What are the best platforms to rent your home?
You have an apartment that you don’t occupy all year round (if at all) and you would like to make it profitable. Good idea! But where to start? What are the best platforms to put my house up for sale and make the most of it?
Many platforms exist to rent your home. But there are criteria to analyze to choose them: the price (commission, subscription…), the security (secure payment, insurance), the notoriety of the platform…
StyQR has therefore concocted a selection of the best platforms to offer your property for seasonal rental.
AirBnB
a must-have
AirBnB is certainly the most famous platform for renting accommodation between individuals. If you choose to post your ads there, you will have great chances to succeed in renting your property if it is attractive and at the right price.
In addition to being the most popular, this platform is also one of the cheapest: AirBnb charges a commission of only 3% (called “service fee”) to the owner when renting.
AirBnb offers great flexibility, with the possibility of renting a private or shared room, or even the entire accommodation.
The ergonomics of the site makes it very pleasant to use, the navigation is simple and intuitive. Putting an ad online is very fast, a child’s play!
Last but not least, AirBnB is a secure platform, since the payment is secured, and the platform includes an insurance for the accommodation and for the travelers, up to 800 000€ each.
Homeaway Abritel
its alternative
Abritel Homeaway,a platform also designed across the Atlantic, is the main competitor of AirBnB.
The site also has a very nice ergonomics which makes the navigation simple and fluid.
The pricing policy differs from that of AirBnB, offering two formulas:
– A commission rate of 8% (HT) on each rental
– Or an annual subscription of 249€.
Attention, the platform only allows to rent “whole” houses, it is not possible to propose rooms to rent. Abritel does not offer insurance coverage to owners and tenants either.
Booking
the tourism giant
Booking is one of the most renowned travel sites in the world. Some 1,550,000 nights are booked every day on this platform, which makes it an undeniable asset in terms of traffic.
However, the site is better known (and more suitable) for the business of hotels and other accommodation professionals. The commissions charged are high compared to AirBnB or Abritel: 12 to 15%. Finally, the ergonomics of the site makes it sometimes complex to understand.
Guest to Guest
a desire to travel ?
Are you interested in a home exchange? This is what we offer Guest to Guest,the world’s first home exchange network.
This system allows you to go on vacation at a lower cost and live a rewarding experience!
The main advantage is flexibility. You can keep your “Guest Points” earned from renting out your home to go away at another time of the year if you wish. Guest to Guest also offers optional insurance, so you can exchange your home without any worries, for both the host and the guest.
Our advices
These different platforms all have their advantages and disadvantages. If you want to have a very high occupancy rate of your accommodation, do not hesitate to cumulate different rental platforms, but this requires a certain organization to avoid getting tangled up between the different rental dates.
Finally, to welcome your guests in the best conditions, StyQR allows you to create a free digital welcome booklet that centralizes all the useful information about your accommodation (wifi, digicodes, useful numbers, your instructions for the accommodation, good addresses nearby…). Your customers can easily access your welcome booklet by scanning a dedicated QR code with their smartphone. This QR code is shaped to fit perfectly in your environment, for example in the form of a photo frame.
Surprise your customers to improve your reputation
No matter what type of accommodation you manage (hotel, camping, guest house, B&B, rental between individuals…), it is essential to focus your efforts on the satisfaction of your guests.
Indeed, a satisfied customer represents a lot of value for you: he will be able to book a stay in your accommodation again, but he will also be able to benefit to your reputation, either by word of mouth towards his direct entourage or through a much larger community thanks to Internet. More and more internet users are leaving their opinion after a stay, either via the booking platform they used, or via social networks or rating sites (Tripadvisor, Google…). It is therefore in your best interest to satisfy your customers as much as possible.
In this article, we will present you several tips to exceed your customers’ expectations and improve your reputation.
Looking for the effect
“waouh”
The key to customer satisfaction is to exceed your guests’ expectations. Look for the unexpected, the “wow” effect. This “wow” effect can be a small detail, but it will make your guests remember you for a long time and recommend you. You must then transform their stay into a real experience, in order to enchant the customer.
Our advices
To improve customer satisfaction, the first fundamental step is to reduce the number of dissatisfied customers, as these are the ones who have the most impact on your reputation.
“Consumers tell their peers twice as much about a negative experience as they do about a positive one” White House Office of Consumer Affairs
Pay attention to the
customers satisfaction
In order to improve the experience of your customers, it is obvious that you must be attentive to their satisfaction. You should therefore not hesitate to ask them questions when they leave to find out how their stay went, and also send them a satisfaction questionnaire by e-mail later on. If a customer is dissatisfied, you should try to understand the cause of the problem and implement means to solve this element, and you should not hesitate to offer compensation to the dissatisfied customer if necessary.
Beware of
the irritants
It is important to pay close attention to all the elements that could affect the quality of your services. For example, the cleanliness of the room, the proper functioning of the appliances. Don’t neglect details such as a leaky shower, a cracked wall, malfunctioning heating or air conditioning… Don’t leave anything to chance!
Your customer service must be impeccable
Your customers must be welcomed in good form: with efficiency and good humor. In case of problem, intervene quickly and propose alternative solutions.
The waouh effect :
our ideas
Si vous le pouvez, pensez à surclasser vos clients. Ils bénéficieront alors d’une chambre qui surpasse leurs attentes et se souviendront longtemps de leur expérience chez vous
Offrez des gourmandises à vos invités (par exemples quelques chocolat, des boissons, ou encore mieux : des produits locaux)
Offrez des services annexes gratuits (par exemple une navette pour l’aéroport ou pour un lieu touristique)
Fournissez à vos clients des équipements supplémentaires non indiqués lors de la réservation (par exemple des chaussons, peignoirs, échantillons de produits de beauté)
Proposez sur demande (à l’avance) la mise en place d’une ambiance romantique dans la chambre (fleurs, bougies…)
Soignez votre livret d’accueil : il vous permettra de faire une bonne première impression à vos clients, alors pourquoi ne pas en faire un effet waouh ?
The must
StyQR
StyQR offers you to create your digital welcome booklet. In a few clicks, you can configure your digital welcome booklet in order to record all the necessary information: the wifi code, the digicode(s), practical information, useful numbers, or good addresses nearby. The design of your welcome booklet can be customized with your logo and your graphic charter (colors, fonts…).
Your customers will easily access your welcome booklet by scanning a QR code dedicated to you with their smartphone. This QR code is shaped to fit perfectly in your environment, for example in the form of a photo frame.
The digital welcome booklet will surprise your customers by its modernity and simplicity of use. It will facilitate the life of your customers; while adding a touch of decoration to their room.
How to become a Superhost on Airbnb?
What is a
Superhost ?
If you’ve ever rented out your home on Airbnb, you’ve probably heard of Superhost. But what is a Superhost?
It’s an exceptional host, who is experienced in renting out his accommodation, and whose travelers have been very satisfied. In short, a Superhost is a sure value, he will be recognized in the community and will be a pledge of confidence for the customer who books his trip.
The Superhost benefits from a better visibility with a better placement in the search results, a “Superhost” filter and a dedicated badge. Thus, according to Airbnb data, a Superhost earns 22% more than other hosts.
What are the criteria
to become a Superhost ?
Being a Superhost has undeniable advantages, but how do you become one? Here are the criteria to obtain this badge:
- Have rented your accommodation at least 10 times.
- Have at least 50% of your travelers leave a comment.
- Have a response rate of 90% or more.
- No cancellations (except for force majeure policies)
- Have an overall rating of at least 4.8 (out of 5).
These criteria will be evaluated automatically by Airbnb every quarter (it is not necessary to apply to become a Superhost).
Our advices to
become a Superhost
- To succeed in renting your accommodation at least 10 times, it must be attractive: your ad must be complete and neat, your photos must highlight your accommodation, and your price must be adapted (according to the surface area, the location, the equipment, the number of beds…).
- An excellent communication with your guests is essential, before, during or after their trip. Reactivity is the key!
- Be reliable! Update your calendar regularly to avoid cancellations.
- Be professional! Even if you are not a tourism or hotel professional, you can take a cue from the industry’s best practices. Your accommodation should be clean and tidy, and your guests should feel supported during their stay.
- Surprise your guests and exceed their expectations. Small gestures can significantly improve your travelers’ satisfaction: a small treat (chocolate, candy, local specialty…), a welcome note or even better, a digital welcome booklet.
The digital
welcome booklet
The digital welcome booklet will allow you to surprise your guests with the modernity of your methods, while providing them with all the practical information they may need during their stay.
With StyQR, you can create your digital welcome booklet for free and in a few clicks, then add all the necessary information (wifi code, digicode, good addresses, advice on how to use the appliances, useful numbers…). Your guests will access it very easily, by scanning a QR code dedicated to you. This QR will be shaped as an elegant photo frame that will fit perfectly into the decoration of your home.
Focus on Welkeys concierge service
A concierge service
for what purpose?
You want to rent your accommodation on the rental platforms between individuals but…
- You don’t live on site and you need help to welcome travelers, to hand over the keys, to clean the house, to manage the linen…
- You don’t want to bother with photos, writing the ad, paperwork…
We have the solution you need: call a specialized concierge.
Focus on
Welkeys
Today we present you Welkeys,a high-end concierge service that will help you effortlessly maximize your rental income.
Welkeys is a service dedicated to short-term apartment rentals. Their team is 100% connected and dedicated to their clients to offer them a tailored experience in unique properties in the heart of major cities.
Welkeys places technology at the heart of its development with :
- the creation of a marketplace that connects owners and experienced concierges
- the development of an income simulator accessible directly on the platform
- the development of mobile applications and management software to enhance the experience of owners and the organization of concierge logistics throughout France.
Thus, Welkeys stands out from the competition by its technological edge: the team has developed the best tools to improve the experience of its clients and concierges.
Maximize your
incomes with Welkeys
Welkeys maximizes rental income with a team dedicated to developing a pricing strategy called Revenue Management. Their experts define the price per night for each apartment based on its type, location, events in the area and taking into account the seasonality. In this way, Welkeys can optimize the price per night throughout the year, achieving an average occupancy rate of 80%.
The property owner can easily monitor rental activity via their dashboard. They can view the calendar, the profile of travelers, and obtain monthly rental payments.
Finally, Welkeys offers clients a high level of service thanks to a personalized welcome, amenities (vanity, hotel slippers, etc.) and the promotion of the accommodation through the ad and photos.
Practical
information
Welkeys‘ services are already available in many large French cities (Paris, Marseille, Lille, Cannes, Aix-en-Provence, Lyon, Nice, Toulouse…).
Of course, these services have a cost. Welkeys offers two packages:
- Welkeys Premium: an all-inclusive service, starting at 20% commission (all taxes included).
- Welkeys Classic – à la carte: prices vary according to the services required.
To discover the complete price list, clic here!
So, convinced?
GuestReady, the BnB concierge service
Renting your home,
it's not that simple !
To propose its housing in hiring as private individual became simple thanks to platforms like Airbnb, Booking, or Homeway Abritel. A description, a few photos and that’s it!
But you must not forget certain constraints: be present at the arrival and departure of your travelers for the handing over of the keys, do the cleaning or wash the linen. And it gets even more complicated if you don’t live on site or if you have several accommodations to manage.
It’s not that easy to rent your accommodation: customers are demanding and their opinion will be crucial for your reputation on the different platforms. So how can you make the management of your rentals easier?
The miracle solution: entrust your management to a BnB concierge! We met one of the most famous concierge companies : GuestReady, with its solid experience and its international presence. Pierre Rouleau, the French market manager of GuestReady, explained us the history, the functioning and the assets of this 2.0 concierge service.
GuestReady,
How does it work ?
Founded in 2016 by Alexander Limpert, Patrick Degen, Josef Nevoral et Bertrand Desies,This startup is the first BnB concierge company with a global presence (Europe, Asia, UK). Short-term rentals have no secret for them as they are among the market leaders in some cities, like London and Paris.
GuestReady takes care of the complete management of your accommodation:
- Creation of the ad (professional photos and price optimization thanks to an algorithm)
- Selection of travelers’ profiles (to secure the rental of your property)
- Communication and after-sales service with travelers, before and during their stay
- Reception, handing over of keys and check-out
- Professional maintenance (24-hour problem-solving service)
- Provision of linen and bath products
- Cleaning and laundry services
Satisfied
Customers
GuestReady offers a premium service for homeowners who want to avoid the hassle of renting and maximize their revenue through higher occupancy rates. Its main advantage: a personalized customer service, as each owner is accompanied by a member of the GuestReady team.
Using GuestReady will allow you to obtain a high rate of satisfaction from travelers and thus reach the status of Superhost ! The management remains totally transparent for the owner thanks to the existence of a dashboard.
Customers are very satisfied with GuestReady’s services as it has a rating of 9.4 (out of 10) on Trustpilot !
“It’s great to be able to generate additional income without having to worry about the hassle of Airbnb. GuestReady works with my schedule and makes sure my place is in perfect condition when I return home from a business trip.”
Mathieu, Paris VI
Source : www.guestready.com
How much does it cost ?
GuestReady charges a commission on the amount of bookings, which is usually around 20%.
The concierge also offers owners a fixed income for their rentals each month, under certain conditions.
To learn more about GuestReady’s rates, clic here !
Please feel free to contact GuestReady via the link below.