In this article, I want to show you the secrets to promote your Airbnb on Instagram! Instagram is the best social media platform to give a comprehensive, authentic snapshot of your Airbnb. It’s a powerful marketing tool that lets guests see what your Airbnb is about, instantly!
Withover 500 million active daily users scrolling through Instagram, many (like us) are dreaming of the day they can travel again. With many Airbnb hosts experiencing little to no bookings in this period, take this time to get your Instagram account looking great!
Now is the time to create a buzz about your Airbnb and attractfuture guests. With these simple tricks, you can get guests clicking over to your Airbnb listing and saving you to their favorites.
1. Fill out Your Entire Bio.
Your bio is so important because this is where you can describe the location and feel of your Airbnb. This is also where you need to put a direct link to your Airbnb listing. So many accounts are missing this, it’s in the ‘website’ section)
Make sure your bio contains these 3 key points:
- Where you are located
- The description and feel of your Airbnb
- Link to your Airbnb listing
2. Think of your Airbnb As a Brand.
Research shows that you have about 3 seconds to captivate someone’s interest on Instagram before they move on. Therefore, when thinking of the overall branding of your Airbnb ask yourself these two questions:
- How do you want to be seen? (A cozy cabin in the woods, a cool hideaway in the desert, a modern apartment in the city…)
- What are 5 emotions you want guests to ‘feel’ about your Airbnb when they come to your Instagram account? Maybe joy, inspiration, intrigue, interest, desire to stay there, etc.
If your Airbnb is a ‘cabin in the woods’ you want to try to highlight everything unique about that vacation experience in your feed like quietness, nature, and space. Therefore, always post with the potential guest in mind and you’ll truly promote your Airbnb on Instagram. If you make the viewer feel ’emotion’ and connect with your Airbnb there is more of a chance they will book!
3. Make Authentic Connections.
What works best on Instagram is making connections with your followers. When you get a new follower, start by liking other a few posts or dropping a comment. Also, remember to reply to their comments on your feed to encourage them to engage with other posts in the future.
Engaging with your followers means that potential guests get to know you beyond the static Airbnb profile. If you stop and think about it, we all prefer to do business with people we know like and trust, don’t we?
When guests see you on a social level, it’s easier for guests to remember you when they’re thinking about where to spend their next vacation or long weekend.
4. Send New Followers a Welcome Message
You can send new followers also an introduction message ( just draft one and copy-paste) Something like:
Thank you so much for your follow! Our Superhost Airbnb ‘Sunset Loft’ is in the heart of San Diego, just a short walk to Balboa Park. You can find us here: add Link to your listing
5. Like and Comment
To promote your Airbnb on Instagram, make sure to scroll daily and like and comment (even if it’s just an emoji) in your news feed. This will get them clicking over to your Instagram feed more often and liking your content. The more engagement YOUR account receives sends a message to the algorithm gods that your account is something people ‘must want to see’ and shows your content to more potential guests.
It feels great when someone likes your content so share the Instalove!
6. Use Captions that Connect.
If people will stop and listen to your words, you have a much better chance of them connecting with your Airbnb and staying there in the future. You want to be authentic and write in a way that guests can ‘picture themselves waking up in your Airbnb’ and enjoying everything about their stay.
Here are some examples:
- Imagine waking up to this sunrise every morning on our lovely deck.
- There are over 30 miles of hiking trails in our Airbnb’s backyard to enjoy.
- Our guests love the easy nature walk to the village where they can enjoy the peacefulness of the forest.
- Enjoy an early morning swim and breakfast on our dock! The best bakery in town is only a 5-minute walk away.
- This picturesque beach is at the end of our long stretch of a beach, walk there along the sand, bike ride, or drive a few minutes down the road.
7. Use the Right Hashtags.
Instagram images with hashtags are shown in the order of the time they are posted. Therefore, 12:00 pm is one of the besttimes to post travel related images on Instagram. This is a time of day people are free, taking a break, and daydreaming a bit while scrolling. By using the proper hashtags your Airbnb’s post will be visible for many hours, during the time people are most active on Instagram.
Tag Your Location
Instagram can filter content by location. If you want to be seen whenever someone searches for the location you’re in, then add a location tag to your photos and videos.
Use all 30 Hashtags
You get a max of 30 hashtags per post, always use them all! The easiest way is to write out your best 30 and save them on your phone. For example, if your Airbnb is in LA use hashtags people search for when thinking of traveling there like:
#airbnbLosAngeles #LA #losangeles #losangelesAirbnb #LAairbnb #airbnbLA #airbnb #airbnbhost #Hollywood #Venicebeach etc.
8. Use Instagram Stories.
Over 500 million people use Instagram Stories daily! This means it’s possible to reach a huge number of potential Airbnb guests through it. Instagram Stories are also fun to do and remain visible to your audience for a good 24-hour period.
Stories put you on top of people’s news feeds. Where your Airbnb is so much more visible, ensuring that you’re getting seen. Not only that, but those who are not following you can also discover and view your Stories without even clicking onto your profile.
You can easily turn any post into a ‘story’ by clicking the little arrow after you have posted it.
- Tap the paper airplane icon (share button) underneath a feed post.
- Select “Add Post to Your Story”.
- Edit the post in your Instagram Story — you can add text or tap to explore other sticker styles.
9. Ask Every Guest to Follow You.
Invite your guests to follow you on Instagram in your final closing message after their stay. Something like ” We loved having you stay with us! Please follow us on Instagram (include a link) We sometimes do giveaways! Sometimes guests will take the most amazing photos and you can use them in your own feed! You can also use the guest review in your captions or credit their photo and caption. These are your biggest fans, and there’s no better way to promote your Airbnb on Instagram than recent happy guests giving recommendations to stay with you!
10. Follow Those Who are Interested.
Do a little search on Instagram for other Airbnb’s in your area and note the popular ones who have a lot of followers. Chances are the last 25 followers they have are people recently interested in travel to your area- follow them! They will often click over to see who ‘you are’ and follow you back.
11. Leave a little Framed Sign.
A little sign in your Airbnb that says: Share your #Instaworthy moments! We would love if you shared them and tag us at @YourAirbnb’sInstagram. You can even come up with a hashtag for your Airbnb like #yourairbnbname. I’ve created a simple minimalist one below that you can grab here!
12. Use Templates Stand Out.
To help you achieve a modern and professional look to your Airbnb’s Instagram feed, I’ve simplified everything for hosts. I’ve created 75+ beautiful Canva templates for vacation rental owners to use for their Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest accounts. You can find them here!
I hope this article helps you find creative ways to promote your Airbnb on Instagram!
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