At time of requesting a booking are guests expected to provide information?

[Delwyn3]

Hi all,

Are guests encouraged by Airbnb to tell the host something about themselves and their reason for wanting to book when they make a booking request? Are they obliged to tell the host who else is in their group?  If there is a link to somewhere that Airbnb suggests this?

I know I can ask the guest questions ..., just wondering if it is something Airbnb encourages guests to do.

[Linda108]

Hope you experience this platform as guest at sometime.  I find it has helped me to be a better host.  As to your question, there are Air BNB prompts, but like all online experiences, people will flip through various prompts.  I usually have a couple of questions for guests, even those who have used IB.  I like to know why they are coming to my area and do they understand my listing is a private room, not an self-contained listing, fo both me and my dog will be here.  Most of the time the guest realizes that, but sometimes they do not.

[Helen350]

@Linda108  @Delwyn3 My questions to the guest are the same; What brings you here? - Just a private room, me & the dog (& sometimes others) + shared bathroom. - We don't want people disappointed, do we?

[Delwyn3]

@Linda108 @Helen350  yes I am almost tempted to start a booking process on a friends listing so I can see what the prompts are.   I want to compile some questions and it would be great to know if I am simply re-asking what Airbnb has also suggested they say so I know I am not being unreasonable.   I had a booking request that simply said "looking forward to those views".   Subtle questions revealed nothing but more one liner responses that told me nothing and I am sure an infant was brought and I was not informed.  

I now know I need to simply be more assertive but at the time I felt like I was interrogating the guest.  However as it turned out to be my least favourite guest it was a lesson learnt.   As others have said on other posts as I have read more and more of these threads it seems a lack on communication is a big red flag.

As a remote host my problems are different to you guys.  I don't get the chance to see  who turns up and therefore need to trust what the guest tells me.

[Linda108]

You need a system that inspects what you expect.  Do not "trust what the guest tells" you.  That is not not smart business practice.

[Helen3]

I agree go and book and stay at a local Airbnb that is similar to yours with an experienced superhost with great reviews. I have found not only does it help me understand more from the guest's perspective but you pick up some great ideas. @Delwyn3 

Just going through the booking process won't really help you understand the full experience.

I have questions as part of IB around why they chose my place, plans for their stay, who is travelling and arrival time. If they don't answer, they don't stay.Simple.

I also have the boxed ticked for photo ID and profile photo.

If you host remotely, you can always ask your local co-host to check guests in, while you become more comfortable with how Airbnb works.

By the way, your profile photo isn't very clear, you probably want to consider a clearer one, as profile photos instill trust

[Delwyn3]

@Helen3  yep I have been meaning to fix my profile photo.   I have figured out I just need to be more assertive and ask what I want to know and no longer feel like I am interrogating guests.  It is my home and I have a right to know.  What you say "If they don't answer, they don't stay.Simple." is spot on.

[Emilia42]

@Delwyn3 

When a guest attempts to book your place, this is what they see:

[Delwyn3]

@Emilia42 thanks so much!    I appreciate you showing me this.   🙂

[Yulianna0]

Ah, nice to know that the system recommends to say hello! Not a joke, but I had several ones lately that sent requests and even IB without it. Just messages like “hi”, “we are a couple”, “send me the address”... 

Pre-booking message can be easily ignored, it is not obligatory for guests to answer... 

[Anonymous]

@Delwyn3 In order to reach the final request form, guests do have a step in which they have to tick a box agreeing to the House Rules and "other things to note." It does not guarantee that they'll read and comprehend them, but this is the place where I choose to place a text very similar to @Helen350 's (same setup here - shared home, dog, etc) and ask that guests acknowledge it in the text of their request.

It can just as easily be used to ask for whatever information you'd like to be supplied in the request. This can work both as a test of whether the guest has read the listing, and a gauge of their enthusiasm for its specific qualities (a reliable predictor of their behavior as guests and their eventual review/rating).

[Delwyn3]

@Anonymous thank you.  This is really helpful.

[Trude0]

I don’t have instant book, and have been surprised to see some guests just write ”We look forward to staying” or ”we will arrive around noon”, or similar in their request to book. Clearly they have not understood during the booking process, that they do not yet have a firm booking, they are requesting to book, and we as hosts need to accept the request And therefore, that it is a good idea to offer just a bit of information.

I usually reply and ask for more information when receiving a short message like this, but it would be good (for both parties)  if Airbnb would be a bit clearer in the request to book process. I once tried to book my own listing, and saw that my potential guests by default see this message ”from me” (although I didn’t write it):

  
As a potential guest, I would interpret this  as I already have a firm booking, no need to send any more information. I tried to edit this pre-booking message, but this is apparently only possible if you have IB. I contacted Airbnb and asked if I can edit it, but was told it is a standard text that the host cannot edit. Which seems strange - the message appears as if it is FROM ME, but is is not...

Not that it is that much trouble to write back and ask the guests what I would like to know (who’s coming, reason for visiting). But some seem to be surprised and confused about the questions, thinking they are already booked in. 

[Chill-and-Relax0]

That sheds some light on a recent slew of requests with literally nothing else but "sometimes between 3 and 4 PM." They must have changed that message lately because prior to that, we were getting simple "Thank you!"

Progress.

[Wendy684]

How do I find out what mine is saying? That would be very useful to know!