How one guest destroyed five years of Superhost status

[Huma0]

Hello everyone. Firstly, sorry for being away from the community for so long (due to a number of reasons). I wanted to share my recent experience and ask for your opinions. Apologies if it's a bit long...

I have been a Superhost for the majority of the time I have hosted in my current home. I have three guest rooms which were pretty much fully booked pre-pandemic and, since then, I've managed to keep things going with bookings on and off. Things were finally starting to pick up again in the latter months of this year. I've maintained my Superhost status every quarter for the past five years and have been at a 5.0 rating for about two (prior to that, mostly fluctuating between 4.9 and 5.0 as you know how long it can take to recover from the occasional 4 stars).

My dilemma is this. I recently had a guest who unexpectedly left me a 3 star overall rating (and 3 or 4 stars in every category bar location). She never complained while she was here and seemed to enjoy her stay. Although her English was limited so something may have been lost in translation, she left me a positive review and a nice private note and there is absolutely no negative feedback explaining the low ratings. I also feel that I went above and beyond for this guest in many ways, so it's pretty confusing.

Anyway, as a result of this, my rating has gone from 5.0 to 4.3 and I will definitely lose my Superhost status at the next assessment. Even if all remaining guests leave 5 stars, that only brings me up to 4.66, not the 4.8 required. I have even already received a warning email from Airbnb that my listing may be suspended. It will be a long time before I can significantly bring it back up.

I already called Airbnb about this but, as expected, the CS rep said there was nothing he could do about it, especially as the guest had not mentioned anything negative in the review that I could contest. His only advice was to keep up the good work.

I know that a lot of hosts feels that being a Superhost makes no difference. However, I would say in my experience that it does. When I first started hosting, most of my guests had no idea what a Superhost even was. In recent years (since Airbnb started promoting the scheme a bit more), I have found that many guests mention they booked with me because of it. Once guests are aware of it, they often specifically search for Superhosts. Even if you forget about that, my rating for that listing has dropped to 4.0. and I know I wouldn't book an Airbnb with that rating!

My questions are these:

1. I would like to message the guest asking for feedback. Perhaps she did not understand that her ratings were actually very low, rather than 'good' or 'very good'/'as expected' or 'better than expected' as it is sometimes represented by Airbnb. Or, perhaps she was too shy to tell me that there was a problem and it would be helpful to know what that was, regardless of whether Superhost status matters or not. How best to phrase this message without seeming like I am harassing her?

2. This guest instant booked. I only turned on IB because I felt I must (once Airbnb really started to push it, my fully booked listings dropped to the bottom of the search results, which is disastrous in London where there are so many Airbnbs, and only recovered when I turned it on). If this had been a booking request, I would not have accepted it without the guest answering all of the pre-booking questions, which she hadn't. So, should I turn it off and risk my listings disappearing again? I'm tempted, but not sure that's the best idea given that her rating may already have an impact on bookings? A very low percentage of long-term guests IB, but the rest might not even see my listing if I turn it off, so I am not sure that would be to my advantage.

[Huma0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 

The low rating for value is the only one that I can easily explain away.

When Miss B first contacted me, she asked me for a substantial discount. I politely declined, explaining the room rate was already lower than usual and that there was also a long-term discount applied.

I did not hear from her again for many weeks (past the original dates she requested) to the point that I forgot about her. However, her aunt (a Superhost) contacted me instead, telling me that she was trying to persuade her niece to book my listing because she thought it was the nicest, but it was above her niece's budget and she even referred to her niece as 'poor'. I politely told her that her niece needed to book with me directly as third party bookings were not allowed and ignored the repeated references to my listing being above her budget.

Finally, Miss B instant booked at the advertised price, saying nothing more about a discount, and unfortunately Miss A missed the boat because of it.

The second 'value' issue was that she asked if her 'friend' could stay over one night. I said fine, but reminded her that there was an additional fee (£15) for a second guest and that I would need to see his ID. This is what I charge as standard and is my house rules do specify that the base price is for one guest only. Most guests do not have an issue with this. However, Miss B did seem taken aback and said she would need to check with her friend if that was okay.

Shortly before said friend was due to stay, I messaged her asking if he was still coming. She said he was and apologised for forgetting to let me know. I reminded her of the fee. She didn't respond. I sent her the request, which she didn't accept. She then said she never received it, even though it was clearly showing as sent from my end and pending her approval. In the end, I had to cancel it and send another, which she eventually accepted.

So, no, I didn't give her additional discounts, but the whole extra guest fee turned out to be a bit of a drama, which it shouldn't have been. Although she never complained, rather she thanked me for 'communicating' about it, I sensed that she didn't like it.

I can imagine that these two things caused her to rate me 3 stars on value. It's so frustrating given that she was only ever charged exactly what was advertised and agreed to, but it kind of makes sense.

For her to give me an overall 3 stars and rate me down on communication, check in, cleanliness etc. etc. is another matter.

[Huma0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 

PS A lot of my guests initially ask for discounts. It's not unusual because they are long-term guests so they think they have a good reason to ask and somehow miss that there is already a discount in place (I don't know how, but they frequently do).

Most, however, either understand when I point out the discount is already applied and book anyway, or they decide it's still out of their budget and they move on.

It's not usual for someone's aunt to contact me about it. Now, the aunt didn't directly ask me to give her niece the discount, and was very sweet in her message, but the budget issue was clearly pointed out:

"Even it was a bit over her budget , I said I would choose yours........ (still I am not poor as her!)"

I know, I know, red flag, red flag... but like I said, a long-term guest asking for a discount is very common so I don't get annoyed by it in the way I would if someone was booking a few days, e.g. "As we are staying so long (five days), can we have a long-term discount?"

[Michelle53]

@Huma0    "On a more pragmatic note though, I do feel like the Superhost status makes a difference. It certainly didn't in the beginning, so I don't know if it's because Airbnb started promoting it more".

Superhost status makes a difference to Superhosts.   I remember having a discussion about the value of Superhost status here in the CC.  I've been in and out of status and didn't notice any difference in my bookings, but I don't host long stays, and don't use IB either.   

People are quick to tell you not to worry about losing it, and two minutes later they will say that they only book with Superhosts when they travel, because a Superhost will be less likely to cancel. 

Maybe this idea is getting out to the general guest population, too. 

[Huma0]

@Michelle53 

I think you are right. Superhost is not the be all and end all, but it is not insignificant either.

Basically, I think it matters to some guests and not to others, so whether it matters to one's listing or not will depend on what kind of guests are booking it.

Personally, I would always book with a Superhost if given the choice, but then I, like the other hosts who have said the same, know what that badge means. How many guests do? In my experience, more than you would expect.

I've been doing this about 5.5 years, so much less than many of the more experienced hosts posting on the CC. During that that time, I have seen a definite change in guests' awareness of Superhosts. 

As I mentioned, in the beginning, none of my guests even knew what it was so it was pretty meaningless. I got it quite soon after starting, but just missed it the following quarter, and got it back in the next one, if my memory serves me correctly. Did it make a difference to my bookings? Not one bit.

However, I also remember that at some stage Airbnb started promoting it more and prompting guests to book with Superhosts and I also made a point of mentioning it on my profile and listings. Quite soon, guests started using the term and over time, more and more often and suddenly they seemed very aware that I was a Superhost. It may not have been the only, or even main, reason they chose my listing, but it was a factor. So, how many of them are searching with the Superhost only box ticked? Who knows?

A few years ago, I had a lodger who was a regular Airbnb user. He had no idea about Superhost but, once I explained it to him, he decided he would only book with Superhosts from then onwards. If you're looking at a location where there is a lot of choice (like London), it's a very easy way to sort the 'wheat from the chaff' (in theory) as well as avoid the risk of cancellation. 

My point is, once people are aware of it, whether that's via Airbnb marketing or because they stayed with a Superhost for the first time, I think they are quite likely to look for Superhosts again. I mean, why wouldn't you? If you have two similar listings for a similar price in the same location, one being with a Superhost and the other not, which one would you book?

[Michelle53]

@Huma0  I'm not a big traveller, these days.  I've only booked an Airbnb once, and that was in 2019 for a trip to the UK that was cancelled due to Covid.   I booked a place that was closest to my desired location, and it was also a women-only home-share private room.  Coincidentally, she had a perfect 5.0 rating but only a handful of stays. Not an experienced host.   

I think there are many people out there who get to Superhost status pretty easily, at first, without knowing much at all about Airbnb, and are basically sitting ducks for the first crazy person to give them a poor rating, and knock them out of status. 

Frankly, I honestly think Superhost status anxiety is self-inflicted punishment by hosts upon ourselves.  I don't even think all Superhosts offer the kind of superior service that the marketing suggests.   Plenty of commentary here reports poor treatment of guests by people flaunting the little badge. 

I'm not suggesting that your service is not superior. I'm saying that I think we place more emphasis on Superhost status because we are Superhosts, and that this emphasis may be undeserved in some cases.  I don't think there's any guarantee that one would always have a superior experience with a Superhost and a bad experience with someone who isn't, possibly through no fault of their own.

First place I would look is the reviews. 

[Huma0]

@Michelle53 

Actually, I lied. I realised that the only Airbnb I have stayed in in a long time, i.e. since pre-pandemic, was not a Superhost but had a 5.0 rating. It was actually at a traditional B&B and I believe the owner gets most of her bookings outside of Airbnb, so she doesn't have enough stays to reach Superhost status, or perhaps she's cancelled guests before.

Anyway, the location and price were ideal and the accommodation looked nice, plus the reviews were positive with only one thing mentioned as a gripe, which she seemed to have improved by the time we got there.

So, I agree, there are probably many, many hosts out there who don't have the badge but offer something just as good. However, it's not necessarily that easy to maintain a constant 4.8 and above (in addition to the other criteria) so I am not sure how many truly crappy Superhosts are out there.

Also, if it had been a toss up between her listing and a Superhost's and there was not much else between them, I would probably have booked the Superhost's.

You are right also that we can beat ourselves up about the status. I am starting to feel less and less bothered about it now thanks to you kind folks and your responses. We've all had enough stress the last couple of years to stress about this too, but I was very upset initially.

[Sarah977]

@Huma0  I've certainly read plenty of guest posts over time that have quite legitimate complaints and say "How could this awful host be a Superhost?"

Just like hosts say, "How could this awful guest have had six 5* reviews?

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Actually, that does make total sense. I guess both hosts and guests can be far too generous in their reviews at times and often avoid leaving reviews at all if they have a negative experience.

I also think that people have a bit of a sheep mentality. It is hard to be the first person to leave a negative review for someone who has a load of glowing reviews. We can't help but sometimes be influenced by the group perception rather than our own judgement. Maybe we question if we are the ones being too fussy.

I once left a bad review for a couple who had about 25 positive reviews and no negative ones because they were simply the most awful, rude, demanding, horrible people I have ever hosted, expected the world and refused to follow any house rules. I didn't care if my review stood out as incongruous. Funnily enough, the next review they received was also less than glowing!

[Sarah977]

@Huma0  Yes, many people are somehow afraid to be honest. I've read hosts who say they just don't leave any review at all if the guest was bad, because they were raised with "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all".

Which is a good rule of thumb if we're talking about not telling your friend they're getting fat, or that their new haircut is unflattering, but can't be applied to reviews. If it were, that would mean every host and guest would have only nice reviews, which would render the review process completely pointless.

I think too that sometimes a guest can be a good fit for some listings but not for others. A guest who was fine in entire house listings and earned 5* reviews, may be quite unsuitable and objectionable for a home-share because they are highly unsociable and don't show respect for their housemates.

And I know there are some hosts and guests who basically make a "deal" - you give me a 5* review and I'll give you one.

For these reasons, I often cross-reference to see what kind of listing the guest received their past reviews on, or whether the hosts leave "Nice guests!" generic reviews for all their guests.

And I don't put any stock whatsoever in star ratings and wish  they would be eliminated. They are entirely subjective, and there is zero explanation of why those star ratings were left unless it becomes clear in the written review. Which  in the case of this guest who rated you 3*s, it doesn't.

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Yes, you're right. The horrible guests I mentioned had more positive reviews than any others that I've hosted, yet they were my worst guests ever.

I only realised after looking at their reviews again after they left that almost everywhere they stayed was for either one or two nights (they stayed with me for eight) and that many hosts had never met them as a lot of the listings were complete units with self check in. If the other hosts had had to live with these people and their expectations and rudeness for eight days, they might have not left such positive, but (as you mentioned), fairly generic reviews.

There were other red flags there, if I'd taken the time to very carefully examine the reviews they'd left for hosts in detail but, even then, I think I would have missed it. It was only after I experienced them that I spotted the warning signs.

It didn't benefit me to leave them a negative review, but I hope it was useful to future hosts and I found it very interesting that their following host was the first (apart from me) not to leave a positive review. Hers wasn't bad. It literally just said, 'okay' (that's it), but judging by the reviews she left for her other guests, her experience was clearly not okay. Then I read the review they left for her and it reminded me of how petty and entitled they were. They said that there was a kitchen they could use, but griped about how they had to buy their own food (it was self catering).

Again though, she hadn't really explained what went wrong. I could read between the lines having hosted them (they seemed to expect me to cook them three meals a day even though I don't even offer breakfast as part of the listing and clarified before their arrival that it was not catered accommodation), but other hosts would easily miss what was really going on.

So much better to be truthful and specific. One can do so without getting personal. However, we often tend to be nervous about being blunt and frank, especially the British.

[Huma0]

@Michelle53 

In the interests of research, I asked a recent guest if me being a Superhost affected her decision to book with me. This is a guest who has only stayed in one Airbnb before (not a good experience - it had actually been delisted and the host convinced her to book off line).

She told me that it did. It was not the deciding factor and she didn't click the search filter for Superhosts only, but it was a factor in her decision.

Of course, that's not extensive research! Still, I maintain that it is important for some guests.

I am less stressed about this now though. I am expecting to lose it for a couple of quarters at least and that's fine. I expect bookings will be slow regardless due to the current COVID situation here and most of the people who have tried to book with me lately have seemed less than desirable anyway. Then there are so many hosts who will lose the status for no other reason than they have not accommodated enough stays...

Seems many of us will be in the same boat, but maybe for different reasons.

[Linda108]

Hello Huma, good to see you on the forum again.  Because you have been so successful for so long,  as a quality host, I can only imagine how blindsided you must feel.  I had a period where an unhappy guest rating caused me to lose SH status for a while.  Due to illness I had to cancel the guest at the last minute but she was allowed to leave a review.  I don't blame the guest at all, however, and I just had to ride it out until my positive reviews caught up.  I do have many guests who have mentioned my positive reviews as a reason for selecting my private room.  The SH does not seem to be important.  I was an early adopter of IB and have found I am able to establish sufficient communication within the 48 hour window to determine if I want to keep the booking or not.  A couple of times I have used the option afforded on IB to cancel without penalty.

Personally, I would not contact the guest about the review nor would I bring up anything negative as a response since it is a positive review.  I would take this as a lesson learned; change my opening description about being a SH; and develop a way of educating guests before the review process about this platform's true rating system and how much you appreciate the guest review.  I have very, very few guests who do not leave a review.   When you have been doing this as long as you and I have, you know your true value as a host and eventually that will win out once again.  Another tactic might be to encourage short term rather than long term, at least for some of your listings.  Good luck and I hope you will resume adding your voice back here.  Linda

[Huma0]

@Linda108 

Thank you for your advice. One of the reasons I feel so blindsided is that I have no idea what the guest was unhappy about or if she was unhappy at all, because the review and private note are both positive and she didn't complain about anything. The only rating I can explain is value (she gave 3 stars) because she asked for a large discount and I said no.

You are right that guests often bring up the positive reviews as a reason for booking and, as the guest didn't say anything negative in her review, no harm done there. My guests do often mention Superhost though. In this case, the guest's aunt (also a Superhost) contacted me telling me that she was advising her niece to book with me because I was a Superhost! Let's see though. Perhaps it will make no difference at all.

Of course, once the Superhost status disappears next month, I'll change the description. I have in the past thought of trying to educate guests about the rating system, but I didn't want them to feel that I was pressurising them to leave 5 stars. Some time ago I also stopped reminding guests to leave reviews (unless I felt 100% sure they would leave a 5, and even then only occasionally). This is partly because long-term guests almost always do review, except when there has a been a problem. That had been my experience anyway.

This year has been very different. Three out of six guests didn't review. One said he would happily leave a review, so I guess he just forgot. The other two actually left early, but not because they were problems. One was moving into a new apartment, which became available earlier than he expected and the other decided that she didn't want to be in London due to rising COVID cases. Perhaps they thought they couldn't review because they didn't complete their stays, or they just couldn't be bothered. 

Should I have reminded the guests to review? Probably, given how few bookings I had this year, but I got complacent.

[Sarah977]

@Huma0  If it's any consolation, I, Andrew, and tons of other home-share Superhosts who have been closed to bookings since the beginning of the pandemic, and still don't want to risk contracting Covid, are all about to lose our years-long status.

Airbnb, in its typical tone-deaf fashion, has just sent out notices, telling us the Superhost criteria that has been waived since the pandemic, will be waived no longer. The email was all cheery-toned,  telling us that now that guests are excited to travel again, and stay with us, we should easily be able to get 10 bookings in the next less than 3  months.

That this comes just as many countries have now reshut down borders and instituted stronger regulations and testing and quarantines due to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, is classic Airbnb.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Sarah977  @Anonymous 

I just read this announcement, with trepidation. In the dead of Winter, getting 10 reservations in 3 months is not likely to happen for us, even without a pandemic. This requirement is unrealistic.  

Covid is very real locally, with a large unvaccinated population and swamped medical facilities. We've remained in the "red" tier all this time. Omicron arriving on top of  Delta Variant, still raging here, like a wildfire, is not a positive for any of us. Yes, @Sarah977 you are quite correct. This is premature. 

We've been Superhosts since the program started, never lapsed. We've worked very hard to provide the ultimate in excellent hospitality. We are both  over 70 years old, we share our home, and we've endured lack of income since the pandemic started. We are eager to welcome guests; safely for them, and for us. 

I am not thrilled at all to lose Superhost status, and this expectation is unrealistic.