Direct Bookings vs. Airbnb/VRBO: Change My Mind

[Neal Z.]

I've been contemplating the potential benefits of focusing on direct bookings for my vacation rental properties, as opposed to relying primarily on platforms like Airbnb and VRBO. Historically, 95% of my business has come through Airbnb, where I've found their process for handling guest issues and damage claims to be quite effective. I’m reaching out to those who have experience with direct bookings to help me understand the true value of this approach.

My Perspective:

• -While direct bookings could save on platform fees, my concern is whether this saving is offset by the potential challenges in managing damages and guest issues without the support structure provided by Airbnb or VRBO.

I'm Looking For Insights On:

• -Your experience with the volume of direct bookings versus platform bookings.
• -Strategies you’ve employed to mitigate issues that arise from direct bookings, especially in terms of damage claims and guest management.
• -Whether the financial benefits of avoiding platform fees outweigh the potential hassles and risks involved in direct bookings.
• -Any systems or processes you’ve developed to streamline direct bookings and maintain profitability.

I'm open to having my mind changed! If you've found success with direct bookings and have navigated these challenges effectively, I’d love to hear your story. Your insights could be incredibly valuable in helping me to evaluate the potential shift towards more direct bookings.

Please share your experiences, insights, and any advice you have on this topic.

[Ken Boone]

We started doing direct bookings about a year ago.  I would say at this point I am up to 10% of my bookings being direct now.  I anticipate this to continue to rise.  

I felt the same way as you for awhile. I will never be able to market as good as AirBnb and VRBO, I will never be able to compete in SEO with those guys.  Plus they handle all that stuff plus insurance and all that good stuff.. Why would I want to go direct for the guest to save  little bit of money?

Realize going direct is not going to benefit you on a per booking basis as far as how much you make unless you adjust your nightly rate higher than what you do on the platforms.  You still have to pay a 3% payment processing fee either way, whether to the platform or to something like stripe when you go direct.  

So why am I pushing direct?  Because I have experienced algorithm changes over the years that were completely unexplainable, where properties that have been high in the rankings all of the sudden stop booking with no viable explanation.  I have seen this a few times now.

I have also seen properties with 3 to 3.5 star ratings, rank ahead of my properties which have years worth of 5 star reviews.  That is not how it should work, but it is something I can't control.

I have also been told ludicrous things by the platforms, where they side with a guest who is clearly in the wrong and manipulating the system, yet the platform sides with them.  

I have also seen a platform shut hosts down over things that it shouldn't be shut down for.

Basically, when you solely rely on the big platforms you are at their mercy. period.  I don't like all my eggs in one basket.  

A large portion of direct bookings are repeat guests, but not all.  So most of these are guests that have already been vetted if you will. So typically no problems with those guest, and those that are not repeat, if something happens I don't like, I put them on the do not rent list and move on.

I have been doing this for about 6 years now, and we have had some issues with guests, but the reality is those big problems are few and far between, and the big problems are generally not all that big, but just seem so at the time because you are so ticked off about it.

Direct booking does create additional work as now I have to collect and remit taxes, and handle payment processing.  But mainly to me, direct booking is an insulator.  The more I don't have to rely on the big platforms the better.  That is the real driver for me.