Airbnb Saved Messages

Airbnb Email Templates to Enhance Guest Experience

It’s safe to say that guest experience is what drives the vacation rental industry. From building loyalty to increasing bookings, this concept encompasses a plethora of strategies and actions to ensure the best possible relationship with guests. However, communication is a key element that stands out significantly.

If you’ve ever been to a vacation rental yourself, you’ll know that attentive communication leads to a long-lasting positive impression. However, it can also be overwhelming for hosts to keep up with. Writing professional emails and messages for every guest tends to consume lots of time, especially when you’re busy managing several properties. That said, it is an extremely important factor in the industry and therefore solutions must be made.

Whether it’s to message your guests before or after their stay, this article will provide you with Airbnb email templates to help you optimize your time while managing your vacation rental business.

Airbnb Email Templates For Vacation Rentals

What are Airbnb Saved Messages?

Thanks to Airbnb’s saved messages, you no longer need to write down the same welcome paragraph or answer the same questions over and over again. This feature allows you to easily save templates for messages within the platform. To start, all you have to do is go to a message thread with any guest and click “Use a Saved Message”. If it’s your first time using saved messages, you will see the option to create one. You can then write a title and insert the message template that you’d like to save. This message will appear every time you click “Use a Saved Message”.

If you have vacation rental software like Lodgify that integrates with Airbnb and syncs messaging, you could automate these messages from your Lodgify account.

Regardless of what you use to send automated messages, what are some examples of saved messages that you should keep up your sleeve? Think of creating a template thanking your guests for booking your vacation rental, directions to your property, check-in instructions, a list of necessities such as wifi passwords, detailed suggestions for restaurants and activities nearby, or a reminder to leave a review. Provide your guests with the same amount of information you would give to a close family member coming to visit and always remember to keep a friendly and respectful tone.

By using templates, not only are you saving hours of work, but you’re also ensuring that guests receive the same quality of information every time. The margin for human error drops notably and this results in much better service overall. Better service, better business!

Airbnb email templates

Benefits of Autoresponders

How many times has life gotten in the way of responding to your guests in a timely manner? If you’re human, then you’ve experienced delays in your responses. It’s unrealistic to expect vacation rental owners and managers to be hooked to their computers or phones all throughout the day but not doing so can negatively impact the experience of your vacationers. That’s where automation comes in and it quite literally saves the day! 

Autoresponders are scheduled and automated emails, messages, and SMS texts. They are sent when a guest or potential guest does a specific action, such as booking your property or checking out. This way, if you’re juggling several vacation rental properties and overwhelmed by the back-and-forth emailing that takes place, you can finally put your mind at ease. 

Autoresponder emails

You can organize autoresponders directly from your personal email or use Lodgify’s reservation manager to facilitate this process with an abundance of features such as translations to 10 different languages. Installing or activating autoresponders can absolutely transform your customer service and drive your vacation rental business to success. Not only do your guests get immediate replies and attention, but you’re also granted the liberty to go on a walk or take a nap without your eyes being plastered to a phone. In other words, it’s a win-win!

How to Write a Great Email Template

The key to writing a perfect email template is to make it customizable. Although you want to respond to guests as quickly and clearly as possible, you also don’t want them to feel like they’re talking to a robot. Keep this in mind when choosing or creating a great email template. You want the message or email to include all the general information while keeping a genuine and personalized touch. 

When writing an email template, make sure to: 

  1. Start off with the name of the guest
  2. Keep a friendly tone throughout the email
  3. Save multiple spaces for customized text
  4. End with your contact information 
  5. Check your grammar and spelling
  6. Only make templates for necessary and repeated topics (the goal isn’t to make everything automated so be picky with the templates you’ll use)

Email Templates for Hosts

When thinking of what kinds of emails you’d like to automate, put yourself in the shoes of your guests and imagine exactly what you’d expect if you were in their place. In other words, try to experience your vacation rental for the first time. Is the location of your property difficult to find? Are there specific light switches in your home that might be missed? You want to cover any and all topics that will facilitate your guest’s experience during their stay.

The following are topic ideas for your email templates:

Booking Confirmation

Receiving a personalized booking confirmation can really set the mood for a great vacation, allowing your guests to feel welcomed and excited for their trip right off the bat.

Pre-Arrival

You’ll hear many people say that the experience of a guest starts way before they set foot in your vacation rental property. Sending an email prior to arrival with the check-in procedure and any other information your guest might need (such as direction or wifi passwords) will ensure a positive and smooth start to their holiday. 

Email Templates for Hosts

Post-Check-In

Time to touch base! Sending an email to ask if there’s anything your guests are missing or simply asking how things are going so far is a great way to show you genuinely care about them. It may seem like a small detail but checking in on guests to see if everything is going well will undoubtedly leave an incredible impression on them. 

Maintenance Issues

It’s impossible to predict and avoid all issues related to maintenance as a vacation rental business. The truth of the matter is that there’s always a chance of things breaking, but having an email template ready ahead of time will drastically speed up the process of repair. 

Check-out Reminder

On the night before your guest’s departure, send a reminder for check-out details such as the check-out time and a checklist of things you’d like them to do before leaving (eg: locking up the property). Guests might be overwhelmed with packing and their upcoming trip home so it’s both convenient for them to receive a reminder and beneficial to you as these things will be more likely to get done. 

Post-Check-Out

A few days after your guests check out, send them an email thanking them again for choosing your vacation rental and wishing them well. Not only is this a great opportunity to remind guests to leave a review, but you can also ask them for direct feedback on their stay. This interaction will only further the relationship you had established with them throughout their stay and will promote loyalty to your property. 

Reconnection

Last but not least, sending an email to reconnect with past guests will increase the likelihood of your vacation rental being remembered. Tempt your guests by mentioning offers, promotions, or discounts that might take place. 

Airbnb Email Templates

Tools to Help Automate Guest Communication

When working in the vacation rental industry, it may seem like your days are constantly filled with back to back emails and grammar checks. Having several go-to email templates ready can help optimize your time and ensure an excellent customer experience. However, there are tools that can facilitate the process even more. 

Lodgify offers an automation tool that can help minimize repetition and simplify guest communication. As previously mentioned, the templates you use can be customized and scheduled based on specific triggers or actions. Customization is always recommended, as it allows you to incorporate your own tone of voice or writing style. The result is an authentic and professional email that takes none of your time! 

Conclusion: Get Started Today

The good news is that using Airbnb’s saved messages and email templates will drastically reduce the time you spend on communication. That said, you’ll be able to direct your energy towards other important tasks needed to run your vacation rental. Not only will your customer service be through the roof, but you’ll also feel more efficient and satisfied with your business. Download the PDF below so that you can start organizing your email templates today!

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