Reality check.... no views, no bookings ;(

[Axel-and-Annette0]

Hi everyone - greetings from the Fiji Islands !   

Our brandnew guest room/apartment is now 5 weeks online ...barely 50 views, no inquiries, no bookings.   

We understand that the whole of Fiji has a total of about 400 airbnb listings, people book normally 3-4 months ahead (basically all int'l visitors no domestic business) and Fiji's total occupancy (all 11,000 hotel rooms plus airbnb etc.) averages ~ 50% accross the year.

Where did we go wrong ? Is it purely price driven ? Since our rate includes amenities, bkfst, airport transfer, we are really not able to go any lower (and worry that this attracts the 'wrong' guests).

Thanks for any thoughts/suggestions.

Ciao, Axel

[Helen3]

I don't know your market, but could you look at having airport transfer cost listed separately to give you a cheaper base price?

Have you looked to see how booked up comparable properties in your area are?

Is there a local fiji host group you could join to get advice from local hosts  @Axel-and-Annette0?

Have you spoken to your local tourism association in fiji about other ways to market your property.

[Axel-and-Annette0]

Thanks for that - appreciate your time. We probably also have to acknowledge that our product is not quite finished ... nice gardens, pool, gym etc.  are yet to come. Guess we thought  at a decent price you can 'always'  attract custom for a brandnew room/neat self-contained studio. But it's not that easy.  I think right now that either you are 'luxury' than you can charge whatever - or you are base/low $ than you are always busy. The 'middle' seems problematic. PS.: Fiji is perceived as an exclusive destination, 5 times the size of Mallorca and gets only 900,000 visitors per year (Mallorca 10 Mio. 😉 Kind regards, Axel

[Sarah977]

@Axel-and-Annette0  Your place looks quite nice, clean and comfortable, so really couldn't say why you're not getting views and bookings. Maybe just a lot of competition. As Helen said, maybe have the airport transfer and maybe even breakfast, be an optional feature with added charges so your base price is lower, or drop your price a little just until you get some guests and reviews under your belt. maybe even ask some friends or family to book a night or two, and leave a review, then you can reimburse them what they paid.

Suggestion- the porch photo with the one chair, small table, and bottle of wine- your place looks quite suitable for a couple, so make that area look like a place where 2 people can comfortably relax. 2 chairs, a colorful tablecloth, the bottle of wine and some wine glasses. Maybe an outdoor rug or mat to liven that space up. And shoot that area from another angle, or in different lighting- because you don't have the landscaping in, it looks quite barren. How about some nice big plants, especially flowering ones, in big pots around that terrace? 

One thing I did notice that I wanted to mention- unless you are in an HOA or something that doesn't allow anyone under 21 years of age, you can't state that bookers must be over 21. Airbnb will delist you for that. 18 is the age that someone can sign up with Airbnb. I don't agreee with that, I think it should be 21, but I don't make the rules.

[Axel-and-Annette0]

Thanks very much for this! Yes, the place is indeed still work in progress and gardens not finished - we wanted to be honest and show this (to avoid any complaints...).

We changed that age to 18 (in the islands 21 is perceived as really 'adult' - 18 is not;). 

With kind regards, Axel. 

[Ann72]

@Axel-and-Annette0, if I may make a suggestion?  Your lovely place isn't enhanced by your written description.  Here's what I see at the top when I go to your listing:

MUSE is an 'adults only' retreat - enjoy 'Fiji time' in the countryside with mountain & sea views, sugarcane, goats, buffalo. Explore the Coral Coast, the islands w/surfing & cruising. Perfect to chill-out with a book & drink, a game of bocce while working on your tan to cool music outdoors.
1 bedroom studio apartment with kitchenette, bathroom, private entrance plus terrace; 2 persons per room, no persons under 18 yrs.
CHECK-IN: 2:00 PM 
CHECK-OUT: 10:00 AM
30 mins by car from Nadi Airport

My brain started tripping out - does "adults only" mean it's some kind of sex retreat? Are there goats and buffalo wandering around in the yard? Do I have to play bocce???

My suggestion is to start with the space:

Studio apartment with private entrance and terrace, kitchenette and bath [IS THE BATH PRIVATE? SAY SO].  Mountain and sea views and close proximity to the Coral Coast, the islands, and many activities including windsurfing and cruising.  Perfect for one or two people looking for some "Fiji Time."  Breakfast and airport transfer included.

All the rules and other specifics can go elsewhere in the listing (there are three or four separate boxes for information).  

Pushing the whole idea of "Muse" might be counterproductive.  After all, everyone knows you can't force the Muse!  Let the lovely space speak for itself and let the guests' reviews work their magic.  

Other ways to get more attention?  Don't lower your prices - raise them!  $99 a night seems right to me.  If you spend enough time here in the Community you'll find everyone pretty much agrees that rock-bottom prices bring rock-bottom guests.

You'll get there!

[Axel-and-Annette0]

Thanking you very much for your time and effort, much appreciated !! Some of your thoughts already implemented.

The term 'Adult Only' is widely used in Fiji/S. Pacific together with terms 'romance' , 'couples only' and 'honey mooners'  - pls. see below properties  (often hotels are 'overrun' by kids and places offer 'kids eat & play free' deals... !

We currently charge ~US$ 59 per night, however the average airbnb rate/night in our neighborhood (7 properties) is ~US$ 48.-   Mmmh - what do with our pricing ?

We also just checked those other properties - currently none of them has any bookings from March - August 2019. 

Fiji is probably a unique and challenging market: the whole country has only ~ 400 airbnb listings, but 11,000 hotel rooms proper that achieve ~55% occupancy for the year (if they are lucky);  it seems that hotel rooms in Fiji are either very budget - or at the other extreme from US$ 500 - 5,000 per night.

Not sure yet how airbnb and our listing fits into this scenario (despite all the planning..goal posts move..). We have been  working on our project/vision for  a couple of years already, 2 more studios, pool, gardens, gym, library is all in planning...but will take more time and $$ 😉  So not sure whether a considerably cheaper entry/rate (for cashflow) will help us - or we pull a stop, finish everything first and then are able to charge US$150/night incl bkfst (as planned) once we can call ourselves 'luxury' 🙂

Greetings to NYC - used to work/live 5th Ave. in the 80s.

...tried to send you some web addresses -airbnb wouldn't let me...

check out 'Tokoriki', 'Royla Davui', 'Lomani Isand'  ...they are all 'adults only'  (google the term w/Fiji)

[Ann72]

@Axel-and-Annette0 - Aw, thanks!  And I think your listing description is much better!

We probably passed each other on 5th Avenue in the 80s - I worked in the Scribner building at 597 Fifth Avenue then!  So greetings from NYC to Fiji.  🙂

[Sayny0]

@Axel-and-Annette0 Your have a  nice and cool place.  I feel you have a reasonable night rate . May be change the cancellation policy mode to "Flexible" and give guest chance to book your retreat especially those last minute bookings. May be also allow for a   minimum of 1 night stay for a start and once you getting your guest and they start reviewing your retreat you can change the number of nights booking later. In addition, I feel activating the Smart Pricing helps in adjusting your night rate so that your accomodation can  attract more airnb guests.

Cheers,

[Ann72]

@Sayny0 Great advice.  Those are all the things I've done for my listing and they've worked!  I especially love that you too are in Fiji and are reaching out a helping hand.  That's the Airbnb community at its best.  🙂

[Sayny0]

@Ann72 Yes, sometimes we have lots of high expectation for our accomodations just like us when we started in 2017 but we had to sit back rethink of our approach (Discount, Descriptions, Cancellation Policies, etc) and observe the market performance  as a whole including hotel demands in Fiji for a while before enquiries and booking were received. We still new and learning from those superhosts in Suva Fiji as well. But its good to have a community to discuss all this concerns, feelings and issues.Cheers

[Ben551]

@Axel-and-Annette0your listing is lovely and looks clean and comfortable.  It looks like a very organised space and would be a great choice for people on a budget and (say) who can't afford to stay up the road from you in Denarau Island...

One potential issue is that Denaru Island is literally a half map scroll to the right of your location, covered with listings all available, some with beach babes plastered all over their imagery (classy..). All this to say: it looks like a hell of a competitive market to be in.

I also notice that, if I do a manual search for "Nadi, Western Division, Fiji" and "2 Guests" plus some of your available dates... the map does something odd and scrolls too far to the right to even show your listing. It's like the Airbnb map doesn't recognise that your listing is part of the named area you have included your place within.  Are you sure you have entered the correct postal zone?  You have been truncated off the map and don't seem to be included in search results.

There is only one time I have seen this happen to someone before - that is when someone put their location as Byron Bay in Australia, when they were actually in the next district over from Byron Bay.  They did it because they thought it would bring them more bookings, but what it did was make their property vanish from search results.  That's why I ask if you have your area tagged correctly against the listing - maybe double check this first.

If it's all as it should be, then I suggest contacting Airbnb to ask them what can be done about this.  Not appearing in search results at all is definitely going to impact your booking potential.

[Sandra126]

Yes, @Ben551,  someone even invented the name ''Byron North'' for their place, when it actually already had a placename... Didn't go well.

Re the prices, just do what @Sarah977 said and separate the extras such as airport transfer, should make a difference. Also, if added as a guest charge later as a ''request money'' they will not pay commission on it, which they will if it is baked into price.

[Ben551]

So smart @Sandra126 !!  That's totally true, I hadn't even thought of that.  The commission goes on the room rate, so you want to strip it down to the basics then request money for extras as they book the.  Genius suggestion!

[Ann72]

@Sandra126@Ben551 - I saw that so-called-Byron North episode of "Instant Hotel"!  So funny!