For a guest booking with an online platform such as Airbnb, there’s an emphasis on trust.  It’s one of the primary ways they persuade guests their platform is safe to use and why ‘off-platform’ whether booking or messaging, is somehow sending them off to the dark side.  And it’s also why we should be paying attention to how we can build trust and confidence with our guests.

In a time where we are dealing with the potential of fraudulent activity such as phishing, listing scraping, and scams, creating a great relationship with our guests from the first contact becomes a priority.  For owners there’s a feeling of confidence their incoming guests are who they say they are and will take care of the property; for travelers, there is the surety the property exists and they will arrive to the welcome they expect.

You can do that by building a wealth of content on your website, showing visitors that you have local knowledge, and are willing to share it.  Sending newsletters and email broadcasts is another way as is contacting them personally, by phone, when they ask a question.

In this episode, Chris Maughan of I-PRAC talks about the high incidence of fraud in the short-term rental marketplace and how a verification process can work to take the fear out of guests’ minds and drive more confidence in the direct booking process.

In 2014 Chris saw the distress a fraudulent booking can cause when his rental agency in Cannes was contacted by a family who had fallen victim to a scam and was left stranded after finding out their $25,000 rental did not exist.

18 months later he founded I-PRAC – a platform that validates the identity and credentials of anyone who rents out accommodation for holiday or business use.

Links:

‍I-PRAC

‍Book Direct Show