How to communicate with your Airbnb guests through printed signs

Airbnb House Signs for Guests

To sign or not to sign, that is the question. You know your short term rental inside and out, but your guests won’t. And they’ll have questions. So many questions! One easy way to avoid a lot of back and forth over easy issues is to place helpful signs around your short term rental. This makes life a lot easier for you and your guests, paving the way to a five-star review. 

Signs that point out important switches (think garbage disposal), give helpful reminders (wi-fi password), or provide helpful contact information and lets your guests know you have great attention to detail and care about their stay. If you have areas that guests have had questions about, a simple sign can clear up any questions. This often comes up around the operation of certain appliances like washers and dryers, coffee makers, garbage disposals, etc. 

Be sure to keep signs brief and easy to read. If you have more than one piece of info to share on a sign, use bullet points. Make sure they’re all in a similar font that’s easy to read in consideration of older guests or those that may have a vision impairment. If you really want to go the extra mile, make your signs clever and fun to read - don’t be afraid to include a little humor. Just make sure they stay helpful and to the point. 

You should try to have a minimum of three helpful signs around your short term rental. Try to think of call-outs that are unique to your rental - Do you have a septic tank that requires special toilet paper? Is your washing machine finicky? Maybe a “no smoking” reminder for your deck? 

Don’t overdo it

We’ve all been there with the roommate that writes a passive-aggressive note to “do your dishes your mom doesn’t live here.” Avoid making your guests feel like you are the annoying roommate. Only post notes when something is not obvious and don’t go crazy. It’s easy to make your own printable signs, but that doesn’t mean you should overdo it. 

I’ve stayed in an Airbnb where they took the signs way too far. I’m talking about 3 rolls of label maker tape. At that point, I stopped seeing the notes and it just became a joke to our entire party. Don’t let this happen to you, or your guests will be sure to ignore important info. Not to mention, people won’t recommend a short term rental to their friends that’s the butt of their jokes. It would also be embarrassing to have this pointed out in a review.

Choosing your signs

When deciding what signs to have in your short term rental, the first things to consider are the questions your guests ask the most, or questions you had when staying somewhere else. What would make life easier for you and your guests?

These signs can be pretty helpful when your guests arrive

Bathroom - Check-out Instructions - Grill Rules - Emergency Contacts

Do Your Dishes - Garbage Rules - Kitchen - No Smoking 

These Signs are nice to have (don’t overdo it): 

No Food - No Shoes - Parking - Pool Rules

These are other no-brainers signs you should look out to make your guests feel at home:

Vacation Rentals - Local Recomendations - WiFi and Chill - Washcloths

If you would like to get all these signs in a bundle for an amazing prize, you can get it here:

Here is another sign if you are into fitness and your guests might like it too:

Short Term Rental Fitness Guide (Check out this blog post if you are wondering what this is)

Since almost everyone needs a WiFi sign. I’ve created a free and fully customizable sign for you.
Click here to get the Free WiFi Sign. I also have a shop where all of the other signs are available for purchase.