Multiple channels or focus on 1-2?

Question

I've read through some of the posts and it seems most of you focus on AirBnb and VRBO with a few using Booking.com, TripAdvisor, etc.  Is it more advantageous to only advertise on a few? I had thought advertising across the board would bring more bookings, but have read that it's better to have your reviews focused on 1-2 channels.  Are there other reasons or is this really not the case?

Avery Carl · Answer

The reason most people only bother with 1 or 2 is because the VAST majority of bookings come from the 2 major platforms: Airbnb and VRBO. For example, I get 70% of my bookings from Airbnb and 30% from VRBO. The others have only brought a few bookings per year, which hasn't been worth it, so we just focus on the 2 majors.

John Underwood · Answer

Yes if you can get a bunch of 5 star reviews it helps your credibility and rankings. Start off a little lower than market price to help get more reviews quicker and then raise your prices to some what above market once your established. I go a good bit higher than market and I get it.

Ethan Cooke · Answer

@Shannon Ilas - I have been looking for the "holy grail" of furnished rental marketing/booking for 3 years. AirBnB brings in 70% of my short-term bookings for my 20+ units in the SF Bay Area. But with COVID rocking the hospitality market, I have been renting out many of my furnished homes on 1-12 month leases through Zillow and Turbotenant. Both of these post to many other rental websites including Facebook Marketplace, realtor.com, trulia and others. The steady revenue of long-term furnished rentals is great, especially with winter ahead. And it's a lot less work than short-term rentals!

@Avery Carl, @Paul Sandhu and @John Underwood are pros. Follow the successful ones...

Welcome @Jim Edelson to BP! Great advice. Seems like you've been at this a while.

Michael Baum · Answer

Hey @Shannon Ilas, lots of good opinions in the thread so far. We only use AirBNB and VRBO. I thought about Booking.com and TripAdvisor but with the advice of people on this forum, I just concentrated on the 2 main.

We used to get 90% of our bookings from VRBO, but after 3 years we are running about 50/50 with AirBNB. It seems to me that bigger groups with more mature guests come in through VRBO and younger families through AirBNB. That is not 100% as the last guests we had were 3 retired couples who came to ride the bike trail and swim. They booked through AirBNB.

Some folks concentrate on a single channel like AirBNB. That seems to work just fine for them, but I think it is area dependent. I wanted to cast a wide net but focused.

Also, with a brand new place, it will take some time to grow those reviews. Our first year was a thin, but we planned for that. The 2nd year was good and this year has been booked solid. We are still getting bookings for this Fall and starting to book for 2021.

Jim Edelson · Answer

I don't think that having all of your reviews in one or two places is a key.  What is key is advertising where potential guests are shopping.  VRBO & AirBnB are the two marketplaces that get all of the traffic.  For us, we use VRBO exclusively because that is where we have been successful.  We like that the cost is fixed (annual subscription to list).  This ends up being a terrific deal financially, works out to about 1.5% of our gross income goes toward marketing.

I am always watching for the disrupters in the marketplace.  Booking.com is certainly that right now.  As mentioned in this thread a major drawback to Booking is that you have to use instant booking.  Another is that they take a steep commission on every booking (I believe it is 10%, maybe 15%).  Google has been working their way into the space and knowing Google, they will eventually figure out a way to make themselves number one.  My suspicion is that they will eventually buy out Expedia.

I have also developed my own web site to market our property.  Marketing a stand alone web site is very difficult but I figure that someday a marketplace will open up where I can plug in my web site and start getting traffic.  This has been a lot of fun for me - call it a new hobby.  Learning all of the nuances of web site development has shed a lot of light on what makes the internet tick.

Another brand that is gaining traction on the internet is Zillow, at least for long term rentals.   In our market they are one of the best ways to advertise LT rentals.  I'm curious to see if they try to expand on their market and work in Short Terms.

Craigslist is nothing but trouble in my book.  TripAdvisor was gaining traction but then went through an awful spell due to bad management and decision making that has left them in the marketplace as a distant player.

What VRBO & AirBnB have done is spend mega-millions advertising.  That's why they are the known players that consumers go to for ST rentals.  They also offer pretty good software for us owners to use.  I could rant on VRBO for a few hours for some of the crappy things that they have done over the years but there's no point.  It's their business and they can do what they want.  As long as consumers keep using them they will continue to drive the industry.  Same goes for AirBnB.

Justin Anderson · Answer

I'd also add that it depends on your specific market and your property.  For example where I'm at, smaller cabins book 90% on Airbnb and larger ones 70-80% on Vrbo.  Booking.com, TripAdvisor, Expedia, etc. account for maybe 1 or 2% of bookings.  (I don't track it to know for certain, but very rarely see anything other than Vrbo/Airbnb)Use the pareto principle... Spend 80% of your time on the 20% of the sites that make 100% of your money.  :)(Ask several other owners in your area what they see, just to be sure before you chop off those other booking sites, of course.)

John Underwood · Answer

I agree with @Avery Carl. Just list on enough platforms to get your occupancy where you want it without making life too difficult. VRBO and Airbnb should be enough and they are the major players. I get 85% of my bookings via Vrbo.

Shannon Ilas · Answer

@Jim Edelson great analysis, thank you!

Shannon Ilas · Answer

@John Underwood have you also found that only 1-2 channels helps boost your visibility because reviews are more concentrated on those sites or does it really matter?

Paul Sandhu · Answer

Do what he ^^^ says.  Try multiple sites and use the one that works best for you and your market.  I get 2-3 inquiries per year from Airbnb.  I get 3-4 a month from Craigs List.

Multiple channels or focus on 1-2?

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