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I get a lot of recurring guests but just by being the best place for them, being the best host to them, sometimes I give discounts or minimum-stay flexibility or extra amenities that they like.
Ultimately, I just say, “we’d love to have you back” and that’s worked really well.
Airbnb has enough hoops already, I doubt any of my regular guests want to keep up with a points system. I know I don’t.
@Helsi, @RebeccaF, looks like I explained something wrong in the post.
The idea is not to return customers to your property, but create a host network and contract the guest into the partner network:
Once a guest stayed at one partner, he will be incentified to use other partners’ accommodation
That will create a host network with own guest group and stand out all the host from the network.
This scheme is widely used by hotel networks, we can create similar for the bnb users.
Also what you think about mobile app guest book? Will it be useful for your guests?
And better still how do you account for the value differences between listings? Even hotel rewards programs require different “points” to be redeemed for different hotels and rooms.
The app can distribute guests the way, that any host will not accept more than 10% of customers with a loyalty program. That’s pretty easy: every host will be invisible for the customers willing to redeem free night if he didn’t have 9 paid customers before.
So, eventually, for hosts, it will be a 10% discount to the end customer (obtain from the network). The system can be pretty transparent and win-win for the hosts in-network.
Nobody from hosts pays anything to participate, however they commit to provide 1 night free for every 10 nights gained from the platform.
The math looks like that (let’s assume that 1 night = $100):
You have received 9 nights from “partner network” => $900 in revenue
Then you host 1 night for free for the customer from the network => you don’t receive $100 for this night
At this moment the circle is closed and it starts again from Step 1.
So, in this case, the host received $900 in revenue for 10 nights.
Airbnb commission for now: 3% pays the host and 13% customer pays. It means that if the customer pays $100 and host receives ~ $84. It means if you charge customers $100 per night you will get $840 in revenue.
@JJD, with the existing platform policies (Airbnb, booking etc), you’ll never receive $1000 if your customer paid $1000.
In the example above for the $1000 customer spent you gain:
$840 before taxes if you use Airbnb
$800 before taxes if you use Booking
$900 if you use the scheme I described
But the profit is not in the revenue generated from these customers but from the number of customers.
In case you use partner network to attract customers, you’ll get new customer source which will increase your revenue by just boosting your booking rate (more nights booked => more revenue)
And it’s just additional client source, it doesn’t replace your existing ones.
Btw, what’s your booking rate (% of nights booked in a month)?
Do you have any issues with you listings visibility?
yeah, me neither. what does it mean “you’ll develop it”? Are you an Airbnb employee? If yes we have greater concerns for you to take back to the mothership.
No, fortunately. I guess that is why I don’t understand your scheme. It seems like something else to be a time-suck and if you just put that time into your listing and into your guests, they will come…
The other thing, @alexmev, is that I don’t really want the guests who need a loyalty program to encourage them to come and stay at an airbnb. There have been discussions on the subreddit, started by guests, that say they would like airbnb to have a loyalty program “like hotels do”. And my, and other hosts’ responses are generally, then go and stay in a hotel.
It’s a common knock for hosts to use against guests to say that they “are better suited to a hotel” and I think a loyalty program like you are describing would necessarily attract those kinds of guests. There’s already enough changes in Airbnb towards hotel models (not to mention that stupid Hotels Tonight tape that has recently appeared at the bottom of the search listings) to make it less attractive IMO so wouldn’t want to encourage any further options in that direction.
Maybe there are hosts who are better suited to working at or owning hotels, too?
@adrienne12, thanks for your reply. I’m a software developer and ABB host.
I want to create a solution for me and others to get some more profit.
@JJD, thanks. About my case: I’m a superhost and have 5 starts feedbacks only, but ABB doesn’t give me even 50% booking rate. I’ve tried booking.com, but it had a negative effect on ABB and rate dropped even more. That’s why I’m thinking about what I can do for that.
@alexmev, if we had a 50% or less booking rate, we’d be looking for ways to make our listings more competitive and more attractive to travelers.
Contrary to what we expected at first, our booking rate went up and has stayed up since we increased our room rates. We’ve done that three times since we started 2.5 years ago. I think it’s sort of like what happens with an asking price for selling a house. By raising our rates, we’ve moved to a different and wider group of potential guests. Our occupancy rate has also increased dramatically (partly due to a boatload of guests who return over and over).
My main objection to what you propose is that guests wouldn’t be booked through Airbnb. I wouldn’t have the assistance I get from Airbnb, which has been stellar.
