A Chat With the Folks From Xotelia, A Software Solution for Multiple-Listing Owners

At the Airbnb Open 2015 in Paris, I interviewed Jeffrey Messud, who founded Xotelia in 2012, and Eva Lejamtel, Xotelia’s marketing manager.

Xotelia is a complete and flexible channel manager that helps multiple-property owners manage their bookings all in one place, with custom solutions, increased exposure and maximized efficiency.

If you have more than three listings going on different websites (including Airbnb but also Expedia, FlipKey, HouseTrip or Booking.com), Xotelia might be your sweet spot!

Read on for more about them.

Here’s Exactly What I Made Airbnb Hosting in 2015 (Plus: An Invitation to Earn More With Me in 2016)

As the year comes to a close, I’m reviewing my income from Airbnb hosting with a curious eye—wondering how I can do better next year, and what my intentions are when it comes to generating value and revenue through hosting.

Here’s what I made, plus a special invitation to a group that will help you make more hosting in 2016!

Which Kind of Host Are You? Address Your Problem Areas to Get Five Stars in Every Category

You may have read a few blogs on hosting by now, and you may have noticed that a lot of hosting advice is geared toward the “general” host.

However, there are really three major categories that hosts fall into—and depending on which kind of host you are, you may need different resources, tools and advice to make the most of your hosting experience.

This article will help you:

– figure out what kind of host you are
– uncover your biggest challenges as that category of host
– highlight your potential problem areas on Airbnb (read: where you’re likely to lose stars!)
– arm yourself with strategies and solutions for rising above these challenges and problems

Ready? Let’s get into it!

The Power of Independent Vacation Rental: A Chat With Barry from Homes and Rooms

Homes and Rooms is a service that’s perfect for people who want to use (or are using) an independent website to present their homes, and for people who manage their properties on multiple platforms—or, an overlap of the two! And the founder, Barry, is a genuine guy. Read on and head over to their site using the links here for a 14-day trial of the service.

Airbnb Cleanings: Should You Hire a Service or an Individual? Here’s My Recommendation

There are plenty of paid Airbnb cleaner and turnover services now that serve the host community, some nationally based and some local. Airbnb has even integrated Handy into their platform in some areas, like New York City. And they often do more than cleaning—they can take care of everything from washing the sheets to handing over the keys.

My general opinion, however, is that paid services are too impersonal for this particular kind of work.

Here’s why.