Critique my listing - Dani in Denver, CO USA

[Danielle1781]

Hello! My bookings have been quite slow since receiving a poor review. I am currently in the process of working with Airbnb support on that but I wanted to get some feedback on the listing in general to see if there was anything more I could improve. Thanks for your feedback!

[Marie8425]

@Danielle1781 

I  seen someone else mention they dealt  with noisy upstairs floors by putting  those sound machines people buy to  help sleep.  I forget what they were called but plays like ocean  noises and  such....  White  noise  

[Danielle1781]

Great idea @Marie8425 ! I just ordered some from Amazon! Thank you!

[Paula]

Hello @Danielle1781 👋

It's wonderful to see that our experienced Hosts, Joan and Marie, have shared their feedback on your listing 😊 Have you noticed any differences in terms of guests since you made updates to your listing?

If you find any of our Hosts' answers particularly useful, please don't hesitate to mark it as the best answer. You can do this by clicking the button below the comment as shown in the following image:

This will help future Hosts with similar questions easily find this conversation.

All the best.

[Danielle1781]

Thanks @Paula !  I have noticed that guests seem to appreciate the additional detail and knowing what to expect. I have had a few guests assure me that they love dogs when I updated the booking email to include more clear info about pets on the property. I think telling guests the "negatives" right away gives them a chance to consider and shows transparency. 

[Joan2709 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Danielle1781 

I lived in the Denver area for 40+ years and loved it too!

A few things you might try to help with the creaky floors/noise and shared path to entrance:

Noise

I would change your quiet times to accomodate your guests that are in your listing below you since you have the creaky floor issue. Most Hosts have quiet times of 11pm-8am. Not sure how that will impact your personal schedule, but you may have to make adjustments, as the noise from movement upstairs caused some pretty negative reviews leading to your 4.5-star rating. You are bound to have guests again that are light sleepers, or need to get up early for a flight.

I would add potential for noise to the guest safety section as well:

Most Guests simply don't read the listing. They look at the Title, photos and reviews; that's it. To be extra cautious, when responding to a guest's request to book, I would thank them for their interest in your place and you would love to Host them! Then add a note about this is a basement apt and Host resides in upper unit. Advise it is an historic home  and there may be some noise during the day (change your quiet times to 11pm-8am if possible). I would also add info about the shared entrance to this message and that some neighbors do have pets. This way, a guest can withdraw their request to book if this will not work for them and thus prevent another negative review which you cannot afford right now. @Marie8425 offered this idea of a white noise machine in each bedroom. 

Shared Spaces

I would add some photos of the shared spaces (entrance to unit & driveway) with captions explaining.

[Danielle1781]

Hi @Joan2709 ! Thank you for this great feedback. I checked the potential for noise and added details. I tweaked my quiet hours a bit, and I did go ahead and order white noise machines and ear plugs to provide for my guests. I have included the info about the shared entry and creaky floors at various places throughout the listing as well. 

Additionally I have a detailed check in message (with photo map) that I send and I include another, more detailed comment about animals on the property in that message. I have updated my reservation message to include details on the creaky floors and shared path/pets so that guests can reconsider if these are deal breakers. I like your idea of adding a few photos of the entry path/shared spaces. I will take some and add those with captions. 

I think I've captured all your feedback? Thank you so very much! Here's hoping for great reviews!

[Marie8425]

@Danielle1781 

I  have a neighbor  whose dog always barks in  the  middle of the night.     Some people irt   bugs others  like  me  sleep  through anything haha.    Doon's  get   so   paranoid over 1 guests issue with a wood  floor creak  your  whole ad is about what she  disliked instead  of why  I  will  like.   You   weren't  doing  zumba at  midnight  in tap  shoes  lol

The ear plugs  are good.    My   husband  found  a big  container    at  Costco of  ear  plugs so  that  works what  I olfer.    

Until you realillo  know if your  floors make  thatch much  noise or  just a  negative person,  she was a guest not a consultant  you hired.

The possibility  of  noise   has  bee listed in  the  correct  section.

I  would   add  the white  noise machines to  your description   but just   use  ChatWGT  will put a positive spin on it.

You  can   ask   guests before   check in    are they  very light sleepers  some people    a.    Don't lie  and say there isn't noise   but  lie  and  make  it  awful   when you   don't  know yet..   It  bugged  1  guest

[Joan2709]

Hi @Danielle1781 

Another thing you might try is temporarily lowering your price. Be sure to implement some of the suggestions mentioned here before doing so. You want to get some more 5-star reviews to get your ratings up from the 4.5 you currently have. 

[Danielle1781]

Also a good idea...I am going to adjust my pricing for a period and see how that helps.

[Joan2709]

Hi @Danielle1781 

Hoping things pick up and these changes help 😊. One more thing, I noticed you indicated you don't have "essentials" checked in your amenities list? I'm sure you do have those, so you might want to update that in your amenities list. The strike through means you have not included those in the listing:

[Danielle1781]

Thank you @Joan2709 ! I have essentials checked now!