Great news—Airbnb is now accepting submissions for new exper...
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Great news—Airbnb is now accepting submissions for new experiences! List your Experience has reopened. The goal is to find am...
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Many of you have asked us how Airbnb can protect hosts from one-off bad reviews. When this question came up at the most recent Host Q&A, we told you we were working on ways to make the review process more fair for hosts. Specifically, we made 2 promises:
Today, we’re excited to announce two improvements to the review process that directly address these issues. Since these changes have been introduced, we’ve already noticed a tangible uptick in more accurate, fair reviews for hosts, and we hope they solve some of your pain points. Here’s what’s new:
One-off review alerts
We’ve added a step to the review process for guests when they give a host an inconsistent overall rating. For instance, the guest may have given 4-star or higher ratings for all the categories (cleanliness, accuracy, etc.), but then give an overall rating of less than 3 stars.
The new pop up screen asks guests: “Is this right?” And goes on to explain that they rated their overall stay lower than they rated it in specific categories. It gives guests an option to either change the rating or ignore the alert.
This new alert has led to higher overall review ratings for hosts. Since we launched, we’ve seen a 2.8% drop in 3-star reviews and a 3.9% drop in 2-star reviews. While these percentages may seem small, they’re driving real improvements in the accuracy of our review system, and hosts are benefitting.
Location, location, location
We’ve heard from you that the location rating can be particularly frustrating because some of you have experienced guests dinging you in this category, unexpectedly, after great stays. This category is tricky. It gives valuable information to prospective travelers, which we don’t want to lose. At the same time, we hear your concern that you’re being graded for something you can’t control: guests’ opinion of your location. This opinion is inherently subjective—one person’s “rustic rural retreat” may be another’s “too far from public transportation.” So we made it more clear in the review process that guests are rating the accuracy of your location description, rather than the location itself.
Now, when a guest goes to rate you in the location category, if they give you less than 3 stars, they see an explanation: “Was the listing’s location not described accurately?” So far, this has led to a 0.8% increase in the average rating for location.
While we were working on this, we also made similar improvements to the value category. If a guest gives you less than 3 stars there, they’ll see this message: “What would have made this listing a better value?” This has led to a 0.25% increase in the average rating for value.
These changes were designed to begin to address your concerns around unfair reviews, and to help make sure that guests understand what ratings mean. We still have a journey ahead of us to keep making the review system better, and you’ll continue to see updates from us on this throughout the year. Thank you for hosting!
First of all and saying this again
Hosts who actually LIVE IN THEIR HOUSES
need to be reviewed SEPARATELY and LISTED
SEPARATELY TOO
We are NOT hotels and shouldn't be reviewed like one
I do not have a maid or a cleaning person coming in after every guest
I do not wear a hair net
I can do this because I am in a suburb but every single guest that came here as a tourist was looking for a cheap hotel. I have taken to asking questions and my instincts are always right. And these folks review like a hotel.
Agreed. I just posted the same thing...need to have a Pro and Am class system.
As a host I would be most interested to look at the reviews potential guests have left for other hosts.
I think this would tell me as much or more about potential guests as the reviews hosts have left about them.
great idea
Great to hear that Airbnb is thinking of this. I have a guest with a misrepresentative and dishonest account of his stay in his review. I'd just like to know what the next steps are when a review is flagged as a one-off review?
Thanks Airbnb for make these changes to Review system for us Hosts. I look forward to seeing more,
Nicola, Super Host, Ocho Rios, Jamacia
While this may well be a 'good step', AirBnB still fail to involve the people that line their pockets. US, The Hosts.
Why not ask US what we want and how we would like things to improve OUR experience as the people who are allowing our HOMES to be occupied by strangers.
There have been a number of changes to how AirBnB works since starting using the platform, some of which I violently disagree with but have no choice to accept (and 'well leave then' isn't the answer).
Admitedly, the 'location' review has always made me angry when guests give low value scores. THEY chose the area, they chose to book here, if they didn't like some aspect of it for whatever reason, then it's not the Hosts' fault.
Anyway, lets see how things pan out.
I support the critical contributions from other hosts. However, you are doing a great job. How I wish that half the companies and governments I do business with were half so clear and well-organized as you are! (Fat chance). There will always be outliers and its highly pissing-off to be the victim of one, but over time the averages tell the story. From what you say, your algorithms are well designed to manage that (I hope its true). Yes, it hurts to get a bad review, but if you set up in business you stick your head above the parapet and any passing nutter can lob a turnip at you, thats the nature of it. I think we just have to be big enough to take it, it comes with the turf.
Aren't we?
I mean, we know we are good, and time will tell.
Well, I do .............
aaaaarghhhhhhh......
Alan Weatherill Weymouth UK
But that one guest damages your business. I had one bad guest and it took ten bookings for my ratings to recover.
That’s a very good point. There is always room for improvement. Some guests seem to think it is their job to have a blue sky wish - and mark you down because it’s not there.
Shawna I just encountered that for the 1st time a guest who loved her stay here rebooked another stay 3 months down a road and gave me a 4 star! To cancel her and avoid another 4 star since she apparently gives no one a 5 star would lose me my superhost status. Yes it is unfair and I agree wish it could change.
Could you explain the star system to them before they arrive?
@Sherri36 This has happened to us a few weeks ago. We’ve done our best to accommodate the guest, went above and beyond despite some issues that cost us some sleep. And then she writes it was perfect but gives us 4 stars overall, for the location and the value. When I expressed my disappointment and asked politely in a private message why and what could we have done better, she starts shouting at me, how can I expect 5 stars, 5 stars would be perfect and nothing is perfect, and I should let it go and shouldn’t be so controlling of the rating etc., etc. etc. Someone who portrays herself as zen and spiritual... and that was the response. I have just blocked her.
That's just awful. With every guest, I worry about the one who will leave 'that review', it's grossly unfair.