Are you using Instant Book?

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Are you using Instant Book?

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Hello everyone,

 

For many of you, hosting is your business. You put a lot of effort and time into creating a great and welcoming experience, and you also rely on the income you generate. 

 

Of course, there might be reasons for you to use Instant Book or not to make use of it.

 

Having said the above, do you make use of the Instant Book feature? 

 

I look forward to reading your replies. 

 

Quincy

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22 Replies 22
Mike-And-Jane0
Level 10
England, United Kingdom

@Quincy we are trialling it in one of our listings. So far we don't like it as the minimum we have to set to protect ourselves is too expensive for weekdays but correct for weekends.

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Mike-And-Jane0, thanks for sharing! Are you planning on using it only for the weekends from now on, or will you stop using it entirely? 

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Emilia42
Level 10
Orono, ME

Yes, I love instant book and have used it since I started hosting. I think there are some host misconceptions regarding what instant book is and isn’t. For example, just because you use instant book doesn't mean it’s a free for all and those hosts don't screen their guests. Or that guests who instant book are more likely to break your rules. I haven’t found any of that to be true.

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Emilia42, this is great to hear! I've used IB a couple of times, and had no problems either (albeit for a short time). 

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Michelle53
Level 10
Chicago, IL

@Quincy  I've never used Instant Book and don't ever plan to.     

 

I list a guest suite in my primary residence, and I am here pretty much all the time.   I want to have a conversation with every prospective guest to make sure my listing is a good fit for them and  to make sure I have basic communications in place.

 

My personal safety is a concern, as well as the safety of my property, and my ability to work from home in a relatively quiet environment depends on my guests' plans while they are here. 

 

So I'm going to continue interviewing everyone that inquires or makes a trip request. 

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Michelle53, thanks for sharing this! Are guests usually responsive when you ask them a few questions? 

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@Quincy  If I can get an open line of communication, folks generally are pretty responsive. Some don't realize they need to be communicating with me, and they will put in a trip request, and just assume they don't need to do anything else, after that. 

 

It can be quite difficult, sometimes, to reach a person who puts in a trip request before the 24 hours runs out. I often get responses almost at the end of the window. But I decline with a note if I haven't heard from the person within the required time, and they haven't, as part of their introductory message, given any reason for their trip, and have no reviews. 

Laurelle3
Level 10
Huskisson, Australia

@Quincy I have used instant booking from the beginning of hosting  only 6 months, with advice from my daughter who hosts in NZ. As she knew that I didn't always carry my phone with me all of the time. Instant bookings allows the guest to booking at anytime, they make their decisions after seeing dates available. All I do is send them a message, answer any questions or accept/decline. If they cancel the dates become available straight away.

The disadvantage for me is if their is no photo of the guest booking or their address is not up to date. For example with our current Covid lockdowns they have the address of NSW or Sydney. When asked, they haven't lived there for 7 years. Another guest made a booking for the new year address is Hull Uk but they have been living in Melbourne for 2 years. Something Airbnb need to fix, profile updates annually.

@Mike-And-Jane0  I don't use instant pricing I manually price for my nights because in my area we have sporting activites and functions throughout the year. The price that they recommend is sometimes lower for these activities, weekends, public holidays and school holidays. I feel the matrix is based on the number of bookings that they have made in the location.

My research has shown me that market for my local area varies and I have priced my cottage to what I think it is worth compared to other properties. I do check the dates of the yearly advents calendar, public holidays and shool holidays and price my nights for the season. My bookings are only open 6 months in advance so it makes it easy to do and just takes a little time.

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Thanks for sharing your feedback about updating guest profiles @Laurelle3! I would usually also reflect the pricing depending on events that are happening nearby 🙂

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Michelle1851
Level 10
Littleton, CO

@Quincy I use instant book, works very well, so far no problems with guests who have booked via instant book,  all have left me a message and been great renters.  Very happy with it!

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

That's wonderful to hear @Michelle1851

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Laura2592
Level 10
Frederick, MD

@Quincy yep, we use it and it works okay for us. I would bet we have the same proportion of problem guests as people who don't use it. It does still give you the opportunity to screen and you can set your preferences so that people who don't have recommendations have to contact you before booking. The only issue we truly have is that its glitchy and we have had times when guests could book blocked days. I don't know if that is an IB issue or a calendar bug. 

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hi @Laura2592! Are you currently still experiencing issues with guests being able to book blocked days? 

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J-Renato0
Level 10
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

@Quincy 

There is no greater joy than hearing my smartphone bell ring and seeing a reservation without having to answer a thousand questions! 😀😀😀😀😀😀
It is one of the reasons I use I.B.