Blurb about reviews in the house book

[Inna22]

I am thinking of including some language about reviews in the house book. I remember someone even put an article in theirs. I would like to make it simple but to the point. Something like:

A WORD ABOUT REVIEWS

Airbnb assigns a lot of value to reviews. If I get anything less than five stars from a guest, I am considered a bad host with main consequence of being removed from search (I am grossly simplifying this but I think this is something everyone will understand). I hope I have earned a five star review and if I haven’t, please give me an opportunity to remedy the situation during your stay. I am always available through the app or by phone.

[Inna22]

@Emilia42 I think this is exactly the difference in thinking between airbnb and guests. They sometimes view the star system similar to hotels. There are some incredible four star hotels out there and five star that did not live up to expectations. You can look at guest reviews in additional to a hotel star rating. In our case it is combined into one and left up to the guest to interpret the way the feel like interpreting it. I do not think. Using hotel system I do not think I would rank as five stars but I do think I am a five star host

[Alon1]

@Inna22 

One of my most recent Reviews stated

  'The house is an old one with features according to its age - so don't expect 5 star hotel but good value for money.'

   [Guest gave 5* for Value and four of the other criteria, one was marked with 3*. Overall Experience 4*]

The comment seems a classic of its kind, though best I recall first time anyone has even put my listings in conversation with 5 Star Hotels, perhaps any hotels at all, I don't recall without going through them all.

It left me genuinely stumped.

I want to write a Response, but so far nothing appropriate came to mind.

Any suggestions for Response?

[Inna22]

@Alon1 since guests can’t see star value related to specific review, I would say it is actually a positive one and would not say anything 

[Alon1]

@Inna22

Thank you.

Yes, perhaps it's best to let the comment speak for itself..

Indeed, I rarely respond and prefer to let the Reviews do the talking.

[Marta794]

As short time hosts we make no mention of reviews either written or verbally unless inquired. We would rather let our unit and hosting skills and abilities speak for themselves, and allow people to judge from there. Less pressure and the appearance of groveling. We try to greet each guest, converse with them, and ask if anything is needed or if any issues come up to please let us know. We will happily go over the most common important items and explain usage such as a/c & heating, TV, washer/dryer, etc., even though all is documented in our house manual. Call it the lowest common denominator: covering your grounds from all angles. Again, as short time hosts (only 7 reviews so far) we have not experienced the bad which I'm sure will come with the territory. Cheers to all.

[Kira32]

Hola @Inna22

I think it's best not to ask guests specifically to write a review.

It's good to say to your guests that you have written a very nice 5☆ review and most of the time they'll do the same. 

Keep it cool👍

[Kath9]

@Inna22 @Jim472 @Kira32 @Marta794 @Alon1, no it's absolutely not ideal to have ask for a review or to 'grovel' to get a 5-star review. As @Marta794 commented, our listings SHOULD speak for themselves. However, the review system is so unfair that it has almost forced us into a position of having to do so. For example, why do guests get an overall rating that is an average of their individual ratings, but hosts can get 5 stars in every category but 3 stars overall for 'meeting expectations'. Of course my listing 'meets expectations' because I clearly portray what is on offer and don't oversell or undersell it. I only get a 5-star review if my listing is 'much better than expected'. And yes, if my ratings drop below 4.8, I will lose Superhost status, and if it drops below 4.7, then we may not be delisted, but we do start receiving messages that we aren't doing good enough, even at 4.6/5 (92%, considered a High Distinction in universities).

Hosts were so frustrated with this stupid system that I came up with the 'template'  posted by @Jim472 (I do like your changes Jim and might incorporate some of these myself!). But @Lyz---Will0, I would also love to see what you have written as I agree that something humorous and lighthearted goes a long way.

[Alon1]

@Kath9 

I agree the wording in Rating system is illogical and prone to mislead.

However, considering the number of Super Hosts  (including not only those that contribute to CC to a greater or lesser degree,  but probably also a vast majority who never participate), I wonder how many attempt to systematically inform or educate their Guests about the Rating system?     

  We can't know without a comprehensive survey, but for sake of discussion, perhaps not many or relatively few; and if that's the case, it would suggest that many Guests consistently still give 5* for that many SHs to emerge. 

[Justin271]

Although I do think guests need to be more cognizant of the effects of their reviews leaving a note to only rate you 5 stars feels a bit desperate, could put unwarranted preassure on a guest and may cause more harm then good. 

[Lyz---Will0]

Hi all

Thank you @Inna22  and @Kath9 for the follow-up, that was a nice notification to get! 

I think the yay and nay clearly varies culturally, as so many things do.  I think it was @Anonymous (what do you do outside of hosting btw? - your insight and explanations are always amazing!) who first mentioned 'grovelling', and I understand the choice of word but I really can't see any host 'grovelling' for reviews.  Like most of you I'm sure, we've had WAY more guests than our reviews would show, and I agree, for many people it appears the reviewing process is pretty cumbersome.  But like I said, in a digital world reviews are important to all businesses with any kind of online presence.  Which actually makes ABB's system so conflicting: They want both parties to leave reviews and be open, honest and fair, yet hosts are warned of delisting if they fall below a certain rating (we won't quibble on the number again here 😃 ). 
Now I understand that's presumably a means by which ABB are perhaps intending to effect some sort of 'quality control' across the board, however it just means that some hosts may well feel inclined to make requests of their guests to leave reviews that could therefore not be wholly 'accurate', IYKWIM, i.e. guests are being 'kind' - which does happen!  In a nutshell,  it would therefore seem to me to make a bit of a mockery of the whole system though!?

Anyway, from my POV I'm confident that we personally offer as much as we can for the price that we've selected, based on our local market/competition and I know our place is clean as I do it myself.  I therefore feel a little bit of 'info' about what to consider when leaving a review is acceptable and so far, still quite wise, since from what I read on here, so many hosts have experienced guests who have no idea how to review fairly. Admittedly many may just not think that deeply about it  but you can only provide the info, you can't make people read it and you can't make people follow it.  But what are you gonna do - not maybe even just try and ensure your guests are enabled to think a bit about what they're considering, if they're kind enough to take the time to review?  
So, forgive me for not doing a direct copy-and-paste of my brochure content, it's just in the last 2 months our competition in our building alone, has gone from just us for 4 years, to 3 of the other 21 flats now also holiday-letting, 1 of which has copied EVERYTHING  I do, from my web content, phraseology, pictures and even the flooring!  And this week she even tried to go off with 2 of my guests but that's another story, lol! So I don't really want to give them any more 'help' when they're my direct competition and it's evident they follow my online activity.

However, I will say that I use words to the effect that 'positive scores really help us stay competitive and keep our prices reasonable for all our lovely guests!' and  'if you have the time and inclination to leave a review (and congratulations on finding the time, please let me know where it was so I can get some), here's how the process works (for those who don't already know!) And then I  just explain how the system isn't like the AA / Tourist Board system.  I'm also very clear in my listing descriptions so I mention that it would obviously be a bit daft to mention something you expected that was clearly never on offer (like a spa or whatvers, lol!) (after all, any other potential guest/host reading that review is just gonna think, 'what a numpty, why didn't you read the info before you booked??'  - cos that IS what we all privately think, right =D )

So far not a single booking in over 600 has even mentioned my 'review directions' at any point, let alone an issue with it and yes, I realise that doesn't mean they don't but I'm not a mind reader =D And I genuinely don't think anything in what I've written is untrue, unreasonable or in the least bit demanding or coercive, so I'm quite confident that should anyone find issue with it, I can defend it quite legitimately and robustly.

I hope that helps anyone but like everything about how we each choose to host, it is each host's choice how they do it 😃

[Shauna28]

I'm not a fan of this tactic. As they are paying to stay at my home, I don't ask guests to do anything for me outside of the basics (observe house rules, treat space with respect, communicate plans). If they choose to leave a review, great.  If they leave a 5-star review, even better! While I don't go out of my way to coddle guests, I let my actions as host speak for me. 

[John1574]

@Shauna28 @Lyz+ Will1 @Alon1 @Inna22 

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I agree with those who agree that the Airbnb review system is atrocious. 

 I also agree with those who write a blurb educating their guests on the odious review system put in place by Airbnb.

 I don't grovel for good reviews, and I consider that a very poor choice of words.

 I run my Airbnb as a business, and I adhere  to good business principles.

 I address this problem in two ways: I send a "Welcome to my Airbnb "  as a "saved message".

 I write how we designed our Airbnb to be a "five star in every category" Airbnb according to the categories that Airbnb uses to review, and I list those categories.

 My second stage is a saved message that is sent to guests at check-out: it is titled "Our (New) Airbnb Review Policy".

 In that I detail why the Airbnb review process is controversial for both hosts and guests.

 In one example, I write that giving a glowing review in written form and then deducting stars for Value, Location,  etc. is akin to speaking nicely to someone's face and then badmouthing them behind their back. Those are the exact words I use. 

In a recent review  a guest wrote that mine was the first "perfect" Airbnb they ever stayed in, yet he deducted a star for Value, implying that he felt he did not get his money's worth. Absurd, but more importantly this is the pettiness we get from many guests.  

My bad for forgetting to send him my  review policy, saved message.  Never again. 

Reviews have Consequences -- We leave a public response to every review

 I have a heading titled "Reviews have Consequences" And under that heading I explain how, after June 2019, we will write a public response to each and every review a guest leaves us.  I explain the reason for this  new policy is the pettiness and sense of entitlement we have experienced from some guests recently.

I explain how at the end of each review I write for a guest will be this sentence:

"We respond to each and every review a guest leaves on our listing, so see our listing for further info."

 If a guest writes a glowing review, but then deducts stars for some petty reason in any of the categories,  Value,  Location, etc., we address that in our public response. We also warn potential hosts about this guest's pettiness and state we will not allow them to book again.

 I am confident in my approach because I know that our Airbnb is a Five Star in every category Airbnb.  We put in the work to make it that way, and we ensure that every guest gets exactly the same first class treatment. 

 Only spite and pettiness and a false sense of  entitlement leads some guests to deduct a star for any of the various categories when reviewing our Airbnb.

 For now, this is my approach, and I'm going to stick with it until I feel I need to change, and you can see the results in action on my listing. 

We will no longer accept pettiness from our guests after giving them the first class treatment we provide. We will call those people out in our public response and we will never allow them to book with us again.

 No good business-person should allow a flawed policy and petty guests to cause them undue stress over and above what business already entails.

Reviews have Consequences:  remember that. 

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[Alon1]

@John1574 

Since you have tagged me in what I find to be your diatribe,

in my view your approach to Reviews is extremely stringent and off-putting.

It seems to me you've lost sight of the purpose of Review & Response.

You wish to quibble over every single star that you perceive is wrongly given by the Guest.

which I find the height of 'pettiness' and 'sense of entitlement'.

As I see it, the purpose and bottom line of Guest Review is simply to create confidence for prospective guests to book. After 6 - 7 years of hosting and near 350 Reviews I can assuredly state that Reviews have served their purpose well. 

[Emilia42]

@John1574, do you really think your method is going to help future guests feel confident in booking your apartment? 

[John1574]

@Alon1 @Emilia42 

 I think my approach will work for me. 

But you can reject all of my ideas out of hand and go your own way.

 I run my business my way.  AirBnB is a business,  I want to control my business, and I don't let anyone run roughshod over my business.

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