Sharing the spaces of my house with travelers from all over the world or putting a roof over their head in apartments aroused my interest. I was immediately struck by the joyful gospel of AIRBNB.
For me it was a real leap into the unknown. I had no idea that this experience would change me. At first I certainly underestimated the great deal of work that requires following a plurality of short-rented properties with high turn-over.
But, in my case, with a beginner’s mind, there was also a crazy optimism, a partial residue of an idealistic phase of my life, but it was to a large extent the consequence of my ignorance and of the inability to give up on the idea that I was indestructible.
I mean, renting rooms and apartments seemed easy, but it was a lot work to do everything right. The first months I went on the run alone, apartment to apartment, with the ardor of my work, always running behind time, late on my check-in, on the cleaning job, on the universitary lecture, on the weekend with friends, in order to ensure that my guests enjoy a high quality welcome and stay (my mission).
I swear with the palm of my hand firmly planted on my dog’s head. But, like a shadow, Frodo is always on the move. You want to hear the harsh truth? I had some kind of genetic mutation. I turned into Mary Poppins.
I never thought it would happen to me ... because in my life I’ve always had some fixed points. I’d never learned to dance, I’d never be able to put some gas in my car and above all, as far as the house is concerned, I would never do the things Mary Poppins did.
But no, I ended up flying on the roofs of Milan with an umbrella and a bag that weighed like a Friesian cow, inside my bag I put everything, WD-40, a pipe wrench and ductape, light bulbs, water filters, rolls of toilet paper, a little phone book with a large number of fast response craftsmen: the Airbnb host’s bag needs to be filled.
Look. It was not easy to make it clear to the guests that a cup in the sink does not have to remain there forever, but it is possible to wash it with a Brillo pad, that non-stick skillets are not made to draw doodles on them with a knife tip, and that the face towel should not be used for less noble and wider body parts.
My family imprinted me with a penchant for a systematic and regular recording of all current income and expenditure for the purpose of establishing the profit achieved by a holding. Somehow, I found out that I have a company to run and a whole world of people to host at my place.
I just had to apply this to the listing: maximisation of the visibility of my rooms / apartments and ads, comparison of my prices with similar hosts in my area, costs of changes of sheet and towels, number of booked rooms /apartments, profitability of each room and apartment, expenditure incurred for cleaning products, damaged goods to be replaced, utility bills and sudden and unforessen events. Documents, clipboads, lever arch files dramatically increased in my room: good order is the foundation of all good.
In June of the following year I started getting very tired. Day after day a lot of work: University of Milan-check-out room 3-cleaning room 3-University of Milan-check-in room 3-University of Milan-train-check-in apartment B-train-mattress. I started knowing when I had the nightmares and the bags under my eyes had bags.
One night I dreamed Brian Cesky. He wore the Kiss outfit and he was chasing me with a knife in his hand, it might have been my fault though, I had cooked stuffed peppers and all these peppers flopped around my stomach all night, but I realized that this kind of second job slowly ate me up.
It was all getting to be too much for me. And then I realized that - if I really wanted to offer a unique experience trough impeccable service - I must have used someone I trusted, running only the households near my house personally, but always been glued to my cell phone as an oyster to its rock.
Remember, one small detail overlooked is enough to create an impression of poor quality. Thus, the focus should be concentrated exclusively on the guest.
If your guest is a foreigner who comes for a vacation, tell him of your city, what to do and where to go. And if your guest is traveling for work, give all relevant information to him about public transportation and the pizza delivery service’s phone number. If your guest shows up with a pet, give the dog or the cat something to eat, a mat or a kitty litter. They are small attentions that can let your guest know you are something more than an anonymous landlord or landlady. This, ladies and gentlemen, is added value: it’s cheap, your guest will be satisfied.