568. 10 Simple But Genius Hacks for a Better Airbnb Setup

0:00Exciting update before today's episode, the Get More Bookings boot camp tickets are on sale right now. Head to thanksforvisiting.com, board slash bookings, and grab your seat before they're gone. You're listening to the Thanks for Visiting podcast. We believe hosting with heart is at the core of every short-term rental, with a net's background in business operation, and Sarah's extensive hospitality management and interior design experience. We have welcomed thousands of guests from over 30 countries, earning us over a million dollars and garnering us thousands of five star reviews. We love sharing creative ways for your listing to stand out, serve your guests, and be profitable. Each episode, we will have knowledgeable guests who bring value to the short-term rental industry, or we will share our stories of our own experiences so you can implement actual improvements to your rentals.

1:01Whether you're experienced new or nervous to start your own short-term rental, we promise you'll feel right at home. Welcome back to another great episode. My name is Sarah Caracan. I'm an at Grant and together we are. Thanks for visiting. The difference between a good Airbnb and a great one is almost never the property itself. It's the hundred small decisions about how that property is set up that guests notice, mentioned in reviews, and the reason they come back. And most of these cost almost nothing and take minutes to implement. And a lot of hosts, they have never even thought of them. We're not talking about a renovation, okay? We are talking about specific low cost setup details that turn a forgettable stay into a five star review. We have been hosting for over a decade, built a multi-million dollar portfolio,

2:01and worked with hundreds of hosts for our private coaching program, Strategic Host. These are the hacks we put in every property we touch. Let's get into it and make sure you stick around for number 10. This easy setup will save you time and the guest review. Hack number one, zip encasement mattress and pillow protector. This is a big case with fully wrapped around the entire mattress and pillow, and it is one of the most important things in the bedroom that most hosts don't have. And you better believe I look for them on each and every one of my stay. Worst case, it is your bed bug protection number one. And on that, it protects against so many things. Staying put here, it extends the lives of the mattress significantly in a high use property. And it makes the whole bed easier to just keep clean. Guests never see it under the fitted sheet. Sometimes look peak like I do under the pillow case. But if you put it on every mattress and every pillow, this will protect you and your guest.

3:06I would like to protect the investment too of nice pillows. Hopefully you have nice pillows and a nice mattress. My favorite, I have to share this. This is a sub hack on the half. Yeah, you're welcome, you guys. It is actually through host GP. Oh, you have to be a host GP member, which is totally worth it. We'll link to it in the show notes below. But it's through standard textile. And the reason why I love it and that is because it is two separate pieces. The bottom part goes over the bottom of the mattress and the sides. And then the top zips on all the way around you guys. Why do you care about this? Well, when a guest inevitably does have a stain on the bed, whether they spill something, other things happen, stuff and things happen. Stuff and things happen. And it goes through the fitted sheet and a guss go on to the mattress protector. All you have to do, all your cleaners do is unzip the top, throw it in the washer, and then zip it back on when it's done. I mean, it can happen during the turnover too, depending on having those along where you have super quick.

4:08We'll never go back to not having a zip. Fulls it. Yes. Hack number two. I want you to set your guests up for the best sleep of their trip. I'm going to say their life. I'm going to say that standards really high. Blackout curtains in every bedroom. So a guest who wants to sleep in can sleep in a sound machine in every room. If you're in a metro market or anywhere near road, road noise, that's hard to say, this eliminates one of the most common complaints before it ever happens. I would say your plugs provide us a backup option, but actually our safety guy, Justin Ford, Shots Justin Ford. So they're not the safest thing. You don't want to like block your guests from being able to hear smoke detectors. And so now I'm more much more of a fan of a of a noise machine just has, you know, black noise. And if you're in a quiet area, you think, oh, I only need a sound machine when it's noisy. But those of people who are light sleepers, when it's super, super quiet,

5:08that brings in peace and calm too. And listen, a well-rested guest is in a completely different headspace for the rest of their stay. Right? You feel me on that. And these three things combined together, they cost very little and the impact will show up in your reviews. Hack number three is providing extra blankets for your guests. Nobody wants to be cold. I'm with Sarah. This time she's freezing all the time. And the guest gets cold. They should not have to dig around or message you. We keep ours folded neatly in a clear storage container on the closet shelves, so they're easy to find. And they look very intentional rather than strewn about and thrown out on all the furniture. And by the way, obviously when you stay in a hotel, what do you do when you look for? If you bring in a roll the way bed or they have a fold out couch, all of that extra bedding is stored in the closet. So guests are already prepared on where to look for for those items. And I know that I'm kind of a weirdo in this in this realm. But yes, I'll go into a hotel or into a short room until I'm going to go into the closet

6:11and see if they have an extra blanket for me. But if it's just like on the shelf and not either really intentionally folded or in a plastic container, I'm just wondering like, where has that blanket just been? Like, is it clean? Is it ready for me? So I just, if you want to go above and beyond for the Sarah's out there and just be very intentional with the reset of your extra blankets for your guests, I think they'll appreciate it. Take an quick break here. If you're a host who keeps guessing at your pricing and you just want to finally get it right, the get more bookings bootcamp is built for exactly that. Bootcamp runs September 28th, October 1st. You have to be there. Grab your seat now. Thanks for visiting dot com board slash bookings. Go to thanks for visiting dot com board slash bookings. Hack number four, your coffee setup should cover every guest. Okay, so drip coffee for the group, a cure for the guest who wants a single cup, maybe a French press or a Chemex.

7:12If it fits your property and if you've got the budget to do so, I want you to try to cover every coffee drinker in the house, especially if you have a larger property. Because coffee matters. And we're talking, make sure you're stocking D-Caf too. And T, yes. But the thing that gets mentioned most in our reviews, the, please, this is so easy to do it today, is our to go cups with our coffee station. Guests are potentially heading out for their adventures of the day. Maybe they're heading to the airport or maybe they're just heading back on the road. They want to take their coffee with them. And it is such a nice surprise and delight. And like, they thought of everything a set of to go cups with lids next to the coffee station. Maybe a $10 purchase. And it gets noticed every single time. Guests on it. For my sustainable host out there, you can get coffee lids and coffee cups that have been run over the city. And you can get coffee cups that have been recycled. And that can easily be recycled too. So, the same ability as a concern of yours.

8:12We've heard it before. So, just want to address it now that you can have that on top of mind as well. Hackular five. Stock your kitchen to cook a full Thanksgiving dinner. Your kitchen is the single biggest advantage you have over every hotel competing for the same guest. So, we got to stock it like this is that important advantage. You need to have enough pots, enough pan, baking dishes. You tinsel serving wear that a family cook a full holiday meal if they wanted to. The professional host with the best kitchen is going to win. I want you to start with a basics that should always be there. Okay, the very least. I actually just stated a short-term rental. Gosh, it was disappointing. I would have salt, pepper, and olive oil in every property always stocked. And actually, Airbnb offers this up as a specific amenity that you can check off on your listing, which is good for you, right? I want to always be fresh too. Don't have your salt be sticky inside the salt and take care. I want you to care. Yes, cooking it your home should not have to run the store for pantry staples or wonder how old and disgusting is the olive oil and salt and pepper.

9:22Okay, that is that is base. That is your floor. And then I want you to, like Annette said, be able to cook Thanksgiving dinner and build up from there. By the way, this is the exact kind of work that we do with our private clients inside of our coaching program, strategic hosts. I want you to join us live and see if it's the right fit for you. The link is in the description to save your seat. Hack number six, the forgot something basket. This is a TFE original. All right, so every property we manage and own has one of these. We call it the forgot something basket. Toothbrushes, toothpaste, shaving supplies, hairspray, and nail file. The things guess most commonly forget or run out of. We stock it and refresh it on every single turnover. And we already hear you. We get asked this all the time. Are you worried guests will take everything? Nope, we're not. And all of our years in the hosting, we have never had someone that completely like dumped the forgot something basket in their luggage and left.

10:26But here's what does happen. This is what we gain on every single stay. The guest deals looked after in a way that they didn't expect. Whether they even need to use something from the basket or not. We did an entire video on the forgot something basket and we'll make sure to link it for you. Hack number seven. You need to have hooks everywhere. Okay. In the bathroom. So guests can hang multiple towels to dry. Think about your guest count. Think about your towel count. At the entryway. So coats, bags, purses. They have somewhere to go. Right when the guest walks in and be, you know, be strategic on your placing everywhere. We guess what again. And there is nowhere obvious to put their things. It creates friction. They might not name, but they definitely feel a well placed hook solves that instantly. You'll never be sorry for having too many, but you might be sorry for not installing the hook correctly.

11:26I want you to make sure that you're using the right kind of hardware to withstand a decent amount of weight and the hardware exists. So just do it at the first time and let them hang up their purses and their bags with confidence. Hack number eight. Backup key mounted next to smart lock. Okay. So I want you to mount a backup key in a lock box right next to your smart locks because smart locks can fail. All right. A dead battery connectivity issue or you have those guests who just can't figure it out and it happens right next to every smart lock in our properties mounted to the wall is a backup key in a small lock box. If a guest ever can't get in either. Our team or we can even give the guest immediate access without them having to wait on a locksmith or for us to drive there and let them in. A guest locked out at any time, especially, you know, at midnight in an unfamiliar place is a five star review that is just not going to happen.

12:29So it had the backup because we told you now you know, mount it next to the door and put the code in your instructions. Hack number nine, photos in your guidebook and welcome message. If you have to explain something to a guest, it probably needs a photo. Potentially how to enter the property, which buttons to press on the thermostat where the extra towels are, how to work the TV. We show guests exactly what to do with our written written instructions and with corresponding photos in both our welcome message and our printed guidebook. I am a visual learner. This is what helps me because when I see a bunch of letters, they just fall into the way. And I guess how to question at 10 p.m. and there's a clear photo of exactly what they need to find they solve it themselves without messaging you and listen, they don't want to mess. I know you don't want to hear from them at 10 p.m. and they don't want to have to message you and we for you to respond and walk them through it. All those things.

13:29If you're explaining something more than once. You need a photo. There are so many creative ways to do this too. You can do a via a QR code. You can do it via a printed welcome book. I know we all have the digital ones. You can have that too. Like get creative. Know who your ideal guest is. Know who you usually attract and cater to them. All right. Here's the one that I think is really great. Pack number 10. The bulbs and battery box. All right. So in every property we manage, there's a small clear box in either the utility closet or sometimes I put it over the sink in the kitchen cabinet that cabinet up there that contains spare light bulbs for every fixture in the home. So you can't just give them the regular ball. If you also have a candle, or other specialty bulbs. So every single light extra batteries in all the sizes that they would need for your remote control and anything else your home that requires batteries. A flashlight for safety and a key for any interior door that could get locked me inside.

14:32So it doesn't have to be like going like a key key, but you know those like they're like those. Yeah. Hairpin. Thank you. Yes. Extra ones of those. They has listened when something minor like a light bulb going out or a battery die and goes wrong during the guest day. They can handle it themselves. It's right there. It's self-serve. They can fix it fast. They don't want to wait on us to get there or call somebody to help them. And they don't want to have to run to a store. Uh-oh. No way. We're not making them doing that. So listen, that box. You set it up once. You check out it after every guest day. And you just let it do its job. None of these hacks require a renovation or a giant budget. They require paying attention to how a guest actually experiences your space and making sure that he was thought of it before they have to ask. And that right there is a difference between between a good property and one that people want to come back to again and again.

15:33Inside of Strategic Coast, we help host get more and I booked, charred with our property is worth and stop leaving money on the table. Join us live and see if Strategic Coast is the right fit for you. Link in the description to save your seat. And with that, I am Sarah Caracan. I'm Annette Grant and together we are... Thanks for visiting! Thanks for listening to the Thanks for Visiting podcast. Head on over to the show notes for additional information about today's episode. And please hit that subscribe button and leave us a review. Awesome reviews help us bring you awesome content. Thanks for tuning in and we look forward to hanging out with you next week. Music If you're a host who keeps guessing at your pricing and you just want to finally get it right, the get more bookings bootcamp is built for exactly that. bootcamp runs September 28th, in October 1st, you have to be there.

16:34Grab your seat now. Thanks for visiting dot com forward slash bookings. Thanks. Go to Thanks for visiting dot com, Bored slash bookings.