Summer 2022 Release 56 Categories

[Susan990]

Why did Airbnb eliminate from the categories list Guesthouse* Studio* Cottage* ?

Those 3 traditional summer vacation rental types are recognized globally. They all

were presented in the previous format in the Types section which was about a dozen-

now there are 56 categories (types) and they are gone.  Gone too are my Guesthouse

Studio Cottage listings from search function.  Hosting since 2013 and it keeps getting 

weirder.  

[Jenny]

Hi @Susan990 

I just wanted to let you know that we will be looking to Hosts to help shape the future iterations of which categories are used.  I've made sure that your feedback has been noted.

Can I also just clarify, are you unable to find your listings at at all, when using the search function?  Someone else had highlighted that, and let us know that the listing showed up when they put a date range in.  Any further information would be great, and I've already raised the issue.

Jenny

[Suzanne302]

@JennyThank you. That host was me. If you're collecting feedback, they need to bring back the option to search anytime. Right now the only options a guest has is weekend, week, month, or specific dates. That leaves out a huge portion of guests who want to see all available listings and can adjust their dates according to the listing they like.

When I search in my area, I'm seeing listings come up that don't have a full week available until next January! But they still show up as the second listing with the default search of "any week." That is not fair to hosts and is not useful for guests. The default needs to be "anytime."

[Jenny]

Hi @Suzanne302 

Guests can still adjust their dates by clicking on "calendar" rather than "I'm flexible" - see the screenshot I've attached.

Hope this helps!

Jenny

[Suzanne302]

@Jenny  I appreciate you trying to advise/solve the issue, but I don't think you understand the issue.

With the calendar search you must enter specific dates, which is what I was saying is the problem.

Prior to this rollout, the default search bar allowed a guest to enter specific dates -OR- a guest could simply search for ALL properties in the area and see what dates a property had available. That function (searching for all properties) is no longer available. (if it is, I can't find it.)

The only options I see for a guest to search are:

-Weekend (only hosts that have FULL weekends available show up)

-Week (only hosts that have FULL weeks available show up)

-Month (only hosts that have a FULL month available show up)

-Specific Dates (only hosts with listings available for those specific dates show up)

This affects me because my maximum stay is set at 3 nights, so I'll never show up in that default "week" search.

But it affects ALL hosts who may not have a full week or full weekend available, but still have nights to fill. They simply won't show up in searches.

Please also keep in mind that I am VERY familiar with Airbnb and have been using it for many years. So when changes are made, I can usually figure out where a feature I am looking for was moved to, or, where I logically might find something. Even I am having trouble navigating this new rollout, so imagine a new user, or, infrequent user trying make sense of it.

[Susan990]

@Suzanne302   Not on my site. Calendar never appears.  It says  Choose Dates. I took a pix but do not know how to reduce file size so cannot send it to you. I have been experimenting with this issue since the Winter 2021 rollout and never seen Calendar presented as you display. 

[Susan990]

@Jenny  The search function of categories which is presented across the top of the page boldly to suggest to the user that choosing the category of housing is a' first step' using the new platform precludes the search for my Guesthouses or Cottages or Studios because they are not listed. The searcher logically  concludes that there are no properties of that type available on ABB.

[Alexandra199]

Exactly!! I host in the Cotswolds UK. Guests who want to stay in the Cotswolds want to stay in a COTTAGE. They go on airbnb looking for Cotswold Cottage, no category. I have four listings, three of them are the same physical property but I have split them re. how many bedrooms/people because they are interconnected. In the new category listings the three bed is a Home in Gretton, two bed is a Cottage in Gretton, one bed doesn't seem to show up anywhere so I searched it out and thats a Cottage in Gretton. None of them fall under the other categories eg tiny house/castle. 

When guests search they don't sit there thinking 'oooh for my holiday I want to stay at a HOME in....' The very fact they are going on holiday suggests they are not at' home'! Seriously wondering if I could replace my dining table with a grand piano? This upgrade is an epic fail.

[Susan990]

@Jenny   My listings do not 'show up' at all because their category type is not listed- no Studio no Guesthouse no Cottage are available to search for on the New platform.  It clearly states A New World of Travel  Introducing Airbnb Categories.  It goes on to say the search options present more opportunities or something like that, so the searcher logically concludes that ABB simply is not offering any Cottages or Guesthouses or Studios. The entire platform is obviously trying to train the user to search in a new way starting with the Category. What ever drove ABB to abolish the former filter choices and grouping by type of lodging is beyond my imagination, but to imagine that the 3 most common standard types of housing ubiquitous to vacation travel globally  be eliminated suggests an AI that does not get out much.

[Jenny]

Hi @Susan990 

If your listings don't fit into one of the current Categories, they won't show when people are looking at those, however they'll still absolutely show in any other search.

Airbnb plan to continue adding new Categories to Airbnb and will certainly be looking to Hosts to help inform the future iterations of categories, so suggestions like yours will be most welcome, and I've passed along the feedback you've given.

Jenny

[Gillian166]

@Jenny 
honestly, there's no point continuing this Category search. it's a waste of time, because what if i want great views + amazing pool + farmstay. they haven't even considered this?!

a very small % of privileged elites will search by category first. the rest of us normies are generally bound by a set of dates and a location. i'm scared to suggest that you have a CEO making decisions for the globe based on himself? (did you know that 25% of successful people, CEOs etc, are narcissists. these people are awesome at some things, (don't marry them though!), but making policy for the globe, not so much)

why they would continue to add more categories is a mystery, and of course there's no data yet to suggest it's a success, and my gut tells me it won't be. I'm a traveller too, i won't use categories. 

**
xo

**[Inappropriate content removed in line with the Community Center Guidelines]

[Susan1188]

@Gillian166 have you looked at the new website, as a guest?  They have made it basically unavoidable for the guest to not be tempted to click on one of the "category" buttons.

But the category is not controllable by the host.

If you have a farm house,  Airbnb will decide whether to show it in that category or not based on their new algorithm over which you have little control except stabbing in the dark trying to change your photos, description, title...

Try the search as a guest, and please report back to Airbnb what you find.

[Gillian166]

@Susan1188  of course I have. I'm hoping guests won't bother with categories after the first try. 

[Susan1188]

that's what I'm hoping too because it proposes stuff they are not interested in
however the new layout makes it hard for guests to avoid clicking on the categories at first.

when they see it zooms out and proposes unsuitable properties I guess they'll go back to the filters.

[Gillian166]

@Jenny  May I ask who was asked to help shape this first iteration of categories?  I’ve not seen mention of beta testing with hosts before a new rollout,  is there such a thing?