How to get direct bookings without paying for ads

You do not need ads to get direct bookings. You need a good place to send people.

The short answer: You can get direct bookings without ads by making a fast website that works on a phone, getting found on Google with a free Google Business Profile and local pages, and letting guests find your site in ways the booking sites allow, such as a card in the rental. Guests who book direct once are the easiest to bring back.

Ads can bring bookings, but you pay for every click, even when nobody books. The good news: most direct bookings come from free things you can start this week.

First, why it is worth it. Every booking you move to your own site saves the booking site's fee. See the maths in how much Airbnb really takes from you.

1. Start with the guests you already have

Someone who liked your place is the easiest booking you will ever get. The trick is to reach them in a way the booking sites allow.

A quick note on booking sites. They set their own rules for what hosts can say inside their messages. Airbnb's Terms of Service limit steering guests off Airbnb, and host-software companies read that as covering links and offers in Airbnb messages. Your own website, your own cards and your own emails are yours to use.

Here are the easy places to promote your own website, where you control the message:

• Leave a card or a small sign in the rental with your website address
• Add your website to your Google Business Profile and your social pages
• Email guests who already booked with you directly
• Make your site easy to find when someone searches your name

2. Give a reason to book direct

• A small discount, or a free extra, such as early check-in or a late checkout, shown on your own website
• Flexible dates, when you can offer them
• A welcome gift, such as a local snack basket

You do not have to match the whole booking fee. Even a small perk works, and you still keep more than on a booking site. Say it on your own website and your own cards, not in booking-site messages. Read should you offer a discount for booking direct? for the numbers.

3. Make your website fast and easy on a phone

Most guests look at places on their phone. If your site is slow or hard to read, they leave. Google also says that helpful, easy-to-use pages are the base of good search results.

• Show big, clear photos of each room
• Show the price and a Book button without scrolling
• Show your reviews on the page
• Let guests pay on the same site

4. Get found on Google for free

Set up a free Google Business Profile. It helps people find you on Google Search and Maps. Add your photos, your area and a link to your booking website.

Then write about your area. Guests search for things like "things to do near [your town]" before they book. Many vacation rental guides suggest local guides for this. Link each page to your booking page, so readers can go from reading to booking.

5. Build your own guest list

A list of guests who say yes to hearing from you is worth more than any ad. Collect emails from guests who book direct, and from visitors who sign up on your website. Asking booking-site guests for their email inside the booking site's messages can break that site's rules, so use your own channels. Then send a short message a few times a year: a new season, a quiet week, a thank-you.

6. Put your reviews on your own site

Guests trust other guests. Show your best reviews on your website, with the guest's first name and the date. That way a visitor does not have to go back to a booking site to check you out.

7. Ask for a recommendation

Local friends of your rental, such as restaurants, tour guides and wedding planners, send people to your area all the time. Share a link to each other's pages, and offer a small thank-you for guests they send.

What should you do first?

• This week: set up your Google Business Profile, and print a card for the rental with your website address.
• This month: add a booking page that works well on a phone.
• Every season: send your guest list a short message.

None of this needs ads. Every step above is free to start.

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Common questions

How can I get direct bookings without ads?

Ask past guests to book you directly next time, offer a small perk for booking direct, make a fast website that works on a phone, set up a free Google Business Profile, and build a guest email list.

Is it allowed to ask Airbnb guests to book direct?

It is your website, so you can promote it freely there and in your rental. Inside Airbnb's own messages, its Terms of Service limit steering guests off the platform, which can put your listing at risk, so most hosts use a card in the rental, their Google profile and their own channels.

Do I need a website to get direct bookings?

Yes. Guests need a place to see your photos and prices, and to pay. A website that works on a phone and takes payments is the base of all direct bookings.

Sources and helpful links

• Airbnb: Terms of Service — the rules for hosts, in Airbnb's own words
• Google: SEO starter guide — how to make pages Google can understand
• Google Business Profile — free listing on Google Search and Maps