New host, no bookings

[Dewayne10]

Is anyone willing to give some tips on how I can start getting some bookings? It’s been four days since I went live and still not a single booking. I’m thinking it’s partly because the area is certainly not a touristy place, it’s more of a family suburb. But nonetheless there are other Airbnb’s in the area and they are all booked for Memorial Day so I’m wondering why no one is booking ours.

https://abnb.me/DqrTxcGHogb

[Pat271]

1) Add some views of the outside, both from outside the house and from the windows inside the house

2) Add a few photos and artwork. Just a few that are to scale with the wall and add some color

3) Make sure your title has keywords that are likely to be searched

4) Beef up your description. Talk about the features of the house, distance to major attractions, from the point of view of the guest. I.e. don’t just list the features, but talk about them as if the guest is living them, e.g. for whatever you might have...“Relax in the tub after a day of sightseeing”, “Enjoy a good night’s sleep in luxurious, high-quality bedding”, etc.

You also might want to offer a “Grand Opening Discount”.

[Emiel1]

@Dewayne10 

4 days means in practice just 3 days visible in the search system. Did you check the amount of views ?

Pricing is set to a level only a party of minimal 4 guests will book, for 2 guests it is to expensive, also because of high cleaning fee.

[Christina1170]

The house is beautiful, I'd stay there! Definitely post outside pictures, particularly if you have a nice outdoor area. I published my listing in February and it took about 2 or 3 weeks to get my first booking. Some guests look askance at listings with no reviews but if you're cheap enough people will start renting then you can raise your rates. Is the cleaning fee typical for your area? It costs me $190 for cleaning but I charge the guest $160, psychologically they would rather you tack on $10 per night so that's what I do. Also, I have started using the Promo feature where you identify a set of days and throw a discount on them. 20% or more will get you listed on email promotions. I use that to "sell" odd runs of weekdays that get leftover. Good luck!!

[Ted307]

Hi, I am in Arizona, too. In Prescott, I have already had a couple of guests come here from Tuscon. It is getting pretty hot there soon. You will want to show your future guests a good reason to come to your place in the heat. I agree with others here, show a photo. Do you have a nice patio to hang out on in the evening? Looking at your photos, your house looks very nice, but the listing says that you do not have a private entrance? I do not see a TV in your photos, although one is listed as an amenity. It looks like you are a little far from downtown, but maybe are close to the Nat'l Park. You could put how many minutes drive from there, that is the reason I went to Tuscon. A low "shoulder season" price would not hurt. We deliberately priced our place ~$20 lower than other places in our area when we first listed, and then took advantage of the new host coupon for our first 3 guests. Best Wishes for your success!

[Sarah977]

@Dewayne10  Sometimes you just have to be patient with a new listing. It took several weeks after I first posted to get my first booking. Also people haven't been booking far ahead lately- with all the ever-changing Covid restrictions, many guests aren't planning much ahead.

Your place is nice, I can tell you put a lot of effort into that.

Definitely need some outside photos and also you have no photos of the bathrooms, which you should.

Be cautious about pricing too low, as that can attract low-life guests who are disrespectful of your property and isn't a good way to start out your hosting career, crying about the mess that was left.