Guests Bookings | Desktop vs. Mobile

[Richard531]

What display platform are guests making their bookings on these days?  Desktop mostly still?  Is Mobile catching up (or is it actually more)? 

I try my best to set up my listings as good as they can look on both display platforms.  Obviously, they look WAY better on Desktop as opposed to Mobile.  And whenever I travel, 90% of the time I do my bookings from the Desktop, too.  But do more people use Mobile now?  Maybe we need to revisit how our listings look on Mobile and up our game a little depending on how more folks are booking these days?  

Does anyone know anything definitive?  I think I saw somewhere recently that it was something like 70% Desktop vs. 30% Mobile. But maybe I'm making that up?!  Looking forward to hearing what you guys know.  Sorry if this has been recently discussed!  Couldn't find it anywhere.  

[Lenore22]

That sounds like the kind of thing that would depend on your target market.  If you tend to have guests who work day jobs and are at a desktop most of the day, that might be the case.  In our household, my husband is at a computer all day.  If he was going to make a reservation, he might do it there, or he might do it on his phone since most of his trip-planning/texting friends, etc happens there.

Since I tend to plan the family trips, however, and I have a mobile business, I am 95% on my phone. I know my 30-something cousins & siblings all make reservations on their phones, but my aunt, who probably arranges 2-5 family trips per year and holds the airbnb & VRBO accounts, is at her computer all day, and probably makes the original reservations that way.

[Anonymous]

@Richard531 At the Airbnb Open in 2015, one of the execs mentioned in a presentation that over 50% of users were booking from mobile devices. That share has undoubtedly increased in the years since, especially considering that for a growing portion of internet users, a smartphone or tablet is their only personal access point. It's telling that many of the biggest e-commerce brands that have launched in the last 5 years didn't bother building a version for desktop browsers. 

The main thing this means for hosts is that the lead photos carry most of the weight of selling the listing. Crisp images with eye-catching colors, cropped to keep the subject fully visible in a tiny format are essential. And since the app interface buries most of the written descriptions, it helps to keep them concise and get as much necessary info as possible into the photos. 

Some functions still don't always work on the app : ID verification, resolution requests, and payment method issues are all notorious for that. When guests report difficulty booking due to one of those problems, be ready to advise them to switch to the Desktop version of the site (which can be done on a mobile browser, even though it looks terrible). 

[Debra300]

@Richard531,

Most of my guests who are locals in the Caribbean region use a mobile device, because that is their primary internet access.  I believe that the majority of guests who rent our Atlanta place do so with a PC/laptop, because most are working remotely or are students.  I do find that the many mobile users tell me that they didn't see XYZ in the listing, and I know that's because they didn't expand the truncated sections of the description.  

[Helen427]

Great topic thanks @Richard531 

The dynamics have changed since people lost their jobs through no fault of their own over the last couple of years.

It's become a luxury for some to upgrade their phones and updates aren't always possible on older phones.

Perhaps it's something @Catherine-Powell @Brian  may like to raise in discussions among their clients in various Geographical locations.

Each region is different as @Debra300 has pointed out, it's mobile phone's in there's.

Others have to travel to access the internet because there's a total lack of coverage.

[Beth80]

@Richard531 

I would guess that most of my guests use their phone. I deal primarily with 30 year olds who come here for work so even though they use a computer for work they use their phones for more personal business. 

[Marie6762]

Like Beth, most of my guests are young and use their phones.  After setting up, I don’t think I’ve accessed the site from my desktop more than a half-dozen times at most.

[Richard531]

So then it's mobile, mobile, mobile. This is where we need to concentrate on tailoring our listings to get people booking.  I really appreciate @Anonymous  and his comments for what we can do to market our listings better.  But what else can we do besides the pictures?

[Anonymous]

@Richard531 I can see your listings are already very successful and well-rated, and they present beautifully on the mobile app, so nothing is really calling out for an overhaul within the Airbnb platform. If you're not doing it already, you could experiment with using social media to drive more traffic to your listings, but I have no idea how much of that converts to bookings.

[Catherine-Powell]

Hi @Helen427 and @Richard531,

Thank you so much for calling that out. I really appreciate it. You are absolutely right and technology has definitely become a luxury for some. One of my main concerns is making sure that we have an inclusive environment and want to give both Hosts and guests a great experience both on the platform and off.

Again, I appreciate your feedback and taking the time to write to me.

Warmly,

Catherine