The Airbnb Category Hack: How to Optimize & Get More Bookings
Summary
This article from 'Get Paid for Your Pad' covers several episodes discussing various aspects of STR management. Topics range from optimizing Airbnb listings and revenue management strategies to CEO focus and handling operational overwhelm, and how to prepare for the FIFA World Cup.
Key Insights
- •Being busy does not mean your STR business is progressing, and often CEOs are stuck on low-value tasks.
- •The performance gap between professional and non-professional listings is widening.
- •STR pricing is dramatically harder than hotel pricing, due to factors like product uniqueness turning every listing into its own “mini hotel” and more volatile demand.
- •Early bookings can indicate underpricing or upcoming events.
- •STR operators must stay tightly connected to operations if they want accurate pricing.
Action Items
- ✓Hosts should request category changes if their listing is miscategorized on Airbnb.Effort: lowImpact: medium
- ✓Hosts should regularly update their listing to maintain competitiveness.Effort: lowImpact: medium
- ✓Implement a daily and weekly revenue management cadence.Effort: mediumImpact: high
- ✓Identify the biggest bottleneck in your STR business.Effort: mediumImpact: high
Tools & Resources
- →Freewyld Foundry RPM: Apply for RPM at https://freewyldfoundry.com/rpm/
- →Free Revenue Review: Get a Free Revenue Review → https://www.freewyldfoundry.com/report
- →Freewyld Foundry: Learn more about Freewyld Foundry → https://www.freewyldfoundry.com
Watch Out For
- ⚠Most hosts underperform not because they lack tools, but because they don’t know what to look at, when to look at it, or how to interpret booking behavior.
- ⚠Trying to fix everything at once slows growth.
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