The views expressed by the contributing Entrepreneurs are their own.
Automating your Airbnb listing means you’re hands-free with the business. And that’s the first step to the location freedom you’ve always wanted. Location freedom is being able to go anywhere in the world and earn money even though you are not physically present. So when it comes to managing your Airbnb, how do you automate the process and what strategies should you implement?
Ask any Airbnb host about their business goals and you’ll likely get a standard response in return: “We all want passive income and location freedom.” And who wouldn’t want to keep making money wherever they are, right?
However, running an Airbnb business is like any other full-time job — you’ll feel excitement and burnout along the way. But there are a ton of savvy hosts who know how to manage their Airbnbs, take the stress out of the equation, and still enjoy the fruits of their labor. You can be one of them. You can use their strategies and automate these three key things in your Airbnb listing so you can work on your business, not on it.
Related: How to Create 7 Income Streams for Passive Wealth
1. Cleaning
This is probably the most important aspect of running a short term rental business. However, as vital as it is, you also shouldn’t try to save money by cleaning your property. If your goal is to be truly independent with your business, you need to automate it.
For this, you can hire a professional cleaning company or you can hire people you know. And there should be a system for your crew because for your business to be truly automated, it needs a process to follow. For example, your crew needs to be there right after guests check out in a certain time window (for example, from 10am to 3pm).
When you put it on autopilot, your team will automatically pick up where the guests left off, clean up during the window, and you don’t have to clean the place yourself.
2. Maintenance
The next thing you need to automate is maintenance. Hiring a maintainer will ensure that anything that breaks is fixed as soon as possible. This person will ideally be working on-call and you should let them know that you have a window and that if there is any handy work that needs to be done, they should do it during that window.
In terms of compensation, it is recommended that you pay both your maintainer and cleaners on a per-case or per-project basis.
3. Communications
And last but not least, communications.
This part of the operations is vital because it will ensure that you are streamlining the tasks that need to be done and not doing all the work yourself. For this, you can use Slack, a communication platform that is easier to manage.
With proper communication, you should add the owner, the cleaners, the maintenance person and everyone involved in the maintenance of this property. For example, you can ask the cleaning crew to post photos of the property after each cleaning. They can also visually inspect the property to see if anything is missing or in need of repair.
If there is, you can then tag your maintainer so they can come and handle it during the cleaning window. This will make everything easier for you.
We recommend that you do the communications for the first three properties you open so you can experience it first hand. In addition, it is also difficult to delegate communication when you have not done it and do not understand it yourself.
The most important thing to remember during these tasks is that you are not doing the cleaning or maintenance yourself. Outsource these things or hire someone else. This way, you will be able to start working in the business and not in the business.
Related: 4 Powerful Tips to Build a Successful Airbnb Business
Passive income through Airbnb short-term rentals
As you know, Airbnb is a home sharing platform where you can list your property so that guests around the world can book your place for a short period of time. But this is more than a place made for guests who like a comfortable stay. It is also a good business venture for people looking for passive income.
So if you own a property, you can start your listing and use the automation strategies we just shared with you. If you are a beginner and just looking for tips to start your Airbnb business, then you can keep these tricks for future use.
Related: How to Start an Airbnb Business Without Owning a Property