What Airbnb Guests Appreciate: Content Challenge #7

2/7/2022

As I mentioned in an earlier Content Challenge post, my husband and I listed an efficiency apartment on Airbnb almost 6 years ago. As hosts, we’ve discovered both pros and cons of utilizing Airbnb or another vacation rental platform. Through our contact with hundreds of guests, we’ve also learned what Airbnb guests appreciate. Today's Content (Marketing) Challenge shares those discoveries.

What Do You Appreciate As a Guest?

In our experience, Airbnb guests, and travelers who use other sites, appreciate things that enhance their stay and meet their expectations. If you travel regularly, you’ll probably be able to mentally check off several items before you read my list.

All three of our units sit on the same property as our home. So, we usually get to chat with our guests. We place a guest book in each unit, and we carefully read all of the feedback our guests leave on the Airbnb site. After combining all that feedback, we’ve determined that these factors are what our Airbnb guests value the most:

A Clean Place

Guests expect vacation rentals to be clean. We do our own cleaning and follow a regimen. We wash all the linens, bed pillows, and throw pillows every time. We disinfect the furniture and wipe down cabinets. The bathroom gets a thorough scrubbing, too. We do our best to ensure each unit is thoroughly cleaned for every guest.

Since some people have a very acute sense of smell, we ensure each unit smells clean, too. My favorite cleanser is my favorite because it cleans well and smells good.

We’re not perfect. A few times, we’ve missed the mark. When that happened, we apologized sincerely and improved the next time.

Comments about how clean our places are top the list of what our guests appreciate.

Friendly Hosts

Remarks about how friendly my husband and I are weigh in as a close second. We don’t consider ourselves particularly outgoing or gregarious, but guests seem to. They appreciate being welcomed and like the fact that we are accessible if something goes wrong, but give them their space otherwise.

Surprisingly, some people who we didn’t meet face-to-face commented that we were friendly. They based their opinions solely on our text communications with them.

A Spot That Matches the Pictures and Description

Our first venture into online vacation rentals occurred several years ago when we booked a “secluded” cabin via VRBO for two nights. The listing was new to VRBO, and so were we, so we asked a couple of questions. Was the bathroom furnished with toilet paper? Was there reliable Wi-Fi? We were assured that both were available.

When we arrived at the “secluded” cabin, we discovered that it was 20 yards from the owner’s home and shared the same driveway. The scenic woodland pictures in the listing were obviously taken from the only side of the house adjacent to a clump of trees. There was no toilet paper in the bathroom, and the Wi-Fi didn’t work at all.

We were frustrated but gracious. We swept up sawdust we found in the corners and left things neater than we found them. Our reward? The owner kept our security deposit claiming that we had arrived with a dog. (Any dog he saw was a figment of his imagination.)

We determined not to surprise our guests like we were surprised. We update pictures if we change furnishings and change our listing descriptions when they need to be updated. Our guests appreciate the fact that our listings match their expectations.

Extra Amenities

Apartment bathroom with turquoise accents

Our guests occasionally comment on some of the little amenities they find. They appreciate the shampoo, conditioner, and disposable razors we provide. The hand-made coasters, classic books, well-stocked cupboards, and the bowl filled with snacks all receive kudos. The pitcher of filtered water pleases folks with an eye to sustainability.

Unique Features

We grow a small “Simon and Garfunkle herb garden” with parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme, in addition to mint and lavender. We keep a flock of hens in the backyard. The yard is also home to several fruit trees. Year-round I have something growing in a small greenhouse out back. Most of the time, we have at least one working beehive.

Additionally, when we installed solar panels, we added an EV charger for any guests driving an electric car. To date, we haven’t hosted any guests who needed one, but hope springs eternal.

Many of our guests comment about one or more of these features, especially folks who value the sustainability aspects of raising chickens, keeping bees, and gardening. We regularly have guests who visit our chickens, snip a slip of rosemary or mint, ask to peek into the greenhouse, or admire the beehive activity from a distance. Guests like these features that set our location apart from other suburban settings.

Takeaways

In a nutshell, here’s what guests appreciate:

A clean place
Friendly hosts
A spot that matches the pictures and the description
Thoughtful amenities
Unique features

Today's YACHT Call-to-Action

Here's today's content marketing, no-strings-attached CTA:

You Accept the CHallenge, Too!
If you host travelers on Airbnb or a similar site, does your experience agree with ours? Would you add any items to the list?
If you don’t host travelers, How do you serve the public or other clients? Could you list the features that matter to the people you serve? Would your list be based on information they provided or on your best guesses?

Happy Monday! I welcome your feedback.

0 Comments

I'm Sandy . . .

I write crisp, accurate, engaging copy and content marketing for B2B and B2C clients. Calling on degrees in marketing and accounting combined with over 20 years of teaching experience, I write for clients that represent industries as diverse as SaaS, woodcarving tools, private education, life transitions, accounting advisory services, and residential and commercial real estate.