Guest Insights provided on another platform

[Debra300]

Today, on my Booking.com dashboard I signed up for a new host tool offering called "Guest Insights": https://partner.booking.com/en-us/solutions/guest-insights.  When guests book properties that have signed up for Guest Insights, they will guest a page that asks them to share some information about themselves such as allergies, special dietary needs, their interests, and hosts will see the three most recent reviews left by the guest.  I made a suggestion that they also include a category for physical limitations or physical assistance is required.

I've not yet received a reservation with this feature, but I hope that it will save me some time from having to ask some of these types of questions, and waiting for or not receiving a response.  Ultimately, my goal to identify whether a guest will be a good fit for my space or determine if I can customize our offerings to fit their needs.

Would you like to see something like Guest Insights on Airbnb?

[Mary419]

Good idea. There are a lot of very effective features that each site has launched that weirdly haven’t been copied by the competition even after months or years 

1. Vrbo has a “also make this change for next year” box you can check when doing seasonal rates. Not on the others. 

2. Airbnb has the length of stay discount feature which allows a special percent off for any “x” number of days such as 4,5 or 6. When others only allow week or month discount

3. booking offers a lot of customized cancelation refund policies including really cool discounts for totally non refundable stays vs the normal 30 day notice for refund policy. 

4. airbnb last min discount effectively allows owners to have prohibitively high rates on their listings for distant bookings then an automated discount bringing it into reality for less than 30 days out. This is super handy when the terms of service updates have us all scared to fill up Calendars far out into the year! Also aside from that it would just reduce manual work for the normal routine of discount it what days aren’t booked yet. 

5. Vrbo has a “customize by night of the week” base price system so you can price Monday/Tuesday at rock bottom and the other nights accordingly like Saturday super high. Everyone else is just weekend vs weekday that’s it 

@CatherinePowell

what no major platform  has: reducing number of night min based on how far it is into the future. Someone —- launch this please! I think now it’s limited to manager software but it’s an obvious thing. I might not want bookings for less than 4 nights 10 months in advance. But 21 days out I’m happy with 2 nights. Manually checking and changing for that is silly with the tech we should have now 

[Debra300]

@Mary419,

If we are to discuss features that are on other platforms that I'd like to see at Airbnb:

1. The "total price" search filter on Vrbo.  This allows guests to search for listings based upon their budget for the total price versus looking at nightly rates, and then the added fees and taxes make the spaces unaffordable. 
2. Another from Vrbo is the option to require travel insurance or a security deposit on each reservation.
3. Booking and Expedia allow the collection of a security deposits.
4. Booking, Expedia and FlipKey/TripAdvisor allow the inclusion of electricity and utility fees.
5. Booking, Expedia and FlipKey/TripAdvisor allow the host to determine the payment schedule (% due at booking, remainder due XX days before or at date of arrival).
6. Booking and Expedia allow hosts to select dates when only the non-refundable rate available.

[Mary419]

@Debra300 
It’s amazing how many features differ on these sites. I’m pretty sure the people designing the features aren’t using all the competition like we are. 

beware one current fault with the payment schedule feature at Vrbo. Discovered this recently. If guest never pays balance (example for me payment 2 is second half due 30 days before arrival) and they don’t pay it then ghost you when you contact them, your only way to get them off the calendar is to cancel and give 100% refund. If you cancel them for non payment you can’t keep the first payment. You can only keep the first payment if the guests cancel on their end. 

When I complained about this being unfair and a poor design they said “but how common is this really?” And I admitted it’d only happened once ever. But I don’t like this being a possibility. I’m ptsd from seeing one thing go wrong that’s rare then becomes a trend. 

They did say they’re working on automatic charges for the secondary payments. But for now the only way to avoid being stuck with that dilemma is to choose 100% payment. 

[Michelle1851]

Reviews on Vrbo and Booking seem more honest and helpful instead of punitive. 

VRBO reviews show the stars the guest left along with the review.  

Same with Booking, which goes a step further by the rating 1-10 and additional feedback pros, and cons.  

[Michelle1851]

Another feature that Booking does, is property verification via face time, where the host visually shows a booking representative the property to verify accuracy and in addition the host can ask questions and receive guidance. 

[Debra300]

@Michelle1851,

Good to hear.  This must be a relatively new feature and in the US or other locations with home addresses, because it took a very long time to get my place verified when I was creating the Booking listing for my St. Lucia place.  My extranet page would say the listing would be published after I respond to the verification mail they sent.  This was an impossibility, because they couldn't send any mail directly to my place since I don't have a street address, like most residences in St. Lucia.  Booking didn't know that we have to pick up mail at our local post office.  After a couple of months, I was able to finally get it resolved when someone at Booking verified my Airbnb and Expedia listings.

[Mary419]

@Michelle1851 you aren’t alone noticing this. I sat with some restaurant owner clients for a long chat two days ago and they told me Airbnb is like Yelp. They ignore all the Yelp reviews in their business because it’s just a juvenile place where people go to fire off nasty stuff.

No self respecting restaurant owner panders the the “yelpers”. They said Airbnb is Yelp and Vrbo is trip advisor. I was surprised they had strong opinions about where they book their vacation rentals, never on Airbnb. 

[Anonymous]

@Debra300 I think this particular feature would be redundant on Airbnb, because as guests already have user profiles where we can write anything we want hosts to know about us, and reciprocal reviews from our previous hosts.

The guest experience using Booking.com is more anonymous and impersonal, and sometimes that's exactly what you want.  I'll gladly share some details about myself with a homestay host who's inviting me into their personal space, but if I'm just booking a hotel room or private home, I really don't want a "customized" experience. 

[Debra300]

@Anonymous,

There are many ABB users who choose not to list personal information in their public profiles.  I think the Guest Insight prompt will make some people feel more comfortable to state some sensitivities that may go unmentioned until after arrival.  For example, I've yet to read a profile that states the person has a sensitivity to perfumes.  Although I have come across profiles where persons say they are vegetarian or vegan, I've not seen any that say they are lactose intolerant.  A guest may not want to mention this type of information in their communication with a host, because they may feel they'll be judged as high maintenance, but will enter it if prompted while completing the reservation.  As a host, I would like to know this type of stuff so I can make adjustments or recommendations (e.g., provide a plant-based creamer, tell the guest that they have to bring their own shampoo, hand wash and body wash, because we don't provide hypoallergenic toiletries).

[Anonymous]

@Debra300  I guess we're all a bit different that way. Personally, as a guest I'd rather not broadcast information about my personal preferences or health needs just to book a place to sleep. As a host, I'll ask guests one-on-one if they have any questions in preparation for their stay, but I trust that if they don't ask me to accommodate any special needs, it's none of my business.

I noticed one interesting point on the FAQ for your link:

"Research shows that guests tend to expect a more personalized stay when they provide extra info about themselves. We recommend joining the program when you’re in a position to use this info to tailor stays to guests’ preferences. 

If there’s a time when you don’t have the capacity to personalize guests’ stays, we recommend opting out of the program during that period."

Mapping that onto Airbnb stays, one problem would be that guests who filled out their customization settings might mistakenly assume all stays will just automatically be customized to their sensitivities and preferences. This would put a lot of pressure on hosts who didn't opt in, to cater to every little whim on the list or risk a disappointing review. As guests, it's our responsibility to find accommodations whose normal offering suits our preferences, but this "insights" feature transfers the responsibility onto the host. That's not my idea of how the host/guest relationship should work.

[Debra300]

@Anonymous,

I think the whole point of Guest Insights is to avoid a guest having to "broadcast information about my personal preferences".  Based upon what I've read, the Guest Insights is only available to the host after the reservation has been made, and isn't publicly visible on the user's profile.  In the examples that I shared with @Emilia42, I had several phone conversations and written messages with the guests over a period months prior to their arrivals, and neither disclosed their physical limitations although did ask if they would have problems with the location of the guesthouse.  I couldn't ignore the impact of their predicaments, because they were safety risks.

Signing up for Guest Insights is voluntary, and hosts have the option to choose which info they want to receive.  I selected just Allergies, Dietary Restrictions and Past Reviews.  Since my spaces are self-catering and I am not an activities coordinator, I didn't select Interests and Age Groups.  I am assuming that only my chosen categories will be the Guest Insight prompts that guests will see.

I will try to remember to follow up on this thread after I receive and host my first Guest Insights reservation and stay to provide details about the experience.

[Anonymous]

@Debra300 Please do! I'll be interested to hear about your experience with this. 

[Debra300]

@Anonymous,

Okay.  Right now, it's low season in St. Lucia.  We are off island for a bit, and may not get any reservations at the guesthouse until June after the end of many US and Canadian school years.

[Emilia42]

@Debra300Good discussion. I have always thought (and voiced to Airbnb) that they should do much more to have everyone set up a profile to humanize the transaction. Allergies and physical limitations are a great idea.

Even simple questions that a guest could fill in like do they prefer "Coffee or Tea," "Beach or Mountains," "City life or small country town," etc. Anything to give their blank image some personality so hosts can be reminded that there is a real person on the other end of the line. I don't buy this concept of making everyone anonymous to fight discrimination. I did at first, but I don't anymore.