Guests Not Understanding Our Home Description

[Lauris-and-Gene0]

Do I need to re-write the description of our home? Last week I had someone cancel after realizing we were not renting our entire home. I wrote it off as a one-time thing by someone who doesn't read. But then yesterday I had a guest arrive who was shocked that someone lives here! I had thought our listing was clear since it says "Private Room in Bungalow." We've only been hosting for 3 months and have had many happy guests who have written very positive reviews. But after having this happen twice, I am wondering if our description is unclear somehow to the reader. Feedback appreciated.

And by the way, I have enjoyed reading through all of the discussions here and other than this odd thing, we have enjoyed hosting tremendously, meeting many fascinating guests.

Lauris

[Qier-and-Philippe0]

@Lauris-and-Gene0 

I think your listing is clear enough, but some guests just don't read the text. They only look at the phots. You might add "shared" for the titles of some photos about shared places. 

[Kelly149]

@Lauris-and-Gene0 Guests often just don’t read. 

So you have to repeat yourself. I’d suggest:

-mention something in the space description about where your spaces are in relation to theirs

-also mention something about your schedule (we often share morning coffee on the porch and then get to working on the garden, baking, latest book, whatever)

- mention how you’ll see each other (or not) during their visit

maybe type up a post asking shared hosts how they’ve written it or look thru listings from other cc folks and see what you could apply. 

Also, your listing is just the beginning point of your communication. Post-booking is a good time to repeat yourself, ESPECIALLY if their request or their profile indicates that they may not understand exactly what they’ve booked. 

The time for correcting their misconception is immediately after they book, NOT once they’ve crossed the threshold of your home!

[Jennifer1421]

The disconnect may be coming from your title, @Lauris-and-Gene0  as you mention "Bungalow", but not "Private Room". I thought your listing was clear, but as others have pointed out, people don't read.

Maybe adding something like, "2 Cozy Rooms in Neartown 1912..." would be effective in making things more clear for people.

@Kelly149's suggestions are good. You could also add a little something to a photo description about a "shared" space, such as the coffee station pic.

I like your "priority given..." statement. When did you add it, and did you/do you find it helps?

[Lauris-and-Gene0]

I think I added the "priority given" statement about a month ago, after realizing that some people didn't bother to say anything about themselves at all, leaving me wondering who I was being asked to host. I think some people have actually read it and written their requests with some detail as requested. So apparently some people DO read!

[Jennifer1421]

Interesting, @Lauris-and-Gene0 . I may steal your idea 🙂  It does get tiresome having no information about guests. Every little bit helps...

[Julie143]

The title of your listing is “...bungalow.” It should be “private room in shared bungalow.”  Or maybe rooms? Are you renting both rooms out at the same time?

Basically the words private room need to be in the title, to make it crystal clear.

I would also mention about sharing the home with you in the first couple of sentences of the listing. Most guests don ‘t read much beyond that.

Do all guests get both rooms, or does it depend on the number of people? That part is confusing. 

[Lauris-and-Gene0]

Thanks. Yes, I need to clarify the number of bedrooms thing. What I've been doing is simply allowing them to use both rooms if they wish. But then it occurs to me that sometimes there are 2 people and they use both rooms. At other times, there has been an extra charge because there were more than 2 people. It doesn't make much sense since there's just as much work involved for the 2 people as for the 3 or 4 people since they're using both rooms. I need to think that one through.

[Denis-And-Valerie0]

Mention a "linens charge" (find that in the pricing section) if guests use more than one bed.

[Alice595]

@Lauris-and-Gene0 Both the title and photos may cause misunderstanding for some guests. Most of guests do not read details much. 

Your title mentioned Bungalow and the cover photo shows the entire bungalow as well. In addition, it has two bedrooms instead of one. All those can lead people to think that it is an entire house renting. 

Even if you like show the photo of how your house looks like, it is better to put it at the end part of your photos instead of the cover photo.