Do you want your property to rank higher and stand out among 7 million Airbnb listings to increase bookings? Then, improving your Airbnb SEO strategy is the primary way out.
Airbnb SEO is a strategic process of improving your rank for visibility during any related Airbnb search.
As it’s essential to optimize your website to show on Google’s first page, optimizing your listing on Airbnb is vital to obtaining higher ranks. This guide will discuss how you can optimize your listing on Airbnb and how the Airbnb SEO algorithm work.
Table of Contents
How do I Rank higher on Airbnb?
Ranking during Airbnb search uses an algorithm that analyses multiple factors to rank any listing. Therefore, to rank higher on Airbnb, several factors are in consideration.
According to Airbnb, there are over 100 factors responsible for the rank of listings during searches. Some of the factors include a compelling title and description, instant booking feature, detailed profile, quick response rate, good client review, and interest. Only Airbnb knows how its search algorithm works. Still, the company has revealed some elements that affect the listing and promises to keep updating it.
How does Airbnb Use SEO?
Airbnb uses its secret algorithm to rank listings on its platform.
Unlike Google, the Airbnb SEO strategy doesn’t focus on keywords in the written content. The algorithm tries to understand the guest’s needs through search and how the host can meet the requirement.
The Airbnb platforms tip property owners about their numerous ranking factors, but the true secret still lies in their algorithm. Therefore, from the algorithm ranking factor provided, those over hundred factors are summarized into three categories. These categories include:
What the Guest Need
The guest’s need is a significant factor that property owners who want to host guests cannot control. The preference and choice of the guest are of top priority as Airbnb intends to keep its record of integrity.
As a rental property owner, you should take note of what the guest booking entails so you can know what to provide. In addition, Airbnb considers the type of listing they provide to potential clients. Therefore as property owners, your profile should state who suits your listing e.g family, couples, business associates, campers, tourists, etc.
Also, ensure you interview your guest so you can know what they actually want before you approve your bookings.
Airbnb considers guests’ current location, where they’re headed, previous trips, and other factors to provide the guest’s wants. These factors property owners cannot know.
Guest Trip detail
The guest trip details are another factor listing hosts cannot control. The Airbnb algorithm considers this when the client inputs them. The trip details account for the number of guests traveling, the journey’s aim, the amount the client is willing to offer, and other information.
These factors influence the listing on the first page of Airbnb’s search, and there is nothing the Airbnb host can do to influence the ranking on this factor.
Listing details
The listing detail is the only algorithm factor vacation rental can influence. Listing details include guest review, booking rate, price, excellent Airbnb profile, quick reply, etc. Therefore, you want to create a listing that stands out from other hosts.
This factor is essential to improve your listing rank on Airbnb’s first page and increase your booking rate.
Since it’s impossible to influence most Airbnb Algorithm factors, what can be done to improve your Airbnb ranking?
How to improve your Ranking on Airbnb?
As vacation rentals with property listings on Airbnb, your primary focus is to rank higher and get more bookings from the platform. Therefore, you need to tweak your listing profile to what the Airbnb algorithm will rank easily to achieve this aim.
Improving your Airbnb ranking depends on how optimized your Airbnb profile is; this, in turn, relates to its visibility.
Here are some of the factors you should consider Airbnb algorithm considers before ranking its listings on any search:
Optimize your Listing
Optimizing your Airbnb profile and listing title to ensure they reflect your service and are catchy enough is essential. The title is what prospective client encounters for a quick assessment of your listing. The title determines whether your vacation rental is suitable for their need. Therefore, there is a need to create an accurate, precise, and catchy title.
Most guests also check the host profile; this helps boost clients’ assurance when booking on this platform. Therefore, it’s essential to write a dazzling host profile and add all necessary details for account verification.
The Airbnb title section allows only 50 characters. Therefore, pay attention to the words in your title, they must reflect the terms potential clients will search on Airbnb.
Your profile title should be precise, contain helpful information describing your vacation rental, and lack exaggerating adjectives.
To create the above-described title, ensure your listing title contains the following elements:
- An excellent feature of your property
- Words that reflect the number of guests you can welcome (e.g., couple or family suite)
- Closeby landmarks and tourist centers guests can visit
- Who suits the property? (e.g., business associates, campers, tourists, etc.)
Also, always draft and redraft your listing title to ensure it’s appealing to a potential client.
Learn the five golden rules of writing a compelling Airbnb title.
Quick Response Rate
Airbnb wants to deliver the best for its client in the best possible way. Therefore, giving customers a fast, convenient, and reliable experience will improve your ranking on the platform. Airbnb host that responds to clients quickly has their listing on the top ranks.
You can follow the Airbnb advised a period of ‘within 24hr’ to respond. But it’s advisable to respond much earlier than that.
Advice: you can consider using the smartphone app of Airbnb to ensure a quick response to prospective clients.
Ensure Instant Booking
Airbnb clearly states that they rank listings with instant booking more highly. Instant booking is one of the fastest ways to achieve over 90% Airbnb optimizing score.
This feature allows guests to make their booking quickly and pay without waiting for host approval. This feature on Airbnb is user-friendly as clients can choose their arrival date and subsequently connect to the host.
In addition, instant booking positively impacts your response rate, increasing your property visibility.
Also, the instant booking feature helps you to reach the Superhost status. This status requires maintenance of at least a 90% response rate.
Tip: To enable instant booking, login to your Airbnb dashboard > click my listing> Manage listing > Booking settings > On the Instant Book button.
Improve Guest Reviews and Ratings
Acquiring positive reviews and high ratings on Airbnb is a treasure for your listing to rank on the platform. Positive thoughts and high ratings help attract guests to your listings on Airbnb and trust in the property.
Many remarkable properties on Airbnb mostly don’t get the visibility and attention they deserve because they have few reviews and star ratings.
Advice: Engage guests both offline and online to gather their views on your service. Also, you can send emails to previous clients with the link to rate their experience with your service.
Learn how to respond to negative guest reviews
Ensure a low Booking Cancellation rate
The Airbnb ranking algorithm believes canceling bookings is due to disagreement between the host and guest. The increased cancellation rate is one of the fastest ways to lose your Superhost status.
If there’s a need to cancel any booking, Airbnb gives every listing one cancellation in six months. Any further cancellation will be punished with a decrease in ranking level.
Update your Frequently Calendar Frequently
Many property owners often have busy schedules and forget to update their booking calendars. As an Airbnb host, always make an effort to update your listing status to avoid double bookings, which can later lead to cancellation. Ensure you put accurate information about your property out daily to avoid missed opportunities.
Also, it’s believed that logging into your calendar board daily directly impacts your listing rank.
Keep Competitive Prices
Airbnb clearly states that an important criterion in their search algorithm for ranking is the property’s price point. The price must be competitive enough. Therefore, if you have a listing that the price is way outside the typical price range, it may not rank. This effect is because the price range is higher than the bid price of most Airbnb guests.
So you should list your property at a realistic price. The price tag is critical when you are new to the platform.
Tips: Research around you similar rental properties around you so you can compare prices. If you are a start-up, ensure your nightly rate is cheaper to attract more bookings.
Create a Professional Guidebook for guest
The Airbnb platform allows you to create a guidebook to attract potential clients. The guidebook includes areas available around the property location that can attract the guest to book your property. Guest often search for a rental property with exciting places such as tourist centers, restaurants, sports arenas, etc., to book.
Therefore, including popular centers in your guidebook may help increase clicks, which relates to high ranking on Airbnb.
Best Keywords for Airbnb
In 2020, Airbnb announced removing the keywords search feature on its ranking algorithm. It implies that Potential clients cannot search for unique amenities on the Airbnb platform.
Although keywords search is impossible on Airbnb, we still can’t discourage its effectiveness in your listing description. The use of essential and correct keywords may help your listing appear on keyword-enhanced search engines such as Google and Bing.
Therefore, to create an Airbnb title for your listings on Airbnb, you can include keywords for Google, Bing, etc., for ranking sake or decide not to (only for Airbnb).
Note: To create a new listing on Airbnb, ensure you have a catchy title and avoid fluffs. The title is to maximize booking and enhance visibility on Airbnb.
Conclusion
Airbnb SEO is an excellent practice property owners on Airbnb utilize to stay ahead of competitors on the platform. Therefore to rank higher on Airbnb, you need to improve your Airbnb SEO strategy.
Use these tips above as a pointer to get higher ranks on Airbnb.
Contact us today for professional copywriting of your Airbnb listing and the creation of guidebooks for guests.