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?

[Alex6992]

Hey @Quincy -- this one should be a layup for the team to fix.

Under "National Parks," the *entire* North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has no results. Literally zero. Only the Gatlinburg entrance is included, not the Cherokee entrance. 

This change isn't just effecting a listing or two -- it's nuking rental activity for an entire region that depends on tourism to survive.

[Lisa34]

We have only a handful of Amazing Views in our region of NC where we look right at Mt Mitchell the tallest peak east of the Mississippi. I mean it makes no sense. I know a lot of properties have great pictures of their view but AI doesn’t seem to register it. AND everyone is being rerouted like in this picture to Gatlinburg area. BRUTAL

[Helen609]

Is anyone benefitting? I am not getting any views or bookings, half of August is empty. This is my livelihood which usually runs at 85% occupancy year round. Has Mr Chesky decided to shut me down because it feels like it.

[Janice503]

Ditto

[Deborah975]

For the first time in over ten years hosting with Airbnb, this year I have not had one inquiry! Thank goodness for Booking.com it’s saved my bacon this year.

[Quincy]

Hello everyone @Nancy1633 @Kia272 @Larissa112 @Jesse192 @Teresa--Terri-0 @Eddie-And-Sandi0, thank you all once again for sharing all your feedback over the past month. Recently we've shared some news specifically about listing titles, and I thought you may want to find out more about this. 

Click >here< to find out more. 

[Jamie206]

the categories are 100% useless and literally stopping guests from seeing the available properties. This is hopeless.... Airbnb management has completely lost the plot. Perhaps, while we're all losing money with lost bookings, they'll wake up? I doubt it. I keep reading about everyone scrambling to get on other platforms, just to try and stay alive. The main search page is an absolute nightmare. If they don't revert back to something that normal people can understand, we'll be out of business by end of year, with bookings dropping to nearly zero after the "upgrade". Best of luck everyone.

[Tamara682]

@Quincy 
I've been all pro-ABB. I see there is a campaign out there en masse that is drooling to bring you down. So, I try to be supportive where you don't even cover yourselves.

And your "new" (I can't say improved) way of trying to stay ahead of the wolves - well it'd be fine if it didn't take away and cost the foundation of your business (us - the ones who provide the homes/rooms/spaces that keep you in business) an almost empty rice bowl.
My viewings have gone from an average of 450 per 30 days to 125 and dropping every day that you update your information.
I have river view property so there is no category for that either.
While I am new, the reviews I have received except from one woman unhappy she had to cut her stay short and I didn't offer a refund on one day's notice - well that's just the cost of doing business and even she only gave me 4 stars in 3 categories; the rest were 5.
Point being, do not eat your face to spite your nose.
I like what you have to offer. But if you yourselves decide to box in our listings with some algorithm that doesn't know jack, then I suggest you take a look at Zillow. Humans could've made a success of their flipping philosophy. It's the algorithm that killed it. Don't you get that?

[Kyle325]

Hopefully, airbnb's 3rd qtr earnings will reflect this disastrous summer release abomination.  as hosts for 3 years, this Aug/Sep "22 has been our worst, during the peak season here in Western North Carolina.  We've been booked solid every September, yet this year, only 1/2; our views have plummeted from 900-1100/month to less than 400; virtually no bookings from this platform.  All anyone has to do is watch Westworld or Black Mirror to UNDERSTAND that computers and AI are NOT THE ANSWER.  We have lost complete faith in airbnb's services - their CS does nothing but offer platitudes and links and tell you to send feedback.... feedback which is, apparently, useless.....  again, perhaps their profit report for Q3 will be the EVIDENCE they need to revert back to the previous and HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL platform.... 

[Katja202]

@Quincy @Stephanie Just a few days ago I contacted CS about the categories. My listing is in tiny houses and rural. While I am also a Shepherd's hut and off-grid, I am not categorised in those ones. So I asked what to do other than what Airbnb and you guy's already suggested. They told me I'm in Tiny Homes because that is what I put in my listing when I wrote the listing. She suggested I should change that. The problem is that I cannot change that because the options aren't there 😞 in the Netherlands. The algorithm isn't picking up the changes I made. In my opinion, my listing should be in: Tiny homes, Shepherd's hut, rural and off-grid. My bookings dropped dramatically and my views are down by 50%. Now I don't think that is because of the summer release, but the summer release isn't working out as I hoped and not working for me at the moment. I think the drop in bookings is because everybody is free to travel again and everybody is taking it in full and is going to Thailand, Ibiza or where ever but not the tiny small vacations you book on Airbnb in between the big holidays. Airports are swamped and can not handle travellers. And with economic mismanagement by our governments, people don't have the money anymore to travel as much as they did. So now more than ever it is important for hosts their listings can be found in the correct places on the website. It is unfortunate that the summer release is done at the same time covid rules were lifted. What would be nice is if Airbnb explains what is happening in the travel industry and why this is happening and what we hosts can do to make it better. Before all, we are a joint venture and in times of trouble we should be working closely together and not against each other I think.