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This post has been removed because this is not the right forum and I have filled the request.
Best Wishes, AmyK

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The is a forum for hosts to discuss issues. Not a place for potential guests to solicit freebies, tax-deductible or not.

Use the AirBNb site to find some rentals you like that meet your needs and approach them with an Inquiry to discuss details.

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Thank you for the suggestion @KenH I am new to this forum so I did not know. I will do that.

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I’ve received requests such as these and am mystified. Hosts can’t just give away their place because the guest still has to go through Airbnb for the booking.

Try Craigslist. And you should not promise tax deductions unless it is a 501©(3) non profit corporation receiving the in kind donation.

I would say you will need to find a cheap hotel for lodging, that’s your best bet.

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I don’t know if soliciting hosts through Airbnb would be kosher. I’m put off by these requests. You can’t believe how many people have non profits they need housing for in Hawaii. :joy::joy::laughing:

Even if a host wanted to do it, how? You can’t exchange contact information outside their system. It just doesn’t seem like a good idea to me. I can’t imagine it being a good idea for an Airbnb employee to suggest it.

Maybe ask someone on couch surfing?

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@AmyK - you mentioned several times that this ‘photoshoot’ is not for profit. But you don’t mention what the not for profit element is? What socially disadvantage group are you supporting? What goods or services are you raising funds for or will you be providing for them? You may have a fantastic cause you are supporting but you don’t mention what it is?

You’d have a much better pitch if you identified this up front and asked hosts to consider providing accommodation at cost rather than asking them to lose money. You mention ‘advertising’ the sponsor but not which channels you would use and how many this would reach to help hosts understand the value of this ‘offer’.

A lot of fundraising ventures have cost elements which can sometimes be offset depending on the cause and your contacts. You can also look at reducing your own costs for example why do you and the video person require four nights each, rather than one for a ‘photoshoot’ where models will only be there for one?

I agree this forum isn’t the best place to ask but you never know - so fill in the gaps.

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@AmyK
The reason you have not gained a favorable response from hosts is because a sponsorship usually entails the sponsor getting something a bit significant in return for their sponsorship. It is one thing to support the arts and culture but the sponsor usually wants the public to know (on a large scale) that they are supporting this cause. This is usually in the form of a logo placement or mention in an advertisement or banner, or a link on a website with some pretty high traffic. i.e., High visibility. Or at least SOME visibility, not zero.

You are asking for 6 rooms for 10 guests, for 5 days. SIX ROOMS, FIVE DAYS. You will be using electricity and water, linens, towels, toiletries, etc. You say that all of you are doing this because it is a “great opportunity”. Yet the only thing you offer to your prospective sponsor hosts is “maybe” a tax deductible benefit and a vague offer to advertise the sponsor? You don’t even specify where or how.

In effect, it is a great opportunity for all of you involved in the project but it doesn’t exactly offer much opportunities for the Airbnb host sponsor. You are all “volunteering” but in reality you all get something from this “non-profit”: You as the artist, the videographer, the models, you can all use these images and credits for your portfolios. You all get exposure to domestic and international art shows and events. You all get published, and you all get to show! These are all beneficial to all of you who are “volunteering” because it benefits your careers and chosen respective fields. So you still are making a “profit” out of this even if it is in non-monetary form. Please be transparent, at least.

This is what is so off putting about your request. I’m sorry to call you out on this but it just doesn’t sit well to ask for something in exchange for nothing and then guilt trip the hosts by saying that “when people give, it’s usually because they want to help support the cause first and foremost, and they’re not so worried about the deduction or advertising - those being more of a secondary, added bonus.”

Uh
Yes! That is usually the case if a person or sponsor was giving to a CHARITY or a SOCIAL CAUSE. Let’s be real here, you are soliciting for a commercial purpose, for a non-monetary benefit: to get FREE lodging to do a shoot that will ensure the advancement of your artistic careers, even it is for “non-profit” as you keep on insisting.

I am an artist by profession, too (as well as a host), and this is frankly insulting and a big embarrassment to artists everywhere.

Despite the crappy feeling you have given me as both an artist and a host, here are a few tips to help you:

  1. I suggest that you solicit through your website and Facebook page (I assume you have one) first. Your followers on there presumably already support your work, so this is a better target audience to ask for help from. Because they already support your cause. Maybe you can raise a few dollars for the cause to help find your accommodation.

  2. Don’t piss off the people you’re asking something from. Stop it with the guilt trip. Some humility might help.

  3. If you wish to solicit from property owners, get your sponsorship package together. Think about what you can offer in return. Offer something tangible, valuable, and significant–Significant to the one you are soliciting from, NOT significant to YOU. Be specific and articulate your offer. In other words: Make it worth their while. Even travel bloggers know that the only time they get free accommodation is if there is mention of the sponsor, contact info, and a link to the property in the blogger’s (usually) high-traffic blog. Plus an accompanying lengthy good review or travel story/write-up that encourages other prospective guests to book the property in the future.

  4. Ask for something REASONABLE and be realistic. Even the big hotel chains offer sponsored accommodation only for one person or at most a couple (not 10 people). And usually only an overnight stay or at most a couple of days (not 5 days). And most importantly, travel bloggers know that vacation rentals or even small B&Bs are rarely able to offer totally free accommodation because they have overhead costs to cover such as electricity, water, laundry
 so it’s usually just a discounted rate that they can give, if at all they have the luxury to afford it.

  5. Get to know your audience. We hosts usually don’t have free money to just give away, as we are also trying to make a living. Some hosts who are true to the sharing economy ideology of Airbnb even do it for non-profit, but they still need to get paid for their overhead costs. So know what you are asking and from WHOM you are asking.

Anyway, I wish you the best.

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Wow littlehost, where the heck have you been, this forum needs you. Love your thoughtful intelligent answers. Please stick around and post more!!

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@konacoconutz right? @littlehost rocks! I was just going to say the whole thing sounds like bullshit to me, but that’s my standard response these days. :wink:

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