How to survive as a host on Airbnb ?

[Phanita0]

I am sorry that I have to write and ask the community but I don’t know were else to ask! And thank you all for reading it.

Since I started  welcoming guests I always got many inquires and bookings all the time. I just received my 100 guest review with a 91 % five star and have been a super host since October 2016. 

But lately the inquiries and booking are getting less and less for every time I get my super host status. The view of my properties has fallen drastically!  

It did raise the red flag after a guest that wanted to come and stay with me , after being recommend by previous guest. 

But they couldn’t find my listing when they search for it? 

To find it they had to zoom right on the map where I am located to find my place. This guest did book with me and where happy that they could fine my place , but that was after contacting me through other channels than Airbnb.

This happened with one more guest and I had to contact the call center. I did try to get a call back and they say I should be by my phone as of I would receive a call back with in 10 minutes. That never happened and after trying 3 times in one week I gave up and didn’t get a phone call.

I then send them a message with the answer that someone would contact me with in 24 hours. 

After 5 days I get a call from the call center, but the time they called me was very inconvenience! They call me a 02:00 AM ?

I did talk with the  Airbnb representative that was very unprofessional and just keep reading from the manual on how the system works telling me that  look at nearly 100 different factors for every listing. She told me that they consider things like the number of five-star reviews, price, location of the listing, if Instant Book is turned on, how quickly the host of the listing responds to requests!

On  avarage 

I have 91 % five-star reviews , 

The price value I have 4.9 out of 5. 

Accuracy I have 4.9 out of 5

Cleanliness I have 5 out of 5

Communication i have  5 out of 5

Check in I have  5 out of 5

Location I have 4.8 out of 5

I do have a Instant Book on and have always had a responds rate with in an hour.

She also said that if I had cancel a guests reservation my listing would be further down on the search result. I have never canceled any guests since I started hosting. (That for a fact I know isn’t working , as of other properties I know near me have done that and are still in front of my listing when searching).   

She did see that my listing did have all the factors Airbnb have as a there consider things! But could not give me any answer why I had 2 guest that couldn’t find my listings ( how many more can’t see it?)  and told me that she could see my listing when she did the search. She said she would send me the link to prove it to me.

This is the link she send me:

 https://airbnb.com/s/Ko-Samui--Thailand/homes?refinement_paths%5B%5D=%2Fhomes&amenities%5B%5D=1&amen... 

It is very confusing that she sends me a link that has Only 1 listing left for these dates when I have vacancy and no bookings.  And this house is 25 kilometers away from me and on the other side of the island!

I did feel that this Airbnb representative had a bad day at work or just was very unprofessional. 

I do try my self to search with a  clean browser (removing all the cookies so the Airbnb site is from scratch)

I search for Koh Samui Ko Samui Surat Thani Thailand and 4 people.

I do not have a swimming pool and my place is a house instead of a villa. It looks like on the front page it is mainly a target that Airbnb wants to sell an expensive villa instead  of a house.  The villa goes from 150 $ to 300 $ a night and I am asking 30 $ a night for my place. I can understand that Airbnb is looking for a bigger commission, but why do they send me suggestion that I should lower my prices to under 20 $ ?   

But when I search I have to scroll a very long way down on the page before one of my properties comes up and that is after many listings that isn’t  super host. Even as I said before the house that has canceled guests is before my properties. 

How can I get an answer when the Airbnb representative can’t do their job right?

Another ting I would like to say here is the service of the professional photography! 

In July I got my 100$ Superhost bonus from airbnb and I had the opportunity to use it on a photographer using my bonus.

I did request a photographer and got the message that there was one near by me and the photographer should contact me in the next few days to schedule your shoot.

I waited for a week and then for 2 and 3 weeks before I contacted Airbnb to ask about it. Then I got the message that the photographer  wasn’t in the area anymore and that they would cancel my request. And I could try at a different time.

I didn’t get the Superhost bonus refunded to me and consider it as a loss. 

Then in the beginning of September I get the mail from Airbnb that my pictures could be better and I looked on the page for professional photography again. I requested a photographer for 2 of my property and the price had gone up since july , but I am willing to try if it would help me!

I got the message that the same photographer as before is in the area and photographer should contact me in the next few days to schedule your shoot.

I did request the photographer  the 5 of september and  I am writing this post the 26 of september and haven’t heard any thing for them.

So how to survive as a host on Airbnb?  I am thinking of just throw in the towel when I am on top as a super host and go back to long time rental, But i have a passion and joy in hosting and meeting so many wonderful people from around the world. I do take my pride in hosting and would bend over backwards to help my guest as of what I have done many times. But I can’t do it if guests can’t find my places and I get no bookings.   

Have any one else had similar experience ?

[Sandra126]

I could find you, but it took some doing. I narrowed down the price (still over 300 listings, wow) narrowed it down to superhost and IB only and now I could see you. There are just SO many listings in Ko Samui. Interstingly, Koh (with an h) Samui had only 27 listings in the price range I used.
Forgive my ignorance, but aren't these the same place? If this is a case of confusion, I would list under Koh Samui instead, as there are so few listings there. Good luck!  Or list under both spellings. Then I would target Norwegians and other Scandis somehow. Your husband should have some good ideas for hooks here.