How to design any house for Airbnb

How to design any house for Airbnb

Hi Guys,

 

i am here to help people who are looking for some quick tips for making any space look beautiful and feel good,

11 Replies 11
April3
Level 5
South Lake Tahoe, CA

@Keerti0 you may find another thread in this discussion room with tips for just this, but I'll start it off here with some simple suggestions. Is your place already furnished and decorated, and you are just looking to add more? For any space in general, of course a clean, uncluttered space is key! If you'd like to add some feel good qualities, you could add a cozy reading or lounge area, a nice spot for your guests to have afternoon tea, or something like that. In a shared space, you'll really want to focus on making sure your guests feel comfortable using the common areas as their own, and are not made to feel as if they are just holed up in a room they are renting. It might be easier to give you some tips if could expand a bit on the type of place you are trying to create, but hope this is a good start!

Hi April, Thanks for writing me back, 

@April3 I am here to share my design and decor ideas with other users, however, that's so sweet of you to sharing your insights with me, I will go through your threads 

Rene-and-Zac0
Level 10
La Quinta, CA

@Keerti0 Would you be an entire cup of sugar and look at my listing and offer me some expert tips? 

https://abnb.me/EVmg/GtrkJuNoAJ

 

Also @Keerti0 can you post a link to some of the listings you’re working on now?

And post a link to your personal listing so I can see your work.

 

thanks!

 

’You know it’s hard out here for a Host’

Hi Rene, 

 

I am so sorry I have missed out your message, Let me go through your link, i will surly sure what i have doing regarding in home decor ideas,

@Rene-and-Zac0 i must say you have such a beautiful place, 

If you're open to a couple of suggestions I would be more then happy to give my insight, I've been doing vacation rentals for a little over a decade now and have had a lot of success in it. I also wrote a book on getting into the business of vacation rentals and went pretty in-depth on interior design for vacation rentals.

 

I think it would be advantageos to start with the general images used and the sequence, for example you open with the pool which is a good thing, as pools are a huge draw for vacation rentals, yet after the initial image it's never seen again, I would suggest adding another great shot of it and I would also find a better vantage point to showcase the pool better, or invest in a wide angle camera if your backyard isn't big enough to get the pool in all its glory, or hire a photographer for it. On top of that I'm not a big fan of layering text over the images, the point of the images is to draw people into the scene and environment you're building, the text does the opposite and makes people focus on that more then the gorgeous pool and surroundings. I would also suggest getting and cleaning up the bottom of the pool before taking photos, small things like that make people think the place isn't going to be kept up.

The interior of your home looks wonderful, you open with a nice large interior dining/living room area. I like the angle of the shot very much and It highlights the open space. One thing I'm a big proponent of is keeping with a theme, this brings everything together. In regards to the color pallete I like the general contemporary theme and I think that is probably the smartest choice as your biggest piece that stands out and one that is pretty much permanent is the beautiful wood beams across the kitchen counters, I think it would be really great to continue with that theme and build around it with some natural looking wood stools or chairs instead of the industrial multi-color ones you have there.

I also tend to believe less is more, there is a fine line as things can quickly and easily look barren, which is something we definitely don't want, but having a busy array of colors and large objects on small tops tend to deter from the flow of the image, which is why I would think a nice small plant on that table top would suit it much better, and perhaps more solid color placemats. 

A small thing that goes a long way as well is to think about what the purpose of any photo is in a vacation rental, the primary goal is to highlight the space and draw people in to how they will be able to use it, we want to do this as to make it much easier for people to imagine themselves within the home. So one of the things I like to do is set the table, put out your dinnerware and wine glasses, even a bottle of wine can help add to the atmosphere of the photo.

The third photo I like as it gives the viewer a general scope of the kitchen, I would wonder about decorating the top of that space above the fridge and microwave with a variety of nice plants that have lil pops of color, this will help balance the natural browns and cream color pallete. I would also remove those papers and some of the items on the counters in the back, as it'll simply look less busy and cluttered. This would be an interesting opportunity to try and enter in two fine glasses and a bottle of wine to the photo.

In terms of the fourth photo I would think about again trying to find ways to add a lil pop of color, to me that back wall needs a nice large picture or two pictures on the sides of the tv to balance it and probably above the doorway there as well. 

 

Fourth photo I'm a big fan of remembering not to obstruct flow within  photos, in this one the back of the couch takes up the vast majory of the bottom qtr and just makes the space feel obstructed. if possible I would think about angling the couch for this shot, or just taking the photo from a slightly different vantage point.

Fifth photo I would think about a slightly different vantage point if possible, as we have what is basically just the back of a chair taking up the vast majority of this shot, also small touches like the slanted light hanger and slanted maui face on the wall should be straightened

Sixth photo I really like this shot quite a bit and wonder if there is anyway to try and simply shoot it angeled slighty up more as to not be pointing down at the floor so much, I also think this is a great opportunity to light those candles as they'll create a wonderful atmospheric shot. and that pillow needs to be put up right on the right lounger, I would also suggest turning the light on next to the chair. It seems like this space would make a really nice relaxing reading area, anyway to incorporate that sentiment into this shot?

seventh photo is solid, bed looks great, lights are on, I would just get a larger picture for the wall as that picture is too small.

 

twelfth photo the shower curtain definitely needs to be pulled back, the main thing of the shot is for people to understand what sort of shower/bath setup people will be using and this blocks the entire unit, one thing I liked to use was a little twist tie to make the shower curtain have a nice fluff to it if you can't get it to pull back and stay in place.

 

I think for the most part your place is wonderful, I really love your large walk in shower and think that's a big highlight that I would also be posting earlier within your photo sequence, the reason being is with each photo that a potential guest goes through you're essentially vying for his consideration, you want to bring all your best from the start as they may not even make it to the end of your photos before they decide to move on to another listing.

 

 

I attached some photos below from a couple of my vacation rentals, have a good day and happy airbnbing!

 

 

Living Room - Copy.jpg_DSC0215.jpgdiningroom - Copy - Copy.jpgbathroom.jpg_DSC8508-HDR.jpg_DSC8534-HDR.jpg

@Jake0 Thanks so much for taking the time to review my listing.

I agree with your conclusions and I’m determined to improve my listing.

I’m transitioning the furniture into a log cabin feel to do exactly what you mentioned in connecting the wood elements. The beds arrive this Monday Feb 5. 

You nailed it on the stools. 

The clear difference is my listing is not staged for photography as you mentioned. 

I also use the layering of text over photos for a ‘call to action’.

My target demo is “the weekend getaways’. I’m trying to connect with that guest and advertise to them that I am the obvious choice. The layering is a trigger. 

Great points and thank you so much for your time. I’m not making excuses or defending, I’m on a mission to improve.

 

‘You know it’s hard out here for a Host’

Of course Rene, I think it's important in business to not take anything too personally "which can be extremely hard when you've devoted so much time to it" but you're place is wonderful and I'm excited that we agree on the theme! I really look forward to seeing it.

 

But what you mentoined is pretty much it, you just mainly need to stage the home for the photo session.

I think that's an interesting idea on the call to action, I wonder if anyone out there has conducted a sort of A/B split test to see how those may actually trigger the call to action.

You-House0
Level 3
Bangkok, Thailand

Good morning from Bangkok everyone!

@Keerti0- I'd love to hear any tips! I've done not much aside from renting 2 houses and repainting them all white. There are 23 listings now and 2 are for "whole house". My crazy idea for that big house is to slowly decorate it with the theme of Thai water buffalo! There are millions of the beasts on farms here but they aren't easy to find as art or decoration. 

@You-House0

Very Good Morning from India ,

 

I would love to share good and handy tips for decoration , but can i have pics or list of room or area you want to start with,