How can Hosts benefit from Airbnb’s redesign?

[Quincy]

As people start to feel comfortable traveling again, they’re not always sure where to go first—or when. So we just introduced a whole new way for guests to explore listings and discover great places like yours.

The new features can help you reach more guests in the earliest stages of trip planning. For example, we’ve added 21 Airbnb Categories, from Camping to Iconic Cities, to highlight great stays that guests can browse. Your listing could pop up in someone’s feed as soon as they open the app.

As a Host, you can improve your chances of getting noticed by making sure your listing details are as current and complete as possible—and complemented by attractive photos of your space. You can find out more on the Resource Center. 

What’s one thing you’ve done recently to make your listing really shine?

[Susan1188]

@Julie-and-Brad2  
How about, simplify the categories, period!!!!

Riverfront, riverview, lakefront, lakeview, oceanfront, beach beachfront, beach view bla bla bla.

What most people I have met, want is:
View (maybe water, mountain, garden, city.  period)
Good beds with hotel quality linens not Ikea  (there is NO filter for king size beds, down comforters or pillows).
Good service, attentive personal host
Some thoughtful touches

Filtering for shepherd hut? Tiny house? Bubble in a garden?  Lodge in a service lift? Sleep in a snowdrift?  Why!!!
Showing me photos of places in Bali or Brazil where I will NEVER go?

[Jesse192]

There appears to be a bug where the cover photo chosen by the host, is NOT the photo displayed in search results.  For my listing, I have the bedroom photo selected as my cover photo, however the kitchen photo is shown in search results.  This makes my Airbnb look less desirable to guests.

Browsing the search results, it appears many other listings are also affected.   Is this a bug, or is some algorithm overriding the host's chosen cover photo?

[Jesse192]

UPDATE: it *appears* this behavior is tied to the "SHARED HOMES" tag. When I limit my search to "SHARED HOMES" category only, then the kitchen is shown as my cover photo. When I search for ALL HOMES then my selected cover photo (bedroom) is displayed correctly.

I do NOT want my kitchen displayed as my cover photo EVER. It's very frustrating that it appears Airbnb is trying to get clever here, while removing control from the host.

[Gillian166]

@Jesse192  only just checked this and then noticed my listing that is a shared home isn't in that category. 🙄

but when i checked "farm stay" then one of mine appears (only 2, not all 3, despite being on the same farm) with a different photo as the hero. 

and the way the map decides to zoom out, to 500km range, is going to give me vertigo.

[Sasha216]

Yea I have noticed under the Historic category only 1 of my 2 listings show up yet thay are both located on the same property. Very frustrating trying to understand why this is.

[Teresa--Terri-0]

@Jesse192 I have this problem also - if my city is chosen with no date, my cover photo is the one I choose. When the dates are added and the catagory of Shared Accommodations is chosen, the photo of my washer and dryer became the cover. When I called Air I was told nothing could be done and the CS said to remove the photo.  Not a good answer! Having free access to the washer and dryer is an advantage of my listing but NOT the photo I want as the lead. I've reluctantly removed it. 

I'm also annoyed at the way the listings have removed the titles. I put a lot of thought into the title, and have  invested in marketing materials. All wasted now.

[Julie1247]

You’re lucky you can find your listing at all! I can’t find any of my 7 listings under any categories or when I search the location specifically, it gives me properties hundreds of kilometres away and some are listed multiple times!

[Lisa34]

Yes that happened to me. It took CS deleting it to make it stop. It was of the back of our house with HVAC front and center. Now I am not in the cabin category anymore. ????

[Azzuri0]

Could you add under scenic views, volcano views, rice field views and jungle views, these are all views that Bali is famous for but none exist under the categories.

[Larissa112]

This all seems like another way to take control away from the hosts. We can't see the name we have chosen for our home in the search (mine just says "Cabin" now) we can not choose our own categories, and we can not choose our own cover image. @Airbnb please take into consideration that your company would not exist without hosts, and please be mindful when you make changes to the platform that affect hosts negatively. 

[Quincy]

Hi @Larissa112 @Jesse192, the title and main photo only changes in the flexible category search page — it displays as normal on any other stay search, and on the listing page once a guest clicks into it. 

[Larissa112]

@Quincy I just did a search for my house for exact dates and it still just says "Cabin on the Coast" instead of what my house is named. This generic name isn't very helpful for those of us with heavily branded, well known homes. 

[Huma0]

@Quincy 

But why? Why the name change at all, regardless of the search method? What is the reasoning behind renaming hosts' listings, especially if that new name indicates the wrong location?

[Quincy]

Hi @Huma0, this is a good question. I'll add this to the list (which is directly seen by the product team). Once I get more info on this, I'll be more than happy to share this here. 

[Huma0]

Thanks @Quincy 

This doesn't seem to be affecting me personally as my listings are simply not showing up in any categories where I thought they might, e.g. shared listings, but I can see why this would be very upsetting for the hosts who are experiencing it.