Instant Book - Pros & Cons?

[Rosita11]

I wonder how effective Instant Book really is. While it's supposed to increase booking, only a few of my guests have used it so far. Most guests contact me before booking. I also faced difficulties due to Instant Book a couple of days ago  - There were floods in certain parts of Sri Lanka and a local had booked my place via Instant Book even though he knew (or ought to have known) there was a possibility of floods affecting the listing. I told him the Government had issued warnings against travelling and asked him to cancel the booking. He refused and told me to cancel the booking instead (He was afraid he would not get a full refund if he cancelled the booking). I am a superhost and a cancellation would affect my superhost status. I reached out to the Airbnb community and thankfully one host advised me to contact Airbnb via Twitter and to ask them to cancel the booking. Airbnb responded very quickly and cancelled the reservation (without penalties to host or guest).

After this experience, I decided to read up on cancellation penalties and found out that Instant book hosts could cancel penalty free (without losing their superhost status) if they are "uncomfortable with a reservation" or "if a guest breaks house rules". The host has to provide an explanation to Airbnb and the guest. Being "uncomfortable with a reservation" seems rather ambigous and open to intepretation. What would this constitute exactly? If I have a feeling that a guest is going to have a party, how can I prove that before the guest arrives (if the guest doesn't admit it upfront)?

In the circumstances, it seems removing the Instant Book option would be better, in order to avoid a lot of unnecessary hassle. What do you think?   

[Clare0]

@Rosita11  Instant Book works really great for both hosts and guests.  For busy people it eliminates the 24 hour window for guests to wait for a response / acceptance from a host and many guests just want to book and be done. 

Also, given the flexibility for cancelling with Instant Book enabled, hosts actually have more freedom with Instant Book.  Here are some situations which Airbnb considers valid for cancelling due to being uncomfortable with a guest: 

• Violating amenities or predefined House Rules.
• No pets allowed, but guest requests pet.
• Number of guests requested exceeds listing maximum.
• Communication issues.
• Unresponsive.
• Rude.
• Unreasonable requests.
• Suspect party or disturbance.
• Safety concerns.
• Previous bad experience with guest.
• Incomplete profile.
• Profile photo not of face.
• Third party booking (in which the host was NOT aware of this before the booking was confirmed)

There may also be other reasons, but those should be discussed with Airbnb prior to cancelling. 

That said, constantly cancelling IB reservations could lead to scrutiny by Airbnb to see if the host is abusing the cancellation policy for IB listings. 

Another benefit of IB is the ability to require that a guest who wants to book instantly must have recommendations from hosts.  

One thing IB hosts need to be mindful of, however, is to be sure that calendar availability and pricing is always up to date on their listing(s).  Failure to do so is not a valid reason for cancelling an IB reservation. 

Hope this helps!

[JoAnn-and-Paul0]

I would add to Clare's very clear explanation of the IB benefits that it also increases tremendously your exposure on Airbnb's pages.

Never forget that Airbnb is Community based so it pushes the Hosts which play the game: IB, Superhost, updated calendars, positive reviews.

[Sharon242]

 I have just had a guest instant book with NO Reviews .  Airbnb says there is a setting that says only guests with reviews can use Instant Book but i can not see it and when I rang airbnb I was told it does not exist. 

[Donald385]

That's an easy fix. Go to your listings page, choose the listing you want to edit, then scroll down to instant book, click on that, and then select "Good Track Record" to only allow guests who have stayed at an Airbnb without any incidents or negative reviews. 

[Gail43]

Today I discovered that AirBnB is hiding guest ratings from any host who doesn't use Instant Book. That policy effectively sabotauges the very thing (mutual reviews) that makes the platform work.  Big mistake.  I choose not to use Instant Book as I want to vet any potential guest that I welcome into my home where I and my family live.  I am a Super Host and work hard to maintain that status.  Now, in addition to AirBnB penalizing hosts who do not use Instant Book (by automatically turning on the Instant Book only search filter when a guest is searching for a property), they've added

*  host can't see the guest's star rating

*  host is penalized by losing both income and super host rating if they cancel a reservation

What began as a platform that protects and promotes both the host's and guest's experience, is now decidely elevating the guest's experience over the host's.  Why not ask the hosts what we need and want to make the business relationship a profitable, enjoyable, and safe experience?  I feel like AirBnB is using the platform for social engineering/bullying to their own agenda, and I'm tired of it.  If these policies don't change, I'll be moving my business to a rental platform that values the host's contribution to the business equation.  

Please join the conversation about the penalties of not using Instant Book.

[Clare0]

@Gail43 I know that you want responses that agree with you, but I have to disagree.  Many guests want to know if their reservations are confirmed without waiting 24 hours for a host to accept / decline.  It is a convenience to them and to the hosts since they don't have to go through the process of accepting or declining. 

After 3 years of hosting without Instant Book and being a Super Host, I finally turned it on as I want the perks that come with Instant Book.  I've set my requirements as requiring Government ID and positive reviews from other hosts.  Yes, I get to see the star ratings since I won't have the opportunity beforehand when a guest books instantly.  Hosts who do not have Instant Book can vet the guests beforehand. 

I also am able to cancel penalty free if I am not comfortable with the guest.  

Those guests who do not meet my requirements can still send me a Reservation Request.  I accept many new users so it is a win/win for both me and my guests.  I get the best of both worlds. 

As far as search goes with the Instant Book filter set automatically,  my experience is that it is turned on only if the requested dates are a few days away.   But yes, even if the filter is set automatically for all searches, it is another perk that IB hosts get.  

Since I have hosted 65 reservations, I am much more experienced than a new host and I'm comfortable with Instant Book.  

Yes, Airbnb allows IB hosts more perks and options.  That's why I decided to turn it on.  

[JoAnn-and-Paul0]

I agree 100% with @Clare57.

What "control" do you really have when you require guests to contact you first?

Like, @Clare, and us, put your IB's requirements at the maximum (Gov. ID, Positive reviews from Hosts) and you should be fine.

Remember that Airbnb position themselves to their max benefit but also that they are in competing world. They want the reservation asap. What do you want?

Your potential Guest to pick up another listing on Airbnb or another platform?

Customers want instant things. They do not want to wait for you to wake up and answer them.

And I do understand them.

Now, if you feel uncomfortable with IB you have to assume your choice, not to blame Airbnb...

[Gail43]

Hello Clare,

Thank you for your input.  And no, I do not only want responses by people who agree with me. I value other people's perspectives and experience.

Since I've never used Instant Book, I'm unfamilar with it, and I appreciate your experience and willingness to share.   I'd

like to clarify one of your comments about guests "who do not meet my requirements can still send me a reservation request."  What would a brand-new-to-the-platform guest who doesn't have any reviews see when he trys to book your place?  Or someone who hasn't finished the verification process?  I assumed if they didn't meet your requirements, they wouldn't even see your place as an option, much like if the dates they request are not available on your calendar, your place won't show up in their search.

Thanks.

[Clare0]

@Gail43. Good question!  If a guest does not have the requirements that I have set for booking instantly, they can still send me a Reservation Request just like you get right now.  My last two reservations were booked for newbies...people who have Government ID (which I believe Airbnb is now requiring for all guests) but do not have any reviews.  I exchange messages with them to ascertain the reasons for their stay and point out anything they might need to know about my listing.  I've accepted both...

The thing you need to know is that Airbnb will not offer instant booking to anyone that does not meet your requirements and even if they book instantly, you are able to cancel penalty free if you are not comfortable.  Let's say you don't allow pets and someone books instantly and informs you they are bringing their dog.  You can cancel this reservation penalty free. 

Here are all the reasons you can cancel penalty free if you have IB turned on: 

• Violating amenities or predefined House Rules.
• No pets allowed, but guest requests pet.
• Number of guests requested exceeds listing maximum.
• Communication issues.
• Unresponsive.
• Rude.
• Unreasonable requests.
• Suspect party or disturbance.
• Safety concerns.
• Previous bad experience with guest.
• Incomplete profile.
• Profile photo not of face.
• Third party booking (in which the host was NOT aware of this before the booking was confirmed).

This link also informs you of how liberal Airbnb is with IB cancellations: 

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2022/how-do-penalty-free-cancellations-work-for-instant-book-hos...

If you do not have IB set on your listing and you have the ability to communicate with the guest before confirming, you won't have the ability to cancel penalty free under these conditions. 

In search results, it's a bit complicated.  If a guest uses the IB filter in their search and they either are not logged in or do not meet my requirements, the results will not show my listing.  If they are logged in and do meet my requirements then my listing will appear assuming my listing is otherwise available for their dates and number of guests.  In regular searches where they have not set the IB filter to ON, my listing will appear as being able to book instantly if the guest meets my requirements and if not, then they must send as Reservation Request.  Note that anyone, whether they meet my requirements or not, can send an Inquiry.  

I wrote a long discussion about searches for Instant Book in this Community that also might be helpful to you. 

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Tips-Tutorials/Searching-for-your-Instant-Book-Listing/m-p/38935...

I wrote this as a response to IB hosts who cannot find their listings, but it will give you a good idea how it works for guests. 

Let me know if you have more questions!

[Roberto1049]

Hi,

I am a superhost and have 35 reviews. I just turned on instant booking and raised my prices a bit.

Which out of the 4 guest requirements do you recommend:

1) Profile Photo

2) Govenment Issued ID

3) Recommendation from other hosts

4) Guest Trip Information

I see you only enabled 2/4 why did you choose those 2 and leave out the other 2.

[Sylvia905]

Where do you go to set the government ID and reviews for IB?

[Matthew285]

@Gail43, my understanding is not that AirBnB is hiding something from non-IB hosts, but adding something to IB hosts.

I know it sounds like there is no difference, but in the past I think hosts got to read the written reviews about guests.

This is still true.

Recently, they *added* the ability to also see the detailed star ratings. Hosts never used to be able to see this.

Now, IB hosts can see these star ratings in addition to the written reviews ALL hosts can see.

I don't consider this "hiding guest ratings" because hosts could never see these before, and everything worked just fine.

They added something to IB hosts.

As a non-IB host, you can continue to read all the written reviews, just as before.

(I never even knew you could see the star ratings until someone pointed it out.)

[Gail43]

Hey Matthew,

Your comment was helpful.  I didn't see any reviews for my guest, and mistakenly attributed that to the new message about "unlocking star ratings if you use Instant Book."  I just looked again at my guest's profile -- she doesn't have any reviews -- she just joined this month.  Thanks for your wise counsel!

[Gail43]

Correction:  I was mistaken about not being able to see the reviews of guests wanting to book.  The reservation that came in today didn't have reviews, and I assumed they were hidden due to the new message of "unlock star ratings of guests with Instant Book."  Turns out, there were no reviews because she is new to AirBnB.  My apologies.  Thanks to the forum here, someone kindly corrected me.  🙂