Little Extras at your AirBnB Property!

1. Little Extras for Guests: Showing guests you care about them staying at your property
2. Setting the Bar High: A small, special item starts the guest’s experience off on a positive note
3. Stand Apart: With extras being the exception rather than the rule, your property reviews will stand out amongst the competition
4. Example Items: What should you buy for guests?

Little Extras Make a Big Difference

What would you be excited to see at a vacation rental after you just traveled several hours to get there? Perhaps a bottle of wine, coffee or some locally made snacks? Your guests will love these kind of things! This sets the tone for the rest of their stay, and can be a good insurance policy if something doesn’t go right at some point. These items can cost less than $10/reservation, be set out by your cleaners and are a valuable investment in your long term success.

Setting the Bar High

By giving guests a treat they weren’t expecting, you make a great first impression. This buys you wiggle room in case the cleaners missed something or an issue comes up during a guest’s stay, because you already showed that putting the guest first is your priority. These are also the kinds of gestures that are remembered when writing a review for your property.

Stand Apart

How many standard hotels have you stayed in where the experience was fine, but a month later you don’t remember anything about your stay? Is that the experience you want guests to have at your Airbnb? No!! If you provide them a great experience that was different from every other place, it will be something they tell friends about, and remember next time they go to book a trip to your area. Do just a little extra and it will pay back in spades down the road.

What to Provide?

So what items should you provide for guests? Top of our list is a bottle of wine – most people will appreciate this small gesture, and it’s a nice surprise to find at the property. You can buy a decent $8-$10 bottle of red or white wine by the case to keep along with other dry goods, providing easy access during each turnover for your cleaners. Don’t get too crazy with unique varietals or overly sweet wines, keep it simple with something like a Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay. Even if your guests don’t drink they will appreciate the gesture.

Other options are specialty coffee, jams, jellies, or other snacks that give people a taste of local flavor, keeping in mind storage requirements and shelf life.

Conclusion

At the end of the day you are running a business, and little extras for guests are an investment to stand apart from your competition, set the tone for a stay and entice people to come back and stay again. A minimal cost nets you a higher potential for repeat guests, because whether you realize it or not, you are in the hospitality business and the guest’s experience is paramount to your success.

Let us know in the comments what you do for guests!