Unlock Revenue & Delight Guests: The Power of Automated Guest Journeys

In today's episode of the Hospitable Hosts podcast, we're diving deep into the future of guest experience management. Our special guest is Shiven Khera, CEO of LinkBase. It's an AI-driven automation platform that helps STR hosts and property managers streamline every aspect of the guest journey and increase revenue through personalized upsells.

The conversation goes beyond the basics of automated check-in messages to explore the transformative power of rules-based digital guest journeys and automated upsells.

Press Play now to learn how to digitize your guest journey and boost your profitability with upsells without compromising the guest experience.

Do you prefer to read the highlights? We've got a summary of the key takeaways below.

What Is a Digital Rules-Based Guest Journey?

Shiven explains that Linkbase is a guest experience platform that transforms the guest journey into a digital rules-based experience, making it simple for hosts to "accomplish everything to do with guests." He shares his perspective on a rules-based guest journey and why it's crucial for short-term rentals.

"A guest journey is simply all the information you want your guests to provide you and all the steps they need to undertake before they can check in to the property. A rules-based digital guest journey is that you set the rules on all the specific information that specific guests in that specific circumstance need to give you so they can easily check in to the property."

This way, you're not annoying the guests with irrelevant information they may not need to provide. You have rules that make it easy for the guests and you because everything is in one place.

Shiven points out that a guest journey includes certain steps like guest verification, signing house rules documentation, and collecting damage deposits. Still, you may not want to do all these things for every single guest. In a rule-based guest journey, you can "define which steps to show to which guests."

Enhancing Guest Stays

Shiven underlines that a thoughtfully crafted digital journey powered by rules and automation elevates the guest experience and leads to positive reviews. "Guests want it simple. If it's simple, convenient, and automated, you're in line for that good five-star review."

You must collect this important information about your guests because it's essential for your business. However, it's also an extra step the guest must take after booking your property. With a rules-based digital guest journey, guests can complete all steps in one place.

"And when you make it so simple, everything for guests is in one convenient location, including the check-in instructions, the door lock boards, and guidebooks. And you're enhancing the stay that way by adding services like early check-in, late check-out for purchase, and add-ons. That increases positive reviews."

Automated Upsells: What Can You Provide?

Shiven thinks automated upsells add value to guest stays when done right, so he views them as guest services. "I'm very bullish about providing these services, given that it adds guest convenience. From the data of clients using LinkBase to do upselling, we have seen that over 50% of guests ask for an early check-in or late check-out. And it is something that guests are willing to pay for."

Shiven underlines that offering early check-ins and late check-outs as services for an additional fee reduces your workload. "If you can add that as a service, you would get fewer guests to request it. So then it becomes less of a nuisance for you overall, given some people may not want to pay for it while others would. Then you can prioritize those properties to get cleaned early, make that additional revenue, and that guest will leave you a five-star review."

You can also consider upselling physical products. "For properties that are near campsites, you could do firewood. We've seen people rent out kayaks. We've seen people rent out a Valentine's package," Shiven says. "Another cool one is a popcorn movie night experience. So you can have a little kit in a zipper pouch right in your property that has a few things to make a movie night special and have that as an add-on."

Making Upsells Relevant to Each Guest

Shiven stresses the importance of approaching upsells differently for each property because each is unique. "The location might be unique. There could also be added features. For example, kayak rentals might be available for a specific property. Firewood would only be available for a specific property, but not for others."

Shiven also recommends segmenting guests. If you are new to upsells, you should focus on adding a few upsells and having good processes in place. If you have already done that and have a few upsells in line, then you can use a platform with AI tools to offer personalized upsells based on guest data. AI tools can predict what kind of upsells your guests would like and only show these options in the guest journey.

Shiven underlines that "the main idea behind upselling is to add revenue, add that guest convenience, but not add extra work for yourself." It's also important to "have a human touch," and it's all about finding a balance. "Even in those automated messages, you can add wording and script to look more human-like. That's something that guests appreciate."

Listen to the full episode of the Hospitable Hosts podcast to find out how to take control of your digital guest journey and discover successful upsell strategies that can help you boost your bottom line.