BnbAmenity Blog

October 30, 2021
Increase Your Profits with Vacation Rental Upsells

Managing vacation rental properties can be a lucrative endeavor and a real win-win for the owner and the manager. One method that many vacation rental managers have taken from the hotel industry playbook to improve their profitability and Guest satisfaction is to upsell Guests on services, products and experiences to make their stay even better. Exactly what are upsells, why should you offer them and what is the easiest way to get started upselling?

What Is Upselling?

Upselling is a sales technique in which the goal is to increase the average sales value of a customer – perhaps the classic American upsale is soda and fries with that burger – one offers either a premium version or add-ons to the product or service for incremental revenue. Upselling in the vacation rental context allows Guests to customize and add convenience to their Stay at your vacation rental property and if done correctly provides a win-win value proposition for Guests and Hoss as it would take the Guest much more time to self-provision the add-ons they desire than to be offered them directly with no work required. Think of upselling as a way of upgrading your Guests’ stay at your vacation rental. They receive additional products and services that make their stay better, and you earn a larger profit.

Why Should You Upsell at Your Vacation Rental?

Some vacation rental owners don’t like the idea of upselling because it sometimes comes with the connotation of being an aggressive business tactic. However, this isn’t an accurate perspective of this sales technique provided that the basic amenities a Guest requires are provided and the upsells are in fact services and products a reasonable Guest would not expect to find included in the Stay. Upselling has benefits for your Guests and yourself, and you can build deeper relationships with your Guests by offering upsells that provide them convenience, make needed services that are inconvenient at your location available to them and facilitate a greater sense of having experienced the local community during their Stay.

Personalize the Guest Experience

Upselling also provides and opportunity for Hosts to personalized a Guest’s stay experience. Personalization can come in many forms. Hosts can offer Guests the activities and experiences they most enjoy through trusted affiliate offers – for example fishing charters or access to equestrian rentals. Hosts can support Guests with young children who may really appreciate access to a crib or a affiliate offer of an experienced babysitting service. By offering a range of services and knowing how to inquire about Guests’ goals and requirements for their Stay during booking Hosts can use upselling offers to provide Guests with a truly personalized experience that makes their stay far more convenience and satisfying.

Offer Unparalleled Convenience

One of the reasons Guests are so often willing to invest in add-ons is the convenience. Offering early check-in and late check-out for an additional fee, for instance, can make a huge difference in the Guest experience. Using BnbAmenity, Hosts can automate the timing of these offers to remind Guests of these options leading up to Check-in and Check-out. In many cases, upselling can keep Guests coming back because they know about all of the convenient upgrades and services available at your vacation rental property while boosting your revenue.

Offer a Complete Solution

When traveling, it’s convenient for Guests to book as many of the elements of their vacation as possible on one platform if possible. That’s why you’ll often see sites combining offers for hotel rooms and flights. It’s also why all-inclusive resorts are so popular. You can do something similar with your vacation rental property using BnbAmenity to offer upsells to Guests. BnbAmenity makes this particularly easy through a network of trusted affiliate service partners. We enable you to earn revenue from Ground Transportation through Turo, babysitting services through SitterCity, cleaning services through Handy, laundry services through Rinse as well as offer compelling local experiences and activities through Viator. We also allow Hosts to add customized affiliate businesses directly through BnbAmenity so Hosts can get paid a commission for supporting local business. Through BnbAmenity, your Guests have the opportunity to customize a complete vacation experience, rather than booking their stay and all of their activities separately.

Increase Your Chances of Five-Star Reviews

If you offer your Guests valuable, convenient upsell products and services, you’ll be able to significantly affect their Guest experience overall. Guests are sure to appreciate all of the effort you’ve put into curating the perfect experience throughout their stay. That sentiment of appreciation is likely to be reflected in their reviews of your vacation rental property.

Tips for Upselling Offers

Use BnbAmenity to make sure your upsell offers are presented in highly professional direct communications using email, texts and Whatsapp. BnbAmenity also offers Hosts free of charge a Guest Book that Hosts use to present Guests with all of their essential Check-in and Stay information. The Guest Book also showcases the upsells the Host offer and highlights them at appropriate points in the Guests’ Stay to maximize conversion. BnbAmenity supports most forms of payment, making the Guests’ upsell purchases quick, easy, and convenient. If the upsell process makes the overall experience more challenging or complicated, or is presented in an unprofessional way, it can reduce your Guest’s opinion of their hospitality experience,

BnbAmenity will assist you in personalizing your recommendations by sending short, targeted surveys to the Guest to help determine their needs and plans for their Stay. For example, a couple on their honeymoon would appreciate a very different set of offers compared to a couple travelling with several young children.

Gain a deep understanding of your niche. Think about what kinds of activities your Guests plan to do and what types of extras would benefit them. Cater your upsells to your target market and offer products and services that enhance your Guest’s use of your Listing and its location and provides the Guest with a sense of connectivity with the local community and its traditions.

What Are the Most Popular Upsells Hosts Use on BnbAmenity?

BnbAmenity has a large number of upselling offers which we suggest to Hosts based on the location of their vacation rental, the season and specific local event and weather data which BnbAmenity monitors in real-time. Hosts can customize the offers with their own photos and descriptions and also create custom upsells unique to their vacation rental property. The most popular standard upsells among Hosts and Guests are:

Early Check-In and Late Check-Out

Guests often wish they had the option to pay for early check-in and late check-out. This upsell service allows them to sleep in, enjoy some extra time on vacation before their flight home, or accommodate their little one’s nap time. Early check-in and late check-out are classic vacation rental upsells that Hotels use to enhance their revenue, with BnbAmenity Hosts can offer this service as well.

Early check-in and late check-out reduce the chaos and stress of arriving and leaving the vacation rental property. Many Guests report that this service improves their overall experience! And if you automate check-in and check-out upsells, this upsell won’t present any challenges or extra work on your end.

Luggage Storage

A very popular upsell is offering to store your Guests’ luggage before check-in for an additional fee. This offer provides great convenience to the Guest and can effectively add an extra day to their vacation in some cases where they are flying out late on the night of their check-out. There are also times when Guests arrive before check-in and want to go sightseeing or enjoy a meal without bringing all of their luggage along with them. Offering to store their luggage enables them to start enjoying their vacation, even before they’ve checked in and can present a huge value for Guests. For Hosts who do not have a suitable Luggage Storage solution, Hosts can earn and affiliate fee by offering luggage storage in partnership with Stasher.

Airport Transfer and Other Transportation Offers

BnbAmenity offers Hosts the option of picking up Guests directly for a fee or earning an affiliate fee from our partner Turo. While picking up Guests is not feasible for all Hosts, for some provides compelling additional earnings. By partnering with Turo we allow all Hosts to offer Guests an easy option to coordinate Airport and other Transportation needs, such as travel to and from a Wedding or other event, during their Stay.

Upgraded Welcome Basket

Many Hosts provide a welcome basket for their Guests. BnbAmenity allows Guests to customize the Welcome Basket to better meet their needs through offering upgraded versions for an additional fee. The most popular welcome basket upsells are Arrival Groceries with allows Guests to request that the Stay be stocked with provisions to cover snacks and their first two meals so as to avoid shopping upon first arrival; Spa Basket which provides a variety of bath pampering items such as bubble bath bomb, face mask creams and other beauty and wellness items; Honeymoon Hamper with provides a bottle of Champaign, glasses and a box of chocolates. Hosts are encouraged to customize their Welcome Basket Upsell descriptions and photos so that Guests receive exactly the items they are expecting.

Bike or Sports Equipment Rental

BnbAmenity offers a complete Equipment Rental Software as a Service Platform for Hosts to offer Guests vacation equipment to enhance their Stay. The platform incorporates Rental and Liability Waiver execution, collection of state ID images, deposit and payment processing, check-out and return process and deposit refund. Depending on location and season, Hosts have offered a great variety of equipment for rent, the most four most popular rentals have been Bicycle Rental; Beach Chair and Umbrella Rental; Boogie Board Rental; and Paddleboard Rental. We also offer crib and other baby equipment rental in partnership with Babyquip.

City Tour and Other Experiences

BnbAmenity offers Hosts the option of offering tours and experiences personally to Guests directly for a fee or earning an affiliate fee from our partner Viator. While entertaining Guests with tours or other local experience is not feasible for all Hosts, for some, it provides compelling additional earnings. By partnering with Viator, we allow all Hosts to offer Guests an easy option to coordinate a local tour and other experiences relevant to their Stay while earning an affiliate fee from Viator..

Main Takeaways

Using BnbAmenity to start Upselling is a large income enhancer for Hosts.
Offering upsell products and services at your vacation rental property through BnbAmenity comes with multiple benefits. You can enable Guests to completely personalize their experience, offer them unparalleled convenience, boost your profits, offer a complete travel solution, and increase your chances of five-star reviews.
To offer valuable upsells, BnbAmenity offers personalized suggestions and allows Hosts to customize their offers themselves to better fit their niche target market.
The best Upsells offer convenience and enhance the stay of the Guest

BnbAmenity Is a Great Tool for Hosts to Improve Their Guest’s Stay Experience and Enhance Their Hosting Income - Most Importantly, It is Free to Hosts!