 2 cents worth😊

[Maxine103]

What does IB stand for? 

Thankyou all for you helpful guidance! 

X

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Maxine103 IB = Instant Book. It allows guests to book without asking you first. We have it switched on but many hosts, particularly in shared homes dislike it.