I was going to make a low-effort post and ask how to automate one particular thing. But instead of just asking for something I thought I'd give something to the community first. I'm trying to document how to automate everything. If I can, I plan to try to keep this thread updated as I learn how to automate everything and hopefully it could be a helpful reference for future folks as well.
I want to do as little manual work as possible. Here is what I am doing now. I'd love to hear from folks and learn how to fill in some of the blanks and also learn where I could optimize a bit more.
Syncing Calendars - I use Guesty for Hosts. It gives me a single source of truth for VRBO, Airbnb, and any direct bookings I take.
Direct bookings - I need to figure out how to make this more automated. I don't have anything set up right now.
Scheduling cleaners - Guesty for Hosts gives me a single iCal link that I can share with my cleaner. They check it regularly to determine when to do turnovers. I *also* have it send a reminder text message to my cleaner on morning of days when guests check out. They sometimes need a reminder.
Stocking supplies - I don't want to stock supplies so I ask my cleaners to restock things when needed and then invoice me. I also have them acquire and replace things like bath mats, etc. as needed.
Pricing - I use Pricelabs to help charge the right rate at the right time for my property across all my channels (Really just Airbnb and VRBO). I don't want to manually make adjustments and/or miss out on holiday weekends. It seems to work well, I had to tweak the settings quite a bit upfront to try to find a set of rules that I feel comfortable with and thought work well.
Bookkeeping - I use Quickbooks linked to a bank account I use only for rental properties. I set up rules that can usually automatically categorize most transactions correctly. At the end of the year, I can just export everything and send it to my CPA to file everything. I still have to review this from time to time to make sure everything is categorized correctly. I also need to manually enter some expenses. I also have to manually enter Mileage. I also use this same bank account for other properties which actually makes the bookkeeping even more manually, because I have to specify which transactions go with which property, which can be a headache and error-prone. I wonder if I should have a separate account per property.
Rental agreements - We have a Docusign template we use for this, even if guests book through Airbnb and VRBO. Still have to ask for an e-mail address and send it to them. I wish I could find a way to automatically send one of these when guests book. Any tips?
Automated and unified messaging - Guesty for Hosts lets me automate all communication through a single interface. I don't need to set it up differently for Airbnb and VRBO.
Message templates - I get some of the same questions over and over. I try to add that info to the listing whenever it comes up, or at least make a template so I can easily respond to those questions.
Check-in - Automated message with check-in details 2 days before check-in.
Check-out - Automated message day before check-out with check-out instructions.
Thank you and asking for a good review - Automated message a few hours after check-out to say thank you ask and for a 5-star review.
Responding to inquiries - Automated message that says thanks for your inquiry, gives them some common answers to questions, gathers a bit more info from them, and says we'll review shortly. Still ultimately requires manual review.
Reviews - I have a rule set up to automatically give a 5-star review set up in Guesty for Hosts. It's set for like 6 days after the fact. So I have an opportunity to give a bad review before then if I need to.
Instantbook- We turn on instant book unless a user has no reviews, in which case it becomes and inquiry which my auto-responder asks for more details from them, like "tell me more about yourself, who is staying, is everyone over 25 years of age, what brings you up to the area".
Managing photos - I wish I could find a way to sync photos so I set them in something like Guesty for Hosts and then have them apply on all channels. Haven't quite figured that one out.
Listing details - I haven't quite figure out how to set a description in guesty for hosts and have it sync back to both VRBO and Airbnb, but that's probably possible.
Seasonal photos - I wish I could find a way to automatically change out photos seasonally. Haven't quite figured that one out.
Labels - I try to post labels and instructions all over the house. Like a description by the t.v. on how to work the t.v. and a link to a video to operate the remote. Fireplace instructions posted by the fireplace. Labels on lights, etc. It goes a long way and make guests happy.
Lock codes - Guesty for Hosts can automatically generate lock codes for all incoming guests based on the last 4 digits of their phone number and sync with locks like Schlage Encode. Combine that with an automated message that sends them their code and it's completely hands-off. I haven't actually done this yet, but I love the idea.
Regular maintenance - My handyman is really good about coming over to mow, plow when there's plowable snow, blow leaves, etc. There's still a bunch of things I have to reach out and schedule manually, like pressure washing the house, having the chimney swept, etc. I should probably set up a maintenance calendar or something. I ask my cleaner to contact my handyman directly if there are any small issues they notice that I don't have to be involved.
What else?
I'm trying to think of where I spend the most of my time. It's probably just answering questions for guests. Sending lease agreements manually is also a huge time sink. Also dealing with just like one-off maintenance things that come up, like a leaky faucet, etc.
