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Just as the title states, does anyone feel they are catering to Airbnb rather than the Guests? Everyone is fighting for 5 stars and superhost, but the simple matter is to put your property on other channels so you don’t feel obligated to bow down to Airbnb.
Soon enough, Airbnb will transition their Customer Booking Fees to Owners commission fee’s increasing, as the supply base is becoming saturated. As an owner, it would be wise to get ahead of this.
If you are interested, leave a reply or DM me. We can have an open discussion or private discussion.
I just experimentally listed on Homeaway and will report back. Honestly, I mostly did it so I can include the experience (more than 1 platform, calendar management) in an county adult ed course on being a short term stay host I plan to teach in the fall. One concern is I get a couple 2 week bookings on Homeaway, Airbnb sees blocked dates and pushes me down in its search results.
In response to your post, in this industry, each owner has a different mindset, goals and business agenda’s. If you wish to generate more revenue, we highly suggest diversifying your property distribution to multiple channels. If you get bookings from HomeAway, why do you care about your Airbnb listing?
The thing that is so frustrating to me is that Owners care so much about a 5* rating from the guest, but have absolutely no control over the review the Guest writes. I have read so many guest reviews and owner complaints about not getting 5* from their guests and they ponder what they did wrong. You provided an example about your calendar being blacked out and that knocked down your listing.
You have no absolute control of how your listing is being shown, the reviews, so getting the most revenue for your property should be the end goal.
AirBnB is just another OTA.
Yes, AirBnB has been very attractive for a while because they operated in a grey area, bending rules and using loopholes. It has been a Valhalla for illegal str’s.
Now AirBnB is being hammered down from all directions, they are moving into line with all the other big OTA"s like Booking, Expedia, Hotelsdotcom etc etc.
So what seems to be a bad thing, is also a good thing. For hosts it gets a lot easier to use multiple platforms because rates and commissions are the same.
And to be honest, hosts should already be working with other OTA’s, the more visibility the better.
AirBnB is still just a small player compared to Booking, so although they have their own flaws, they deliver a lot of bookings to me.
But the best thing is not having to use OTA’s. 95% of my high season bookings are direct, trough my website. That 13+% commission the OTA’s take, I get to keep myself. Down payments go directly into my pocket, and no stupid cancellation policies.
Um, because Homeaway charges 8% and Air charges 3%, I want use Home for “filler” bookings AND not impinge on my Air page ranking. As you say, revenue maximization. What is your objective in asking? Seems like you’ve pre-decided the answer.
My company has a partnership with Airbnb. I highly recommend you list your property with them.
I also recommend that you don’t solely focus your reservations with them. They charge guests 10-13% per bookings. They were in client/supply acquisition phase to get inventory. Now they are moving toward user acquisition, as they have developed their inventory. Just like any other Travel Channel, eventually their Owner rates will go up.
You see the travel market through the lens of an owner, not a traveler. If I can find a cheaper option on say HomeAway, I would choose them. They are already 10-13% cheaper due to no booking fees with the channel.
As long as my calendar is as full as I want it to be, why do I care about the differential in guest fees to the platform? OK I’m done here.
On my project list when I retire – focus on direct booking. I will have a second property up and running by then.
Can you get your property on Expedia or Booking or Google?
How is a guest going to book direct to your website? Marketing your property is whole different headache to running it. That is why you are currently on Airbnb.
I am being very realistic here, its 2018. People use websites & apps to book, no one is going to search cabin in West Virginia near Huntington.
I am fairly certain the overwhelmingly number of reservations around the world are done through a Travel Channel.
There maybe certain outliers where some owners get the majority of bookings from their own website as our friend Chris above.
My company has plenty of listings through Airbnb. I just want to educate the industry into expanding their exposure rather than being listed half way down the Airbnb scrolling list.
OK, you get another shot, best dave. I do not have multiple $300 per night properties, but modest individual suite/apartment in metropolitan area. $80-90 per night. Currently on Air and Homeaway with synched ical calendar and happy with level of booking. Will add a second modest property in another city in 2019, with a co-host. Why should I be interested in your product and what is your commission rate?
Regarding HomeAway you are probably on their subscription model. They are moving away from that pricing model and shifting toward commission per booking.
If you don’t want to conduct business with them anymore, that is your choice. You can remove your listing from their site and take your business elsewhere.
Actually they both charge about 13% only the split between host and guest is different.
That 10% that AirBnB charges the guest instead of the 5% homeway does, or even 0% booking does, is moving guests away from AirBnB. In the end they pay exactly the same, only the guest feels it differently.
I know we like to view things from the host point of view, but taking the guest point of view 0% fees seems a lot better. Even if, in the end, they pay exactly the same.
If you are happy with your current state of things, how can I make you happier?
I never directly messaged you or sold my service to you. I never asked where your property was or the price point of your property. You may or may not be getting the maximum amount of revenue for your property. What I suggested was that you shouldn’t be so concerned with where your Airbnb listing is or ratings/reviews as you have no control over that.
If you guys can read between the lines, these channels are doing things that hinder your listings. If you don’t play ball with their narrative then you will be moved down the listing scroll.
Oh dear, I must not be communicating very clearly – I have all the bookings I can handle on Airbnb right now and am profitable. If enough guests get fed up with Air fees and bookings drop, only then do I feel I need to be concerned about the guest fee experience, and look at other or multiple platforms. Also if Air jacks up my fees, I will do comparison shopping. I am using Homeaway to try to pick up filler or last minute bookings, and as insurance if Air abruptly shuts me down, which I understand can happen. The multiple-platform aggregators all want to “maximize your revenue,” but not sure how they woukd add value in my situation and I would like to know their average commission rate.
Yes, getting your property on Booking and Expedia is just as easy as getting them on AirBnB. They even have a better service setting up your listing.
Marketing is a lot of work, I agree. But 13% is a lot of money.
Facebook and Instagram are a good way to direct potential guests to your listing.
Also having your own site is very important for guest retention and referral.
We meet our guests personally, and always try to have a little chat when they check-out and give them our business card. We tell them to book direct with us, when they want to return.
This works very well, and we get a lot of referrals from previous guests too.
Yes, I am on AirBnB to increase exposure, and fill the gaps and low season.
But for me AirBnB is one of 6 OTA’s I am using. All have their flaws, but they also have their strengths.
