Is it worth it to respond to bad reviews?

[Von3]

Hi all, I recently had two bad reviews. One docked us a star because she did not realized bathroom was shared. Our shared bathrooms are mentioned under guest access, other things to note sections as well as on the picture of the bathroom itself and the automated blurb of our place under the title listing. That's a total of 4 times!

Another guest mentioned the AC is not cold enough for the room and that it was disappointing the bathroom did not have an AC. I think the former might be personal preference as there are some guests that pull out the quilt to use at night as well (one recent guest was from Alaska) indicating that the AC is certainly cold enough to need an extra layer for some. For the latter issue, I have traveled and stayed at many accommodations all over the world and I just am not aware that ACs in bathrooms are a thing. Not to mention that we state in our description, our house is old so I am not sure where the expectation is coming from.

Is it worth it to address these issues in a response?

[Susan151]

@Von3 I can only address the review from the A/C person, since I can not tell which other review was unhappy with the shared bath.

One of the weaknesses of the "amenities" list that AirBNB gives us is that it is not possible to indicate window vs. central A/C. In houses down South, where there is central A/C, the bathrooms are actually air-conditioned. Up here in Boston, where we are far more dependent on window units and the utility costs are sky-high, they are not. I would consider this review to be an outlier. If, they hadn't mentioned that the bedroom would not cool down enough for them, I might respond to reinforce that the bathroom doesn't have A/C, but since they had two other complaints as well, I think I would let it just slide into page 2, and then 3. Your other reviews are, I suspect, far more indicative of the experience that your guests enjoy.

[Ange2]

@Von3    I rarely respond but sometimes it is useful to point to your description, amenities and rules and encourage people to read.   Depending on other reviews  you have you can let it slide, or you can use the response area to reiterate what you offer without making it personal to their review,  and keep it super short:   ...  shared bathrooms, no A/C in bathroom etc.  Please read description, amenities offered, rules and reviews.

[Von3]

@Susan151 , @Ange2 , thanks for your input! I'm thinking for the first person I'll respond in a private message since it was via private feedback but hoping it won't turn into back and forth messaging. For the second review about the AC, I like the idea of keeping it short and impersonal in response but I just hate having to respond to something at all and giving even the slightest idea to potential guests that I'm being too defensive. Susan, I know about central AC and have lived in places with them but no vents ever went through the bathrooms-- the vents are usually in the bedrooms and living rooms where people spend more time. I guess I need to put the lack of AC in common spaces as something to note!

[Susan151]

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@Von3 wrote:

@Susan151 , @Ange2 , but no vents ever went through the bathrooms-- the vents are usually in the bedrooms and living rooms where people spend more time. I guess I need to put the lack of AC in common spaces as something to note!

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My houses in both Texas and North Carolina did have vents in the bath. Was this normal? I have no idea. I do mention in my listing that the only rooms with window units are the two bedrooms in the suite. I am a great believer in stating the positive [but do spend a fair amount of text on my heating system limitations during the winter months]!