Algorithm Hacks for Short-Term Rentals

Whether its for Google or Airbnb, optimizing for the algorithms to be a top search result for potential bookers is key to short-term rental success

Working with so many short-term rentalists in various stages and phases of their business, one commonalty is marketing. As Airbnb or VRBO Hosts, we all spend a lot of time thinking about marketing - be it our listing or other marketing efforts - as we should! A well marketed and managed property can be the difference between profit or not.

The reality is, there is a lot of advice out there and many are struggling to figure out what advice or strategy we need to be investing our time in for the biggest results. As AI is shifting the pace of change in technology - we don't want to get left behind! I recently presented at The Female Short-Term Rental Summit and part of that presentation was the role of keywords to help hack the algorithms.

Here's a clip of what I presented at the Summit;

In short, keywords are nothing more than the common, generic words or phrases someone might use when searching for a short-term rental in your market. They might be things like "Condo in town", "Beach House for rent in (town)", or "Cabin for Rent in (market)". You don't need to over think this! We just want to help the algorithm help us by making it easy, and weaving our key words (you can use a selection of them) into our listing headline, listing copy and yes - our photo captions.

Why are keywords important?

Whether we are talking Google or Airbnb, these are search engines. Search engines powered by very sophisticated and changing instructions, which are processed and executed in nanoseconds and even "learn" within parameters to become even more sophisticated. The goal of any search engine is to match search results to user intent, which is a complex undertaking.

In The Listing Optimizer Course, we talk a bit about the conscious and less conscious drivers of consumer behavior - and these companies are highly adept at keying in on both conscious and subconscious drivers in figuring out user intent and what to prioritize in response to a query. They build this knowledge into the algorithms in an attempt to serve up offers that get clicks - and you want to be one that gets served up!

Keywords make it easier and more likely that the algorithm - as it "crawls" our listing, will correctly identify what it is we offer and display our listing when our target audience is looking. The easier and clearer we make our offer, the more likely we are to show up in the results for our target guest.

What Else Influences the Algorithms?

Well, if you read the terms of service at Airbnb or VRBO related to how they curate search results and what you can do to influence your position within those, things that matter include;

- Listing quality and completeness. How complete and accurate is your listing?

- Photos. Do you include photos of all the spaces? (Hint, photo captions will go far to help the algorithms)

- Reviews. VRBO published that listings with less than a 4.7 rating get fewer bookings. So, yeah - reviews matter. But I would guess if your reviews also include some keywords - that's probably a bonus!

- Host engagement. How responsive are you as a Host? How often to you revisit and update your listing?

- Competitively Priced. Is your pricing in line your competitors?

- Bookings. Listen, if you make money - they make money. So, if you are getting bookings that's the best indicator of a quality offer; and one likely to bring in more money.

Can I get to/stay on Page 1 in the Search Results?

There are things we CAN do to help influence our listing being more likely to be presented in search results - as above, but there is no magic wand. If you are in a market with 1000 similar rentals, we must surmise that one factor that influences what get's presented on page 1 includes some rotation of the available options in order to keep the Hosts - who bring the inventory into the equation, happy.

What About Wish List Sharing with Other Short-Term Rental Hosts?

So you're on social media and it's "Sharing Saturday" - lets all share our links and add them to our wish lists. And you do it, and then you get a booking. Their are mixed reviews about this strategy. Kind of like "keyword stuffing" - the act of just repeating keywords on your listing or website rather than having organic, descriptive and valuable content. That strategy worked for folks, until the search engines figured it out and deprioritized those sites.

A lot of "clicks" without bookings is likely a signal of "false" interest. That said, if you do it occasionally it seems like it might help. So - you decide.

If you are ready to lean into optimizing your listing and ensuring your success, check out the Listing Optimizer Course, and grab all the insights to rocket your success INCLUDING keyword strategies and algorithm hacks! >>GRAB IT HERE

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Hey Boss! I'm Kate, owner/founder of The CEO Host. If you are interested in taking a leap into short-term rentals - or have some questions about your existing business, my goal - passion, and career, is to help YOU succeed. I've coached hundreds of folks getting started or looking to optimize, analyzed more deals (and duds) than I could count, completed thousands of hours of education and training, attended conferences... So don't be shy. A good CEO knows to bring in expert help - and that's what I'm here for! Lets HOP ON A CALL and chat!

Categories: : marketing