Why isn't my Airbnb listing getting views

Member since 2022 · 7 posts · 3 votes

Hello all,

I need some guidance on my listing I have had for 4 years now.

Over the past few months it's really not getting many views?

I have adjusted the price daily, changed the main page pic and tried making listing adjustments. I'm still not getting many views.

i have a property in Tempe, AZ and I have had zero luck getting booked for Superbowl.

i have hosted for 4 years and have never had this problem until a couple months ago

1 Reply

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Lauren Kormylo

Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes

I looked at your listing. I was able to see it on the map, but only when I zoomed in to only 9 properties on the map. When I searched with no dates or number of guests, your house is showing a price of $399 on the map, which is higher than most surrounding ones. Searching for this weekend, it's that same price, $399 a night which is good for that area for SuperBowl weekend. But I wondered why both would be $399, and then I looked at your calendar - you only have the next 3 months of your calendar open! Airbnb gives preference to listings that have their calendars open the longest, like a year or more. Did you intend to only have it open 3 months? Changing that should help you get more bookings. Not to mention a lot of visitors to the Valley want to plan way in advance, and need to book farther out than that.

I few things that could be improved to make it more attractive: While the house is clean and tidy, it looks very sparse. Each bed that sleeps 2 people should have a nightstand and lamp on both sides. The desk needs a lamp. All of the photos of the front of the house at night are crooked. Too many photos (59) for the average person to want to click through on a house this size, the ones just of your artwork are unnecessary, and there are duplicates of other areas that don't add anything new. Your artwork in many rooms is up too high on the wall, which doesn't look right. In 2 of the bedrooms, we can't see if there are dressers or closets or anywhere to put clothes. The rectangle of concrete blocks in the back yard should be removed if there's no reason for them, they're a tripping hazard too.

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Lauren Kormylo
Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
Have you looked at it in incognito mode, as a guest would see it? Is it showing up?
1 Reply
Brooklyn McCarty
Investor · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 754 votes
3y
Look at your enemies. Are they offering something you aren’t? Is your listing lacking compared to theirs?
4 Reply
Nancy Bachety
Rental Property Investor · North Fork, NY · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 631 votes
3y
This is why listing on VRBO also is essential. It has happened to us for inexplicable reasons too. It’s not you, it’s them.
4 Reply
Jc Bustillos
OP
Member since 2022 · 7 posts · 3 votes
3y
Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

Have you looked at it in incognito mode, as a guest would see it? Is it showing up?
Yes and didn't even see it. 😢
0 Reply
Lauren Kormylo
Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Jc Bustillos:

Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

Have you looked at it in incognito mode, as a guest would see it? Is it showing up?
Yes and didn't even see it. 😢

Call Airbnb and tell them that. Something's wrong on their end.
1 Reply
Leslie Anne Morris
Real Estate Agent · Smoky Mountains, TN · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 984 votes
3y
It could be something wrong with the listing, but as days and weeks go by with less views/bookings/wish lists that convert the listing does tank in a sense. You shouldn't have to constantly be changing pricing or the listing itself, but if you are try a steeper price drop or increase even.
2 Reply
Jc Bustillos
OP
Member since 2022 · 7 posts · 3 votes
3y
Quote from @Leslie Anne Morris:

It could be something wrong with the listing, but as days and weeks go by with less views/bookings/wish lists that convert the listing does tank in a sense. You shouldn't have to constantly be changing pricing or the listing itself, but if you are try a steeper price drop or increase even.
Would it be helpful to get a bunch of people to wishlist it?
0 Reply
Leslie Anne Morris
Real Estate Agent · Smoky Mountains, TN · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 984 votes
3y
Quote from @Jc Bustillos:

Quote from @Leslie Anne Morris:

It could be something wrong with the listing, but as days and weeks go by with less views/bookings/wish lists that convert the listing does tank in a sense. You shouldn't have to constantly be changing pricing or the listing itself, but if you are try a steeper price drop or increase even.
Would it be helpful to get a bunch of people to wishlist it?
Not really. There is incorrect thinking around wishlists. Some of those have to convert to bookings or it hurts your overall stats.
1 Reply
Lauren Kormylo
Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Jc Bustillos:
Would it be helpful to get a bunch of people to wishlist it?
If you can't see your listing, than Airbnb has snoozed it or has a glitch in their system. Does your listing show to you as "active"? I've heard of this before, and owners had to keep on them to fix it and make it visible to the public again. Post a link to it, and I'll see if I can see it.
1 Reply
Jc Bustillos
OP
Member since 2022 · 7 posts · 3 votes
3y
Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

Quote from @Jc Bustillos:
Would it be helpful to get a bunch of people to wishlist it?
If you can't see your listing, than Airbnb has snoozed it or has a glitch in their system. Does your listing show to you as "active"? I've heard of this before, and owners had to keep on them to fix it and make it visible to the public again. Post a link to it, and I'll see if I can see it.
airbnb.com/h/casasolana
0 Reply
January Johnson
Real Estate Agent · Emerald Coast, FL · Member since 2016 · 820 posts · 486 votes
3y
I checked out your listing, and it could benefit from professional photos and better staging. I would have a decorator come in and make a few changes to make it more appealing to women who book most rentals/vacations. The place is very spare with no cohesive decor colors or theme. Your coffee "bar" is too basic to be interesting. Frankly, it just looks boring. The photos of the nondescript artwork and the poor night-time photography aren't helping the appeal.
Just my $0.02.
2 Reply
Eliott Elias
Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2021 · 9k+ posts · 5k+ votes
3y
Say hello to the recession, investors are going to have to get realistic with their numbers now.
1 Reply
Scott E.
Contractor · Scottsdale, AZ · Member since 2010 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
3y
You haven't even had a review in 8 months? Did you make the listing 'unlisted' for a while? Or block off a bunch of time for yourself? This might have thrown off the algorithm.
Regarding the Super Bowl bookings, unfortunately I have a few friends in the same boat. Everybody has these expectations that they will be able to charge $1000+ per night and book out for the week. But the teams have been selected and the market has spoken. There is too much supply in the Phoenix market, and not enough Super Bowl week demand.
2 Reply
Jaron WallingPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Indianapolis, IN · Member since 2018 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes
3y
I disagree with the response stating to get new photos. The listing photos look fantastic. I like the grilling photo. It's a bit dark (could be brightened), but it's great. The photos actually tell a story.

$350 per night is crazy no?... We're not STR investors and not in your market but we love traveling. I'm your "buyer" and would question spending that much money in Tempe, AZ. Airbnb messed something up on the back end no doubt, but I also agree with Scott.
3 Reply
Jay ThomasPro Member
Real Estate Agent · Houston, TX · Member since 2021 · 1k+ posts · 715 votes
3y
If you're noticing that your Real Estate listing isn't getting as many views, bookings, or wish lists as it used to, there could be something wrong with the listing. Don't worry, though, there are a few things you can do to try and fix the problem.

First, take a look at your pricing. If you've been lowering your prices but still not getting many bites, it might be time to raise them again. Alternatively, if you've been raising your prices but not getting many views or bookings, it might be time to lower them again.

It's also possible that there's something wrong with the listing itself. If you think this might be the case, try making some changes to the listing and see if that helps. Maybe adding or removing certain features, or changing the language of your description.

Whatever you do, don't give up hope! With a few tweaks here and there, you can turn that Real Estate listing around in no time. Good luck!
[email protected]832-889-5607
1 Reply
Daniel Murphy
Financial Advisor · Saint Paul, MN · Member since 2016 · 190 posts · 143 votes
3y
I've watched a handful of Sean Razditch's videos recently. Then I did an incogneto search of my city, clicked "I'm flexible", then a week stay & added it for the next 4 months. The theory is, without specific paramaters, Airbnb will show you their "best" listings. Mine was not on any of the first 15 pages.
The funny thing is, I have better photos, better review and many more of them than many of the "best" listings. What I ended up finding out from this is two main things.
1) it's believed that Airbnb prioritize listings that are booked out into the future. It's an indicator that your property is popular & they like that. They like people booking your property well in advance. When looking at yours, you're pretty empty for awhile (hence your original post).
2) I did a comparison of all of the similar "best" properties to mine & found out that most were charging less per night. This was an indicator to me that they are getting booked because their prices were lower.
I'm in the middle of the busy season for our rental (SWFL), so I've actually raised my prices 10% or so since I'm not worried about being booked. But... it's a double edged sword. If there are 500 listings in my area, Airbnb will show them all during the busy season because there is plenty of demand. But, as we enter into the slow season (lower demand), Airbnb (theoretically) will only show their "best" properties.
So I'm left trying to balance, do I raise my prices during the busy season to get more money knowing I may not be one of their "best" properties & thus not shown as much during the slow season? Or...
Do I lower my prices now to get booked far in advance during the busy season and which will hopefully result in becoming one of the "best" properties, which would show my listing more during the slow season?
All that is to say, keep working on your listing. Consider lowering your prices for a bit to entice 5-10 bookings to get your back in the game.
2 Reply
Peter MckernanBusiness Member
Residential Real Estate Agent · Irvine, CA · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Jc Bustillos:

Hello all,
I need some guidance on my listing I have had for 4 years now.
Over the past few months it's really not getting many views?
I have adjusted the price daily, changed the main page pic and tried making listing adjustments. I'm still not getting many views.

i have a property in Tempe, AZ and I have had zero luck getting booked for Superbowl.

i have hosted for 4 years and have never had this problem until a couple months ago
Amenities, pictures, and maybe getting a bigger name guest in there to post on their social to add more visibility on the deal so that more people will be looking for it when they go into Tempe!
The McKernan Group4.957 Reviews
Website View Page
0 Reply
Account Closed
Rental Property Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2019 · 78 posts · 66 votes
3y
I looked at your listing. Please take this with a grain of salt and know that I write it in the spirit of being helpful.
Your rating is 4.76 stars. Objectively, that's low in Airbnb's eyes. You had some guests note that it needs TLC in their reviews. I would address those issues and respond to their comments that you've made improvements. Also, you responded to one guest basically by only saying they were the worst guests you've had. Your response is not helpful, even though it's accurate for you. That guest pointed out a bunch of stuff in the house. IMO, you should have responded publicly by thanking them for the feedback and noting that you've addressed the issues (assuming you did) and then state that you always strive to provide the best stay for guests, etc... Otherwise, you come across as argumentative on Airbnb and other potential guests aren't going to like that. If you can't address the items that need "TLC" then perhaps include an auto message explaining that Airbnb sees anything less than a 5 star review as poor and encouraging guests to provide any feedback for improvements privately so that you can address them (there's a more eloquent way to write this in your msg, but you get the point). Most of your reviews are great, so you need to get more great ones in so you can bury that bad one.
I suggest you also spend some time learning in detail how Airbnb's algorithm works (at least how folks guess it works since they don't explicitly tell you) and look closely at the properties that show up on page 1 when you search your area for your desired or most common number of guests.
Last, you can edit your listing for specific events/seasons. Such as calling the title "You're perfect home base for Super Bowl..." or something. But, you've gotta get on the first couple search pages to show up on the list or map.
4 Reply
Lauren Kormylo
Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
I looked at your listing. I was able to see it on the map, but only when I zoomed in to only 9 properties on the map. When I searched with no dates or number of guests, your house is showing a price of $399 on the map, which is higher than most surrounding ones. Searching for this weekend, it's that same price, $399 a night which is good for that area for SuperBowl weekend. But I wondered why both would be $399, and then I looked at your calendar - you only have the next 3 months of your calendar open! Airbnb gives preference to listings that have their calendars open the longest, like a year or more. Did you intend to only have it open 3 months? Changing that should help you get more bookings. Not to mention a lot of visitors to the Valley want to plan way in advance, and need to book farther out than that.
I few things that could be improved to make it more attractive: While the house is clean and tidy, it looks very sparse. Each bed that sleeps 2 people should have a nightstand and lamp on both sides. The desk needs a lamp. All of the photos of the front of the house at night are crooked. Too many photos (59) for the average person to want to click through on a house this size, the ones just of your artwork are unnecessary, and there are duplicates of other areas that don't add anything new. Your artwork in many rooms is up too high on the wall, which doesn't look right. In 2 of the bedrooms, we can't see if there are dressers or closets or anywhere to put clothes. The rectangle of concrete blocks in the back yard should be removed if there's no reason for them, they're a tripping hazard too.
5 Reply
Clarissa Baker
Property Manager · Miami, FL · Member since 2023 · 21 posts · 3 votes
3y
Since Airbnb's winter release the factors that affect their SEO have changed somewhat. Also, competition is really high with a lot more properties now in the market.
Changing the price alone is not enough if your price is not competitive with other Airbnbs with a similar offering in your area. Offering discounts, etc can help.
Again, making adjustments to your listing alone is not sufficient if you're not optimizing your listing as well.
Also, what's your response rate like? That's another big factor that Airbnb takes into account when determining your search ranking.
0 Reply
Carlos Ptriawan
Member since 2019 · 7k+ posts · 4k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Jaron Walling:

I disagree with the response stating to get new photos. The listing photos look fantastic. I like the grilling photo. It's a bit dark (could be brightened), but it's great. The photos actually tell a story.

$350 per night is crazy no?... We're not STR investors and not in your market but we love traveling. I'm your "buyer" and would question spending that much money in Tempe, AZ. Airbnb messed something up on the back end no doubt, but I also agree with Scott.

you got it bro.
just think about it why someone want to spend 350 per night in the middle of arizona town
the problem with airbnb and other business stuff is that you don't know or understand the demand on the buyer pool side, you simply do not know.
if hypotheticaly you have 100 potential renter but 90% of them could only afford max 150 night, and rest of 10% would be able to afford up to 400/night but on supply side you have 500 houses, then you're doomed.
it's mismatch of liquidity in your case, but the theory has to be proven. I see this many times.
0 Reply
Jon Martin
Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
Quote from @January Johnson:

I checked out your listing, and it could benefit from professional photos and better staging. I would have a decorator come in and make a few changes to make it more appealing to women who book most rentals/vacations. The place is very spare with no cohesive decor colors or theme. Your coffee "bar" is too basic to be interesting. Frankly, it just looks boring. The photos of the nondescript artwork and the poor night-time photography aren't helping the appeal.
Just my $0.02.
Agreed, especially in regards to the artwork. There is no reason to have a beach photo or an anchor/sailboat wheel when you are a full day drive to the ocean. It's disjointed and out of place. You have some nice desert landscapes pieces, which are perfectly appropriate given your location, so keep with that theme and maybe compliment with some decorations that have a closely related secondary theme (southwest Native American art, cowboy, western movie etc). The word art is also cliche and way overdone, especially given that you have multiple shots of the same pieces. I don't really care to wake up to "winners never quit" or whatever when I'm on vacation.

I also think your price is too high. A quick search for the following weekend shows homes in your area with pools and/or more upscale kitchen and bathroom finishes (backsplash, undermount sinks, granite countertops, tile shower etc) for $100+ less per night. I think that with the help of a designer and a small budget for extras you could really spruce it up because the bones of your place are clean and functional. You could even change it up seasonally with some baseball related stuff during the spring training months. Good luck.
2 Reply
January Johnson
Real Estate Agent · Emerald Coast, FL · Member since 2016 · 820 posts · 486 votes
3y
I love the collegiality on this thread! I have learned a lot from the comments as well. Love BP and the "team" it creates!
1 Reply
Account Closed
Investor · Scottsdale Austin Tuktoyaktuk · Member since 2021 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

Have you looked at it in incognito mode, as a guest would see it? Is it showing up?
@Lauren Kormylo: That's greta information. I did not know it existed. Of course I haven't gone live yet but it is good to know that it's there.

0 Reply
Lauren Kormylo
Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Account Closed:

Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

Have you looked at it in incognito mode, as a guest would see it? Is it showing up?
@Lauren Kormylo: That's greta information. I did not know it existed. Of course I haven't gone live yet but it is good to know that it's there.

Incognito or private browsing mode, where you're not signed into Airbnb, so it doesn't recognize you as an owner.
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