Earn money with Airbnb in low season

Is it possible to make money with Airbnb during the low season? Today we bring you some tips so you can deal with the low season of your tourist apartment... and not die trying.You look at your Airbnb or Booking reservation calendar and see that there are no bookings in the coming weeks. It gives you a mini-heart attack.Now that winter has arrived, in many coastal areas this situation is typical. It's normal for guests to wonder if it's a situation typical of the season or if you've hit rock bottom... and your tourist apartment has collapsed.To determine if it's for one reason or another; as well as to implement some strategies to make money with Airbnb during the low season, you need to collect data.And that's precisely what we're going to talk about: Airbnb data.

Use data to plan the Airbnb low season

You can use historical data on rental prices to detect trends during the low season. This way you can better plan your Airbnb finances. Knowing what happened in the past can help you set reasonable expectations for your income.Unlike the US market, there are few software options with coverage in Spain and Latin America that cover this aspect. However, you can use Airbnb's open data portals like DataHippo, InsideAirbnb or commercial solutions like Transparent to get a better idea of the price history in your area.So if you have a mortgage to pay every month, you can use these tools to discover the price trend during the low season.Take advantage of these tools to know what your prices should be and how many reservations you should have to at least break even.

How much can you lower the price of your Airbnb?

This may sound like a truism, but yes. Lowering the price of Airbnb during the low season will attract more guests.You'll have to experiment with prices until you find the right point for the low season.It's possible that 10-20% won't be enough. It depends a lot on the area and the seasonality of your zone. If so, try lowering it by 25-50%.If you play your cards right, you can make money with Airbnb during the low season. Or at least, break even... Which is much better than being at a loss.But, why does lowering prices attract guests?When potential guests see these offers, they'll take advantage of the opportunity to get away for a weekend. Think of these price drops as Amazon's flash sales.Also, on some occasions during the low season, potential guests are also on vacation, but they're not thinking about anything in particular. For example, in the summer we think about family vacations in places where there's a beach or pool... we don't tend to think about visiting La Alcarria, in Guadalajara.But a romantic getaway at a good price during the winter can be the perfect excuse to spend a weekend in your Sigüenza apartment.

Enhance the benefits for guests staying with you

You don't want your accommodation to look like just another one when it appears in search results, but this can be catastrophic if it appears during the low season. Add and promote advantages to your Airbnb to make it more appealing to potential guests. Think for example:What can I offer my guests to make them think their money is well invested if they book with me and make them spend a few days on vacation in my accommodation?Here are some suggestions for advantages that can help you earn money with Airbnb during the low season:

• Free breakfast with snacks and juices, coffee or milk
• Pickup and drop-off from and to the airport
• Tickets to a local event or a gift card at a local restaurant

When guests click on your ad and see that they are charged Airbnb cleaning fees; commission; taxes... They will be tempted to look for an even cheaper accommodation. However, with this type of extra advantages, they will think that their money is well invested.

If you don't have guests, find them!

Why are networking and customer service so important? Because they help your business survive in these situations. Let's see it with an example. Send an email to your previous guests and let them know you have a special offer. You can invite them to celebrate Valentine's Day or Epiphany at your accommodation... at a very reduced price. Why does it work? First, you're contacting people who have already stayed with you and who, with luck, have left you good reviews, so they already know something more about your Airbnb. Second, you're showing interest in your customers. In addition, the special offer is a way to show that you value them and that's why they are the first to know about the offer.

💡 Good host tip: Always ask your guests to speak well of your accommodation to their friends in a follow-up email after checkout. You can offer them €20 cash for each referral they bring; and a 5% discount to your guests' friends who stay at your accommodation. Ask the new guest who referred them to close the loop.

Maybe your area doesn't have many tourists in March, but... what if you invite them to celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

Position well in Airbnb searches

Today we are not talking about positioning your Airbnb based on the visitor, but rather how to appear in the top positions when potential guests search on Airbnb. There are some technical tricks that will help you attract more visitors.Airbnb promotes listings that have fluid interactions with guests and facilitate conversion, so these tips will help you appear higher in Airbnb search results.

Update your Airbnb calendar frequently

Airbnb searches prioritize updated calendars. Your chances increase by 70% if you update your accommodation monthly, according to Airbnb. If Airbnb sees that you are being consistent in updating calendars and prices, they assume you are more active on the platform and have a higher probability of converting a guest or at least answering questions. Just what we're going to talk about today.

Reduce your response time to your guests

If you want to make money with Airbnb in the low season, reducing the time it takes to answer your guests' questions is key. Respond immediately. Guests tend to choose the host who responds faster. After all, they are requesting information from several hosts at once and will prefer to be with the one who is more attentive and available. In some competitive cities, such as Paris, it is not surprising that only results are shown on the first page of hosts who take less than 3 seconds to respond.

Be reliable and easy to contact

Don't be the host who can't recover well from a cancellation. If your guests change plans in the middle of their stay or just before arriving, do whatever it takes to prevent them from canceling. They will reward you with a good review and no reprisals from Airbnb. If you want to make money with Airbnb during the low season, you will probably have to reduce the minimum number of nights. Guests want flexibility: show it to them with flexible check-ins and checkouts and short stays. You may also need to relax your cancellation policy. Again, Airbnb wants its accommodations to be guest-friendly. And the cancellation policy is important for this aspect.

Get all Airbnb badges and verifications

There are three badges that are really important to have: SuperHost, Instant Book and verified identity. This significantly improves your search ranking. It's also important to have a large number of reviews.

Update your Airbnb title

Include what local events are near your accommodation in the Airbnb or Booking title. This will make more potential guests click on your ad - even if it's just to know what the "winter carnival" or craft market is all about. Making money with Airbnb in the low season (or Booking; or the platforms you use) is always a numbers game. More views in searches; more clicks; more likely to end up booking.

In conclusion: how to make money with Airbnb in the low season

In short, the low season for your tourist accommodation doesn't mean going bankrupt. The reality is that you must be aware of how to strategically reach the break-even point at least... although it's always good to make money! Try to save something from the months before the low season. This way you can pay for extra amenities or a complimentary breakfast. Think like the ant in the fable: it's key to making money with Airbnb in the low season. The good news about the low season on Airbnb is that it frees up time and allows you to experiment with your tourist accommodation. In addition, you can also take advantage of it to make repairs, paint, or install an electronic lock for Airbnb that saves you time when checking in your guests.