Airbnb Optimization Secrets | CS Office Hours

In this CS Office Hours session, Hostaway Customer Success Engineer Andrew Pieries shares practical ways to boost visibility, conversion, and guest satisfaction on Airbnb—directly from the Hostaway dashboard.

Learn how to use New Listing Discounts, Gap Night rules, flexible cancellation with non‑refundable discounts, amenity and location checklists, review workflows, and quality dashboards to protect your ranking and drive revenue. Includes live Q&A with real scenarios and step-by-step pointers

What’s Covered 👇

New Listing Discount: 20% launch promo to win first reviews and traction

Gap Nights: override minimum stays to fill short vacancies without changing your base rules

Reviews engine: responding, learning, automating guest reviews, and why recent reviews matter most

Quality Dashboard: track violations, warnings, and avoid listing removal/suspension

Cancellation strategy: moderate + non‑refundable discount vs. strict-only; conversion impact and filters

Pricing tactics: early-bird, last-minute, weekly/monthly discounts, mandatory vs. optional fees

Photos and media: 30+ images, captions, storytelling for space and surroundings

Amenities and location filters: pools, beachfront/downtown/lake/golf; avoid invisible listings

Listing expectations: stairs, access, returns—avoid mismatched expectations and bad reviews

Guest portal and automations: share codes/timing without breaking Airbnb rules

Timestamps:

00:00 – Welcome, goals, and Hostaway’s channel certifications
02:00 – Superhost/Preferred Listings goals and lower cancellation mindset
03:03 – Agenda: new listing discounts, gap nights, reviews, policies, photos, pricing
04:00 – Reviews: why they drive experience and revenue; best practices to respond and learn
09:10 – Responsiveness: impact on guest experience and tracked response time; tools to automate
11:14 – Recovering from a bad review: get more recent positives to shift averages
12:07 – Removing unfair reviews: terms compliance vs. opinion; how to reply publicly
16:38 – Booking flexibility: why strict hurts discovery; think like a guest
19:39 – Strategy: moderate policy + non‑refundable discount; price positioning
21:06 – Photo count guidance and overview of descriptions/fields
31:51 – New Listing Discount: link, eligibility, strike‑through pricing, traction plan
35:27 – Opportunity Center: where to activate if listing already exists
35:51 – Gap Nights: rules to fill short gaps under your minimum stay
40:00 – Hosting Quality Dashboard: warnings, violations, pending removals
42:04 – Manage and reply to reviews inside Hostaway
42:33 – Where to set flexible vs. strict and add non‑refundable discounts
45:07 – Media best practices: captions, 30+ photos, area/experience shots
46:29 – Amenities and locations: critical filters like pool, beachfront, downtown, lake, golf
48:42 – Description depth: space, access, interaction; using AI to enhance copy
48:42 – Listing expectations: stairs, access, keys, check-in/out; transparency
50:08 – Optional fees, transparency, and Airbnb terms considerations
52:13 – Guest portal: timing door codes, visibility, and compliance notes
54:13 – Pricing & discounts: weekly/monthly, early-bird, last-minute, mandatory fees
57:14 – Improving from 4.0 to 5.0: fix root causes via review analysis and ops
57:42 – Minimum stay strategy vs. market norms; competitor-aware decisions

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🧡 About Hostaway 🧡
Hostaway is an All‑in‑One vacation rental software solution for growing property managers. From marketing and guest communication to operations and reporting, our platform helps you scale with ease. With over 100 integrated tools in our marketplace, Hostaway grows with you—whether you manage two listings or two thousand.

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