should i use smart pricing?

[Jean92]

Should i use smart pricing? Is anyone using it? what do you thingk about it?

[Maya79]

Thanks for this information - good to know how people feel about Smart Pricing. We use Beyond Pricing, a separate website and we like it so far, just need to fine tune our rates.

[Colleen75]

I am stunned to realize that smart pricing had my place listed during the peak of the season at prices way below comparable listings, and way below what guests paid last year. Because of this, I am on track to make thousands of dollars less this year, in spite of the fact that my place is mostly booked for the highest traffic months and likely to be booked more days in 2018 than in 2017 by the end of the year. Luckily, I discovered how bad that the pricing was going to hurt me for the two months which are busy, high weekend demand months, before I had those days advance booked, which Airbnb had my place "smart priced" at $100 per day less than all of the comparable listings in my area, and lower than my rates for last year. I at least salvaged two months.

I wish I had noticed this sooner. Lesson learned.  Never using "smart pricing" again.

[Dixie7]

Wow! Now that's an expensive lesson to learn. I'm with you, I'm never using "smart pricing" ever again.

[Josee6]

I have used Smart pricing with mixed results. It does help with the low days when you probably wouldn’t get a booking unless your price isn’t really low.

but I just had a very bad experience that will probablly keep me from using it again; I own a condo on the beach, and in the summer, it rents for $230 per night. Last week, on Smart pricing, it was showing at $222 on Smart pricing for the end of July, 2 months away, and that was oK with me. Last night I get an instant booking, at $118 per night. I was extremely upset. How did the smart pricing go from $222 per night to $118 in one week? I then did a search of properties similar to mine for the same dates, same guests and none of them were below $230. So when I call airbnb and they tell me they adjust the prices according to the market, I don’t know what market they’re looking at, but their algorithm is flawed.

[Dixie7]

So, Josee, did ABB do anything for you? I bet not. This is precisely the same reason I immediately turned SP off after receiving an instant booking way below my minimum price setting. It's completely ridiculous even though some hosts appear to really like it. Can't understand that. They must be in a completely different situation to you and me.

[Zack40]

I don't know if the information is right or wrong on the actual rates people are actually paying, but something to consider is that if you're seeing a listing, that means it hasn't really rented. It's possible that you're seeing these more expensive listings because they're too expensive for people to rent. Maybe there are tons of other listings that you don't see when you search your market because they're priced like yours and rented.

[David126]

I added another room on Friday, so for my own amusement and for the sake of research for the greater good I enabled smart pricing just to see.

This is the busiest weekend of the year around here, booked immediately but at my base, looking through August also our high season, no change yet. Now about a third of August has gone so thought that might be noticed, we will see. Will report back.

[Sharon527]

As a customer I can tell you that smart pricing is very annoying. I now have five different prices for the same unit (comparing apples to apples) with the highest price being more than double to the lowest. When I contacted the host to discuss and negotiate I was basing my discussion on the second lowest price which was the first price I received. When she sent me the "book now" link that price had doubled. I was surprised, so I went back to search and now I have many different prices. Obviously I expect the host to honor the price that was served up to me first. I guess i will have to wait and see. [More than anything it is just annoying because its been a complete waste of my time, and I have to start my search again 😕

[David126]

@Sharon527

Most hosts use IB, I do, so you book at the price shown.

I assumed for those that do not use IB then when you make a booking enquiry it is at that price.

I do not negotiate so can not comment on that.

[Sharon527]

@David126By IB I assume you mean smart pricing, if the host chooses to use it they need to honor the price served up, not use it as a hook and then double the price when you try and book. It feels like just another scam.

[David126]

IB is instant  book

[Dixie7]

Well there you go. I didn't know that. I quite often go into other ABB listings to see how they're charging. Once I've found a place I like the look of, I press 'Book' then put in my dates and sometimes it's bewildering to find the discrepancy in the price that's listed and the price that I would be expected to pay and sometimes the listed price is for 1 person and when you add another person, the price doubles. I hate that and so I would never do it with my listing and I would never book with a host who has their pricing set up that way.  I've turned SP off for good. I will never enable it again because I want my guests to look at my listing, see the price and when they go to book, pay exactly what it is listed at.

[Alex-and-Vaughan0]

> Obviously I expect the host to honor the price that was served up to me first.

As a host who uses SP I have no idea what price ABB is offering you. I only know the minimum price and maximum that I set.

BTW, the "minimum" is really my standard price, minus a couple of dollars.

[Daria101]

Has anyone experienced limitation of their listings if they opt out of SP and IB? 

[Haider1]

I turned on SP about 3 weeks ago. Looked over the prices now and then and it seemed reasonable. Then suddenly, tonight, got a booking for 2 nights in March. Spring break, very popular ski resort in CO, 5 minute walk to lifts, $99/night. Yep, super smart pricing. I immediately went to the calendar and it had ALL free nights set to $99. Rest of Jan, Feb, and March onward. All $99/night. Those 3 months in the village we're in go for between $200 and $300 weekdays. $300+ on weekends.

Yes, I had set my minimum at $99 thinking that's what Airbnb would price same day vacancies at, but it's apparently not that smart. Turned it off. Never again.