2 Years Later - 10 Pieces of Advice I'd Give To Myself As a New Airbnb Host!

[Spencer-K0]

2 years ago I began my family business and Airbnb adventure by listing my cabin in Bear Lake Utah as available to rent. I now own multiple properties and manage multiple more for others in the area.

I've now gone through the good, the bad, and the downright ugly.  I've had some amazing experiences meeting people from all over the world, I've had some horrible headaches caused for me by guests.  I've loved Airbnb and I've hated Airbnb. I've endured crazy winters and dreamy summers.  I've been a Superhost, lost it, and got it back again. I've gotten stellar amazing reviews and I've gotten straight rotten ones.  Among all of that this is what I've learned and what I would tell myself if I was starting again:

1. Document everything: Before, During, After

Before - Take pictures in high definition of every square inch of your house.  Literally, break your room up into quadrants and classify each quadrant.  Specific details you will look back on later, paint chips, holes, wear and tear, it will give you a base-line to compare damage to. Additionally, create a google spreadsheet of every item in your home, where you got it from, a link for a replacement, a picture of the receipt if you have it.  Categorize items by room.

During - Some people oppose to this, but get video surveillance for your property; both inside and out.  I have one internal camera in the main living room by the front door, and two outside watching my back deck and front door.  This becomes particularly valuable in disputes.  You have proof besides photos of dog hair that "could of been there when they arrived" (for no pet policies), or threw a party that got out of hand, or heaven forbid, walked out the front door with some of your stuff. Always make sure you disclose that your property is under video surveillance to abide by Airbnb's Terms & Conditions. My favorite is the Nest Cam for Outdoors, the 10-day playback subscription has paid for itself time and time again as a burden of proof.

After - I have created something I call my "100 Point Checklist". I have well over 100 items to check throughout my property after my guest leaves.  Some of the key things on my list: count the towels, check each wall for holes/nicks, check the HDMI inputs on the TV, document any new scratches in the wood floor, check each comforter for stains, check couches for stains/things that got underneath, check all windows, check the carpet by room for stains, and many many more.  This allows you to truly document the wear and tear in your property vs the damage and plan accordingly to address each.

2. Automate Your Property

While some hosts enjoy the thrill of spending time with their guests.  I have found 95% of guests do not want/require the interaction.  In these cases, I have automated my check in process.  This also helps me as I now have multiple properties (multiple forms of income) that are difficult to be in multiple places at once.  Key things to automate: Heater/AC & Front Door.  Everything else is extra and not really needed.  My favorite smart home integration is through Vera Controllers and connecting Nest Thermostats and the Kwikset 916 front door lock into the system.  I LOVE the Kwikset 916, it has a touchpad that you can change the code to the last 4 digits of the guest's phone number and let them remotely access the property, while still maintaining security.

3. Always Be the Bigger Person

I learned this lesson the hard way.  You will have demanding people, you will have rude people, you will host straight horribly demeaning people.  They will yell, they will curse you, they will demand refunds for largely unsubstantiated claims and for events that are sometimes out of your control.  I once had someone trash my property, he refused to be responsible and was so rude.  I let my anger get the better of me and told him what I really thought of him through the messenger.  It didn't make me feel any better, plus Airbnb decided not to award my claim case because of it.  Always take a second step back, breath, then address the situation. It always ends better.

4. Be Quick to Apologize, Then Quickly Go Above and Beyond

I once had a booking where I just couldn't get it turned around and clean in time.  I was 2 hours late for check-in.  Amongst hundreds of bookings, things like this will happen eventually. If I was in my guest's shoes I would be furious.  I quickly apologized, got them into my property and situated and quickly called the local pizza shop (which in Bear Lake is phenomenal). I had them hand deliver some gift card to my guest and told them pizza was on me.  What could have turned into a disastrous review, became one of my most glowing review that has netted me MANY additional bookings!

5. ALWAYS Ask For Reviews & Feedback

Here is the exact message I send to every guest after they check-out, "I work very had for 5-Star reviews as they help my business a lot.  This property is my small family business and a review goes a long way for us! If you enjoyed your stay, and wouldn't mind could you please write us a review about your favorite parts of our property?  Also, if you had anything go wrong or suggestions on how we could improve would you please send them to me in this messenger as we welcome your feedback and love to improve". This magic message has brought me more 5-Star reviews than any other property in our area.  It also serves as a release for guests to get the negative stuff off their chest before they put it in a review.  I've phrased it to seem like I genuinely want their feedback, which I do, and have learned some of my most valuable ideas to make my property stand out from this feedback from my guests.

6. Don't Respond, Instead Start the Conversation

So many hosts try to keep their status by being "quick to respond". Tell them the information before they ask for it, be good at communicating everything they will need to know. You will get better at this over time.  Remember, 80% of messages you need to send on Airbnb can be pre-written and sent at the opportune moment.  Some examples: Directions, Check-in Instructions, How is Your Stay Going?, Check-out Instructions, Review Request.

7. Forge Local Partnerships

Areas are dubbed the term "communities" for a reason.  It denotes the ability to help each other out.  Take time to create a recommended list of "things to do" or "my favorites to visit" then go to the people on that list and let them know what you are doing, that you will have guests you'd like to send to them.  Ask for exclusive discounts or partnerships.  Not only can this turn into a second form of income from the referrals, it makes your guest feel special and well taken care of!

8. Take a Trip Yourself

Get out and go somewhere.  Book someone else's Airbnb, take note of their style, and how they do things. Pay attention to what it feels like to be a guest.  Nothing is better for putting yourself in your guests shoes than by being one yourself.

9. Always Follow-Up With Guests

When someone sends you a request, they are likely looking at multiple other properties similar to yours.  They send multiple hosts requests, they get excited about their trip but then they wait to hear back from all the hosts, plus get feedback from those taking the trip with them.  If you have approved someone to book, and they haven't responded in 2-3 days reach out with a special offer and knock off 5% off the price. Everyone likes scoring a deal, help your guests feel like you will make it worth their while to stay with you.  This isn't a hard statistic, but I would guess this tip has netted me at least 15% more bookings.

10. Be Grateful

It is easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle, it is easy to get frustrated with bad guests, it is easy to get overwhelmed by all the things to do with your property and life.  Take a second, step back and find some gratitude for the opportunity to rub shoulders with diverse people in your life.  Take a second to find gratitude for the extra income your property provides.  Take a second and be grateful for the things that make your life great! It will really help you enjoy the journey, and love what you do!

This was mainly for me as I look back on my journey. However, I hope it has some value to someone out there!

Cheers.

[John219]

Spencer, I'll add my thanks for sharing your advice.  I've been hosting since last August and don't have the survelliance problems others have as I rent a room/bath with private entrance attached to my house and soon to be a detached garage apt.  So I'm close by, but I will also adapt your post asking for reviews, it's a great idea and may make people think twice about posting petty negative stuff publicly.  I also beleive in automation and love the Quickset 915/versa controller combination as well.  Also, if you do your own cleaning, either sometimes or all the time and want to turn a room quickly, a Roomba robot vacuum cleaner comes in handy. Multi-tasking at its best. 

I've had great luck with guests, not a bad one so far, but you cannot please everyone 100% of the time.  So good advice on being the bigger person as well.

Cheers,

John 

[Bill-and-Laurie0]

Wow, Suzy thats pretty crazy.  I have only had two bad experiences over the last 15 months.  One of the things I changed is I dont rent less than two nights.  That elimated the lets party all night long at someones place. I limit to six and they had 13. I have external cameras and can count the number.  I added to my rules $50/person over 6.   The other guest, while not causing damage, was very negative on his review about everything, since I charged him $50 for late check out because my maid service charges me to come twice.  I do have that on my house rules.  He fought it and lost.  For the most part, I am 99.9% happy with our guests.  

[Sarah555]

These tips are helpful.  I am fairly new. Soon after I have listed my accommodation. I had a family emergency and ended up overseas  I started getting booking request everyday. I tried to be on the top of things but getting g friends to be available and communicating with host was rather hectic. I ended up with some disappointments and bad reviews and my availability if the place was deactivated as a result of not so great reviews.

Now I am back and activated my place availability but not getting any bookings inquiry.

I am not sure whether It has some blockage due to my listing not open or I am not getting any booking dye to my past reviews.

Please help as I am fail new and do not know what I must do to be in the business. I need a fair go as I am fully ready now and am back in the country.

[Nancy224]

I haven't come up with our house rules. Does anyone have a suggestion as to where to look in order to create them?

[Nancy224]

Thanks for the tips about photographing and listing everything. My property was formerly a B&B and many things walked or were damaged... I didn't have a checklist and thus had to absorb the cost of damage. I will now get busy and start my checklist and photos. I guess I'll need a new flash drive.

Nancy

[Ellen95]

In my guest cottage I have a "Welcome Book" that covers:

1.  Wifi, TV, Stove and other electronic access and rules of use

2.  HOUSE RULES (No smoking indoors or a $100 fee is added - which it states on my Airbnb site); no parties; no drugs; no "extra guests without preapproval ($25 per extra guest) or your guest must leave if there is no pre-approval;  No wet towels on the furniture; no rearranging furniture; if there is an issue we need to be advised immediately so that we can remedy the matter; no children under age 3; etc.  Everything in my House Rules section is on my listing.  This way I am covered and my guests know exactly what the house rules are before they book.  It's only fair that we are all on the same page.

3.  PLACES TO DINE including breakfast/brunch, lunch and dinner and takeout and delivery places.

4.  MY recommendations of fun things to do and places to explore while visiting.

Then I have a large basket with maps of the area, magazines on where to go and what to do, and brochures on events and places of interest.   Your local Chamber of Commerce is a great resource for this material.

The more information you provide, both on your Airbnb listing and reiterating in your Welcome Book, the more everyones expectations are clear and understood.

I hope this helps.

Ellen

[Solange22]

Dear Ellen you have been a great support, 90% of your suggestions I have done as well, including the guest book with the welcome and the house rules.  Not everybody is well mannered and not everybody apreciates the efforts. But forntunately I have been surprised with pleasant guests too. So it is not always bad. the main problem remains the bad reviews and the very low revenues. that is something I will have to figure out whether to continue like this. thank you anyway for your kind suggestions.

[Armin0]

I was surprised when reading the replies about how many host had bad guests and about all the steps they undertake to secure themselves.

I have had well over 100 guests, and the worst that happened was a ruined water cooker coz a guest cooked milk in it. I can live with that.

I never thought about checking the ID. When the guest books with airbnb he has to leave his credit card details. This should be a good as an ID, right?

[Andrea9]

@Armin0 hi,

Checking ID is simply a way of making sure that the guest you're checking in is in fact the same as on the reservation to avoid 3rd party bookings which are not covered by Airbnb.

I've had so many guests who were hardly recognizable in person from their profile picture that in theory it would have been easy for them to pass off as another family member or friend.

There is something interesting about the ID check process that psychologically gets the message across to a guest of "Don't screw with me, 'cause I know who you are".

My guests are mostly really lovely, and I'm not afraid, but I have to do ID check and registration for my city, so it's always easy to tell them "Sorry about this, just a regulation required by the city of all hosts, at least those doing this legally and who've registered."

Takes away the sting and keeps things light.

At first I felt ID check as very intrusive, however it's a protection, and I think it sends a good preventive message to somebody looking to cause trouble.

[J42]

Clean your place as though the head of a country was coming to stay, your guests will feel honored and appreciate you.  Expect the best from your guests and give them your best.  It has worked for me since the first guest stay.  

J [surname hidden]

[Ellen95]

Been there, done that.  After 1 year of hosting I have also encountered the good, the bad and the ugly.   I've had guests tell me the bed was too hard, while the next guests tell me the bed is too soft.  I've had guests rave about how lovely, clean and cozy the place was and how wonderful their stay was, I had a group of 3 females (reunion) have a fight between themselves and write me the most horrific review (advising they would NEVER stay here again, linens were old and musty and needed to be replaced [BRAND NEW LINENS!]) and place was dirty (1 spider web in a mountain cottage.)   I've had guests say they love the air freshener as it was clean and lovely, and had guests say they hated it.  I've had guests love the mountain air and the deck and nature, and guests who thought the mountains were great if only there was no nature in it.  I've also (sadly) had a scammer, who complained about a non-existent odor (checked out by me and by the cleaning crew) who finagled a free night.   Sigh.

I LOVE HOSTING, but you cannot please everyone so I am happy to see that you have detailed some things we hosts can do to stay on top of a vagaries of satisfying our guests.

From the first I implemented a system of constant communication, asking guests before, during and after their stay, if there is anything we could do to make their stay more enjoyable.   I make sure to leave wind and snacks for their arrival. 

If they want to interact, we are here to enjoy their company.  If they want privacy, they only need let us know.

But I am now going to implement your idea of a (quadrant) chart listing everything in the place and the condition before and after each guest.  It makes sense to me. 

Thanks for the input.  I found it extremely valuable.

Ellen

[Solange22]

Tell me how to you cope with the bad reviews that are straight out lies? It hurts so much that it makes me sad and wanting to quit. and than I decide not to let it get under my skin. But still the bad reviews affect your stats in a negative way and it is out there for everybody to read forever! I assume and hope genuine pleasant guests can read between the lines?

[Andrea9]

@Solange22

Such reviews do leave an incredibly painful sting...

On the other hand, you have so many lovely reviews, and the less than perfect ones aren't bad at all really - I wouldn't worry too much.

What I'm thinking is that due to your incredibly low fees, which are probably normal in your area, you are attracting many low-budget guests who may be expecting champagne on a beer budget...

[Suzy9]

Hi Andrea,

Thanks so much for your input - very much appreciated!

[Ellen95]

I've only had the one horrible review from the reunion gals who had some sort of fight among themselves.  Now that some time has passed, I am not as stressed or dismayed about it because I recognize that I could have moved mountains and given them the moon and they would have written a horrible review because they needed to take their anger out on someone other than their own group.  Fortunately, there have been a ton of positive reviews since.

It is sad and thoroughly disappointing though when you have guests (like my fighters) who take their personal issues' anger out on the host.  It is also unjust because their issues have nothing to do with the host or the accomodations, yet they strongly affect the hosts' business. 

I have also learned that it helps to ask the guests:  "It's important to us that you receive a 5 star stay and that you are comfortable and happy.  Please let us know if there is anything we need to do to improve your stay."    That ususally gets us a great review and 5 stars.

Just move on.  Just move on.  Just move on.

For every bad guest there are 100 great ones. 

Ellen