Getting started with Smoobu: your first day

New to Smoobu and not sure what to set up first? This guide is for hosts on their first day: it walks you through the setup in the right order, from your properties to your channels, prices, and guest messages. When you finish, all your calendars show the same availability and new bookings arrive in Smoobu on their own.

Before you start

You need these at hand before you begin:

• The basic details of each property you rent out: its time zone, your standard check-in and check-out times, and how much cleaning time you need between stays.
• Your login details for the channels you sell on (Booking.com, Airbnb, and so on), if you want to connect them.

Your setup, step by step

1. Create your properties and set their basics. Everything in Smoobu (bookings, calendars, prices, channel connections) attaches to a property, so this comes first. Create each property, then set its time zone, standard check-in and check-out times, and buffer days for cleaning: How do I create a property in Smoobu?.

2. Block the dates that are already taken. Before you connect any channel, enter direct bookings and blockers into the calendar manually to avoid double bookings once you connect a channel. Smoobu does not import your existing direct bookings or manual blocks automatically when you connect a channel.

3. Connect your channels. A channel connection keeps your availability, prices, and bookings in sync. Connect the big channels directly (How do I connect Booking.com to Smoobu?, How do I connect Airbnb to Smoobu?); some other channels connect over a calendar link (How do I sync availability by iCal with a channel that has no direct Smoobu connection?). To understand what syncs and what doesn't, read How does Smoobu keep my calendars in sync?. Because you entered your existing bookings and blockers in step 2, a newly connected channel can't sell dates that are already taken.

4. Enter your prices. Open Pricing: each property has a row with one cell per night. Type a price into the cells, or click Change range of dates to set a price across a whole period. If you already keep your prices on a channel like Booking.com, you can import them into Smoobu instead of typing them again: see Copy or import prices instead of typing them. When you finish, click Synchronize now to push the prices to your channels. Price edits only reach your connected channels after that click. For the full how-to, see Set your prices and minimum stay.

5. Set up the Booking Engine for direct bookings. The Booking Engine lets guests book on your own website, with no channel commission. Per property, you set the marketing title, photo, cleaning fee, and prepayment there: How do I set up my Booking Engine?. To take online payments, connect a payment provider (How do I set up Stripe payments?) and choose which methods guests can pick (What payment methods can I offer?).

6. Create a website if you don't have one. The Website Builder generates a complete site with the Booking Engine already inside: How do I create a website with Smoobu?. If you already have a website, you can embed the Booking Engine there instead.

7. Set up your guest messages. Open Experience > Communication and set up your @host.smoobu.com alias first: without it, guest replies do not arrive in your Smoobu Messages inbox. Then create your first templates, for example a booking confirmation, an arrival message with directions and access details, and a departure message.

8. Make a test booking. Book your own property once to see the whole flow work end to end, without charging yourself money: How do I make a test booking?.

9. Add the extras when you need them. Smoobu also offers online check-in for collecting guest registration data (Experience > Online Check-in), a digital Guest Guide for your arrival information (Experience > Guest Guide), and guest invoicing (Configuration > Invoice Settings). None of these block your start; set them up once the basics run.

How you know you're set up

• Each property appears as its own row on your Calendar, and new bookings inherit the check-in and check-out times you set.
• Bookings from your connected channels appear in Bookings within minutes of confirmation.
• Your test booking arrives with Website as its channel.
• After you click Synchronize now in Pricing, your channels show the prices you set in Smoobu.

Related articles

• Set up your digital Guest Guide
• Set up online check-in for your guests
• How do I create a property in Smoobu?
• How does Smoobu keep my calendars in sync?
• How do I set up my Booking Engine?
• How do I create a website with Smoobu?
• How do I make a test booking?
• How do I connect Booking.com to Smoobu?
• How do I connect Airbnb to Smoobu?
• How do I sync availability by iCal with a channel that has no direct Smoobu connection?

Still stuck?

If this didn't answer your question, the Smoobu team is happy to help. In Smoobu, open the Help menu to open a ticket or book a call slot, or use the chat bubble in the bottom-right corner for a quick question during business hours.