WhatsApp bookings for homestays: a simple setup that works

For many homestays, WhatsApp is where enquiries arrive whether you plan for it or not. The trouble is not getting messages; it is answering the same few questions again and again and keeping track of which nights you promised to whom. Here is a setup that handles both.

1. Use WhatsApp Business on a number you will keep

Install the WhatsApp Business app on the number guests will use for years: it goes on your website, your Google profile, your signboard and your visiting card. WhatsApp Business adds a business profile with your address and hours, quick replies, greeting and away messages, labels for chats, and a catalogue.

2. Put a click-to-chat link everywhere

A click-to-chat link opens a chat with you in one tap. It looks like https://wa.me/919800000000: your number with the country code, without the plus sign, spaces or dashes. Add ?text= and a short message so the guest's first line is already written, for example "Hello, I would like to ask about rooms for these dates".

Put it on every page of your website, on your Google Business Profile, in your Instagram bio, and as a QR code at reception.

3. Save quick replies for the questions you always get

• Rates for this season, with what is included
• How to reach you: the nearest bus stop, the walk or drive from the road, a map link
• Check-in and check-out times
• How to pay the advance, with your UPI ID
• Your cancellation terms

A greeting message for first-time chats and an away message for the hours you are not answering stop guests from wondering whether you saw their message.

4. Keep one calendar

The most common WhatsApp mistake is promising a room someone else booked on an app an hour ago. Keep every booking, from every channel, on one calendar, and check it before you say yes. On a StayCraft site the dates you block are closed on your website too, so guests only ask for nights that are open.

5. Confirm only when the advance arrives

Ask for an advance by UPI, wait for it to reach your account, and then confirm in writing with the dates, the room, the amount paid and the balance. Label the chat as confirmed so you can find it on the day.

6. Move the booking off the chat

A chat is a poor record. Once a guest is ready, send them your booking page so their details, dates and advance are recorded in one place, and you have their email for the confirmation. On StayCraft, an enquiry from your site arrives with the dates and the guest's details already filled in.