Tip of the week 1: The key to good communication

[Quincy]

Let's kick off the Tip of the Week series with an important topic: Communication with guests. It's a valuable insight that can greatly help many first-time Hosts on their journey to becoming exceptional Hosts. Effective communication is key, and we're here to provide all the practical tips you need!

The following tip was shared by Superhost @Tuğkan-Berke0  in Easy Tips for Providing Exceptional Hospitality:

"Communicate Clearly and Promptly: Good communication is key to being a great Airbnb host. Respond to guest inquiries and messages promptly and clearly. Provide guests with all the information they need to make their stay as smooth as possible ". 

On this thread, we invite you to share your valuable tips on ensuring seamless communication with your guests.

Tell us your secrets to making guests feel that communication with you is smooth, how you make your guests feel at ease knowing that you’re readily available for any concerns., what information is important to share with them, do you do this before the stay or during the stay, do you send regular check-in messages? 

We’re excited to hear and learn from you all. Let's gather the best practices for communicating clearly and promptly with our guests and don’t forget to give a thumbs up👍 to the best tips shared. 😊

👉 TOTW series

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Quincy we send a thank you message (not automated) to every guest within 12 hours of them booking. This, in 75% of cases, gets a reply explaining why the guest is coming to us. We then send directions a few days before arrival asking for a rough idea of what time the guests will arrive. This, in 99% of cases gets a response with an arrival time.

Both these messages help us as well as the guest.

[Patti-And-Marty0]

Thats exactly what I do, @Mike-And-Jane0 

I think people are far more likely to respond to a non automated message and it sets the tone for open communication before, and during their stay

[Quincy]

Hi @Patti-And-Marty0! What does the message for your guests usually looks like if I may ask?  Perhaps it could be helpful for those following this topic 👀

[Lorna170]

@Quincy   While you asked another host to provide their message, this is my personalized message to my guests.  I do not use the automated system because I want to have personal communication with the guest -- 

Dear [the name of the guest]

Thank you for booking [name of]Cabin for [month]16 through 18, 2023 for 2 adults and 2 pets. We look forward to being your hosts.

We have noted your wish for an early arrival and will do our best to accommodate this.

One week prior to your arrival date, we will send a PDF of our Welcome Package for you to view, save to your phone and/or print. This PDF contains the address and key access code for the Cabin, as well as driving directions and a map. Phone and GPS service in the mountains can be intermittent.

Please let us know if you have any questions. We hope that you will enjoy your visit to [name of] Cabin.

Sincerely,

[Quincy]

That's very informative @Lorna170! Thank you so much for sharing this! 

How do your guests react to your message? 🙂

[Sally10]

Wow I love all of the fantastic tips. I to have ben hosting since 2013.

I never ever use automatic messaging. I respond as so as I can .I like to get a feeling about my guests a nice polite manner. I find most guest like to one up . this way if I ask certain questions Like they may say coming for  anniversary. Or Wedding I get lots of guest for that.. anyway I think of something personal I will leave and a little Welcome Note. I believe staying in an airbnb is special It is to me. 

I make time . Making  sure fresh flowers from my garden are there. 

And if Im away travelling I have such a wonderful cleaning group . I will leave them a message of what to leave or put out extra blankets or books if children are coming. 

May sound like a lot but I absolutely love it. And I know when my guests do not want to engage online ,I simply pull back a bit . In the end this is my home and I want to do the Best. 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Patti-And-Marty0 Agreed - we avoid automation because some guests have already said when they are coming so we would look stupid asking again. Also if they have said we are coming for XXX we can personalise our messages.

[Quincy]

Interesting @Mike-And-Jane0! I did a similar thing when I was still actively Hosting a few years ago. Always seemed to get a reply from the guests, especially when it comes to enquiring about their arrival time 🙂 

What did you do in situations where you did not get a reply? 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Quincy if no reply we just wait and see what happens. Irritating to have to make sure we are in between 4pm and 10pm but we usually are so it is OK. I can't actually remember the last time someone didn't tell us when they were arriving.

[Fred13]

Conveying all useful information up front and answering immediately the questions of those feeling is indeed the place for them, is a winning formula in hosting.

In essence, the information up front has qualified your clientele and now by answering the questions of those that feel is for them quickly you are reinforcing their decision that they are indeed dealing with a host on top of their game.

Effective communication is an art form, if a host feels is not their strong suit get help with it.

Our opening message with all bookings is "Welcome Aboard:" as if they are now embarking on a fun journey. 😉

[Quincy]

Great tips @Fred13! I think I can safely assume that everyone always replies to your messages! How else would they get on bird island, haha! 

[Erin6821]

We have an automated message that goes out 5 min after confirming their booking welcoming them and asking what brings them to town as well as reminding them of our no smoking rule and parking limits and 99% of the time they reply with their info. I then send another one the day before arrival letting them know they’ll receive their door lock code at noon the day before arrival. Having this lock makes it easy because I do not have to be present for check-in. In fact we live 2 hours away. While I do have automated messages in place I always monitor too and personalize anything I need to so it’s even more personal. 

[Cynthia1169]

Very helpful

[Bina-and-Jonathan0]

I like the automated message after booking. I didn’t know about that feature on the app