What’s the hardest part: guests, tools, or pricing?

[Debora2138]

Hi everyone, as a host I’ve realized that the real challenge isn’t the guests, but the daily operations: too many tools, scattered communications, and a lot of wasted time. I’m curious: – How do you manage guest communication, check-in instructions, cleaning coordination, calendar updates, etc.? – Do you use dynamic pricing or adjust your rates according to demand / seasonality / events? If yes: how well does it work? If no: what stops you? – Do you feel all this takes more time and energy than it should? – If you could simplify or centralize some of these tasks, what would help you the most? Would love to hear your experiences and thoughts!

[Joshua1305]

@Debora2138 , One thing I've done to keep things streamlined is to keep a handful of messages saved on a document that relates to thank yous, checking in, checking out, come again notes, etc. I will just copy and paste these as needed, changing the name to address the individual guests. That has saved a lot of time for me, and I went through a few drafts to make sure each message was really thoughtful and contained all the information I wanted to say. I've also found that guests really appreciate having all the pertinent information in as few emails as possible so they aren't digging through messages or the app to find an answer to some question about our guest house. So, my check in emails are very thorough and touch on every important aspect of a guest's arrival like parking, unlocking the front door, wifi passwords, turning on the air/heat, turning on the TV, and closing the shades. As for pricing, the dynamic pricing tool on Airbnb doesn't seem to work as well as other tools out there. I wish it did. But we only have one guest house we rent. So, I've continued to monitor stays and adjusted rates according to the season or the more heavily traveled holidays and holiday weekends. I think that works really well. My biggest piece of advice on all of these tasks is to try and enjoy them as they come up. Running an Airbnb is work at the end of the day, but I consistently refuse to allow myself to get frustrated or panic. Both panic and frustration are the enemy when it comes to hosting. Not sure if that really helps, but thought I'd give answering your question a shot. Best, Josh 🙂

[Jeevikasa-Luxury-Inns0]

Hi Debora,

We use automated tools for housekeeping & guest messages. We have created guest message templates in the Airbnb inbox & set them up to automatically go out with certain activities like (Booking/Check in/ Check out.) 

For coordinating housekeeping, we use the Turno App which coordinates all bookings with our cleanings.

For Pricing we use Price Labs that prices according to the market so guests never over pay.

You can also opt to use an outside STR management company that charges a fee and handles all this for you. 

Hope this helps!!