Cleanliness rating creeping down..cause for concern?

Anthony608
Level 10
Silver Spring, MD

Cleanliness rating creeping down..cause for concern?

So, my overall rating is hovering at 4.7 for most of the spring and into the summer with pretty positive comments.  I have been hit a few times on the "location" and a few guests have rated me as a 4 overall. However, I have had three guests give me a "3" in cleanliness and today that individual rating was a 4.3 and the star had turned orange.  Yet my overall was still 4.7.

 

In only one of those cases was the rating maybe justified and it was an issue with the guest arriving very late and found some trash from a previous guest under the bed (still, the guest would have had to go under the bed to find it).  The other two 3 ratings were ridiculous.  One guests stated the house had not been vacuumed when it was (you could still see the marks on the carpet) and a young girl stated the bathroom had an oder becuase she arrived literally within minutes of it being cleaned and there was still the smell of cleanser in the air.

 

Should I be concerned with a 4.7 overall yet a 4.3 in cleanliness?  I have heard horror stories about AirBNB suspending hosts or even de-listing them for ratings in the 3 or 4 category.

15 Replies 15
Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Anthony608  Yes, I would be concerned, not only because of Airbnb, but because you have had three 3* ratings on cleanliness from guests, so maybe you should look at stepping up your game in the cleaning department. The mere fact that you say a guest found garbage under the bed means that you haven't done a thorough cleaning job. You shouldn't be faulting the guest for looking under the bed, you should be asking yourself how that went by you.

Different people have different interpretations of clean. I have friends who need glasses to see up close, and even though they aren't dirty people, they don't wear their glasses when they clean and miss tons of stuff.

Perhaps you have a friend or relative who is fastidiously clean? Like maybe even what you'd consider crazy clean? Ask them to come over and check the place out after you have done your regular cleaning  the way you normally do (no cheating and doing an extra special job because you know they're coming). It might be enlightening for you to see the areas they point out that you missed completely or didn't do an adequate job on.

None of this is to say that guests sometimes don't give undeserved star ratings, I know they sometimes do.

@Sarah977I actually just spoke to AirBNB and they told me the real danger zone is in the "overall" 3s, which I'm not anywhere close too.  As for the cleanliness history, the trash under the bed was only my third guest ever and she had some issues - it was a single cleaning rag and could only have been found by her literally crawling under the bed.  Also she reported she had been given the wrong address for the proeprty (completely untrue) and gave a 4 in "Value", the only guest I've ever had do that.

 

The other two, I could do nothng about- the girl who didnt like the smell of cleanser and the woman who said the place wasn't vacuumed when it was I dont have answer for.  But, at least a good thing out of that is that I'm looking into throw rugs in and around the room to lessen the chance of a guest thinking the underlying rug is unclean.

Corliss2
Level 9
Calgary, Canada

@Anthony608 

I do have to agree with @Sarah977 . it wouldn't hurt to have a "clean freak" friend/family member give you their feedback. Sometimes we all can miss things that are glaringly obvious to  a fresh set of eyes.

@Corliss2I have actually done that and for that very reason stopped using a particularly strong cleaning product that left a chemical smell as well as getting throw rugs for my upstairs and new paint to avoid faded paint on the walls or faded carpet being mistaken for dirt.

 

My original question (which we have strayed from) is what is AirBNBs policies about individual ratings.  If an overall is in the upper fours (4.7, 4.8) but an individual is lower 4s (4.2, 4.3) is the host in danger of having thier account suspended.  I contacted AirBNB today in fact and that said the 4s are fine, that account suspensions don't happen unless you get into the 3s.  Yet I have heard others state on these forums that lower 4s can get you in trouble as well.

@Anthony608 The overall rating is the most important one as far as AirBNB is concerned. However, if you get too many 3's for other ratings, you will get warnings. Just as important is, with a low cleanliness rating, guests will be reluctant to book with you so it can affect your income.

 

Your per night rate is low enough that some folks will be happy to overlook the cleanliness rating. People like me will not.

@Susan151- Well, I certainly can't compare to your $100 a night Boston hacienda! 🙂  I have actually taken seriously the guest feedback about cleanliness and have taken some major efforts to have the place looking cleaner.  I still feel a 3 in cleanliness because the girl didn't like the smell of the cleanser in the freshly cleaned bathroom should never have been allowed to stand. 

 

There has been some talk on the community forums about sending guests messages about how serious it is to give a 3 in anything, yet I will never do that, because I think that opens up the door to blackmail situations where a guest will ask for discounts or perks in exchange for not giving a three in something.


@Anthony608 wrote:

@Susan151

 

There has been some talk on the community forums about sending guests messages about how serious it is to give a 3 in anything, yet I will never do that, because I think that opens up the door to blackmail situations where a guest will ask for discounts or perks in exchange for not giving a three in something.


Couldn't agree more! I have chosen a low-scent cleaning routine, since it makes me feel better and doesn't offend much of anyone. Maybe, one of these days, I will get a lower rating since my place doesn't smell of Pine-Sol! I also use what is called unscented [though of course it has a scent] laundry detergent.

 

EDITED TO ADD: and future guest won't know that the cleaning product smell is the reason for a lower cleanliness rating. They just see those aggregate stars.

Response to Susan151 in Somerville, MA's edit:  We are new to Airbnb and have had only 4 guests.  ALL 5-stars, except for the most recent who gave us a 4-star for cleanliness.  She had contacted me to say the inside of the fridge was not as clean as it could have been, she said she was letting me know so that I could tell my cleaning people to be more mindful of that because, she said, "you know how some people can be - lol!"  She said it really was not bad and it took her less than 2 minutes to clean with a Clorox wipe.  And yet, she gave us a 4-star rating for cleanliness!  I was NOT happy about that and to let future guests know, in my public response to her review, I added "I would like to publicly state that the 4-star cleanliness rating was because the inside of the fridge was not as clean as it could have been, and not because the house was dirty (e.g., the bathroom, kitchen, etc.). "  I'm still unhappy about that.

Anthony608
Level 10
Silver Spring, MD

@Bruce-And-Patty0  - A good rule of thumb is to avoid replying to the guest rating unless the *overall* rating is low AND if the guest made detrimental comments about the residence in their own public review.  In my 30-35 some reviews, I've only done this twice.  The first was when the guest said in a review that the house was dirty (including areas of the house off limits which she had never been in) and the second time was much more recent when a guest said I should have purchased him food during his stay and that there "wasn't enough for him to eat" in the house. 

 

Individual rating are important but overall rating is what counts.  As to cleanliness, I took the advice given earlier and had outside neutral people I know walk through the house and give me pointers.  I have not had any problems with cleanliness since then, as they pointed out some things I had overlooked and wasn't paying attention to, but the guests were.

 

You will ALWAYS get 4 star ratings which are not fair.  I suggest looking at some of the other threads for one of these info sheets that hosts give guests now which explain how the AirBNB rating system works and how 5 stars is the only acceptable rating with everything else a sign of something wrong.  Some people will still give 4s, even knowing that its harmful, and do so just because they are expecting hotel like service.  There is not much that can be done for such people, and its not worth replying to a 4 star rating unless they say something really bad in the review.

 

Bets of luck in your AirBNB adventure!

This is good information, and thank you for taking the time.  She and her family seemed lovely, and she wrote a very nice review.  She told me about the fridge as a courtesy so that I could let my cleaning person know, and added "you know how some people can be - lol!"  I apologized and said I would let my cleaning person know, and she replied saying "no worries, it really wasn't that bad," and that she had "cleaned it in less than 2 minutes with a Clorox wipe."  Maybe in time I'll grow a thicker skin about such things, but today when I saw what she had done, I was devastated.

 

I addressed delicately and politely in my response after thanking her for her kind review, what wonderful guests they were, and added the language about the issue being the inside of the fridge and not the house that was dirty solely for the benefit of any future guests who may see a less than 5 star rating on cleanliness.  To me, the cleanliness issue is huge. 

 

But my husband and I are new and I'm hoping someday I will look back on this and think, "Why was I so upset about that?"  But as of this moment, I'm pretty upset about it.  It was most definitely unfair (in my opinion).  

 

Anyway, I am grateful for your response and again, thank you for taking the time to respond.

@Bruce-And-Patty0 you shouldn't have responded that way in my opinion. There is no need for the future guests to know where to look for flaws. Also in your public response to Tammy, there is no need to bring up publicly issues that have nothing to do with the reviews. Your responses need to be short, precise and specifically addressing some writen issues in the guests reviews that you feel are incorrect. 

"There is no need for the future guests to know where to look for flaws."

 

In my opinion, there is no need for future guests to think my house is dirty.

 

Regarding Tammy--my response, my words, my business, and it was short.  I did not ask for commentary or criticism.  My comment about the water system will let future hosts know how gracious Tammy is.

Yes,  I would avoid commenting on a 4 star rating unless it is in direct response to something the guest stated negative in their own review.  For the rest, just chalk it up to a lesson learned and, by all means, start using an information sheet about the rating system so people know that 4 stars is bad.  That is a big problem on AirBNB; also remember, no matter what you do, there will be people who simply won't read the sheet and give 4 stars no matter what.

 

As for this particular case, I don't think its a big deal.  Most potential future guests won't see your reply, you have to scroll down a bit and open an expanded window to read it, so I would not worry too much.

@Bruce-And-Patty0  What Ana was saying with that statement is that hosts shouldn't respond publicly to things that were said in person or through private feedback, because otherwise no future guests would know about it, and if you comment on it in a public response, now they will. A guests who complains about cleanliness, when you know your place is immaculate, but doesn't mention it their public review, can just be ignored. If you feel like setting them straight, it's best to do that through a private message to them.

And if you are posting on this forum, you can certainly expect commentary, and sometimes criticism (hopefully gentle) -that's what a forum is about. We're all just trying to help each other out here.