Ahh. The joys, perils, and stresses of running an Airbnb property. Managing a rental is no easy feat, and if you're new to the Airbnb game you're probably second-guessing yourself from day one: is this really what I want to do? Will my guests ever be satisfied? How do I avoid burnout? Oh, and what about nightmare guests that we've all heard about - the ones that ruin your stuff and leave you a bad review, totally ruining your rep?

First of all - BREATHE. There are plenty of resources out there to help you. It's also a good idea to join an online community for vacation rental professionals so you can vent in a to people who get it. 

But the thing we really want to talk about here is the one little secret to ensuring your holiday rental is a success: personalisation. 

When it comes to setting up your holiday rental, once you've covered all the basics - from rental insurance to check-in and check-out management, to putting together welcome packages to ensuring your rental is sparkling clean and functional - it might be tempting to breathe a sigh of relief and relax. 

But wait. Have you addressed personalising your guest's stay yet? Yeah. Gotcha.

Adding that personal touch to your guest's experience is the one thing that will 100% differentiate you from hundreds of holiday rentals.  

What do we mean when we talk about personalisation?

• Anticipating your guests' needs. If, for example, a young family is looking to stay at your rental, chances are they will need baby equipment like car seats, strollers, high chairs and more. Why not anticipate their needs and hire baby equipment online for the duration of their stay? 
  
  
• Helping your guests get the most out of their stay. Act like a concierge. Help them book a restaurant, recommend local shops or give them some insight into sightseeing tips and tricks (eg. how to best avoid queues at popular tourist venues). 
  
  
• Be as flexible as you can be. Do your guests land at 8am and have nowhere to stay until your designated check-in time at 2pm? Be flexible (within reason, of course). If your rental needs cleaning, tell your guests they can leave their bags at the apartment until everything is ready. A personal, warm touch is the reason many guests are choosing Airbnb's over hotels, so give them what they're after!
  
  

At the end of the day,  if you're ever in doubt as to whether you're a good host or not, do a super simple little test and answer this question: how would you like to be treated if you were paying for a holiday rental? The answer should guide your hosting strategy.