Your Airbnb is an experience

The worst mindset you can run your Airbnb business on is to view your apartment as a commodity. The best philosophy you can employ is to envision it as an experience. We, humans, love to think in stories, so you want your residence to tell a story.

Your tenants are going to live in your apartment for an extended period. Everything they experience during this time, good and bad, will likely go into their contentment and possibly into the Airbnb review that they will leave for you. If there are great restaurants in the neighborhood, they may mention this in their commentary. If there is no decoration, no human vibes, and a sterile feeling to your apartment, it will find its way into the review in one or the other way, too.

Really think about how the tenants will experience your Airbnb throughout their stay. What may they like to do? What may they enjoy? What may they miss? How can you make the bad parts of the story less bad, and the good parts even better? Who are your usual guests? Are they families who like to have a cozy place in a safe area and want to visit children-suitable venues? Or are they fitness-loving digital nomads who want to weigh themselves every day at home, have a good internet connection and stay most of the time at home? What are the various and possible storylines of the whole narrative?

Opinion: I always love to think about stories because it helps me discover things to improve and do to make your Airbnb a great experience. If you just look at your Airbnb, randomly asking yourself what's missing in general, you'll likely come up with a few arbitrary and disconnected items to buy from Amazon, wrongfully thinking you've done a great job.

Is the neighborhood boring? You can't move the apartment physically to a new location. Yet, you can prepare a comprehensive list of attractions and how to reach them by public transport.

Note: Don't merely go to Google maps, writing down a few 4-5 stars places. Everybody can do that! Create a list of gems that you personally can testify for - places that you happen to have enjoyed in the past!

Consider that your tenants are avid home cooks. Have you provided them with good-quality kitchenware to create some delicious sushi? Is there a big, wooden cutting board? Sharp knives? A separate water boiler and a rice sieve? Good pans? Fine porcelain plates and tableware (instead of cheap plastic plates and mugs)?

Where are your tenants going to sit or lay in the apartment? What direction will they look most of the time, and what will they see? What will catch their eyes? Is there even anything that can grab their attention? What is it, and how can you improve their view? Hang some posters, maybe some related to the city or country you're in. Find a motive that you have a personal connection. Consider putting a plant into the home and how you can make sure it will survive long-term tenants.

All these and many more small plots will eventually make up the whole narrative of your Airbnb. Now go ahead and think of a marvelous story!