Airbnb Algorithm | What you NEED to know to get more bookings

Summary

This video script outlines a comprehensive framework for optimizing Airbnb listings to increase bookings. It covers factors influencing visibility and attractiveness, such as listing details, price, ratings, and responsiveness. The speaker shares tips on improving search impressions, click-through rates, and conversion, suggesting strategies like competitive pricing, appealing thumbnails, and thorough descriptions. Additionally, maintaining a low cancellation rate is highlighted as crucial for maintaining a good algorithmic standing.

Takeaways

• 🔍 The Airbnb algorithm is not fully transparent, but understanding factors that influence it can help optimize listings for more bookings.
• 📈 Demand, or the number of potential guests looking for a specific type of accommodation, can be assessed through analytics tools like AirDNA and Price Labs.
• 🏠 Listing visibility is influenced by factors such as availability, minimum stay requirements, pricing, ratings, and how new the listing is.
• 💰 Airbnb tends to favor listings that are reasonably priced, and pricing strategies can affect a listing's visibility and attractiveness to guests.
• 🏅 Ratings are important for listing visibility, with a threshold around 4.8 suggested as a minimum to aim for.
• ❤️ The number of times a listing is wishlisted by guests can signal interest and potentially improve search ranking.
• 📸 High-quality photos and an appealing thumbnail are crucial for increasing click-through rates from search results.
• 📝 A comprehensive listing description that answers potential guest questions can reduce inquiries and increase the likelihood of a booking.
• 📲 Quick and warm responses to guest inquiries can enhance the booking conversion rate.
• 📅 A flexible cancellation policy may be more appealing to guests and is a trend observed in the market.
• 💌 Post-booking communication can help solidify the booking and reduce the likelihood of cancellations.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video script?

The main topic of the video script is about understanding and leveraging the Airbnb algorithm to increase bookings, based on the host's experience and observations.

How long has the host been observing the Airbnb algorithm?

The host has been observing the Airbnb algorithm for about a year and a half.

What are the factors that affect the visibility of a listing on Airbnb search results?

Factors affecting listing visibility include availability, minimum stay requirements, pricing, ratings, newness of the listing, and the number of times a listing has been wish-listed.

Why does the host suggest setting a minimum stay requirement of two days or less for weekend bookings?

The host suggests this to increase the chances of the listing showing up in search results, as listings with a minimum stay of two days or less seem to appear more frequently.

What is the host's opinion on strikethrough pricing on Airbnb listings?

The host is unsure about the effectiveness of strikethrough pricing, as they personally do not consider the original price but only look at the final price. However, they acknowledge that some guests might find it appealing as it signals a discount.

What is the significance of ratings in the Airbnb algorithm?

Ratings are significant, as listings with higher ratings (around 4.8 or above) are less likely to be filtered out in search results, increasing their visibility.

How does the host suggest dealing with the challenge of new listings getting a boost in visibility?

The host acknowledges that newness is beyond a host's control but suggests focusing on optimizing other factors such as ratings, pricing, and responsiveness to improve visibility.

What is the host's strategy for dealing with slow booking periods?

The host suggests tweaking the listing description, rearranging pictures, and refreshing the listing to potentially trigger an update in search results, which they believe might generate bookings.

Why is responsiveness important in the Airbnb hosting process?

Responsiveness is important because it is a metric that Airbnb considers favorably. Quick responses to inquiries can improve a host's standing in the algorithm and increase the likelihood of bookings.

What is the host's advice regarding the cancellation policy for Airbnb listings?

The host suggests reviewing the market trends and adapting the cancellation policy accordingly, as a more flexible policy might be preferred by guests and could potentially reduce cancellations.

What is the host's approach to maintaining a good relationship with Airbnb guests after booking?

The host recommends sending a personal confirmation message to convey warmth and excitement about hosting the guest, which can help prevent cancellations and build a positive relationship.

Outlines

00:00

🔍 Understanding the Airbnb Algorithm

The speaker discusses developing a framework to understand and leverage the Airbnb algorithm for increased bookings. Based on over a year of hosting experience, the framework includes factors like demand, listing visibility, and guest booking process. The speaker emphasizes the importance of analyzing market demand, optimizing listing visibility through factors like availability and pricing, and the impact of ratings and newness on search results. They also mention the influence of wish lists and click-through rates on the algorithm.

05:02

🏠 Optimizing Listing Visibility and Conversion

This paragraph delves into strategies to enhance the visibility of a listing on Airbnb, such as ensuring it meets the minimum stay requirements, competitive pricing, and maintaining a high rating threshold. The speaker also touches on the benefits of updating listings to refresh their appearance and possibly trigger bookings. They discuss the importance of listing amenities accurately, being responsive to inquiries, and considering the impact of being a Superhost. The paragraph concludes with the significance of click-through rates, thumbnail images, and pricing in attracting potential guests to view the listing.

10:03

📈 Enhancing Conversion and Reducing Cancellations

The final paragraph focuses on the conversion process, where potential guests decide to book a listing. The speaker advises on enabling direct booking with guest screening measures, providing comprehensive information to minimize inquiries, and responding quickly and warmly to any questions. They also discuss the importance of a flexible cancellation policy in line with market trends to reduce the likelihood of guests canceling. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the role of post-booking communication in solidifying the booking and potentially influencing the algorithm through reduced cancellation rates.

Keywords

💡Algorithm

An algorithm in the context of Airbnb refers to the set of rules and processes that determine how listings are shown to potential guests. The video's theme revolves around understanding and leveraging the Airbnb algorithm to optimize listing visibility and increase bookings. The speaker discusses various factors influenced by the algorithm, such as availability, price, and ratings.

💡Impressions

Impressions refer to the number of times a listing's thumbnail appears in search results on Airbnb. This concept is crucial for understanding how often potential guests see a listing. The speaker emphasizes the importance of increasing impressions by optimizing factors like availability and price to ensure the listing appears higher in search results.

💡Minimum stay requirements

Minimum stay requirements are the least number of nights a guest must book a listing for. The speaker explains that listings with shorter minimum stay requirements are more likely to appear in search results, particularly for flexible date searches. Adjusting these requirements can help increase visibility and bookings.

💡Price

Price is the cost a guest must pay to book a listing. The video highlights that Airbnb favors reasonably priced listings compared to others in the same market. The speaker suggests strategies like dynamic pricing and offering discounts to stay competitive and attractive to potential guests.

💡Ratings

Ratings are the average scores given by guests based on their stay experiences. The video discusses how higher ratings can improve a listing's visibility in search results, with a suggested threshold of at least 4.8. Ratings influence guests' perceptions and the likelihood of booking a listing.

💡Newness

Newness refers to how recently a listing was created. New listings often receive a temporary boost in search results, regardless of their content quality. The speaker notes that this boost can help new hosts gain initial visibility and bookings, even if their listings are not fully optimized.

💡Wishlist

A wishlist is a feature where users can save listings they are interested in for future reference. The speaker mentions that the number of times a listing is wish-listed can positively impact its ranking in search results. It indicates guest interest and can enhance the listing's visibility.

💡Click-through rate (CTR)

Click-through rate (CTR) is the percentage of users who click on a listing's thumbnail to view more details. The video emphasizes the importance of an appealing thumbnail and title to increase CTR. High CTR can lead to more bookings and improve the listing's search ranking.

💡Conversion

Conversion refers to the process of turning a listing view into a booking. The video outlines strategies to improve conversion, such as providing detailed descriptions, high-quality photos, and clear pricing. The goal is to minimize barriers for potential guests to book the listing.

💡Cancellation policy

Cancellation policy defines the terms under which guests can cancel their booking and receive a refund. The speaker discusses how different cancellation policies can impact booking decisions and suggests monitoring market trends to choose the most favorable policy. A balanced policy can reduce cancellations and improve overall booking stability.

Highlights

Developed a comprehensive framework to understand and leverage the Airbnb algorithm for increased bookings.

Observations are based on over a year and a half of hosting experience with two different listings.

Algorithms can change, and the exact workings of Airbnb's are unknown, but the framework offers a robust approach to problem-solving.

Demand is the first step in the booking process, and it can be analyzed using analytics websites like AirDNA and PriceLabs.

Listing impressions are crucial; they indicate how often a listing thumbnail appears in search results.

Availability and minimum stay requirements can affect a listing's visibility in search results.

Airbnb favors listings with reasonable pricing relative to others in the area.

High ratings seem to improve a listing's position in search results, with a suggested threshold of 4.8.

New listings receive an automatic boost in search results regardless of photo quality.

The number of times a listing is wish-listed can influence its search ranking.

Click-through rate, conversion, and number of views are factors that feed back into the number of impressions a listing receives.

Categories can help a listing reach more people if it fits the criteria of what someone is searching for.

Updating a listing can potentially generate bookings, possibly due to a perceived freshness signal to the algorithm.

Listing the right amenities and being inclusive of pets and children can prevent filtering out potential guests.

Responsiveness is key; quick replies to inquiries are viewed favorably by Airbnb.

Being a Superhost may not directly impact the algorithm but is important for the verbal algorithm and overall reputation.

Click-through rate is influenced by the thumbnail image, title, and price, which should be optimized for吸引力.

Conversion is the action taken by a guest after viewing the listing; it can be improved with thorough information and quick responses to inquiries.

Cancellation policies may affect bookings and should be in line with market trends to minimize cancellations.

A personal touch in confirmation messages can reduce cancellations and improve guest-host relationships.

Transcripts

hi guys I've developed a framework of

how to look at the Airbnb algorithm and

ultimately how to use it to my advantage

to get more bookings this is based on my

observations on hosting for about a year

and a half on the two different listings

and of course algorithms can change and

no one truly really knows what's behind

the scenes at airbnbs and what the

official algorithm is but this framework

should give you at least a comprehensive

approach to problem solving now when we

think of when a guest books a house on

Airbnb there are actually many steps in

that process some are affected by the

algorithm some affect the algorithm and

some kind of have nothing to do at all

with algorithm and are completely beyond

your control first starting with the

existence of this potential guest who is

looking for a house that fits that

certain category like a beach category

tiny house category or someone who is

looking for that specific location

whether a guest exists is also just

called the demand are there a ton of

potential guests or just a few who are

looking for this specific product this

kind of information you can find on

analytics websites like air DNA and

price labs and I'll leave links to those

below you can also find just General

market information on like travel

tourism websites of that specific

location the next thing is that when

there is a potential guest looking for a

house in your area is your listing

actually showing up how many Impressions

does your listing have AKA how many

times does the little thumbnail of your

listing show up when someone searches

and also how often is this thumbnail

showing up on the first page as one of

the first few results because we all

know the lower down the list you are on

the search results the less likely

someone will eventually click on it and

eventually book there are a few factors

that I have found that impacts how my

listing is showing up on the first page

or not the first obvious one is

availability obviously if the weekend is

already booked it's not going to show up

in search anymore but the one aspect of

this you can change is in your minimum

stay requirements if someone is flexible

and they're looking for any weekend in

June for example but your minimum night

requirement is like five nights that's

not gonna show up listings seem to only

show up when the minimum night

requirement is two days or less for the

any weekend kind of booking now I

understand a lot of us especially in

weekend heavy markets we may not want to

have only short one or two night stays

on the weekend that might not be

profitable I think the way to get around

it is to set the prices maybe higher and

then counteract that with three day four

day type of discounts but your objective

here with optimizing availability from a

search result point of view is to

basically just remove barriers that

filter you out unnecessarily the second

piece of this is price Airbnb seems to

favor listings that are reasonably

priced relative to everyone else and

then I guess as a side note to this

bullet point is like the strikethrough

pricing I don't know that I as a guest

now necessarily find that to be that

appealing like I don't actually look at

the number that got strucken through

strike striked stricken through I don't

know I just look at the final number but

I could see the argument that someone

looks at that whole thing and sees that

it's discounted and like a good deal I

don't subscribe to that psychology so I

can't fully tell you but that could be

something to consider the third thing

that affects whether you show up high on

search is your ratings now it doesn't

seem like it's a linear thing like if

you have 5.0 it doesn't mean you'll

necessarily be placed in front of

someone who has a 4.9 but I believe

there is some sort of a cut off like the

first few listings rarely are places

that have like a 4.5 so I'd say like 4.8

or so is kind of the maybe a minimum

threshold you want to aim for the fourth

component is newness now that's not

something you can control but something

I want you to think about in terms of if

there are a lot of new listings in your

area they kind of automatically get a

boost regardless of how ugly their

pictures are and I see this in search

results when I test it there would

always be a couple new listings with

just strange pictures like not optimized

at all but they're new and that's why

they're there on the first page the next

factor I want to share is the hearts or

how many times someone has wish listed

your listing that tells Airbnb that your

listing is interesting at least to

somebody and I think it feeds into the

algorithm and gets you a little higher

in search to reach more people similarly

the better your next steps are in this

process like your click-through rate

your conversion your number of views

that also feeds back into the number of

Impressions you are more likely to make

next is categories obviously if someone

is searching for a category and you fit

that criteria that will help you reach

more people through that category in

that search I feel like I said category

so many times in that one sentence the

next bullet point is a question mark for

me and it might be Superstition but back

when I started I saw this video and I'm

so sorry I don't remember who made that

video but they said somehow when they

update their listing usually they get a

booking in a couple days and maybe it's

just coincidence maybe it's just in my

head but it does actually seem to work

out so uh sometimes when it's a slow

month or a slow day I just kind of go in

I tweak my description a little bit I

tweak the title a little bit I rearrange

the pictures add some more to the

caption and just kind of refreshes it so

that on the listing page it says last

updated whatever date like I said it's

probably just Superstition but it does

seem to generate results so no harm in

trying right the next couple bullet

points are pretty self-explanatory in

terms of not filtering yourself out to

potential guests so listing the right

amenities making sure you have all the

boxes checked and then allowing pets and

kids if that is right for your listing

in my opinion kind of the value

proposition of an Airbnb is not really

cost anymore unless you're doing like

the room and house thing it's more so

you get to have a big group together

where otherwise you would have had to

book separate hotel rooms and there's no

place to congregate if you're filtering

out people with kids you're really

taking out a big chunk of the market hey

real quick if you're getting value out

of this video it would really really

really really help me if you could a

subscribe and B if you end up hosting on

Airbnb consider using my link below

because you would get forty dollars as a

referral bonus and I also get a little

bit of money and it really helps to

support the channel so that I can

continue to make good free content on

YouTube so anyway thank you for your

support thank you for watching let's get

back to the video the next factor is

your responsiveness you know how on

Airbnb there's a metric of how quickly a

host responds sometimes they would say

usually within an hour or usually within

24 hours and the faster you respond

that's looked upon favorably one kind of

rabbit hole that I went down is whether

replying to an inquiry in messages count

as a response or per their official

definition you actually need to either

pre-approve or decline someone who sends

in an inquiry for it to count as a

response within that certain time frame

I don't know if I'm just reading too

much into it and I always reply in a

form of a message anyway but I think I'm

trying to get better at actually

deciding pre-approve or decline as

quickly as I can within reason just to

kind of meet this metric the last factor

that I have considered is maybe being a

super host now I don't think this

actually matters very much on Airbnb

however this is looked upon very highly

favorably in the verbal algorithm which

I'm not covering at all in this video

now moving on to the next step after

someone has seen your listing on search

results what determines whether they

will click on it to see some more right

that percentage of people who click

through to see the page is your

click-through rate or in absolute terms

the number of views you're getting on

the page on your Airbnb metrics it is

shown as the percentage impression to

listing and the main factor is that

determine how successful you are are

with this metric is of course the

thumbnail is that picture really drawing

someone in is it peaking their curiosity

there's been many other videos done on

this topic and it seems like pictures

that are at Sunset with a good view if

there's a pool it's highlighted and

something that really stands out from

the rest of the crowd for me personally

I've kind of played around with which

picture to use as my thumbnail picture

and it seems like the tropical yard by

far does the best I was hesitant to use

it because it shows nothing of the

actual house nothing on the inside

nothing of the actual structure of the

house it's just a backyard but it does

have really cool tropical plants and it

conveys the vibe and I think it's good

enough of a picture that people usually

scroll to the next one and once you

scroll you kind of keep scrolling and

you want to find a little bit more

that's my theory of why it does better

for me I think eventually I want a

thumbnail picture shot from inside the

house that can show the backyard but

also show a little bit of the house that

was actually the plan for my previous

trip to the house but that didn't pan

out and I'll link the video below where

I talked about how I failed but anyway

the title also shows up here so what are

the first few words you can use to

describe this listing some people use it

for amenities some people use it for

like a kind of a branded name I'm not

quite sure if the verdict is out yet on

which way would be the better option but

something you can play around with going

back to pictures the first few pictures

are important because if the first one

is cool people will usually scroll to

the next one and maybe the next one

after that so make sure your first few

pictures are arranged in a way that

showcases multiple parts of the house

they don't have to be like chronological

and I would argue that it shouldn't be

repetitive and make sure they're all

formatted to function well as a square

picture because that's what shows up as

a thumbnail but you also need to make

sure they work as a horizontal picture

because once someone Clicks in and that

picture expands it's a landscape picture

the last component that affects whether

someone clicks on the thumbnail is the

price if something is out of somebody's

price point they probably won't click

unless it's really that fascinating and

they just need to click on it just to

look if they're just window shopping so

my advice here is to check your

competition and make sure you're priced

appropriately say if someone is getting

a page of 10 search results and you are

one of them do you stand out in quality

in pictures in price compared to

everything else that could be showing up

on the search page all right moving on

to the fourth step of the whole booking

process is the conversion AKA is someone

who is looking at your listing on your

listing page are they eventually

deciding to take some action and the

action they take could be either

deciding not to book it at all because

they don't like what you have or they

might book it directly which would be

the most ideal option so yeah make sure

you have direct booking turned on and

you can set your settings to require

guest ID and to require positive reviews

as kind of a safety guest screening type

of measure to protect you the Third Kind

of action they might take is to ask you

a question ideally your listing has

enough information you have pictures of

every room all the different angles of

each room all the Sleeping Arrangements

all the bathrooms kind of all the things

people could ask about and you have

written out all of your descriptive

amenities what you have what's nearby

that people don't even have to have that

question because that is another barrier

someone has to go through right it's

weird but sometimes people just don't

even want to ask that question if they

see another listing that has everything

they needed and they have zero questions

left they're more likely to book the

other place the strategy should be to

minimize the number of questions you get

by having a good listing description but

when you do get questions get a really

quick response and also convey some kind

of warmth and Hospitality to anyone who

is reaching out and make sure they feel

welcoming you are excited to host them

the last piece in conversion is the

cancellation policy personally in my

market all the listings have sort of

shifted away from the strict policy that

used to be the majority now majority of

them are in The Firm cancellation policy

which is a little bit looser than strict

this kind of data you can either find on

air DNA or Price labs and I personally

use the price Labs Market dashboards and

I try to review them at least once a

month just to keep up with the trends in

the market and then finally on the fifth

step of booking hooray you got the

booking but you're not quite done yet

you want to make sure people aren't

going to cancel especially if you have a

cancellation policy that allows them to

cancel up to however many days I am not

100 certain but I have a feeling that

the percentage of cancellations if it's

really high that could impact how you

show up in search through the algorithm

people cancel for all sorts of reasons

that are beyond your control but I like

to send people a confirmation message

kind of separate from the one that

Airbnb already sends just to convey that

I am a person I am warm I am excited to

host you and I am ready to answer any

questions you have just setting that

tone will go a long way to someone

reaching out to you first to

troubleshoot something they have versus

just yeah let's just cancel whatever

let's book another place I hope this was

helpful and and if I missed anything

please leave a comment so that we can

all learn now going forward I plan to

have at least one Airbnb related video

like at least once a month however I

plan to also sprinkle in some travel

related content and house related

content and then also I've been really

excited to share with you guys a project

that I've been working on don't worry

it's not like a scammy thing it's not a

course I'm not selling you anything it's

just like a fun project that I'm just

starting and I want to take you along on

the journey but that's the next video

and I just wanted to give you a heads up

that I want to leave a little bit of

room on my channel to share that with

you guys anyway I really appreciate all

of you spending time with me and being

part of my journey here on YouTube thank

you for all your support and I will see

you again next week bye