Airbnb Hosts and Vacation Rental Managers Reveal Their Top Tools of 2023: Exclusive Insights Inside!

 

Welcome to a sneak peek behind the scenes of successful Airbnb hosting! In our latest article, we've got the lowdown from three seasoned hosts and property managers who rocked the Airbnb scene in 2023. They spilt the beans on the tools that made their property management a breeze. Ready to up your hosting game?


Let's dive into the practical insights and discover the tools that can take your Airbnb venture to new heights!


Christy Conoly, Host/Airbnb Owner

@ The Stomps and Company River Cabin

What’s my top 2023 tool?

Guesty is an all-in-one property management platform that provides a centralised platform to manage listings, bookings, cleanings, and property details.



Why it helped me so much?

Guesty integrates multiple booking platforms, including Airbnb, VRBO, and Booking.com. which helped me tap into a wider audience of potential guests. The task management feature allows for the efficient coordination of cleaning, maintenance, and repair. This ensures that the home is in top-notch condition, which is imperative for earning positive reviews and repeated bookings.



Who would I recommend it to?

I would recommend Guesty to anyone who is either just starting their journey in short-term rentals or looking to scale their property operations.

Kourtney Shepard, Vacation Rental Host @ Lone Stars Casistas

What’s my top 2023 tool?

StayFi: WiFi & Guest Marketing Built For Vacation Rentals


What is StayFi?

StayFi is a wifi access point that asks all my guests to share their email address and phone number as part of connecting to the house wifi (similar to what some airports do). We also broadcast free wifi for folks on the beach in front of the house who register with valid contact info.


This adds all these folks to a list and automatically sends them emails throughout the year, encouraging referrals and rebooking future trips directly. Before StayFi, I only had the name of the primary renter; now I collect names and contact info for 5-10 additional guests per stay.


Why it helped me so much:

Over the past 9 months, I have gone from 1 direct booking every 3 months to about 30% of my new bookings are direct. For me this means


1) No Airbnb/VRBO fees (typically 18-27%)

2) More revenue for me (the host) per booking (about 10%)

3) Guests pay 5-10% less per booking

4) Immediate revenue deposited from the guest when they booking, rather than waiting until check-in (required by Airbnb and VRBO). This is important because beach house occupancy is highest in the summer, but costs are highest in the winter (storm season). Bookings happen all year round, especially in the winter season when families are planning summer trips, so having that cash flow during the time of year when big expenses are due (including property taxes etc) is super helpful.

5) More bookings overall, since these direct bookings from repeat guests are largely in addition to bookings through Airbnb/VRBO.

6) More reviews on third-party platforms (from other guests posting on yelp / apple maps / google maps, etc).

7) Decreasing dependence on Airbnb/VRBO, especially in a climate when short-term rentals are increasingly coming under fire, and horror stories of hosts being delisted from these platforms are very scary to hear.


How much does it cost?

$200 setup fee per house + $10/month per house


Who would you recommend it to:

Any host who is looking for more direct bookings and has an easy path to send guests who want to book direct. Honestly, I think this is a no-brainer way to build an enormous audience for sending emails to book dates that are getting no traction on the traditional behemoth OTAs.



Suzanne Moore, Founder + Investment Focused Realtor at Central Oregon Investor Network

What’s my top 2023 tool?

PriceLabs

Why it helped me so much:

I use PriceLabs dynamic pricing software because it is much more robust than the AirBnB smart pricing. It allows hosts to set a base price, a minimum and a maximum price, and provides a lot of data to help newer hosts select these prices. PriceLabs also has nearby vacation rental comps so hosts can see what their competition is doing and price their rental accordingly.

It has helped me get maximum value out of my vacation rental because I know what nearby vacation rentals are charging, I can change my pricing anytime, and it has a ton of valuable features that help me get the most out of my investment.

Who would you recommend it to:

I would recommend PriceLabs to newer or experienced vacation rental hosts who are managing their own properties. It is much more dynamic than the standard Airbnb smart pricing and gives the host more control over pricing their vacation rental.


About Us

KeyNest offers you a convenient service for storing and exchanging your property keys. You can drop off a key at any of the 7,000+ locations in our network, so there’s one such Point located next to your property already.


Guests, cleaners or contractors can then collect the key securely from a KeyNest Point, which is usually open 24/7. You'll be notified each time the key is picked up or returned, and you can even customize check-in and check-out times.


KeyNest has an ever-expanding global network of locations located just minutes from your property. To find out more, visit our website.

 
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