This forum is dedicated to connecting hosts with other hosts. Sign up to get the latest updates and news just for AirBnb hosts! Note that we are not affiliated with Airbnb - we are just passionate hosts!
Hiya! I’m doing a bit of product research and wondered whether (and how often) you change your Airbnb listing titles.
Personally, on Airbnb, I changed mine once - from the house’s names to the standard “Cosy, blah blah, 5 minutes from town” format. I was working on the assumption that the title gives you no information otherwise and people are largely looking at the pictures.
But what do you do, and what are your assumptions about the listing name?
Thanks in advance 
My husband and I have been “branding” our room names since the beginning. We want repeat guests (and we’ve had a whole lot of them). By keeping our room names in the listing titles, people remember us and our rooms. Our rooms are Poetry Room and Monet Room. Also, because many people come to us for our proximity to two hospitals and a university, we mention those in the titles.
We have kept our titles consistent to encourage “brand recognition.” Guests tell us that it works.
My Airbnb is a LLC so I keep the name exactly as it appears on the paperwork.
Tried to answer “what? where? why?” in the character limit.
What are they renting? [2 words (adjective and noun) to describe]
Where? [regionally famous road name - SEO keyword]
Why? [name the attraction]
My listing name is descriptive not cutesy. That’s what I want when searching listings as a guest so that’s what I provide as a host. People will only read the listing title and short description half the time so I have to maximize that.
The ‘blah blah’ but is good but… 
I’d avoid the word ‘cosy’ as many people see that as meaning ‘tiny’. People are sceptical about real estate listings that say that a falling-down property is ‘ripe for renovation’ and ‘cosy’ is one of those words to avoid too 
Also be careful about ‘five minutes to’. By car? As the crow flies? Walking? By jet-powered supercar? I know a host who had ‘20 minutes stroll to the beach’ on his listing. I think that an athlete might be able to run there in 20 minutes - it’s a 40 minutes walk, at least. His hosting career was unsuccessful and short.
When I see the date of construction in the title (“1930s Cottage”) I usually translate that to ‘ripe for renovation’.
We’ve never changed the name. Names are descriptors so you can find the listing again…
Never changed my listing name. Same as Ken, would be an obstruction to guests finding my listing again.
We use a cutesy but descriptive name all over the place, fb, ig, www, book direct etc. not just for Air; we changed it once, but now forever the same!
We have branched out into private elopements!!! See our venue listing and new photos on Wandering Weddings . com
My properties all have names so a potential guest can find me direct, who has cosy as a search word?
We don’t change them, we want repeat customers to find us… but ours are descriptive.
Cozy Cabin in the Woods
And
Katrina Cottage of Perdido Beach
My recommendation would be to use the maximum amount of characters and that you absolutely include the main selling point of the listing. So if you have a hut tub, mention the word “hot tub” in the title. If it has a garden, mention “garden” in the listing. I know Ken might not like this but using memorable adjectives to describe the listing helps people to remember the listing. In fact, some people might even remember the adjective better than the actual name of the place.
It depends on the listing. Since I’m not an actual vacation rental I don’t need people to remember my listing. I have mostly one night drive through guests. That’s not to say I don’t have repeat guests. Repeat guests can easily find me by looking at past reservations. Anyone can put me on their saved list as well. For guests whom I’d like to see again (perhaps they have family in town) I give them my direct contact information and cut Airbnb out of the deal altogether.
No offense to those with cutesy attempts at making unique or memorable names, I did that at first too. But it was counterproductive for my listing.
Yes, that’s why I include the year built in my description (but not the title). I am aiming for under-promise, over-deliver.
I think the correct place to put it if you have a house old enough that it might matter to someone who has never spent much time in a building over 20 or 30 years old: In the long description. After you’ve already hooked me into reading more and shown it to be a good looking, well-maintained place in the pics.
If it’s up front in the title or short description, I think “needs work, take it or leave it” is what the owner is signaling. JMO
I hosted a superhost co-host last summer. I was a little worried about how she would review my place because almost all of the 20 or so listings she co-hosts had “Chic” in the title (the smaller ones were “Cute”) and were so Martha Stewart, which my 1930s craftsman foursquare is not. Not chic.
My worries about reviews? She didn’t leave one.
When I travel I avoid listings that have “cute” or “chic” in the title. I’m attracted to ones that have “quiet” or “restful” in the title.
It always cracks me up that whenever anyone is trying to find homes for kittens, they’ll say “Five adorable kittens…” Like when are kittens not adorable? Ever read an ad that described kittens as ugly? Baby humans and animals are biologically designed to be cute so their parents don’t kill them 
I used “unique” in my title because it sort of is for my area. How do you all feel about that adjective?
As long as you are not qualifying it. There is no such thing as “sort of unique” or “more unique” or “most unique”. Unique means it is the only one. Otherwise it isn’t.
I wouldn’t use ‘unique’ unless it truly is. Pedants use Airbnb too.