No word review just stars from now on is that possible

[Siobhán2]

I decided instead of a negative review to leave no review  if you've nothing good to say- say nothing.

I know it doesn't help the community.

I'd    be afraid a guest may return and knowing human capabilities you'd never know what would happen if they were irked.

Now I've upped my price maybe being cheap and giving people on their uppers a break isn't the way to go.

[Alon1]

@Siobhán2 @Emilia42 @Sarah977 @Rachel,

I've had the opposite experience. On two occasions Guest left blank Review with Star ratings.

Both were experienced Airbnb guests so the blank Review was clearly intentional, and in each case marked by a single punctuation, full stop in the former case, dash-hyphen in the latter. One almost needs a magnifying glass to note them.

The first Guest gave three 5 stars, two 4 stars, and one 2 star, with Overall Experience as 3 stars.

She ticked a number of criteria for 'can do better' for the 2 star.

Though I initially found it a bit odd, I wasn't unduly surprised at the blank review, because the lady was one of the most impersonal Guests I'd experienced. I rarely get them, and is my least favourite type of guest whom I can't wait to leave my home, wondering why they booked with me in the first place. However, she was perfectly fine, standard guest, and so I had left her a stock decent review. I must confess I regreted not being more forthright, though my personal experience hardly warranted a negative review for others, especially given previous Hosts had also found her perfectly fine. -- In short, just not suitable for me.

The second Guest's blank review was far more difficult to fathom, especially as he gave a perfect 5 Stars for all criteria and Overall Experience, and contrary to the preceding lady, he was most engaging.

Indeed, as a senior employee at Spotify he got into a quite detailed and fascinating discussion with my periodic flatmate, a professional classical musician. Consequently, I left him a very nice review. 

   In sum, he remains the most enigmatic Guest I've had to date.

[Emilia42]

@Alon1, I had a guest who left me a blank review as well. It shows up as a "." I knew it was coming because when this guest booked she had a profile of 80 reviews!! All the reviews she left for hosts were always blank. Yes, very impersonal and just her way of doing things I guess.

[Alon1]

@Emilia42 

Thanks for response.

I can't say I'm glad to know I'm not the only one in this case, and you've clearly experienced an Expert in the field.

I would only further question if she filled in the Ratings?

If I'd seen her track record I wouldn't have accepted her. I don't do IB and always check the history of Reviews both ways. If I get an Inquiry from someone who has a history of not reviewing their Hosts I decline and sometimes give it as the reason for declining, stating that Reviews are in the spirit of Airbnb as well as influencing Host ratings.

[Sarah977]

@Alon1  Maybe after filling out all those pages of the guest review, checking star ratings, whether it was "a bit better than expected","compliments," whether we gave them toilet paper or not, they're just fed up and not inclined to write anything. Also some people may not have good writing skills and avoid it for that reason. And of course, some are just lazy and don't care, I guess. The first page of the guest review form should be the written review.

[Alon1]

@Sarah977 

Thanks for response.

However, in my two cases, I don't think it had anything to do with the burdens and complexities of the Airbnb Review system.

Certainly not in the case of the 2nd Guest. He's a very frequent user and occasional Host himself.

He's left Reviews for all the other Hosts who reviewed him before and after me, as well as single Guest he's had to date.

  (He's also just started Hosting in a flat close to me in London. It seems he must have recently purchased it.) 

   He came across as highly intelligent and articulate, high achiever and earner. 

  The blank review left me with the impression that something irked him - perhaps the discussion with my musician friend who is no great supporter of Spotify - and he wanted to leave a cryptic message.

Perhaps also he took note of the preceding blank review and it was a copy cat. 

  Only their characters were very different. She basically stone-walled any attempt at communication over 4 days, so just basic necessities regarding amenities and anything else of a functional nature seemed an imposition  Consequently, even such a relative short period can feel intermnable, when you have someone you basically want to throw out immediately. 

[Sarah977]

@Alon1  Well, trying to guess virtual strangers' motives is pretty much an exercise in futility, I think. We can't know what going through someone else's head, or why they do the things they do. Heck, sometimes you can't even figure out why someone you know well does or doesn't do something 🙂

[Alon1]

@Sarah977 

Yes.... though because it's so unusual it can't help but make you think! 

And I was happy enough with his 5 Stars which is all that really mattered, because the way Airbnb jumble chronological Reviews under listings it got immediately buried, and  anyone who might stumble on it wouldn't know what to make of it either.