How to run smoother Airbnb turnovers: Lessons from Turno's VP of Product
Smooth short-term rental turnovers depend on clear expectations between hosts and cleaners, short and focused checklists, quick problem reporting from the property, and rewards for great work. Gabi Celemin, VP of Product at Turno, shares what he's learned from seven years of watching how hosts and cleaners really work on Turnover Tactics – from Host Planet and Turno. Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
Why is designing for cleaners so different?
Most software assumes the user is sitting at a desk. Cleaners aren't. They're on their feet, often in a property they've never visited, working against a 3pm check-in.
"Our cleaners are 100% mobile," says Gabi. Turno maps a cleaner's whole day, from the morning commute to working in gloves while the vacuum is running, and designs the app around it. Hosts are moving to mobile too. Most set up their account on a computer, but within a couple of months they use the app more than the website.
The feature that has to work every time is the schedule and project screen. That's the cleaner's hub for where to go, when, and what to do, with checklists, inventory and problem reports all in one place.
How long should an Airbnb cleaning checklist be?
Shorter than you think. Gabi has seen hosts create checklists with hundreds of items, and he says that's counterproductive.
"Checklists should be more like a reminder, or proof that some things were done," he explains. "Then we need to rely on the quality and the experience of each cleaner to do it right."
Instead of listing every task:
Focus the checklist on key tasks and proof photos
Use notes, photos, and videos to show how you want the space staged
Agree expectations upfront, before the first clean
Make reporting problems easy. A cleaner can snap a photo of something broken, and the host can often send a replacement while the cleaner is still there
What surprised Turno most about cleaners?
How well they multitask. "I've seen them wearing gloves, moving buckets of water or vacuuming, and at the same time snapping photos or calling the host on their headphones," says Gabi.
Turno has also watched both sides of the marketplace grow, from hosts going from one property to dozens, to cleaners building their own small teams. As James puts it: your cleaners are your VIPs.
How can hosts reward cleaners for five-star reviews?
Hosts told Turno again and again that cleaning quality was their top priority. After Turno became an official Airbnb software partner, it could link each clean to the guest's cleanliness rating, and it used that data to build Performance Bonus.
Hosts can set up an automatic extra payment, such as $5 or $10, whenever a clean earns a five-star cleanliness rating. "For cleaners it's like, 'This is so nice from the host. I want to keep working with them,'" says Gabi.
How do Airbnb turnovers differ in the UK and Europe?
Localisation goes far beyond translation. European properties tend to be smaller, and laundry often happens off-site, so hosts need ways to coordinate linen drop-offs. There are legal differences too: in France, for example, cleaners must provide a SIRET business number. The right tone also varies by market, including whether to address people formally or informally.
How is AI changing turnover management?
Turno has used AI since around 2022, starting with customer support. A new agent now spots maintenance issues in chat messages and suggests creating a maintenance job in one click, with the details pulled from the conversation. Previously, hosts had to copy and paste everything themselves.
Turno also launched Can to Curb in the US this year, which lets hosts schedule regular bin collections at their properties.
Key takeaways for hosts
Keep checklists short and trust your cleaner's experience
Agree expectations before the first clean
Make it easy to report problems in real time
Reward five-star cleans for exceptional Airbnb turnovers
Treat your cleaners as partners
Turnover Tactics is brought to you by Host Planet and Turno. Find trusted cleaners and put your turnovers on autopilot at turno.com.
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