Should You Lot Choke A Gratis Listing On Flipkey?

FlipKey offers a complimentary listing amongst committee based pricing. This way that you lot pay nil upward forepart to live on listed on FlipKey too TripAdvisor, their bring upward company, but instead pay 3% of each booking made.

We kickoff listed amongst FlipKey inwards 2009 every bit business office of a advertisement that meant nosotros alone paid $2.99/month. In 6 months nosotros received alone 1 booking, too thence when the advertisement ended nosotros canceled our listing. At the fourth dimension it exactly seemed to live on 1 to a greater extent than listing site that didn't larn plenty traffic to compete amongst the large players. But to live on fair nosotros didn't stimulate got whatever reviews, too the vi months spanned a fairly serenity flavour for us. So when FlipKey announced their complimentary listing, nosotros decided to compass it a bear witness too called too re-activated our listing.

So how does it work?

First, it's of import to realize that all of the restrictions I speak most below are specific alone to the "free" (commission based) listing. If you lot pay for a traditional listing (currently $299/year) thence FlipKey industrial plant exactly similar VRBO or whatever of the other listing sites.

No Direct Communication

To ensure that FlipKey tin collect their 3% commission, they demand to brand for certain that you lot volition procedure whatever payments through them. To do this they don't allow whatever immediately communication amongst prospective guests. Instead, all communication is channeled through the FlipKey messaging system. As an owner, you lot login to the FlipKey spider web site or role their iPhone app, to review inquiries too respond. You don't run into the potential guests telephone number or e-mail address, too they don't run into yours, until a reservation is confirmed too payment has been collected.

It's worth mentioning that FlipKey detects whatever attempts (intentional or otherwise) to circumvent this. They unwrap telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, too for certain spider web links included inwards messages, too either forestall the message from going through altogether, or take the offending information. Here is how a message came through from the kickoff somebody to require (I've changed their name)

Jane Doe
to Heather Chapman 

For safety reasons, contact data is hidden  

Hi again,
Do delight reserve the identify for us. I'll form out payment subsequently I larn abode from operate today. When I set inwards the dates on flipkey, I recall it comes upward every bit unavailable. Would you lot heed checking on that for me. My telephone number is (phone: hidden) if it would live on helpful to communicate that way, this evening.
Thanks, Jane

For us this lack of immediately communication is the most pregnant number amongst FlipKey's complimentary listing. We're fortunate to stimulate got had minimal impairment inwards our opor-garai homes since nosotros began operating them inwards 2006. And nosotros set this downwards inwards large business office to rattling thorough screening. We recognize why FlipKey has to impose this restriction, too we've made the determination to convey the peril for the adjacent 6 months. But thence nosotros excogitation to either pay for a listing, or driblet FlipKey again.

FlipKey holds the payment until the invitee checks in

As business office of agreeing to brand a booking amongst a guest, you lot larn to define the payment schedule too cancellation policy. The guests brand their payments to FlipKey through the spider web site. But FlipKey doesn't issue this payment to you lot until subsequently the invitee has checked in. Presumably this is an endeavour to bring down fraudulent listings. But it leaves us feeling that if a invitee only doesn't similar the holding thence they could contact FlipKey too larn their funds back, circumventing our cancellation policy.

In the many years we've operated a opor-garai rental we've never had this province of affairs happen. But nosotros set that downwards 1 time to a greater extent than to skillful communication amongst the invitee earlier making a reservation. When nosotros enshroud guests, we're non exactly making for certain they aren't probable to impairment our property, nosotros desire to brand for certain that they volition live on happy inwards our home.

Offers expire inwards 48 hours

When you lot extend an offering to someone through FlipKey, they stimulate got 48 hours to convey or reject. Since you lot stimulate got no way to contact them other than through the FlipKey messaging system, you lot tin live on left waiting for two days earlier you lot tin offering the same dates to someone else. Our normal practise has been to set a 24 hr expiration on whatever offers that nosotros extend. This reduces the peril that nosotros stimulate got to plough away about other interrogation piece we're waiting to have confirmation from a kickoff one.

We contacted FlipKey most this 48 hr catamenia too their explanation was "The argue why the two twenty-four hours dominion is inwards identify is due to the fact that owners too travelers tin live on inwards dissimilar fourth dimension zones".

Do you lot stimulate got a complimentary listing amongst FlipKey? If not, are you lot thinking of getting one? Or do the restrictions make it ameliorate to pay for a traditional listing? Let us know your thoughts inwards the comment department below.