With all the new features Airbnb has rolled out over the last few years, it can be hard to keep them straight! The Airbnb Instant Book is a feature worth learning about. In fact, when you set up your listing, you will be forced to decide if you are going to use this feature as discussed in Airbnb Host Step Step 3 – Get Ready for Guests! Read on for more insight to the Airbnb Instant Book Feature; the pros, cons, and how to use Instant Book on Airbnb effectively.
What is Airbnb Instant Book?
To begin, what is Airbnb Instant Book, exactly? Well, according to Airbnb: “Instant Book listings allow guests that meet a host’s requirements to book immediately, instead of needing to send a reservation request for approval.” This feature can be turned on and off at any time. It allows potential guests to simply pick out dates and book their trip instantly. Needless to say, Instant Book is a very popular feature for guests in search of a last-minute play to stay!
Of course, no feature is without an upside and a downside. Below, check out the benefits and potential downfalls of activating Airbnb Instant Book on your listing.
The Pros of Airbnb Instant Book
The Airbnb organization greatly benefits whenever a host utilizes the Instant Book feature. Therefore, they have structured their site to encourage hosts to use the tool. In doing so there are many bonuses that exist for hosts when Instant Book is turned on. Below, read about all the great things that come along with the activation of the Airbnb Instant Book feature.
Increased Convenience with Airbnb Instant Book
First of all, Instant Book is extremely convenient for both hosts and guests! Without the need to communicate with the host beforehand, the reservation process is much quicker and simpler. Guests that need a place to stay last-minute are much more inclined to choose an Instant Book listing. Plus, busy hosts will save time because there’s no need to chat with every prospective guest.
When the Airbnb Instant Book feature is activated, the booking process is very similar to that of a hotel site. Guests search for the location and dates for which they are looking. They are then able to scroll through the listings and compare accommodation factors as well as prices. Should they see something they like, the simply press a few buttons to secure their accommodation.
Improved Placement for Airbnb Listing Searches
In addition, listings that have Airbnb Instant Book turned on automatically receive better placement in searches! Since Airbnb’s ultimate goal is to get more bookings, Instant Book properties are featured more than non-Instant book properties. Guests also have the ability to filter properties by whether they allow Instant Booking or not.
When hosts are just starting out, visibility is vital. The easier you show up in a search, the more likely guests will review your listing and potentially book it.
Increased Earnings on Airbnb
According to Airbnb, hosts who activate Instant Book can get double the reservations! This is related to the aspects listed above. When it is more convenient for guests to book online without having to have any type of initial contact with the host, the booking rate will increase. Additionally, if your listing shows up closer to the top of the list because you have Instant Booking activated, you will receive more bookings.
Of course, with more reservations comes more profit!
Additional Opportunities for Positive Reviews
As you may have already realized, increased bookings means increased reviews. So if you turn on Instant Book on Airbnb, you’ll get the chance to generate more positive reviews, improving your standing as a host!
This is another vital aspect for hosts who are just starting out. In the beginning, it can be tedious trying to get reviews. Many guests are not going to want to be your first guest. After you begin to receive reviews, you will see an increase in bookings. Allowing Airbnb Instant Book can give you a jump start on this process.
Ability to Set Advanced Airbnb Requirements
By activating Instant Book on your Airbnb listing, you actually gain the ability to set more advanced requirements for guests. Because you don’t get the chance to talk with them before they make a reservation, you’re able to put some extra rules in place to weed out any undesirable guests.
This subject is touched upon in further detail down below in the section entitled, “Advanced Airbnb Booking Requirements”. This is a very important topic that you will not want to miss when you are deciding whether or not the Airbnb Instant Book feature is right for you and your listing.
Penalty-Free Cancellations
As you may already know, hosts and guests on Airbnb experience consequences if they cancel. However, the instances when these penalties may occur is drastically reduced for hosts that have turned on Instant Book on Airbnb! In the case of Instant Book hosts, hosts using this feature actually get three penalty-free cancellations each year. However, hosts can’t cancel for just any reason; it has to be a reason approved by Airbnb.
Here’s a list of appropriate reasons for cancellation:
- It’s clear that guests plan to break House Rules
- Guests request to bring a pet when you’ve specified pets aren’t allowed
- The number of guests staying exceeds the maximum for your listing
- You’re having problems communicating with guests
- Guests are rude, unresponsive, or have unreasonable requests
- You suspect your guests will have a party, be disruptive, or violate the property
- You have a safety concern
- You’ve had a negative experience with the guest in the past
- Guests’ profiles are incomplete, or their profile photo doesn’t show their face
- The reservation was made by a third party
After you’ve used your three penalty-free cancellations for the year, you’ll have to contact Support in order to cancel again. If you continue to request cancellations, Airbnb may force you to turn off the Instant Book feature on your listing. For more information about cancellations, take a look at our guide to Airbnb’s cancellation policies.
An Easier Path to Becoming an Airbnb Superhost
Interested in becoming a Superhost? Well, Instant Book on Airbnb can help you get there! Superhosts are required to maintain a 90% response rate. By activating Instant Book, communication is reduced. Because guests are able to book your listing without any type of communication with you, you will not need to have messages going back and forth before bookings. This is actually a huge help not having to verbally okay each reservation. Therefore, it’s much easier to maintain a high response rate! For more tips on reaching Superhost status, check out our article about Superhosts.
The Cons of Airbnb Instant Book
Of course, you’ve probably already thought about the biggest downside of Instant Book: less control over the guests that stay on your property. In addition, there are a couple of other things to keep in mind. Read below to learn why you may wish to have greater control over who reserves your home as well as other important drawbacks to consider.
Less Control Over Guests
Even with all the advanced Airbnb requirements in place, you’ll still have less control over guests than you would if you had Instant Book turned off. When you receive an instant booking, only a name is provided to you. You have no further background information about your guests. Furthermore, only the name of the person who actually booked the listing given to you. Everyone else staying at your home will remain a mystery at the time of booking. You may ask follow up questions to learn more about your guest, but this will be after the reservation is already in place.
Increased Cancellations
Sadly, hosts that have turned on Instant Book on Airbnb tend to deal with more cancellations. This is most likely because customers don’t feel a personal obligation to keep their reservation. Since they didn’t converse with the host before booking their trip, it’s easier to cancel a trip without considering that they’re letting someone down.
For more information about how Airbnb Cancellations operate as well as the various types of cancellation policies you may implement, please review our article “The Ins and Outs of Airbnb Cancellation Policies”.
Stress Due to Last-Minute Bookings
Many guests will be attracted to the Instant Book feature when they are trying to book last minute. Although it’s awesome to be able to make a profit off of last-minute bookings, it’s always necessary to prepare for your guests. It’s definitely possible you’ll encounter some stressful situations where you’ll need to get the property ready right before guests arrive. Thus it’ll probably be necessary to put together a plan for what to do if you have last-minute bookings or back-to-back guests!
However, it is important to remember that if you are not comfortable with guests checking in the same day, you do have the ability to require advanced notification. This is the case even when you use Airbnb Instant Book. To learn more about techniques for setting up your calendar, please check out “Airbnb Host Step 3 – Get Ready for Guests!“.
More of a Need to Plan Ahead
Since Instant Book allows guests to book your listing far in advance without your approval, there’s an increased need to plan ahead. You’ll need to adjust prices far in advance, especially for holidays and special events.
One great solution is to use an automatic pricing tool, which will set prices for you. Check out our guide to Airbnb Smart Pricing and other pricing tools here. But if you prefer to set prices manually, that’s no problem! Just be sure to plan several months or even a year ahead, and take a look at our guide to setting the right price for your listing.
Advanced Airbnb Booking Requirements
There are specialized features that the Airbnb platform has to help aid you with a more favorable booking experience. The features that will be discussed below are only available to hosts who have Airbnb Instant Book turned on. These added benefits are a deliberate way Airbnb encourages host to utilize the Instant Book feature.
Airbnb allows Instant Book hosts the power to set these advanced requirements in an attempt to reduce cancellations. and misunderstandings. By giving Instant Book hosts the ability to set these requirements, Airbnb cuts back on potential issues between hosts and undesirable guests.
In the case of guests that don’t meet requirements mentioned below, they must send the host a booking request before their reservation is confirmed.
Government Issued ID
With Airbnb Instant Book turned on, hosts may require that a valid form of government issued identification be submitted on the Airbnb Platform. If you’re nervous about trying the Instant Book feature, this should give you some peace of mind. Especially in addition to the general Airbnb requirements, government issued ID examples are a great way to verify the people who will be staying at your property. Receiving a valid form of government issued ID proves that your guests are who they say they are.
Wondering what is a government issued ID? As far as the question, “what is a government issued ID?”, here are a few government issued ID examples. Guests can submit a driver’s license, passport, or national identity card. Many Airbnb hosts appreciate the security that comes with receiving a government issued ID from guests. Should any type of unfortunate event occur, you have evidence of the legal name of the person who booked your home.
Guests Experienced with Airbnb
The Instant book feature also allows hosts to only accept reservations from guests that have traveled on Airbnb before. This way, you won’t get reservations from anyone who hasn’t used Airbnb in the past. This is a benefit because this means that they know how the platform works. Sometimes with newbies, they are confused on how the whole process goes and don’t always understand they must be considerate to the hosts. Staying in an Airbnb is a different experience than staying in a hotel. With a first-timer, you may have to show them the ropes on a few things and could require additional patience. Due to these reasons, It’s an added benefit if your guests have used Airbnb before. This is especially the case if you are renting a room out of your own home.
If you really are concerned with what type of people may be coming to your home you can even require that anyone who books your listings has already received reviews from other hosts. Additionally, these reviews must be positive. If the guest has any negative reviews, they will not be allowed to instant book. When guests have a great track record with good reviews from other hosts, this can definitely help you feel at ease. Being able to look through potential guests’ reviews gives you the ability to pick up on any red flags.
It is important to note that even though you have the option to require previous positive reviews, you should do so with caution. This requirement will slow down your occupancy rate when you are first starting out. If your goal is to build up your profile and receive bookings quickly, it is recommended that this extra bit of caution is put to the side.
Airbnb House Rules
When using Airbnb Instant Book, this automatically requires that all guests read and agree to your House Rules. This eliminates much of the pre-booking discussions that would otherwise need to happen. You may clearly state if you have quiet hours. You can also state any other requirements you may have for your guests such as requiring that they take out their own trash or load the dishes in the dishwasher after use.
Upon booking, it is understood by the Airbnb platform that guests must abide and have agreed to whatever house rules you publish on your listing.
Airbnb allows Instant Book hosts the power to set these advanced requirements in an attempt to reduce cancellations. and misunderstandings. By giving Instant Book hosts the ability to set these requirements, Airbnb cuts back on potential issues between hosts and undesirable guests.
Remember, when you have these extra precautions turned on, guests who do not meet requirements will not be able to instant book. They will however, be able to contact you to request a reservation.
Custom Welcome Messages
Only hosts who utilize Airbnb Instant book are allowed to have custom pre-set booking messages. Here you may simply welcome them or include any pertinent information you’d like guests to know when booking. In this booking message, you can emphasize important House Rules or mention anything else you want guests to be aware of.
How can I use Airbnb Instant Book effectively?
Here are some tips to help you make the most of the Airbnb Instant Book feature!
Emphasize clear communication
Once a guest has used Instant Book to reserve a stay at your property, strike up a conversation! Then you can begin a dialogue concerning anything you’d like guests to be aware of. Plus, you can ask if they need anything for their stay and start things off on a positive and helpful note.
You don’t need to go deep into discussion. It’s simply helpful to welcome them and let them know about things like parking or how to access the home.
Ensure guests agree to your House Rules
Although your guests have most likely already seen and agreed to your House Rules, there’s no harm in quickly going over them a second time to ensure you and your guests are on the same page. This way you’ll be able to tell if guests are likely to break any rules. In that case, you could use one of your penalty-free cancellations to get out of the arrangement.
Set a minimum and maximum stay length
Airbnb Instant Book also allows you to set a minimum and maximum stay length. Without setting these credentials, the minimum stay is one night and the maximum is 14. By selecting a minimum and maximum stay length, you’ll be able to avoid awkward gaps in your calendar. Plus, you can prioritize longer stays and potentially make more of a profit.
In the very beginning when you are first starting out, one-night stays will help you to get your occupancy rate up and your positive reviews coming in. With each new guest that comes to visit, that is another opportunity to both hone and showcase your skills as a host. After you have a few guests with a few reviews under your belt, you may wish to increase the minimum night stay beyond the one-night option. Between guests requires the most cleaning, so having a minimum that is a few days really helps to lessen your workload as a host. For more information on how to properly clean your home when hosting on Airbnb, you may read our article “How to Clean your Airbnb”.
Important Facts about Airbnb Instant Book
To conclude, Airbnb Instant Book is a powerful and potentially very profitable feature! Some of the best benefits of using Instant Book on Airbnb are the convenience and improved placement in searches. Plus, you can’t forget about the ability to set advanced requirements for guests such as uploading a valid form of government issued ID. In addition, hosts who use Instant Book have an easier pathway to becoming a Superhost!
Unfortunately, there is a downside to this awesome feature. Instant Book hosts don’t have as much power over who books their listing, and they tend to deal with more cancellations.
Of course, there are some methods you can use to utilize Airbnb Instant Book to the best of your ability. First, be sure to emphasize communication and go over House Rules with guests. Also, you can set a minimum and maximum stay length for guests.