Brian Chesky's Announcement

[Lizzie]

Hello Everyone,

I wanted to update you all on some news from Airbnb's CEO:

Brian Chesky has just begun a two-week trip to meet with members of the Airbnb community in six cities around the world. On the first day, Brian met with a group of hosts in Airbnb’s San Francisco headquarters. In his remarks, Brian:

• Pledged to help hosts create 1,000 Host Clubs in communities worldwide by the end of 2018. Globally, 114 Clubs are operating today.
• Committed to a series of engagements with our host community, including quarterly live chats with hosts from around the world.
• Announced the expansion of Airbnb’s Host Advisory Council, a formal organization that will provide host feedback directly to Airbnb leaders.
• Announced that he is changing his title to “CEO and Head of Community.”
• Pledged to invite hosts to a portion of one board meeting a year to make sure they have a seat at the table.

Here is the video of Brian's talk from the Community Event:

These announcements are all about listening more, and all the great feedback you provide helps to inform more community-driven actions and decisions. We really appreciate receiving this, and look forward to continuing to work with you more and more!

Please feel free to share any thoughts you may have, here in this thread.

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Helga0]

... fell into the editing trap: try to edit and no more changes possible. 

... I counseled my young nneighbor to host, whilst she can't use her apartment with loft bed due to knee surgery. That was interesting to see, as we are door to door, her atelier was transformed into a classic apartment, no artistic elements remaining, her price is a bit lower , but she raised it after the first guests. Same space, same garden, different descriptions, different hosts - different guests. Mine are more easy to talk - she chatted with my guests from garden to garden over the years, but her guests are in hiding and very shy. Seems the algorithm has other candidates for her place. 

@David126In 2011, community was an important aspect, airbnb was seen like a club, not a booking tool. I used a few other booking wwbsites before airbnb and never felt the slightest wish to contact staff or competition on those sites. Why would you do that here, if it's only a booking tool?

from a commercial point of view, you sell the unique image, not the exchangeable merchandise, if you want good prices. Or formulate it drastically: if you want to

make really good money for very little investment, found a cult. They'll need a few more years, if they want to beat the Catholic Church, but then, the pope head a head start of 2000 years. Still, it would be foolish to let the community feeling go. 

[Helga0]

@Maxine0, Edith had her surgery, did too much too quickly, had a problem, but needed no second surgery. Now it's more than six month after the problem and she is very fit again. Still no French cancan for Nick, but she helped her daughter move house and the hip did not protest, so it's really healed and well set. 

She made a long hosting break, but is back to hosting a bit, which is good for her. 

We took my last guest to the Musee d'Orsay on Sunday (lost him in the show) and it was very impressive. We had lunch in the museum and continued afterwards - four and a half hours and we did not see half of it. No more problems to walk so long. 

[Maxine0]

Good to hear Edith is back to better health @Helga0 - I only know her through you but feel I know her to be concerned for her well being. Please send good wishes. xx

[Linda108]

@Lizzie  For me the system works.  I have nice guests.  I have enough guests.  I get paid promptly.  I get through to customer service when I need to.  What I read in the Community Discussions is primarily when the system doesn't work.  Sometimes the "not working" is due to lack of education about Air BNB and sometimes it is caused by Air BNB, whether it is technological or policy.  

Nice video.  I certainly hope the vision and ideals espoused by Brian can come to pass.  I also hope that I will, in some small way, contribute to the community.  

When the system works, you are not angry.  When the system works, you are not suspicious and blaming.  When the system works, you are able to contribute to the community.  When the system works @Lizzie...that's Brian's job, not mine.  

[Maxine0]

@Linda108- nicely put. And very true in regards to the day to day operational stuff and the angst caused when that fails. But community is more than that. As @Helga0 and my exchange highlighted community is as much about developing personal care for each others well being, exchange of cultural knowledge, vivre la difference learning, knowledge exchange between hosts, that constraining hosts into geographical location (via 1000 host clubs ambition) strips away or curtails the learning, inclusivity and diversity benefits - yet policies we are asked to sign-up to (rightly)

Why make the host groups ambition about location? Surely doing so makes majority opinion fit myopic views not broader cultural views gained from engaging with hosts across the globle and where perhaps the common denominator is common interest (such as creative's) rather than purely location? 

In the previous groups before they were shut down (big mistake IMHO) hosts joined organically to suit their interests and they learned from each other on a cultural differentiation basis - even little things like bedding preferences of different nationalities .... it worked well yet they threw the baby out with the bath water (IMHO) because they had a lack of 'control' over host opinion. A community is not about control of freedom of speech (within the realms of decency, political correctness etc) it is about allowing friendships to develop, cultural learning to take place amongst peers, knowledge to be spread, breakdown of predudice and growth of peer to peer support and trust etc etc .....

I too have benefitted from airbnb, I have had predominently great guests, I have found CX to be very helpful when I have needed them, so I am not disgruntled in any way, I am just raising the value of cultural and birds of a feather and cultural learning over constraining communities into pens that do not learn from culturally different communities where each has only one common denominator and that is we are all airbnb hosts. @Lizzie

[David-and-Fiona0]

This is great to see. The hosts discontent has obviously had some traction within the halls of AirBnb. Like others have said I am VERY happy with Airbnb and the things that do miff me (constant changes to the platform, no warning about major changes to policy and the move towards ‘just another OTA’ ) are minor compared to the wonderful experience AirBnb has offered us on our paradise island. I look forward to the implementation of these initiatives.

[Cormac0]

I would love to hear his thoughts on the top five issues facing Airbnb and wheatear they concur with my own thoughts.

1.  A proper help line

2.  Software needs a complete overhaul.

3. Star rating needs a root and branch review particularly the nonsense that is “Location”

4. Fraud and identify theft.

5. Documentation & invoice transparency

Anybody who has read John Major speech regarding Brexit, would understand Brian's alluding to the uncertainty it brings to the economy.

[Helga0]

@Cormac0, you seem a bit greedy: normally you only get 3 wishes from the good fairy 😉

I'd not set out to wish for 5 miracles - besides that's risky even in the fairy tales. 

Help line: till a year ago approximately, the help line number was indicated on the booking confirmation. Seems someone decided that a few unhappy people are better than hiring enough staff to answer many silly requests. After all, those who reach the community center show already some capacity for problem solving. I think that's a petty accountant decision as the help number is one argument to gain trust. 

Software: developping websites myself, I'd say it works amazingly well. Less so the CC software, but that's bought as a package. 

The safety approach is good as well, but maybe they should put the optional double safety for the host accojnts on mandatory, so that you get notifications at every connection to your account by email. (At the moment, even if you chose the option, it's at every connection from a new browser). It has its own drawbacks: many mails and some people will declare it spam. 

What is not clear on the invoices? You can get yours on a computer concerning your service fees, the guest can get theirs. 

Star rating: The only thing really needed is the same explanation for both sides. It's absurd, that a value means "great" to the guest, when the same value means "not sufficient " for the host. 

For ratings like location, there should be a short explanation what the guests are supposed to rate: location as described, location as being safe, or close to attractions or quiet or whatever. On my experience, in the location rating, guests rate how easily they found the place, how afraid they where and how comfortable it was to get around. I took care of those fears by a description that brings 95 percent to my doir after they read it (the redt uses gps and gets lost), explaing and showing on maps how to get to the sights and explaining where in town it is safe and where to avoid some behaviour. That transfmed my average 3 stars location into a nearly always 5 star one. Without moving the house 😉

A hint : indicate some distances in relation to the human body. 10 minutes walking seems closer than 2 stops on public transport. Half an hour walking seems no great deal, feasible, whilst a long line of stops on a bus seem like very far, inimaginable to walk that far. 

[Susan17]

Lol! 3 years later, @Cormac0 and your Top 5 issues, still as current as ever.. ;))

[Cormac0]

@Susan17 

I hung up my Airbnb boot about a year ago, the idea was a fantastic one but unfortunately Airbnb management took their eye off the ball as far as hosts are concerned, and I suspect they're basking in their own admiration (read BS) and wealth.

I gave Airbnb one and a half years to come good, relative to long term letting I lost income, which is a very low bar indeed, if you're to believe Airbnb's spiel.

Now with the current COVID19 apocalypse I'm glad I did not persevere! I have all my apartments fully let which unfortunately not many Airbnb host can claim now.

Another thing I could not buy into was the nonsense that one was running one's own business, especially with the amount of control Airbnb has, it’s just not credible position for Airbnb to hold in my opinion.

As stated previously the idea is fantastic, that's why I keep commenting on these blogs, keeping myself up to speed on how its progressing, but as you say in your comment Susan nothing much has changed.

On a personal note Susan, I hope your keeping yourself safe and out of harm’s way until the quarantine is lifted.

Regards

Cormac

The Explorer’s Club Krakow.

[Ann179]

I think that the young men who 

conceptualized Airbb are brilliant. I love the concept that we the hosts and the guests rate each other! What a brilliant system of checks and balances! 

If and when Airbb goes public, I want to buy the stock!  

[Karen313]

Here's a thought...why not interact directly with the hosts on a forum ? Or really listen to the requested feedback? Or not penalize hosts that have put so much into this experience, because they won't join instabook? Okay, I guess that was more than one thought;)

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

Thanks again for your comments here. 

I'm going to move this to the Welcome and Announcement board here in the CC now, incase you are looking for it. 🙂

Lizzie