Early Check-In
We’ve tried several operational things to make sure guests have a positive experience. So, not just how we deal with issues they bring us – which I already discussed – but what can we do proactively to make sure guests have a positive experience when they stay at one of our properties? Things we’ve tried include:
- Changing our refund policy to basically give them out not only whenever a guest asks for one, but before they even do.
- $50 Magic Pill – if our front line identifies a way to positively affect any one guest’s stay for $50 or less, they don’t need approval. Just do it and report it after the fact.
- Late Checkout Gifting – If there’s no same-day turnover, we let the guest stay until the end of day on check-out day and push the cleaning to the next day.
- Early Check-in Gifting – We let the guest in as soon as the home is ready for them. If it’s ready the day before, then we send them a message at 8am (their expected check-in time is 4pm) and we let them know that they can check-in as soon as *right now*.
Out of all of those (and other unmentioned things we tried) the last one is by far the most effective. When a guest asks for a refund, there’s obviously some kind of problem. Same thing with a magic pill at least half the time. And by the time their stay ends and we give them the late check-out, they’ve already experienced whatever they are going to experience AND they’ve made plans to be out by check-out time, so their experience is realistically little changed. It’s too little too late. But when they expect to not be able to enter the property until 4pm and they have to figure out what to do in the meantime – and we erase the problem first thing in the morning of the check-in day – we’ve just given them a positive experience before they even step foot in the house. So now instead of a late check-out looking like a lazy attempt to make their experience better – especially if there was some issue with their experience – now we create a situation where they are more forgiving of something going wrong. It sets a tone that we are hospitable, we are here to make sure you get in the home and have a good time, and we’re going to start your stay right away with exceeding expectations. In fact, we got rid of late-check out gifts (We’ll still happily charge you for one though) because not only do cleaners hate it but it also reduces the number of ECIs possible, as a next day booking will now have their clean pushed to morning-of rather than right after the previous guests’ departure. So it’s gone, and we are all in on ECIs.
Take a look at how are reviews have improved over the course of all this time:
Need I say more?
Sure, but just a little:
This business is constantly changing, and what we’re doing tomorrow or next year *will* look different than what we’re doing today. But I think the constant measure of KPIs and changing behavior in response to their movement is ultimately the “habit” that will ensure long term success. What gets measured, improves. For sure. And while there are several factors that predicate financial success in the STR space, there is nothing more impactful than developing a track record of positive guest experiences. Nothing. And so while we have a handful of other KPIs that are very important, and several other practices – mostly marketing things – that help generate top dollar nightly rates – all of those things could change tomorrow and I wouldn’t be surprised. But it’s hard to imagine a world in this industry where guest satisfaction is anything other than the absolute number one thing you need to not only worry about, but be obsessed with.
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