How To Set Up An Airbnb Listing

In these challenging financial times it’s more important than ever to generate a supplementary income. Have you ever considered listing your property on Airbnb? We’re sure you have heard of the earning potential on vacation rental websites such as Airbnb and Homeaway. We’re here to help you plan for your entry into the wonderful world of vacation rentals!

More and more people are interested in learning how to set up an Airbnb listing so they can start earning income from their recreational properties. If you’re considering starting an Airbnb listing you need to read this article and ensure everything is done properly from the start.

Failure to correctly launch your Airbnb can result in low quality reviews and this will quickly hurt your businesses potential to earn.

Top Tips For Setting Up Your Airbnb Listing

  • Furnish your property with durable and easy to clean furniture

  • Add your own unique sense of style and personality

  • Purchase hotel quality white linens and towels

  • Stock it with all the toiletries and essentials

  • Provide entertainment like Netflix, board games, and books

  • Supply durable kitchen amenities and cookware

  • Professionally stage and photograph your Airbnb

  • Utilize smart technology to automate your listing

  • Consider partnering with a property management company

What should I know before hosting Airbnb?

Listing can be challenging and time consuming but it’s usually also fun and lucrative. Expect to receive messages from guests in the middle of night and find out you need to replace a toilet. Management of your property can be a chore if you’re not organized and don’t have a great team supporting you.

The first 10 – 20 bookings are the most important because they instill confidence in future guests and provide social proof that your property is safe, clean, and practical. Since Airbnb provides new hosts a ranking boost for the first few weeks it is important you take full advantage of this and get the most 5 star reviews that you can. By getting a bunch of 5-star reviews your Airbnb listing will likely maintain a high Airbnb ranking going forward. While we highly recommend taking extra care of your first 20 guests, we’re not saying you can neglect them after that. We’re in the hospitality business and if you’re not passionate about providing excellent service then this might not be the right business opportunity for you.

What should I put in my Airbnb’s living room?

This is a very common question we get when on-boarding a new property for a client. The best way to set up a living room for Airbnb is to ensure it is open, spacious, and inviting. From a design perspective, use bright colors to help the room pop and appear more inviting. Lay out the couches and rugs in a way that encourages people to lounge in the living room and relax.

Here are suggestions of items to put in your Airbnb living room:

What should I put in my Airbnb’s bedroom room?

Setting up your bedrooms is an important. You want to communicate great style, comfort, and quality. The ideal linens are white because they look great and last longer. The ability to bleach stained sheets is a huge benefit.

Here are a few tips for things to put in your Airbnb living room:

What should I put in my Airbnb’s bathroom?

Setting up your Airbnb listings bathroom is extremely important. Bathrooms are the one space that guests are the most critical of. Having an unclean bathroom can easily lead to horrible online reviews that are difficult to recover from.

Here are some tips to include in your Airbnb’s bathroom:

What do I need in my Airbnb’s kitchen?

The kitchen is often the selling point between guests booking and Airbnb versus a hotel room. Most hotels do not have fully stocked and functional kitchens so it is a very unique selling proposition for your Airbnb listing. While guests do expect adequate supplies and equipment they do not expect it to be stocked to the nines.

Include these items in your Airbnb kitchen:

Some nice-to-haves in an Airbnb kitchen are:

How much does it cost to furnish an Airbnb?

The cost required to furnish an Airbnb varies depending on the size and quality you’re trying to furnish.

Property Budget Standard Luxury
One Bed $2,000-$4,000 $4,000-$6,000 $8,000-$12,000
Two Bed $5,000-$7,000 $7,000-$10,000 $12,000-$15,000
House $9,000-$12,000 $15,000-$20,000 $25,000+

How do I attract guests to my new Airbnb listing?

The best way to attract guests to your Airbnb listing is to ensure you have professional photographs, well-written content, and excellent reviews. Airbnb is just one big search engine that filters properties so Search Engine Optimization (SEO) should be your best friend.

Here are the top SEO Tips for a new Airbnb:

  • Professional Photos
  • Professionally written content
  • Superhost status
  • Tons of 5-star reviews
  • Fast response times
  • Activate instant-book
  • Allow flexible cancellations
  • Offer tons of amenities

How do I make my Airbnb listing looks its best?

Home Staging

For many Airbnb hosts the staging of the home is the most fun. Let your creative juices flow and transition your house into a warm and welcoming home for all your guests. Try and keep a common theme across each room and throughout the house. Too many clashing colors and patterns can devalue the overall appeal, especially in the photographs.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

  • Show Personality
  • Remove the Clutter
  • Maximize Natural Light
  • Add Some Final Touches (ie. flowers)
airbnb home stagingairbnb home staging after

Photography

Once the home has a welcoming and ‘homey’ feeling it is time to capture high-quality photographs. We highly recommend that you hire a professional with experience in real estate or Airbnb photography. It is tempting to cut corners and take pictures with your Iphone, but it is unlikely you will be able to produce the quality your property deserves. Depending on the size of your home you can expect to pay between $250-$750 for a professional photographer.

If you are more of a DIY type person, keep these few tips in mind.

  • Natural Lighting
  • Eye-level
  • Feature Amenities
  • Exterior shots
  • Full room and close up shots
  • Limit the amount of people in the shot
real estate photography for airbnb

Videography

If you want to take your property to the next level, consider hiring a professional to take some videography. Hire a drone expert to film the exterior including shots of the sort of activities your guest can expect such as ATV’s, skiing, and surfing. Another great option is hiring a Matterport specialist to develop a virtual tour of the interior of your home.

Top tips for Videography

  • Keep it short (30-90 seconds)
  • Birds-eye view
  • Showcase activities
  • Professionally filmed and edited
  • Utilize Drones and Matterports for best results

What electronics should my Airbnb have?

Home automation technology is a great way to set up your Airbnb listing. The latest tech gadgets can be a lot of fun, but incredibly expensive and it often has a low ROI. Sometimes its best to get the property up and running before investing into high-end home automation technology, but if you’re eager to get started there are plenty of great options.

These are the top home automation gadgets to include in your brand new Airbnb:

How do I succeed with Airbnb?

The easiest way to ensure success when setting up an Airbnb is to hire an Airbnb property management company to assist you with the entire set up and ongoing operation. Most property management companies know exactly what the guests expect and how to maximize bookings to keep occupancy at a profitable level.

Lifty Life Hospitality provides full-service Airbnb management for our clients so they can sit back and collect monthly checks without worrying about all the details. We have extensive experience in digital marketing, enterprise-level short term rental management, and operations. With our team leading your vacation rental business you can relax with confidence knowing that your guests will be safe and cared for.

Reach out to our team today to learn about the potential of your property. We will provide you estimates on the earning potential and walk you through the process of management.