The "new normal" frustrating booking process

Matteo340
Level 6
New York, NY

The "new normal" frustrating booking process

Taking this situation as an example because it just happened but it could be anybody. A girl from Korea requests to book my room. She has a name on her profile which doesn't tell me much, the rest is completely blank, no description, no picture (we are not allowed to see them, remember?), no reviews. She asks to book my place for her and her friend. Airbnb doesn't seem to care less, they only need the place booked quickly, but it's my home and I need to know who this person is. I can't see her face, that would be very helpful despite of what they might think, so I ask her to please provide some basic information about her and her friend, just to introduce herself. This delays the whole process. The potential guest see herself being required to provide some extra information in order to be accepted, might even be frustrating and time consuming. Me, on the other hand, I need to get some extra information in order to understand who this person is and this is too using too much of my time. She's in Korea, I'm in NYC. I text her back more likely when she gets to bed and she text me back when I'm going to bed. I wake up, I see her message, she didn't provide any information about her whatsoever but she told me she used Airbnb before and she also has a picture and reviews, which I don't see. The reservation in the meantime expires. My dates get blocked. She tries to book again again but they're blocked. I then unblock them for her but being Friday night she's probably out not checking her Airbnb messages and rightly so. This goes to the third day. At that point I get a dumb email from Airbnb suggesting to watch a video so I learn how to respond quicker avoiding any possible potential guests frustrations. Is there anybody's else "frustrations" that matter here? Not really.

 

Now, I'm wondering, how could this possibly became so idiotic? And in the name of what, exactly? In the age of transparency, safety, and some sort of liberated "freedom" thanks to the internet, this bunch of Silicon Valley anti-social nerds decide to "improve" their platform by removing people's ability to freely communicate to each other, see each other faces, talk to each other in a transparent, clean, and polite way. Like normal people, a concept they clearly don't even have the vaguest idea of what it means. No, instead they only see potential discrimination in any given communication and exchange, a crime that urgently needs to be repressed, therefore the decision that we are all not good enough to have such a privilege as being able to see our potential guests in the face. The same guests that, by the way, are not even required to upload an image of themselves or fill up a description on their profile if they don't want to do so. The same complete strangers that are requesting to spend a few nights in our apartments. Instead of closing the gap between perfect strangers it's now completely acceptable to expand that gap. And, by the way, why not trying Instant Booking and get it done with it? Wouldn't that be so wonderful.

 

 

So, at this point I'm wondering if it is possible for Airbnb to make this process even more complicated, less transparent, and frustrating? We can probably open a discussion and see what other stupid measures they can or should come up with to frustrate people even further. I would really encourage them to do so, just to clearly see how far they can go to make the supposed "Airbnb community" a better place for themselves only.

33 Replies 33
Ian-And-Anne-Marie0
Level 10
Kendal, United Kingdom

@Matteo340 

How could they make booking more difficult, more complicated, less transparent, and more frustrating...?

 

No. Can't think of anything, so you got me there.

Emiel1
Level 10
Leeuwarden, The Netherlands

@Matteo340 

Airbnb only need to send inquiries. No Instant Book, no Booking Requests, just enquiries without blocking dates. We as host can determine quite well ourself who we want to accept.

Simplicity is the new standard !

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Matteo340  How about: pretty soon we won't be allowed to communicate with guests at all. Airbnb will just do all the bookings, and fill up our calendars with whatever guest comes along, no matter how inappropriate. The only thing we'll be allowed and expected to do is bend over backwards to accomodate each and every guest or get delisted.

@Sarah977  I agree with you. You have actually disclosed Airbnb’s evil secrets. What you said is exactly what Airbnb intended to do. 

 

They put the frustration on hosts and hope that hosts would gradually adapt to blindly accept any requests.

Christopher287
Level 2
Christiansburg, VA

I also spend time to communicate with guests and I think my standards are quite stringent since I also book rooms in my home.  For one, I have a mandatory 3 day lead time for guests to book.  I don't want drifters coming through here, so I don't take last minute bookings.  I also don't take anyone without 3 reviews and all of the 'normal' requirements.  If they meet those requirements are all met, they can instabook.  I tend to have been taking long term stayers, so that is my new norm since they changed the task laws.   I really don't care who books as long as they aren't here to party and are professionals which may advertisement clearly states.  Besides that I have lost 'guests' due to silly questions that have come up from either of us and I just assume they found something better or easier to book.

Catherine922
Level 1
Taninges, France

je suis OK avec tout ça; airbnb a tendance a ultra protéger les voyageurs et très peu les hôtes; si vous ne répondez pas rapidement vous perdez votre statut se super host  et vous êtes "déclassé" , sorte de punition je  l ai très mal pris ; je devient méfiante alors que l idée de départ était le partage et la rencontre avec les autres , on en est très loin aujourd’hui; j aurai tendance à refuser les personnes qui ne mette pas de photos et qui ne donnes pas d explication sur leur voyage ou qui communique trés peu avec l hôte;comment être sur de la fiabilité des personnes ? comment être sur de ne pas retrouver son appartement en mauvais état?comment airbnb vérifie tout ça et est sur de ses résultats? beaucoup de questions sans réponse qui me feront peut être quitter ce groupe un jour. 

Hello,

 

Airbnb ask guests to add a profile photo when they sign up, and again, when they request or book a reservation. Although guests can book a place without having a profile photo, we strongly encourage them to upload one before they check in.

You can also require guests to have a profile photo, but that photo won't be displayed until a booking is confirmed.

If a guest's profile photo doesn't include the guest's face and, for example, contains only a cartoon, an avatar, or a picture of something other than a person, you cancel penalty-free by contacting Airbnb.

 

https://www.airbnb.ie/help/article/2157/why-cant-i-check-a-guests-profile-photo

 

Booking settings --- Guest requirements ---Profile photo --- ok 

2. Guest profile photos: Guest profile photos are no longer visible before booking—will there be any changes to this in the future?

 

This continues to be a significant topic of conversation because it hits on trust and safety between hosts and guests, which is crucial to our platform and one of our most important commitments to hosts like you. This isn’t something that anyone at Airbnb takes lightly. We read all of your comments on this topic in the Community Center, and we’re committed to addressing your concerns on this topic.

We made this change because we want to make Airbnb a place where anyone can belong. That’s the core mission of Airbnb, and something we’re 100% committed to. Unfortunately, some of our guests today don’t feel as accepted as other guests, and therefore don’t belong.

Many hosts, like Dennis from London, have told us — passionately at times — how supportive they are of the changes. “I’ve had many guests come to me and say, ‘The reason why I chose you [to be my host] is that I knew I would not be rejected because of who I am,’” Dennis said. “And I think it’s really important that Airbnb maintains its position on this.”

However, other hosts expressed concerns about the change because they felt we were taking away helpful pieces of information. We read your comments in the Community Center, we have spoken to you during our trip, and we’re committed to addressing your concerns.

We acknowledge that bias and discrimination—conscious or unconscious—exists in the world and on our platform. Airbnb brings people together virtually and in real life, so we have a responsibility to address these issues and we take that role very seriously. Over the past few years, we’ve tried many different things to reduce the acceptance gap on the platform, and yet nothing we’ve done has had the same magnitude of positive impact as the change to guest profile photo visibility.

And it’s important to clarify: The changes we made didn’t remove guest profile photos from the booking process. What changed is when the guest profile photos become visible to hosts. Rather than seeing the guest’s photo before they book, now guest profile photos will only be visible to you after the booking has been accepted.

Let’s talk about how to make the most of the new process:

  • We introduced a few important tools and new host controls to increase safety: hosts now have the option to require that all of your guests provide a profile photo. We rolled this out a few months ago, and if you do opt into that control setting, then you will always be able to see a profile photo of your guests before they arrive for their trip. So, you still have the ability to know who it is you’ll be welcoming.
  • If you’re concerned the photo is fake or doesn’t show their face (but instead shows something like a dog or landscape), you can opt into the new host control, require that your guests provide a profile photo, and call Community Support and request to cancel the reservation penalty-free. (We recommend messaging the guest directly before canceling, too.)
  • For additional security, you can require that your guests complete Airbnb's Verified ID process. This means they need to provide a government ID to Airbnb to be able to book your space.
  • For female hosts and hosts with small children, there is an option to select only women. Right now, the process is a little clunky, but we are working to make it easier and more streamlined. In the meantime, here’s how to do it: in your House Rules, note your preference to host only female guests, and then switch from Instant Book to Request to Book. If you receive a booking request from a male guest who may have missed your House Rules, then you can call Community Support to reject the booking request without penalty.

We are rigorously evaluating all of our options for providing tools and assurances to keep hosts safe and will continue to update you as we roll out more security features.

“This change set up a difficult tension between ensuring hosts have information about potential guests and ensuring we reduce discrimination on the platform, but I don’t think it’s a zero-sum game,” Laura said. “While guest profile pictures are not the best tool for information, it’s one of the few tools that hosts had, so they felt frustrated that it was taken away.”

We know it’s a big deal— the change has highlighted hosts’ desires for more safety controls and better information on guests, and we’re committed to continuing to work on these issues. At the same time, we must do everything in our power to reduce bias and discrimination on the platform.

This explanation is just words and more words.

Most can ONLY be activated if it is an instant booking! Hosts get numerous requests from guests who have just joined with only a first name and maybe a message that says they want to book our space. When a host responds with questions, often there is no reply. In MANY cases, these are NOT people new to Airbnb, but rather someone who has simply opened up a new account! All they need is a different phone number and email address. The rest, if they provide anything at all, can all be made up. Airbnb has no way of tracking those who simply open a new account which could be linked to poor reviews from hosts. This has to do with SAFETY for the host. Airbnb is not interested in the safety of hosts. In fact, the host is penalized in many ways, if they just do not blindly accept! 

This is also true for hosts who do not agree to a full refund if a guest cancels or if the host refuses to cancel at the request of a guest. The guest is protected. But the host is hung out to dry complete with full name, address, and phone number. Unhappy guests could appear at the hosts door and Airbnb could care less. Their response is that the host agreed to disclose this information immediately after booking in their policy agreement. Safety for the host is NOT a concern for Airbnb. A host is on their own and in addition hosts get threatening emails and penalties from Airbnb as a result! Airbnb's concern is keeping guests happy and booking through their platform! 

So until you are a host and realize there are real SAFETY issues for hosts that Airbnb refuse to consider, you are only regurgitating words from the company! Hosts are on their own and need to be very SAFETY conscious. Encouraging and posting honest reviews from other hosts are only one way to combat this issue. Airbnb needs to become more active in the SAFETY of their hosts.

Hello @Edie9 

This option is for all listings and reservations, not only for Instant Book.

 

If you activate this requirement, you will be able to view the guest profile photos, but only after you have accepted their booking. 

 

https://www.airbnb.ie/help/article/2157/why-cant-i-check-a-guests-profile-photo

 

Booking settings --- Guest requirements ---Profile photo --- ok 

PS - For real SAFETY ISSUES

 

If a guest's profile photo doesn't include the guest's face and, for example, contains only a cartoon, an avatar, or a picture of something other than a person, you cancel penalty-free by contacting Airbnb.

@Ramona2  Why did you copy and paste this from the Airbnb Updates? Most hosts who check into this forum are well aware of Airbnb's position on this, you could have just posted the link to this rather than pasting it all, and as far as many of us are concerned, it's absurd. Airbnb is systematically removing all the tools that hosts have been using to ensure they get decent guests and not letting us see a profile photo of someone we are expected to welcome into our homes is outrageous. 

you get to see a guest photo,  just not before they book

Hello @Sarah977 

You can see the photo of your guests after they paid and if your listing has this :

 

https://www.airbnb.ie/help/article/2157/why-cant-i-check-a-guests-profile-photo

 

Go to the listing with Modify --- Booking settings --- Guest requirements ---Profile photo --- ok  

 

Airbnb tries every day to ease our host work, both soft and to avoid conflicts between people.


Due to the fact that the requirement grows, people are demanding, competition is growing every day, and DETAILS differentiate us and help us become the best.

 

I thought that not seeing the guest's photo until after they paid encourages us to get to know each other and ask more questions.

 

So, I do not see a tragedy because we do not see the guest's picture until they paid.


I wish you all 5-star guests!

All the best!