Should You Use People in Your Airbnb Photos (or Not)? The Psychology Behind What Guests See.
Written By Kiera - Booking Conversion Strategist & Mentor-
Ever wondered if photos without people perform better — or if you need models to make your space feel more relatable?
Some hosts think adding people to their photos makes a space feel warm and inviting.
But psychology shows the opposite.
When guests look at your photos, their brain isn’t just looking — it’s rehearsing.
Just as a professional athlete imagines themselves running the race, guests are unconsciously testing:
Would I feel like myself here? Would I relax here? Would this match who I am?
When a photo shows someone else already in the space, their brain registers it as occupied.
That interrupts the mental rehearsal — the very process that lets guests imagine themselves there.
They’re no longer picturing their morning coffee.
They’re watching someone else’s.
But if they are viewing ‘Unoccupied Vignettes’ — a steaming coffee on a small table, a towel casually draped, a window slightly open — allow the guest to insert themselves into the scene.
*Photo by Sam Smith
So when it comes to the psychology of bookings, it’s not about adding people for aesthetics — it’s about understanding the emotional triggers each image is designed to activate in the guest’s mind.
There’s actually a lot of science and psychology behind what makes a guest feel “this is the one.”
I share more of these behind-the-scenes booking psychology insights in my email letters if you’d like to keep exploring www.turnlookersintobookers/newsletter
IN THIS LESSON
Never choose your cover photo in isolation
It's job is to stand out on the scroll and speak clearly to the 'emotional' experience guests are seeking.
A host in my public group was asking if a photo of a fire pit is compelling enough. (image attached)
It DOES speak to an 'emotional experience' in terms of inferring relaxed time together, gathering, talking, laughing...prospective guests fill in the dots with their own version of the story in their own mind.
If however, many listings in the location feature fire-pits the image will simply blend in with the crowed. Even the colors in your photo impact on how well it is 'seen' on scroll.
So I always recommend seeing what other listings are leading with BEFORE making your decision.
Then, once you have added the photo, go back to a general search and see how it looks insitu on scroll.
When I did a quick scroll through the location in question, there are VERY few listings leading with the fire pit so it is likely to be quite effective in stopping the scroll in terms of the 'emotional story' it is telling.
Why I Don’t Recommend Responding to Reviews on Your Listing
When it comes to consumer buying behavior, reviews are perceived as independent information. In the online world, they’re often referred to as eWoM—Electronic Word of Mouth.
It’s easy to forget that reviews are is just the digital version of old-fashioned word of mouth. Think about asking a friend or colleague for a recommendation—you want to hear their perspective in an uninterrupted way so you can make your own judgment.
When hosts reply to every review, it can subtly shift how those reviews are perceived. It’s a bit like leaning over someone’s shoulder while they’re talking and adding your own commentary—it interrupts what was meant to be an independent voice.
Some hosts even use AI to respond, repeating key words from the guest’s own review. But when potential guests see the same canned phrasing repeated review after review, it feels inauthentic—and adds no real value.
If you want to thank a guest or acknowledge something they’ve said, that’s far more meaningful in a private message—where it’s personal, not performative.
There’s decades of research into how reviews influence decision-making—stretching back to the 1960s. The principles of word of mouth haven’t changed just because the format has.
The more options someone has, the harder it becomes to choose. Reviews help cut through that by showing how others, just like them, have experienced something.
Reviews, like every part of your listing, have their own job to do. Our role as hosts is to provide our information in the listing itself, then allow other voices to speak without us stepping in.
Research into the “qualitative characteristics of online reviews” shows that depth and subjectivity matter most. A thoughtful, detailed review from a happy guest is valuable both to potential guests AND to the algorithm.
In short: let your reviews stand on their own. They carry more weight—and more authenticity—when they speak for themselves.
P.S. There is one exception to this - if someone posts a review that is dramatically inaccurate, that is the time where a short, professional response is useful. Usually a review like this will stand out in a sea of great reviews as reflective of the guest and not the stay.
