Article

Don’t Set It and Forget It: Keep Your Short-Term Rental Listing Fresh

August 15, 2024

Have you ever stayed in an STR (short-term rental) that didn’t quite match the photos or description?

Or maybe you were searching for a summer getaway and came across a listing boasting about its proximity to skiing.

It happens to the best of us. We update the sofa, swap out the Keurig for a drip coffee maker, and launch our property in the fall with snow pics and skiing descriptions. But as spring rolls around and guests start booking for summer, we often forget to update the listing.

When I coach people in Host Camp, I often say, “Don’t set it and forget it!” This means don’t launch your property and then put it on cruise control. Many well-intentioned hosts make this mistake, and while it’s not necessarily catastrophic, it can certainly lead to disappointed guests and fewer bookings.

Real-Life Example: Coffee Makers

Let’s say you launched your property with a Keurig coffee maker, and your listing description highlights it along with complimentary k-cups. After a few months, you decided that k-cups were too expensive (they’re about 10x the price of ground coffee per cup) and switched to a drip coffee maker.

If you forgot to update your listing description, a guest might expect the Keurig and be disappointed to find a drip coffee maker instead—one they might not even know how to use. While it might not be a disaster, it could sour the guest’s initial impression because the property is different from what was promised.

Another Scenario: Seasonal Descriptions

Imagine a guest is scrolling through Airbnb listings looking for the perfect summer vacation spot. They see your listing, but the title reads “Skier’s Delight!” They might skip over your listing because it doesn’t match their summer vacation mood.

The Importance of Regular Updates

Am I suggesting that a change in coffee makers or an outdated listing title will lead to poor reviews or fewer bookings? Not necessarily!

What I am suggesting is that in today’s competitive STR market, it’s essential to optimize your listing and operations. Even one additional booking a year can mean an extra $500 in revenue. Spending an hour updating your listing to gain that extra revenue is a worthwhile investment.

My Approach to Keeping Listings Fresh

Here’s what I do in my business:

Update Listings with Changes: Whenever I change something about the property, I update the listing with new photos, descriptions, and details.
Quarterly Reviews: I conduct a quarterly review of all my listings. During this review, I:some text
- Update the property name if needed
- Reorder photos
- Refresh the description
- Verify all amenities
This ensures that each listing reflects the current experience guests can expect and provides a backup if I forget to update a property immediately after making a change.

This whole process takes about an hour per year for each property. I firmly believe it results in more bookings than if I simply set it and forget it.