Your listing is your shopfront. When a renter is scrolling through dozens of vehicles trying to decide where to spend their holiday budget, the difference between a booking and a scroll-past usually comes down to five things.

Here's what separates the listings that consistently book out from the ones that sit idle.

1. Photos That Actually Sell the Vehicle

Photos are the single most important element of your listing. Renters can't sit in the driver's seat or open the cupboards — your photos are doing all of that work for them.

What makes a good set of listing photos:

• Quantity: Aim for at least 12–15 images. More is better.
• Lighting: Shoot in natural daylight. Open all the blinds, open the door if possible, and avoid flash.
• Angles: Cover the exterior front, rear, and sides. Interior shots should include the cab, sleeping area, kitchen, bathroom, and living space.
• Detail shots: The hob, the bed set up properly, the storage space, the awning extended. Help renters visualise using the vehicle.
• Real photos: Use your actual vehicle. Authentic photos perform better than staged or edited imagery and lead to fewer complaints at handover.

If photography isn't your strong suit, it's worth investing a couple of hours on a sunny weekend to get a good set. You'll use these photos across dozens of bookings.

2. A Headline That Answers the Right Question

Your listing title needs to answer the first question a renter has: is this the right vehicle for my trip?

The best titles combine vehicle type, a key feature, and a location signal. Compare:

• "Toyota HiAce Campervan — Self-Contained, Solar, Sleeps 2 — Sydney"
• "Our Campervan" 

The first listing tells a renter exactly what they need to know in one line. The second could be anything. Write your title as if the renter is looking for a specific type of vehicle for a specific type of trip — because they are.

3. A Description That's Honest and Specific

Generic descriptions lose bookings. Specific descriptions win them.

Rather than 'great for couples and families', say 'comfortably sleeps 2 adults in the fixed queen bed, with a fold-out dinette that works for smaller travellers.' Rather than 'well-equipped kitchen', say 'two-burner gas hob, 80L compressor fridge, microwave, and a full set of cookware for 4.'

Be equally honest about limitations. If the bathroom is compact, say so. If the vehicle is best suited to sealed roads, say that too. Renters who know what they're getting leave better reviews than renters who feel misled.

Structure your description with these sections:

• What the vehicle is and who it suits
• Sleeping configuration and capacity
• Kitchen and cooking setup
• Bathroom and toilet facilities
• Extras (solar, awning, outdoor furniture, bike rack, etc.)
• Any limitations or conditions worth noting

4. Competitive Pricing — and the Right Pricing Strategy

Pricing is where most new hosts undervalue themselves or price themselves out of the market without realising it.

A few principles worth following:

• Research your category: Search for similar vehicles on Tern and peer platforms to understand the going rate for your vehicle type and location.
• Set seasonal rates: School holidays, long weekends, and summer command a premium. Shoulder seasons should be more competitive to maintain utilisation.
• Minimum nights: Short bookings (1–2 nights) often have high turnaround cost. Consider a 3-night minimum to improve your economics.
• Don't race to the bottom: Listings priced unusually low can actually reduce bookings — renters assume something is wrong with the vehicle.

Check your pricing every 4–6 weeks and adjust based on what's booking and what isn't.

5. Fast Response Times

Tern surfaces response time data to renters. A host who responds within an hour looks more reliable than one who responds in three days — even if the vehicle is identical.

Turn on notifications for booking enquiries and make it a habit to respond within a few hours during business hours. A short, friendly response — even if it's just to confirm you've received the message and will reply in detail shortly — goes a long way.

If you know you'll be unavailable for a period, block those dates in your calendar. Nothing damages your listing credibility faster than not responding to an enquiry or cancelling a confirmed booking.

The Compounding Effect of Good Reviews

Everything above feeds into your review score — and your review score is what determines how prominently your listing appears to future renters. A listing with 10 five-star reviews will consistently outperform a listing with no reviews at identical pricing.

Focus on the first few bookings. Get those right — clean vehicle, honest listing, responsive communication, smooth handover — and the reviews will follow. The reviews will then do the selling for you.

Ready to build your listing? Our team can review your listing draft before it goes live.

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