How long does it take to get your first booking?

[Raymundo22]

Hello fellow Airbnb hosts!

I am new to hosting on Airbnb, and I am curious to know how long it typically takes for others to get their first booking. Also, if you have experience hosting on the platform, I would love to hear your personal stories and any tips or advice you may have. How did you attract your first guests? What strategies have you found to be most effective in getting bookings? Any feedback on my first listing would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you,

Ray

[Maia29]

I received my first booking within days of going live on Airbnb. It was May though, so I'm sure that has a lot to do with it.

I attracted my first guests with competitive pricing, free cancellations, and instant book. Started with really  low rates just to get the first customers.

I recommend:

Always check your competitor's price points and price your listing reasonably

Have an excellent cleaner

Be kind and flexible towards your guest (i.e. if they request early check-in or late check out and you can do that, do it for free)

Have toiletry items on hand for your guest in case they forgot something (i.e. razors, toothpaste, toothbrushes, makeup wipes)

Try not to give your guest a long list of cleaning requirements; that can turn guests off ESPECIALLY if you charge a cleaning fee. After all, your guests are on vacation.

Let the small things go (don't nickel and dime your guests)

Then there is a long list of things you can do to to maximize your listing's position:

Change rates constantly even if it is just by a couple of dollars

Update your photos regularly and make sure they are landscape photos

Fill out your guidebook

Having instant book on prioritizes your listing

Ask previous guests to "heart" your listing

Change your title occasionally

*About photos (this is just my opinion), stay away from fish eye lens and wide lens photos. It doesn't make the place look bigger; it makes it look like the host is trying to exaggerate the size if the space. 

Your listings looks beautiful! I like the clean look and it's not overly busy!

[Trude0]

Very good advice from @Maia29 , I agree with almost all of it. Especially the part ”I recommend”. And about ”honest” photos.

I personally would not go for low rates and Instant Book to attract first guests, though. As @Suzanne302 mentions, you risk attracting less than great guests. Who may write less than great reviews. Or if are newbies, don’t know how the Airbnb rating system differs from that of hotels (in short, anything under 4* is a disaster). And those first few reviews are so important. My theory is that after photos and location, guests look at reviews. 

Good luck!

[Maia29]

I've found that MOST Airbnb guests do not know how the rating system works. They are under the impression that 4 stars is good; which it is not under the Airbnb system.

Yes, reviews are important, but honestly, I am so over everyone - guests and hosts - alike writing 3 page reviews going on and on over minor details; it's not necessary. Keep it short and sweet.

I've had (3) bad guests in 4 years of hosting fulltime hundreds of people and those (3) bad experiences was when my rate was low and during the off season.

[Huma0]

@Raymundo22 

Well, that is quite a broad question and will depend on any number of factors. Also, I am not sure about Austin but, in many places, January can be a very slow period for bookings. One positive is that you get a 'new listing' boost in the search results for a short time.

When I listed, I got my first bookings almost immediately, but it was not without its problems. I remember opting out of Instant Booking, but when I woke up the next morning, it had weirdly been turned on. Also, I went with Smart Pricing, because the prices looked okay to me. Imagine my surprise the next morning when Airbnb had slashed them in half! Of course, I already had several bookings at the ridiculously low price.

These are things to keep an eye on. You can use Smart Pricing, but set your minimum nighty rate at a level you are happy with and keep an eye on any discounts that are applying to your listing. For example, you might have a discount for the first few bookings PLUS a long term discount. Make sure that if you have any combined discounts, they don't lower the rate to one that ends up costing you money.

There are many factors to creating a good listing, but I feel like the most important one is great photos. Many guests will not read the description (although this is important too for many reasons), and just look the photos, price and location. So, make sure your photos are as good as they can be.

I started off with photos I had taken myself, and they were okay (taken on an SLR camera, rather than a phone, but phone cameras have improved since then) and I got a fair amount of bookings. Once I had professional photographs though, my bookings really took off.

Not everyone will agree with me. Some hosts (and guests) think that professional photos are misleading and, yes, it's true that some interiors photographers use a very wide angle lens. Just make sure that the photos show off your space to the max without presenting it as something it is not.

[Suzanne302]

Welcome @Raymundo22 ! As always, @Huma0 gave some spot on advice. It's hard to compare bookings when I started to today as it seems the changes to Airbnb have slowed everyone's bookings.

That being said, I think I had my first booking within a week of going live. And after 2-3 weeks I had steady bookings. These days? Not so much, lol.

My most effective strategy for bookings has been to not try to attract everyone. I cater my listing to a certain type of traveler and aside from the slowdown in bookings caused by Airbnb changes, it has worked well. I also monitor other local listings similar to mine pretty regularly. I try to keep my price competitive but I also have a minimum I will not go under. Prices well under what the rest of the market is charging will attract guests you probably don't want.

And remember, it's the little things that count. In one of my former listings, the bed was old and I knew the mattress was horrible (like, really, really uncomfortable) but at the time I could not afford to replace it. But because I made every guest feel special, not one gave me a bad review because of it.

Personalized notes, great communication, snacks, anything to make it a great guest experience will pay off.

Happy hosting!

[Patti-And-Marty0]

Hello @Raymundo22 

Congratulations on your first listing!  This forum is full of tips and wisdom and reading it regularly is the best advice I can give.  Hosting is a journey and I agree with @Suzanne302 that finding your niche and then really catering to your client is the best strategy.  And don't  try to cram in too many people! No sofa beds etc. 

[Patti-And-Marty0]

Hi again @Raymundo22 

I just looked at your listing so yes I would reaffirm on the beds, you have to have real beds for all 4 guests to attract bookings. Your house is beautiful and you've done a great job with the photos.  I would suggest getting a queen or another king bed if it will fit and setting up another bedroom. Move the sofa bed to the office and don't offer it as a sleeping option unless at your own discretion. 

4 guests looks like the right number since you have 4 dining chairs and living room seating for maybe 5. 

[Trude0 · Accepted solution]

I had a look at your listing now, and it is beautiful, a really nice house with all you might need!

And you've done a great job with the listing/ad - photos, texts/information etc.

This is the kind of house that I typically book for the family, when we go on holiday in the US. 

But I agree with @Patti-And-Marty0:

You probably risk missing bookings for not having a proper bed in the second bedroom - no matter how comfortable the sofa bed might be.

When our girls where younger, we would book houses/hotel suites where the girls would sleep on sofa beds like that one. And it was fine.

When they got older, this did not feel right anymore, so nowadays we make sure they have "real beds", too.

[Lala89]

Hey Raymundo22 - your listing looks really nice! I agree with what everyone has stated about the sofa bed in the second room. Having an actual bed will be very beneficial to getting you bookings. 

With that said, I also just started my Airbnb and I'm struggling to get bookings. Maybe we can share tips. Can you look at my listing and give me feedback?