Price Point issues

[Ophelia2]

Hello Airbnb team,

I’d really appreciate your insight or guidance on a dilemma I’ve encountered as a dedicated host.

I have a unique and lovingly curated garage conversion listed on Airbnb   it’s a two-level living space that I’ve worked hard to make welcoming and comfortable for guests. Over time, I’ve noticed a consistent pattern that I’d like to get feedback on:

When I list the property at or above £120 per night, my bookings come from respectful, appreciative guests who leave positive, thoughtful reviews and seem to genuinely enjoy the space. However, when I lower the price (especially under £100), I tend to receive more bookings  but with those come a much higher likelihood of negative reviews. These reviews often feel misaligned with the actual condition or offering of the space, with comments such as it being unclean or cold, or the area being “not great.” These experiences are uncommon when guests pay the higher rate, which leads me to believe pricing perception may play a role in guest expectations and attitude.

I understand that affordability is important to many travellers, but I’ve found that significantly reducing the rate often brings a very different kind of guest   one who may not align with the experience the listing offers, or who leaves harsher reviews that don't reflect the true condition of the home.

This puts me in a difficult position: either I raise the price and get fewer bookings with less stress and better reviews, or I lower the price and increase volume but at the cost of peace of mind and lower review ratings.

I’m sharing this because I’d really love to hear from others in the community  is this a common experience? Are there ways to better align pricing strategy with guest expectations, or filters I could put in place (such as minimum stays or updated language in the listing) to attract guests more aligned with the space?

Thank you so much for all the work you do to support hosts   and thank you in advance for any insight you can share.

Warm regards,

Ophelia

[Shelley159]

@Ophelia2 your issue could not have been better phrased and explained. This is a huge problem in the off season, which is when we have to drastically cut rates to feature in searches at all, and then compete (mostly on price) for the few interseted guests. Often the moment the price drops, the problems start.

I have no advice for you, only sympathy!

[Ophelia2]

Thank you, I ask chatgpt and it said hold your price as the negative reviews can damage your business

[Helen3]

Please don't rely on AI software to make business decisions about your STR business @Ophelia2 

[Ophelia2]

Thank you, I had that in mind but I wanted some impartial feedback

[Karen114]

@Ophelia2 You are not wrong as @Shelley159  stated.  There is a fine line between being too low attracting the bad guests and attracting the right guests.  I always err on the side of higher becuase I have seen the corelation many times.  I would rather be vacant than deal with low reviews and needy guests.  I am in Florida and our off season is summer on the slower side so rates are lower.  Summer's are always my worst as the guests that visit have paid less and are the most needy and time consuming.  They don't awlays result in bad reviews but definitely more of a headache. 

What I did notice in your reviews which are not bad, is a few mentioned communication as well as availability.  Do you use a guest guide at all?  I do and the guests that actually take the time to read it really appreciate it and many comment positively about it in the reviews. I use Touch Stay however there are many out there.  The guest guide gets sent as part of the welcome message immediately after booking, then about 5 days before and then morning of check in day. .  This sends the message to guest that it's important to have a look to answer any questions they may have.  

The guest guide offers recommendations of things to do in the area, places to eat etc.  It also touches on things about the unit itself.  For instance when we have a power outage the fridge beeps when power is restored. The guide tells them how to stop the beeping.  What type of coffee maker we have etc. Where to park, how to use the key pad door lock,  How to use the Roku Tv's.  This greatly cuts down on the back and forth messaging between myself and guest which is time consuming when you have more than one listing.  This is also where I set expectations about their stay covering hours of availability, phone goes into DND at 9PM, leave a message and will get back to you in the morning.  How maintenance issues are handled in the middle of the night etc.  Bug and critter encounters as well😀

Your space is beautiful and very well done.  You can see the care that has been put into making it great.  I think the addition of the guest guide you will be in a good place. 

[Ophelia2]

Thank you, I do use this feature, on Booking.com you can pre store them but on Airbnb I have to trigger them which do.  My daughter is an IT engineer and I will sit with her this evening to ensure all is well.  I am also going to print the guide so it is on hand for guests who have not read the detail in the online version which is my fault.  I had a bad one on booking.com which you can see https://www.booking.com/hotel/gb/the-art-annex-coulsdon.en-gb.html

[Karen114 · Accepted solution]

@Ophelia2  Nice response to the 1 star review! 

What I like about the digital guest guide is I use it in link form.  This is sent to them via the channel they booked with, SMS as well as email.  They can save it to their computer, home screen on their computer or print it out.   I find not everybody uses the platform they booked with after booking, emails can go to spam and  most everyone will see/ read a text message.  I use a multi-pronged approach especially with critial info like door codes etc. 

Printing it out is a nice option but will rarely be read in it's physical form.  If they can read it on their phone while doing just about anything else they will be more inclined to use it.

[Ophelia2]

Thank you, Karen. I’ve given it some thought and will send a message to our guests ahead of their arrival, kindly asking them to refer to the digital guide for information about our home, as well as details about the local area and nearby amenities.