What aspects of the Airbnb platform do you like the most?

[Sybe]

Hey all,

Quite a lot can go into hosting, and administration is no exception. It can be a rather tedious job to stay on top of everything, unless you have the right tools to do so!

Luckily, on the Airbnb platform, there are  many features that allow Hosts to manage the day-to-day of hosting more easily. Think about Instant Book, your calendar, the various pricing tools, or even more simple ones we sometimes tend to forget about like the messaging system. 

So, what are your favourite aspects of the Airbnb app and/or website, and why?

This could be a great opportunity for others to learn, and for us all to make sure we make the most out of the tools available! 😃

-Sybe

[Emilia42]

My favorite aspect of Airbnb is instant book because it greatly cuts down on my time chasing guests. I also like the multi-calendar (even though I hated it at first) and rule sets easily help me maximize my calendar.

[Sybe]

@Emilia42 I noticed the calendar often seems to divide opinions. What tips do you have for others on how to best use it? Can you pinpoint what changed that initial dislike into something you actually enjoyed working with? 🤔

[Emilia42]

@Sybe I didn't like the multi-calendar at first because you can't see past 10 days ahead without a lot of scrolling. But it's the best place to see a snapshot of my 3 listings and the only place to see my rulesets. I always pull up the calendar first and then from there go to the inbox, etc. I also don't recall the multi-calendar changing since I started using it over 2 years ago. I like that.

The monthly view listing calendar is horrible. It changes regularly and the newest updates are horrible. It's way too light and there is no color-coding. You also can't see any rule sets that are in place. And whenever you click on a date, the calendar has to 'reload' itself. I know nothing about programming but it's very glitchy and not very well done, in my opinion.

[Jill1122]

Technology is not my best friend but Airbnb has made our entire listing and hosting process so incredibly easy.   We had a great first year of hosting in the Outer Banks and our second season starts 4/1!

[Sybe]

@Jill1122  Exciting times ahead! 😃

[Kristy195]

My favorite aspect of the app is it’s so user friendly.  I can usually change anything in my listing in under 10 minutes.

[Diana1969]

I love everything about Airbnb how user friendly it is, how easy it is to set your profile up and get bookings within 24 hours. It’s been a fun experience so far and can’t wait to continue my journey 😁

[Helen744]

Helen@744 The things I like most are the calendar ,the booking system but not the review system ,the paymenT and reservation system and the ease to collect end of year tax data and the syncing system. i truly dislike the sense that the gusts are not my guests but airbnbs and are given a sense of control over me and I am relegated to the status of a servant . Australians are no ones servant we are equals and what the US assumes is service is in fact the demand for unpaid work from hosts and the sense that we have 'masters' .It is an ism that I have not experienced before but is deeply intrenched to the point that Airbnb does not seem aware of it H. 

[M199]

@Sybe 

I love the ability to see page views and see local competition.  It gives me information, along with regional, to market my pricing appropriately.

Though to be perfectly honest, Airbnb does a disservice to seasonal hosts by applying Superhost and other requirements based on a full year.

 In my case specifically, it is not worth the cost to winterize our listing, especially since there is virtually no tourism from November to April.

We are open 208 of 365 days in a year.  There is no possibility of pro-rated views, SH status, etc. Therefore  seasonal hosts are penalized because Airbnb does not provide accommodation for seasonal hosts.

[Elaine701]

For me, it's market reach. Airbnb runs circles around other platforms in terms of bookings.

The downside of course, is that Airbnb heavily favours guests over hosts, and its policies and behaviour reflect that, so hosts need to be extra vigilant to avoid irresponsible guests and the consequences of Airbnb's guest favouritism. And it's much too easy to become dependent on Airbnb, so hosts need to diversify as much as possible. 

[Laurelle3]

@Sybe what I like to use is "Quick Replies" pre written messages that I send guest when booked, the address closer to book in date. Photo of the main residence from the street because if you look up the address on google it is of the house before renovated and front of house changed.

Able to manually change prices of nights if holiday season and events in area, able to block dates, pre set a number of nights.

As @M199 states being able veiw other Airbnb properties in your local area to assess prices and demand of properties and what they are offering.

[Sybe]

@Laurelle3 They're like little templates, very useful indeed! And keeping an eye on the competition is a smart move. 😜  @M199 

[J-Renato0]

I will talk about Airbnb features as a whole.

1- Instant booking is a great feature.

2- The fact that, the host can review the guests is great. It better the quality of the guests.

3- Rule Sets - I love them however at the same time they let me down.
The management of the rule sets for some circustances should be very simple. However it is too complicate and time consuming when I want to configure special dates/holidays when I do not want guests arriving or departuring and at the same time I want to allow booking over that period.
I have written a suggestion to simplify the process in the following links.
https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Airbnb-Updates/How-we-used-your-feedback-to-inspire-change/m-p/1...
Example on how my suggestion is done in practice in another platform
https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Airbnb-Updates/How-we-used-your-feedback-to-inspire-change/m-p/1...

[Helen575]

For me to start  an Airbnb I saw a lot of positive things.  The fact that one does not have to  really struggle in search of customers but just use the platform was one. The other aspect is that payment is done in advance to Airbnb, this assures one payment will be wired. And most importantly the Review aspect. The aspect of resolution and insurance is a great motivater to me. Oooh so many nice things to keep you on this platform.