3 commonly asked questions about holiday rental channels

Common questions about Marketing Channels

During a demo, and in onboarding sessions, clients often ask similar questions when they are considering joining Marketing Channels (also known as OTAs or Marketing Websites), like Airbnb and Booking.com.

Channels are a great way to attract bookings and can be used to support your business goals. How and when you use Channels will also depend on your goals. 

I thought you'd find it useful to know what clients are asking and see Jonny's responses. 

1.  Can I avoid paying commission?

Of course, you can't avoid paying it, but you can mitigate it by adjusting your prices.

• Use the Channel Uplift tool inside Bookster;
• Increase your prices by a %;
• This way, you cover the Channel Manager commission.

2.  I don't want Channel bookings for Summer

I get plenty of direct bookings through my own holiday rental website for Summer.

• Use the Restrict Availability option in Bookster;
• Block out availability on Channels during Summer;
• This way, you only advertise on the Channels when you need to. 

3. An Airbnb Direct connection has a higher Host Service Fee... 

3a Can I earn the same amount per guest booking? 

On Airbnb:

• via iCal: hosts pay 3% Host Service Fee and the guest pays 17% Service Fee
• via Direct / API connection: hosts pay 14% Service Fee and guest pays 0%

The solution:

• Use the Channel Uplift tool in Bookster;
• Increase your price on Airbnb by 14% to cover the host Service Fee;
• This means your income will not change, AND the guest will usually pay less.

3b. Will my holiday homes look more expensive compared to the competition? 

In most locations, no matter what pricing structure you use, Airbnb displays the Total Fee on the search page. 

The Total Fee includes all fees and discounts, including Cleaning Fees, Service Fees and long stay discounts.

In the image are two examples of the Total Fee shown on the Airbnb search page.

• Image 1 is for a host on the 3% / 17% structure. The guest can see, and must pay the 17% Airbnb Service Fee. 
• Image 2 is for a host is on a 14% / 0% structure, so no guest Airbnb Service Fee is payable.

In most instances the Total Fee (visible to the guest) will be lower, so your properties will be more competitively priced, even with the 14% Channel Uplift added.

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Hope that helps answer any questions you may have.
If you'd like to know more, get in touch :)

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There are often questions about listing properties on Marketing Channels. 

We have covered three important questions, that will help you attract profitable guest bookings, whilst automatically managing the booking process.