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Category: Pricing & Revenue
By: Megan O'Connor
Reply by Olivia Laurent:
I offer a 10% discount for direct bookings and it works well. Here's my logic: - Airbnb charges me ~3% host fee + guests pay ~14% guest service fee = ~17% total Airbnb tax - For a $200/night booking, the guest pays $228 on Airbnb, I receive $194 - Direct booking at 10% off: guest pays $180, I receive $180 **Guest saves $48/night. I earn less but have no fees and more control.** In practice, only ~15% of my bookings come direct. But those are my most profitable bookings AND those guests become repeat customers who never go back to Airbnb. The key is capturing guest emails with StayFi (https://stayfi.com) — guests log into your WiFi and you get their email. Then send them a "book direct next time and save 10%" email after checkout.
Reply by Heather Barnes:
I go higher — 15% off for direct bookings. At 15%, the savings is significant enough that guests remember and tell friends. It also makes up for not having Airbnb's review system to build trust. Make sure your direct booking site has clear cancellation policies and trust signals (SSL, professional design, reviews imported from Airbnb). Guests are more nervous booking direct because there's no platform to protect them.