Getting Guests

Mary336
Level 1
Mayo, Ireland

Getting Guests

I am new and want to get guests in to get some reviews going and have no idea if there is more I should do expect sit and wait.

It is not hoilday time in Ireland and even though I am availale from March 20th , I still wonder if there is anything else I could be doing to get bookings .

10 Replies 10
Cynthia-and-Chris1
Level 10
Vancouver, WA

March 20th is still over a month away, so people may not be searching that far in advance yet.  I know a lot of my reservations are only 1-2 weeks in advance right now.  Look around in your area and see what others are charging, if you are able to, charge less so your listing looks more desirable to potential guests.  The pictures on you listing are lovely!  Maybe add more information to your listing - bathrooms, transportation around the area, etc.  Other than that, it's mostly a waiting game!

Helen3
Level 10
Bristol, United Kingdom

It's a shame you let you listing go live now if you are not available for over month as BNB only give you a boost in the rankings for a short time as new host. And guests often only book a few weeks ahead.

 

For places like Mayo you aren't like to get people coming along for city breaks  :), so would have been better waiting until April.

 

Some would suggest you delete your listing and set a new one up much nearer the time.

 

Unless you have some major festivals or other activity coming up in late March or April you might want to consider  doing that.

 

The photos of your place look stunning -  but your descriptions are sparse. Tell me more about your home so I can imagine myself living there.

 

You need to tell people more about the area, nearest airport, do they need a car and or can they walk to shops and pubs.? Talk about the walks they can take along the cliffs. Tell them about famous attractions are nearby, is there a stables, a pub with great music ,  a local train station, what festivals are in your area?

 

Describe the sort of guest who would enjoy your place.


What is there to do for children? Is it family friendly - you might not feel so, in which case make sure you have ticked that you aren't suitable for under 12's.

 

Until you know how BNB works more I would suggest you don't have instant book turned on i(f you have) as you may end up with guests who may not be suitable.

 

Finally check your competitors are your prices comparable to theirs?

 

I have added your place to my wish list 🙂

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Great advice from @Helen3@Mary336 Your place looks lovely and I agree the photos are great. I might change up the order of them a bit. The bedroom looks lovely but the living space is more impressive, so maybe put a photo of that ahead of the bedroom one.

 

i think it's bad luck that you've maybe listed in a low season. I was lucky because it was quite busy when I put up my listings, but I didn't know that, was just blissfully ignorant. The advanyage was that they were available very soon, so I could take adbvantage of that new listing boost -irbnb gives you.

 

 

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Also @Mary336 i made what some might perceive as a rooky error. For one of my rooms, the first booking wa 3.5 months. That meant I didn't have any reviews for a long time. It wan't really a mistake as the guest wa lovely, it worked very well for us and gave me a bit of security. However, I hadn't really considered how the lack of reviews might decrease future bookings for that listing. Once I got a few short term guests in, i.e. More reviews, I suddenly started to get more interest. 

 

Just something to consider...

John498
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Beannacht Dhe ort Mhaire! I would definitely close down you profile and relist in March as suggested elsewhere. Airbnb prioritise new hosts in order to retain them and ease 'churn'. In order to get the ball rolling either have a very cheap price or get some freinds to stay and give an asessment. Many guests and I would say especially women don't like unreviewed places. Of course everyone has to start somewhere.

Have a look at what other hosts in Mayo are charging for similar property and be cheaper than them initially until you get some reviews. Also learn from guests. They hate clutter and want to make the place their own in my experience. That shouldn't be too hard to recreate in a place like Mayo :). Once you get guests ask them to let you know first if there anything they don't like. You could put it in your house rules as I do. A bad review is half way round trip advisor before a good one has even got its boots on.

Try and have bright well lit photos as the site says. Try and go the extra mile unless you live on a cliff overlooking the sea.

 

Helen3
Level 10
Bristol, United Kingdom

@John498

 

Did you look @Mary336 listing - she does have beautiful photos and does live on a cliff overlooking the sea 🙂

Helen

Thank you ... I have just begun and already have got some good tips from the community centre.

John498
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Oops No I didn't . My bad. I definitely would not go the extra mile!

.

Atanas0
Level 2
Amsterdam, Netherlands

These fotos are absolutely stunning!

Good luck with renting out