Please create a simplified version of the "Booking Clean-up" webform to ask guests for emails and have them automatically populate the contact form. This can be used with AirBnB to automate the capture of guests email addresses
We already do collect real email addresses from Airbnb guests using that form, so I'm not sure what the purpose here is.
Ken,
Thanks for the quick response. Maybe I’m not understanding the current form correctly. On the current form, when the guests submit the contact details form, it takes them to the contact signature page. In cases where we don’t need the rental contract this is confusing for the guest. Also, the overall messaging on the page could be simplified just for contact information gathering. Does that make sense?
right now there’s several instances, many times after check-in, where we request to guests email for the database and we have to wait for them to reply on Airbnb and then we have to copy and paste it into the CRM.
ideally, we would like to create a workflow that when guests make a reservation through Airbnb, we send them a template message did ask them to submit their email for future communications in for the sharing of house, manual recommendations, etc. which will allow us to regularly capture more emails.
Thanks Manel
We strongly recommend having all guests e-sign our rental agreement, as that's the only legally valid and binding protection you have re the guest that doesn't involve Airbnb making all the decisions.
But if you decide not to use that protection, the system should still allow the guest to provide their email, and not make them sign the agreement. Do you have a specific example of a booking that didn't work that way? If so, please send that in to the Helpdesk to investigate.
Hi Ken,
Thanks for the recommendation. I have a few follow-up questions:
1) I thought AirBnB didn't allow hosts to request (or at least require) guests to sign additional rental agreements. Am I mistaken? Also, AirBnB guests are not used to having additional agreements so am concerned this will create all kind of additional work with back and forth questions
2) From your experience (or others on the forum), what type of protections would the agreement give us that would be under AirBnB control? Are you referring to guests that may squat? Other legal issues? Appreciate the insight
3) Operationally how does it work, does AirBnB allow sharing of links via their blind email once the booking is made? Is there a way to send the agreement request through the AirBnB messaging? I couldn't find on the System messages to select to send via email or AirBnB messaging
4) what is the difference between Triggers and Scheduled Email messages and when should one use one over the other?
I'm not sure of the type of example you are asking in your last paragraph. I currently don't know of any way to ask the guest for their email other than to send the contract signing request email, which I don't have set-up for AirBnB so I am not sure how I would have an example to be reviewed. All emails I have captured for AirBnB guests have been through manual requests over messaging and then copy and paste into contact. Is there another way to request the email that I can activate?
Thank you for your attention,
Manel
Airbnb actually does allow you to require guests to sign your own rental agreement. We have occasionally seen them demand you to put the full text of your agreement in your House Rules, but even that is relatively rare.
I am not a lawyers, so there may be other benefits in your particular jurisdiction that appropriate legal counsel could point out or even improve with language tweaks, but, here's what I've seen:
1. If, God forbid, you have a situation that requires calling the police for an immediate eviction, having a signed, legally binding contract in writing to show to the responding cop will always be much faster and more effective than trying to show them a chain of Airbnb messages on your smartphone. This is particularly relevant in case of squatting.
2. Similarly, if, God forbid, you must take any other sort of legal action against your guest for damages of any kind or any other sort of dispute, a signed, legally binding contract in writing will be far more powerful in court than Airbnb messages or depending on Airbnb to weigh in on your behalf.
3. If you are using the direct security deposit we recommend (and which Airbnb allows, but, only when using OwnerRez or another similar channel manager), then the signed agreement gives you the legal authority to take the damage deposit without any additional permission.
4. As part of the rental agreement signing system and proof of legal validity, we collect the guest's real email address so we can send them a copy of the contract they have signed. This is nice to have for a variety of reasons, and while there are other manual ways you can get it, this one is automatic and doesn't require you to do anything.
Others on this forum may have noticed other advantages, but these are the ones that immediately come to mind.
Yes, Airbnb does allow sharing of links via both their blind email addresses and also via their internal messaging system, but only once a booking is made. That is why the rental agreement can only be signed after the guest has fully completed the Airbnb booking process, and not before. Our instructions discuss how to send the message via both template and Airbnb internal message:
We recommend doing both, as neither method is completely reliable.
Triggers are used for regular messages that should be sent automatically on a schedule to every guest, or at least to every guest that meets particular criteria. Scheduled messages are basically manual one-offs, used with individual bookings.
I agree that a simple form asking for an email and verification that they have read the rules would be very helpful. I just lost a $683.85 payout because the rental agreement was automatically sent to them (I was not used to the automation of this yet). They canceled and replied with the following screenshot. Before I started using OwnerRez, we would simply ask for their email for emergency contact purposes and for the "secret code word" hidden within the house rules. The renter agreement scared off this guest. However, if there was simply a form that asked for their email and a place where they could enter the code word proving they read the rules, then I would want the completion of the form to trigger a release fo the door code and wifi password. I really think something like this would help a lot.
Zach,
You can simply create a specific agreement for AirBnB and make it a copy of the House Rules. Don't call it an agreement in the messaging or title and just say we need you to confirm that you have read the house rules by clicking on the form. Ever since we did this we haven't had any problems with AirBnB guests. The form before the house rules captures their email.
It's a bit overwhelming at first but OR is very flexible once you learn how to deal with it... their canned language needs a lot of work and needs to be personalized and adapted.
Manel
