A new way for guests to show you appreciation and encouragement

[Airbnb]

Hello everyone,

During this challenging time, we want to rekindle connections within our community and evoke memories of travel. Many guests have also asked for ways to support their favorite hosts. We’re delighted to share a new way for eligible guests to show appreciation or encouragement by sending personalized cards to past hosts who provided excellent hospitality during a stay or an Airbnb Experience. There is also an option to add a financial contribution that goes entirely to the host; Airbnb will not charge any fees.

How does this work?

There will be two parts to this program. 

The main part will be giving past guests the ability to send a virtual card with a personal message to prior hosts from stays or Airbnb Experiences they've rated 4 or 5 stars. In the coming weeks, eligible guests will receive an email from Airbnb informing them the feature is available. We hope these cards will make hosts smile, and bring a little joy to the guests, too. Here’s an example of a few cards hosts may receive.

The second part is that guests can attach an optional financial contribution to their card. 100% of the guests’ contribution goes directly to the host. Please note that the guests will not see any personal or financial information about the host other than their name, location, and dates of the past stay or experience. 

We heard from some hosts that they were concerned about the financial contribution element, so we've updated the program so hosts can opt-out of future contributions by going to their payments settings and turning the ‘allow contributions’ toggle to ‘off’. If a host receives a contribution they do not wish to keep, they have the option to donate an equal value to nonprofits, including those that are supporting COVID-19 responders. If hosts choose to decline future contributions, they may still receive cards if guests choose to send them. 

For more information - including how to automatically opt-out of future contributions, refer to our Help page. 

- Airbnb

*Have you received a card from a past guest? Share your story below!*

[Louise0]

Agree.  The 'kindness cards' initiative is cringeworthy.  If I didn't know better, I'd assume it was satire. 

I cannot fathom how anyone could come  up with such a hideous idea.  It's going to backfire horribly.  My guess is that it will be viewed as a cynical attempt by Airbnb to exploit the pandemic as a marketing tool.  

Is there no one in the organisation with the guts to shake the people responsible and knock some sense into them?  Why aren't 100's of staffers standing up and shouting "NO!!!  You can't do this!  It makes us look ridiculous!  People are dying, sick, jobless, hungry and grieving, and you want to turn it into a Hallmark moment??!!!  NO, just no!!"

[Helen350]

Fantastically well put @Louise0  Yes, Yes, YES! 

[Helen427]

@Airbnb @Jennifer1421@Lizzie 

@Stephanie 

The options under law I understand are Opt in

and Opt out, or neutral, not just one or the other.

 It's a little like the Justice System, people get told to plead Guilty,or Not Guilty and rarely No Plea which is always an option to!

I'm in agreement of Kindness Cards as it's a nice way to reach out to guests from a flow on marketing perspective to "encourage" ( as is in the opening topic Title) guests to come stay again when lockdowns are behind us.

We all need some positive movement in relation to that, don't we?

Many of us have been waiting for eternity for cures to cancer, leukaemia, spinal cord injuries, dwarfism, and all manner of diseases/ injuries, cures for genetic differences for a long, long time and the reality is whilst Covid19/ this Coronavirus is listed as a virus will there realistically  be a cure for it in the foreseeable 12-18 months?

There's too many negative complaints as it is here in CC and sending a card is an act of gratitude that is very positive.

It may even jolt the consciences of those who gave us 4 stars instead of 5 stars as well as encourage those living locally to book again in the foreseeable future when "Civil Defense" catergory levels are lifted, people return to work & take control again of their own lives.

Looking forward to the end of arbitrary lockdowns on our freedom to go about our lives lawfully, and having return guests to stay, alongside new ones who may be associates of the lovely ones I've had, as we had been prior to unsolicited behaviours of the minority in the world.

[Sarah977]

@Airbnb @Lizzie @Stephanie   This was a horrible idea, incredibly crass and tacky and an embarrassment. I agree with others who said that whoever come up with this idea should be fired. That the setting is turned on by default is a travesty,as most hosts won't even be aware of this new setting, and shows total disrespect for hosts, as our almost total overwhelming objection to this initiative here was loud and clear and obviously ignored.

I am upset by all of this- both a request for donations and a prodding to send a "Kindness Card", which sounds like some kind of kindergarten language. If my past guests want to message me to check how I'm doing, they have the ability to do so- an e-card means zero to me and would go straight into the trash bin.

[Rubén16]

@Airbnb @Stephanie  @Lizzie I am quite surprise that most of the posts here are against the contribution factor of the virtual thank you card, I personally think it would be a very kind and welcoming gesture (as a host) to receive a thank you card from guests who had wonderful  memories during their stay in my Cottage.

Now to the contribution part of the virtual card, I am all for it,  many contributors to the post say it is like asking for money, passing the collection plate, it is tacky, and on and on. However how is a contribution from a guest different from the contributions that the Airbnb EMPLOYEES started for the 5,000 superhost relief fund? which many hosts are eagerly waiting upon. ( now in the millions of dollars) Is it our pride that does not want potential help from people we have met?  Let us keep in mind Proverbs 16:18  (Pride is before a crash and a haughty spirit before stumbling) 

Stay home-Stay safe- Stay positive

[Jean-François73]

hello Its very reductive!!!  thoses cards wont  pay anyone's  bill where is the help they promise?  the 25% in the beginning of April,  it's  near the end of April  why are they not helping host and be honest  and clear about that matter!!!  Asking  past guest to  send happy cards  it's very reductive  and you dont ask for a card or a gift  wow!!!  I would be embarrass to send a card with balloons and teddy bear to host that can't pay there bills LOL

[Sarah977]

@Rubén16  It has nothing to do with pride- my guests have already shown their appreciation by booking with me in the first place, paying me for their reservation, being great guests who expressed their thank yous during and at the end of their stay and left me 5* reviews. That's all that's needed or wanted. It's like someone giving you a gift, and then you telling them you want an additional gift. It's simply in very poor taste.

It is also rude for Airbnb to send guests messages on our behalf, without asking us if we want to have those messages sent.

But I know not all hosts see it that way.

[Sarah977]

@Airbnb  This is akin to me getting ahold of XX's email contact list, and, even though all of these people are complete strangers to me, as is XX, and I have zero information about the relationship of any of these people to XX, and without XX's permission, I send out emails to all of them saying "XX is having a really hard time right now (which I just made up- I have no real knowledge of that) so could you please send XX a card and maybe some money?"

Would anyone be okay with that? Would that not be considered presumptuous and just plain bad behavior in any culture?

Has Airbnb now decided it's okay to spam their own users?

[Susan17]

@Rubén16

Well that (alleged) million from the employees you're referring to didn't quite come out of their pockets, and wasn't money they could have used to pay their bills or feed their families. It came from free time-limited travel credits that they get as a perk of the job, and they weren't going to be able to use anyway.

Rather different scenario to asking people who may have lost their own jobs or are struggling to keep the roof over their own families heads, to donate their own money and make charitable contributions to Airbnb hosts they may never have even laid eyes on. 

[Sarah977]

@Susan17  Thanks for the info. I was wondering about that PR bit about the employees donating $. I had a really hard time picturing 20 year old CS reps digging into their pockets from what are probably slave wages to help out hosts. Now it makes perfect sense.

[Yadira22]

Hi 

hope you are well. 
the idea of sending kindness cards or whatever they are being referred to is a very sweet gesture, albeit a bit late In the game but the thought still counts. 

Regarding the donation option- I really can’t support this simply because I know my economic status and not that of my previous guest’s (nor do I hope to invade their privacy, heck i don’t even ask them what they do for a living). If people wanted to donate I would be happy for it to go to helping micro businesses here who are not surviving this « disruption in the economy » or food banks for the needy, PPE and appropriate medical attention to essential workers,  research and so forth. 

So many people have lost their jobs because of COVID-19 and it is for this that I was happy to reach out and arrange a full refunds for my guests but ultimately this is a luxury many others will not be able to afford and believe me when I say that I know how lucky and blessed I am. We will struggle as well but we will survive this and no it will not be easy but we adopt. Change your strategy, not your goal. 

Airbnb, i think your biggest flaw in all this was not the overall decisions you made (my opinion only, when signing up I signed up to cancellations under extenuating circumstances, surely a global pandemic should fulfil this and so the logical side of me approves but the business side resents it)  but your approach was poor.  Each day your policy changes, for example giving hosts up $5k in aid, then Imposing restrictions of who you help and now it’s upto this amount and no specified timeframe is given. When rolling out any change in policy, ambiguity is not how you do it, be precise and to the point- otherwise you could even open yourself up to legal action And frankly now  it all seems like a PR stunt! 

 The overall lack of consistency is what is making hosts loss trust in your word and I really hope for the sake of your employees that you work hard to regain that trust, otherwise cash-flow and insane interest levels to relief these will not be your only worry.

Now more than anything the world needs more kindness, openness, patience and love, telling someone it could be worse though true is very condescending and invalidates someone’s current feelings. To everyone- stay safe, stay healthy and keep on going. Better days are coming and this too shall pass! 

Yadira 🙂

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

An option or function to send e-cards is nothing new....... I don't have a problem with this in itself and I'm actually surprised that it wasn't available before. 

But I would be completely and utterly embarrassed and mortified if any of my former guests got an email or message that even in the slightest implied that I'm asking for a handout from them. Airbnb has NO RIGHT to take it upon themselves to represent me in that kind of way to ANYONE. 

I've stayed in touch with a few of my former guests, and we exchange holiday greetings or just exchange pleasantries from time to time. I don't need Airbnb to contact former guests on my behalf for ANYTHING.... especially if it involves something as thoughtless and tacky as asking for a handout.

Just NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?!?!?!?! 

[Anonymous]

@Stephanie @Lizzie  This is the rare occasion that there seems to be a near-unanimous consensus on something! But maybe I'm missing something. Could you link me to a post from a guest requesting a feature that allows them to send unsolicited donations to a host from whom they'd rented?  

There are so many features and changes that people have been begging for, but this is one that I can't recall anyone ever saying they wanted.

[Melodie-And-John0]

I shut down the contribution thingy, nice for folks that might need some help right now but its not for us.  Bearpath Lodging is a business not a charity, we don't seek to be paid for nights people don't stay in our suites or Airbnb or our Governments to send us a stimulus check and never have.   Hopefully we can get back to doing what we do best soon but until then, we will survive ok even if I have to take a walk with a firestick out on the back 40 and rustle up some grub myself!  Stay well, JR  

[Sandra126]

How do you shut it down? I see no option. My listing is snoozed, does that mean that I don't have to do anything?