Superhost questions

Hi @cooperjto

As someone with your background you will understand about price sensitivity and also value for money.

Purchasing decisions for many guests aren’t purely related to price. Location, ratings, guest reviews and facilities are important factors. In fact if a guest is looking for a place and sees one that they perceive to be too cheap compared to others of the same quality they may feel ‘it’s too good to be true’ and therefore not book.

I don’t lower my prices to rock bottom prices regardless of how over flooded the market…anyone who does can become a busy fool.

I would rather have fewer bookings at a higher rate. This is much more profitable for me in terms of my pocket and my time.

Far better to focus on ensuring you are listed with a variety of providers and ensuring your property stands out in a crowded market place if you rely on the income…

I know what my costs are for having a guest in my home and how much I need to make, to make it worthwhile my while. My listing reflects this.

2 Likes

No need to be condescending… I’ve found that Smart Pricing provides a good baseline but it often suggests prices that are too low for weekends and other high demand periods, and too high during off-peak times such as weekdays in the winter. If I adjust it myself I can make a lot more money by tailoring each night’s price to the level of demand.

Like Smart Pricing, my typical pricing strategy is to start fairly high and get as many bookings as I can from guests who aren’t price sensitive. If it becomes clear that nobody is willing to pay the higher rate for a particular range of dates, I’ll discount to match or undercut my competitors so that I can at least cover my costs and maintain occupancy above 90%. When I cut my prices it attracts regular business travelers looking for a good deal and young people who want to splurge on a nice place.

I also have a high cleaning fee ($70) so I don’t get the true bargain hunters. My operating cost is about $70 a day whether the place is booked or not, so I have a strong incentive to be as close to 100% occupancy as possible. Some money is almost always better than no money.

My Listing

Nice! Too bad I have no need to be in Toronto

I have been a Super Host since I started with Airbnb and had to cancel two reservations because of renovations but my instant book was on hence someone booked before I could block the dates. I requested a review and showed them the contract from my renovation company to fix the ceiling in the apartment and they didn’t penalize me or remove my Super Host status. The dates on my calendar had been blocked by Airbnb because of the cancellation and then Airbnb unblocked them and didn’t tell me and someone else booked. I was not penalized then either. Anyway the issue of pricing is a tricky one and I have not really figured it out except to say I do not lower my price and Airbnb’s Smart Pricing does not work in rural areas or for waterfront properties since it doesn’t account for that type of special amenity. Anyway good discussion all!

2 Likes

Thank you so much guys for answering, still I found many answering that canceling is not possible while others actually did it (even more times) without status changes.
I would suggest to give to all superhosts the possibility to cancel 2-3 instant bookings every 6months(and for a valid reason ofc), nobody should be obligated to host people with bad reviews just because they have a status that risk to loose in case of cancelation… what’s the reason of a review then if not to protect hosts and avoid frustrations?
I think hosts protection from not so valid guests should be prioritized.
What they do now is to prioritize a virtual status and not the host and his home.