Top Airbnb & short-term rental hosts reveal the secrets to more bookings

• Price attracts attention, but quality content, reviews and guest experience ultimately convert browsers into paying guests.
• Top-performing Airbnb listings consistently outperform competitors through better photography, richer descriptions and higher guest satisfaction.
• Successful operators treat listings as living assets, constantly refining content, pricing, availability and guest experience to maximise revenue.

While many short-term rental operators instinctively reduce prices when bookings slow down, leading industry experts say the biggest opportunity to increase occupancy and revenue often lies elsewhere.

Speaking during a panel discussion at the Short-Term Rental Conference in Cape Town on 22 July, moderator Athul Mohan, Team Lead Asia & Africa at PriceLabs, was joined by Mikhail Page, Market Manager for South Africa, Ghana, Kenya and Botswana at Airbnb, and Gerrit Dreyer, Head of Revenue at Fluent Living, to unpack how South Africa's top-performing operators consistently outperform the market through smarter listing optimisation rather than discounting.

The discussion revealed that successful Airbnb businesses are increasingly built on data, technology, compelling content and exceptional guest experiences rather than simply offering the lowest nightly rate.

Price gets you considered. Content gets you booked.

‍One of the strongest messages from the session came from Airbnb's Mikhail Page. "Price gets you considered, but the content gets you booked."

According to Page, many operators immediately focus on adjusting pricing when performance declines, when the real issue often lies in the quality of the listing itself.

He explained that Airbnb's optimisation process starts with delivering a high-quality guest experience before looking at pricing strategies.

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"The basics always start with your reviews," he said. "Focus on quality first. Then improve your content, your listing title, descriptions, photos and amenities before worrying about pricing."

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Even seemingly minor details can make a measurable difference. Adding simple check-out instructions, for example, can improve gross booking value over time because guests appreciate clear communication and seamless experiences. Likewise, fast response times, Instant Book and consistently high review scores all contribute to better search visibility.

Better content drives higher revenue

‍PriceLabs' own research reinforces this approach. Athul Mohan revealed that after analysing thousands of listings, the company found that content quality remains one of the biggest drivers of revenue, even after accounting for variables such as location, property size, amenities and pricing.

Their research showed that approximately 88% of listings contain issues affecting their visibility, while only around 9% of listings demonstrate truly high-quality content. Those top-performing listings were 38% more likely to outperform their competitors.

Rather than simply competing on price, operators should continually refine six core areas of every listing:

• Listing title
• Photography
• Description
• Amenities
• Consistency across the listing
• Guest reviews and ratings

Together these factors significantly influence both search rankings and booking conversions.

Your first photo can make or break a booking

‍For Gerrit Dreyer, photography remains one of the most overlooked competitive advantages.

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"The hero image is everything," he explained. Guests make decisions in seconds, and listings featuring uninspiring first photographs are often ignored regardless of price. "We're visual people," Dreyer said. "If your first image is a basin, people simply scroll past."

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He encouraged operators to move away from traditional property photography that resembles estate agency marketing and instead embrace more lifestyle-focused imagery that reflects the guest experience.

Page agreed, noting that Airbnb guests spend approximately 30% of their browsing time looking at photographs, making visual presentation one of the platform's most influential conversion factors.

He also encouraged hosts to use their limited headline space wisely.

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"If you're only saying 'five-bedroom house', but you're 100 metres from the beach, tell people that immediately," he said. "That's what makes someone click."

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Guest favourites dominate bookings

‍One of the session's most revealing insights concerned Airbnb's increasingly important Guest Favourite badge.

According to Page, only around 20% of South African listings achieve Guest Favourite status, yet those properties account for almost 40% of all bookings.

Similarly, listings maintaining ratings of 4.7 stars or higher generate around 70% of bookings, highlighting just how important quality and consistency have become. Maintaining those ratings requires continuous attention to cleanliness, communication, accuracy and guest satisfaction.

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"Quality is the most important thing," Page said. "Every five-star review improves future performance, while every trip issue or poor review reduces visibility and conversion."

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Availability matters more than most hosts realise

‍Beyond content, the panel highlighted calendar management as another major performance driver.

Page recommends making listings available 365 days in advance, particularly in destinations such as Cape Town where international visitors often book many months ahead.

Restricting bookings to only a few months effectively reduces visibility within Airbnb's search algorithm. He also warned operators against unnecessarily high minimum-night restrictions.

A four-night minimum stay, for example, automatically excludes a significant portion of travellers searching for two- or three-night stays, limiting both search exposure and occupancy opportunities.

Flexible cancellation policies also help convert hesitant travellers, particularly in an increasingly uncertain global travel environment.

AI is reshaping how guests search

‍Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how travellers discover accommodation. 

Dreyer believes guests are increasingly using tools such as ChatGPT and Claude to identify suitable accommodation before even visiting booking platforms.

Rather than relying solely on price comparisons, these AI assistants analyse listing quality, amenities, guest reviews and descriptions to recommend properties that best match traveller preferences.

This makes accurate, comprehensive and consistent listing content more valuable than ever.

Technology helps, but hospitality still wins

‍While AI-powered optimisation tools now allow operators to analyse hundreds of listings simultaneously, both speakers agreed that technology should support, not replace great hospitality.

Dreyer recommended reviewing listing performance at least quarterly, updating photographs regularly, monitoring guest feedback and continually refreshing content as markets evolve.

Page stressed that behind every successful listing is a well-trained team. Regular staff meetings, responding quickly to guest feedback, rewarding excellent housekeeping and working closely with property owners all contribute to consistently high-quality guest experiences that generate better reviews and stronger financial performance.

The Bottom Line

‍The panel delivered a clear message for South Africa's growing short-term rental industry: sustainable success is no longer achieved simply by lowering prices or adding more properties.

Instead, leading operators are treating every listing as a dynamic business asset, continually refining content, improving guest experiences, embracing technology and making data-driven decisions that increase visibility, conversion and profitability.

As Airbnb's algorithms become increasingly sophisticated and AI reshapes how travellers search for accommodation, operators who invest in quality rather than shortcuts will be best positioned to capture more bookings and maximise long-term returns.

Read the full in-depth feature, including additional expert insights and practical optimisation strategies from Airbnb, PriceLabs and Fluent Living, in the next edition of REImag.

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