What’s your sign? You do have signs for your #vacationrental and Airbnb, right? House rules printed to manage guest expectations? So, what’s your sign? Airbnb hosting is seamless when you leave instructions for guests.
Instead of what’s your sign, we should ask where’s your sign or signs? There are bathroom signs for Airbnb and VRBO. There are kitchen signs for Airbnb. Swimming pool signs for vacation rental and short-term rental units. They include welcome instructions and check out instructions.
Listen: What’s Your Sign?
Watch: What’s Your Sign?
Hey there, I’m Angela Brown, and this is Ask a House Cleaner. This is a show where you get to ask a house cleaning question, and I get to help you find an answer. You can find this and 400 other answered questions in this series on our YouTube channel.
What Signs Do You Need to Post?
There are thousands of people that have an Airbnb, or they rent out a couple of rooms of their home. Is this you?
The question is, “What signs do you put up so that people know what the rules are when they come to your house? And is it rude to have signs?”
The answer is no, it is not rude. It’s preferred because guests would rather know what your rules are than guess, right?
The Signs You Need in Your Home
Leave signs for your guests.
The first sign you want to leave is upon entering. It is a welcome sign and it says, “Welcome to our house. These are the rules.” On that welcome sign you, want to say something like” We allow smoking,” or “We do not allow smoking.”
It’s also going to have hours of operation. For example, “After 10 o’clock in this area, we like to be quiet in respect of our neighbors.”
If it is okay to use the washing machine at all times of the day and night. It’s not going to affect anybody. Put that on a sign. To have a cutoff time, you also need a sign. That sign can read, “Please respect the other guests. Don’t operate the washing machine after 9 PM.”
Make the Checkout Responsibilities Clear with a Sign
There should be a sign somewhere the talks about the checkout responsibilities. It can say, “Here’s what we expect at checkout. And to respect our next guests, we need to kick you out at a certain time.” You don’t say that on the sign. You say, “In respect of our other guests, check-out time is 11 AM. Please observe that respectfully,” or something like that.
Let Your Guests Know Where to Find Things
The next sign that you want to have is maybe a door hanger that hangs on the pantry door. It tells people there’s a vacuum inside. Maybe it’s a mop or maybe it’s cleaning supplies. That little door hanger, lets your guests know exactly where the supplies are.
So, they don’t have to rummage through everything. We don’t want people to rummage through everything because rummaging creates chaos. So, we just want them to know where everything is, right?
Is There Food Available?
Is food offered? And if it is, where is the food they’re allowed to eat? There should be a sign somewhere that informs them. Maybe it says something like, “Hey as a guest, you’re welcome to enjoy some food. Your food is on the third shelf of the refrigerator.” Or say, “You’re welcome to everything on the right side of the pantry.”
Wherever the food is, if it’s allowed, this should be on a sign somewhere so there is no guesswork. The guests don’t know what food belongs to the family and what food they can eat. So, you want to have a sign somewhere that specifies.
Bathroom Signs
As we go into the bathroom, there needs to be a sign in the bathroom about what they can and can’t flush. Be polite and say, “Please don’t flush big towels and wash rags. We have sensitive plumbing.”
Sensitive plumbing or not, that’s a great sign to have. It informs people that they shouldn’t be flushing all kind of odds and ends down the toilet, right? Because you don’t want the toilets to plug up and you don’t want to have to call a plumber between guests.
Be Friendly to the Environment
In the bathroom, another sign that’s popular is a sign for towels. It addresses the environment. Maybe it says, “Please help us respect the environment and the earth by recycling the towels when possible.” So, you’re not doing extra laundry when it’s not necessary.
Operating the Remote Control
Another sign that’s great to have is at the remote control. It explains, “Hey, here’s a picture of the remote control. Here’s where the buttons are. This is how to make the TV come on. Adjust the sound quality like this.”
You can also let them know what other services you offer, like Netflix, Hulu or cable tv. That way it helps them log on to the alternative program.
Alexa is Also Popular, But Provide Instructions
Another thing that’s super popular is the Amazon Dot, which we know as Alexa. And there are a series of commands that you can ask Alexa, which are super helpful to Airbnb guests. Some examples are, “Alexa, where is the nearest pizza place?” Or, “Alexa, tell me what the weather is like.” Or, “Alexa, wake me up at 7 A.M. in the morning.”
You can give Alexa commands. A lot of people that are unfamiliar with Alexa will not know what the commands are. So, to have a list of the commands will make it super easy for your guests.
Pools and Hot Tubs
Now as you move on, there are a couple of other things that you want to mention. And one of them is if you have a swimming pool or a hot tub.
There are signs that you can buy on Amazon that say things like, “Swimmers, swim at your own risk. We are not responsible for lost or stolen items.” That will reduce your liability a little bit.
I hope this helps a little bit. If it does, please pass on to a friend. And until we meet again, leave the world a cleaner place than when you found it.
Resources
If you’re Smoking, You’d Better Be on Fire Sign – https://amzn.to/2Ka39wM
Welcome – House Rules Sign – https://amzn.to/2XDyJpH
Dog Rules – https://amzn.to/2IAs1dR
Blackboard House Rules – What’s Your Sign – https://amzn.to/31pXGHB
Bathroom Rules – Wooden Sign – https://amzn.to/31pXGHB
Vintage Bathroom Rules – Classic Wisdom – https://amzn.to/2EYcVxR
Don’t Flush These Things Sign – https://amzn.to/2IxH3kw
Pool Rules – Limited Liability Sign – https://amzn.to/2WzKtZf
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