New Airbnb Commercial

[Laura2592]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swC5HX1HmLw

Okay, where to begin?

Yes its cute. The creatures are cute. But....

1) did the ad agency research the antipathy that many hosts have to pets lol? Come on! That's a lot of hair to clean!

2) does anyone feel a little irritated that they may be compared to Bigfoot (or Cousin Itt) if they stay as a guest?

3) would this make you host? It wouldn't make me want to.

4) is the message "hosts view people as monsters?" Seems so. 

Let's focus group this-- I don't know if it has been. What are your impressions?

[Elaine701]

@Sarah977 

You wouldn't, because you have a brain. Not all do. 

No clue who produced it. The production is good, the theme just doesn't fit the target 🙂

[Miriam619]

Hi I’m a super host with 4 rentals and I see a simple message they are trying to get across.  I live the commercial and why the need to dissect every little thing with this commercial and song?  I the artist is not a Christian artist so what’s with that comment?  

[Sarah977]

@Miriam619  "the artist is not a Christian artist so what’s with that comment? "

Airbnb is supposed to be an all-inclusive, non-discriminatory platform. It doesn't matter if it's a "Christian artist"- the lyrics are decidely Christian. 

[Sarah977]

@Huma0 @John5097  I had a big draughty old house when I lived in Canada. All single pane windows. No way I could afford to replace them with something that would blend with the style of house it was (80 years old when I bought it). I used to use those kits that have plastic film and double sided sticky tape to insulate the windows in the winter, plus having curtains. But that doesn't work if you have cats- they'll poke holes in the plastic film.

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

The cats poke holes in the plastic film? Really? I had never even thought of that!

Here you can buy some thermal plastic film that is specifically designed for this purpose and therefore doesn't require any sticky tape. I am thinking of giving that a go, only I've heard it's impossible to remove and what if it makes the room too hot in the summer?

I have tried the strips that stick onto the edges of door and window frames to isolate gaps, but they didn't work. They just seemed to disintegrate in no time.

The bedrooms, bar one (with shutters because of the shape of the windows) have curtains, but I think I need to buy some thermal ones to go with it. I encourage guests to close their curtains at night and tuck them behind the radiators so that more heat comes into he room and less goes out of the windows, but I have no control over whether they do it or not. I have heavy curtains in the living room which I always make sure to close in the winter when it gets dark.

I also have draught excluders at the exterior doors and also for the bedrooms. I tried stuffing the chimney breasts with bubble wrap or similar, but it just falls out.

I feel like there is a lot more I could be doing. I think the heating is sufficient (the costs are very high compared to the electricity bill, which is very reasonable for this size of house).

My house is around 200 years old!

[Sarah977]

@Huma0 There are different types of that stick-on gap sealer stuff. Some is really cheap foam, it disintegrates quickly. You have to look for closed cell foam, if it's available. And sunlight disintegrates foam.

I used to take the film off the windows in the spring, otherwise the windows couldn't be opened. Yes, the tape did damage the paint, but I'd just touch it up again.

When we had a cat, she would look out the windows as cats do, and if she put her paw up on it, her claw would poke a hole in it. 

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Ok, I must have bought the cheap stuff. I will look for closed cell foam and give that a go. I do need the carpenter to come back round though as there are some doors and windows that have warped and he kind of started to fix them and never came back to finish up. Those really let in the cold. 

The reason I am worried about the film is that one pane had some kind of film on it that was old and scratched/peeled so doesn't look great. A builder told me that it's the thermal film and that it's impossible to remove. Maybe he was wrong, but it sounds like the film you are using is different as you have to tape it on. The stuff I've seen here is self adhesive, like the window frosting film. I have used the latter in a bathroom and, if you apply it properly, it stays put.

I love cats. Even when they do damage, you can't help but be amused by them.

[Sarah977]

@Huma0  The film I used is totally different. It doesn't stick to the window itself (quite honestly I don't see how that could provide much in the way of insulation), it attached to the inside window frame, creating an air space between it and the window, a sort of poor girl's double-paned windows. The film itself was sort of like a heavy duty saran wrap, but I suppose I could have just as easily bought some clear vinyl and double sided tape than bought the kit. 

So that's why the cat could damage it- it was just film with nothing but an air space between it and the window.

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Interesting. I've never seen nor heard about that.

The stuff commonly sold here sticks to the window (you use a hairdryer to activate the adhesive) which I guess is why it's so difficult to remove. 

People do sometimes have more permanent secondary glazing, but I've always found it very ugly and I don't want to spoil the windows which are a real feature of the house, especially the big ones in the 1st floor bedroom. Unfortunately, that is the coldest room and it's largely because of the windows. I've replace the one radiator that was in there with two that really pump out a lot of heat (have same type in one of the hallways and it gets so hot I have had to turn it off completely). But most of that heat seems to go out of the windows! 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Huma0 @Sarah977 

I use bubble wrap, just mist the glass with water and lay the bubble wrap on it, with bubbles facing the glass. It is a perfect solution for windows in the kitchen, bathroom, toilet...

[Huma0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 

That sounds like a pretty quick and inexpensive solution. I am not sure it would fit the aesthetics of my listing though + I live in a conservation area. 

Of course, the aesthetically pleasing and effective solutions are all costly. The window film I mentioned is the cheapest option I've come across but, as @Sarah977 mentioned, it probably won't make a huge difference as there's no air in between.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Huma0  yes, it is not suitable for rooms but it is a great solution for windows in the kitchen, bathroom, toilet, hallway... where the view is not important or the windows are facing the backyard. It makes a huge difference in temperature when you touch the bare glass or the bubble wrap.

[Sarah977]

@Branka-and-Silvia0  That sounds brilliant. The bubbles would insulate.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Sarah977 @Branka-and-Silvia0  @Huma0 

My mom is not a fan of heavy curtains so my parents have covered most of their windows with bubble wrap - you can't see thru it so it provides privacy but still lets the light in, sort of like frosted glass. It helps with insulation so they keep it on the windows all year long, plus it's easy to remove and put up again as needed. For my own apartment, I splurged and installed 3M window film (clear & see-through) because of the summer heat and fading, as most of the larger windows face southwest and the living room is like an oven in the summer. 

In Korea, people who rent will use clear PVC film that sticks to the window with water for glass insulation - it's cheap and really easy to install/remove. IMO way better than the films with sticky tape or require a hairdryer. Although it's all in Korean the photos are pretty self-explanatory in this blog. https://blog.naver.com/inu1222/222149662682 

Also, completely agree with @Sandra126  that the brushy adhesive tape is way better than the foam type for window/door gaps.

[Huma0]

@Jessica-and-Henry0 

I think the film I bought is the type you've mentioned. The instructions don't seem to include a hairdryer, and it's supposed to be removable. I am going to give that a go. The windows are in the process of being repaired, which should reduce the drafts but, because they are so old and not really straight anymore, the insulation strips will still be needed. They all need painting first which is not really a job I would normally do in January when it's so cold, but needs must! The carpenter says the painting can't wait...