Disappointing Airbnb Plus Photos

[Barclay0]

I received my Airbnb Plus photos after waiting a number of months and I'm sort of disappointed by the quality. My friend who shoots interiors for magazines like AD was nice enough to take ours and we don't want to replace them with meh photos we're forced to have. Some photos are super random and the ones we are fine with are nothing like we have now. Also, after reading disappointment after disappointment about the Airbnb Plus program it's not sounding as interging as it did at first and I'd almost rather stay as a normal listing with just Superhost status. I'd hate to switch and get a lower amount of bookings defeating the purpose of the program. Is there a way to reject all/most of Airbnb's photos and make a case to keep mine? I'd love to hear if there is and/or if people think this program is worth it. 

[Nicola311]

Consistency in photos is contradictory with what most Airbnb hosts look for, that is provide a unique and diferentiated experience to guest, who on the other side look for characteristics and details that distinguish a listing from the other. Airbnb is not Holiday Inn, we don't provide standardized furniture and services around the world , we have personalized contact with the guests, we love to "spoil" them a little and we get our highest satisfaction when they enjoy the little details we took care of, or when they appreciate the way we decorated the space. Their search is intended to get the most information as possible, usually through photos and commentaries, to understand what is the REAL thing of the listing.

I am Superhost since almost the beginning, and a few months ago I received an invitation to go Plus for one of my listings. Have to say that here in Brazil Airbnb Plus isn't as strong yet, therefore not affecting so much the results as is doing in other countries (which is something scary because it looks like they want to force hosts to go Plus or be smashed by the statistics). The invitation was sometinhg like: "Given you are a recognised host, and you have beautiful reviews, and your apartment has a great modern design... etc. you are invited to take part to the newly integrated Plus program for zero cost".

At the beginning I was really excited about the invitation, because I saw it as a reward to all the effort I was doing, a way to go more than "super". I have quite reasonable photos in this specific listing, altough being the only one I didn't call a professional photographer for, but I thought the Plus photographer would make the difference, so I went on. After many (and quite irritating) back-and-forth modifications of my listing they finally showed me the VERY FEW pictures they chose for it. There's no way I'll move from my 90% or above occupation listing to a totally unattractive Airbnb Plus listing, with few REDUNDANT pictures (such as 2 identical pictures of the bed, and that's all they would give concerning the bedroom)!! Besides that, they're asking to re-invent the wheel with new descriptions of the place in a fashionable manner. Why should I change a winning team?

To my surprise, I was lately invited to go Plus with a second listing just a few weeks after I published it, that is, with only a couple of reviews. I thought the reason was that I am a superhost, and that the listing looks nice with really nice pictures (this time, of a professional photographer), or that I was already going Plus with another listing. But then I figured out that Superhost status is not a must have to enter the Plus program, and listing with a single review can be Plus as well. Guests really find this listing attractive and there's NO WAY I'll let any photorapher following standard guidelines to reproduce with an inadequate set of pictures all the effort that I invested in reforming, decorating and making the ambient comfortable.

All this is so weird, because it's going the opposite way the foundators followed when they decided to expand Airbnb, that was by providing high-quality, detailed and design-focused pictures of the places. I really see no use in the Plus program if access is not related to long-awaited, high-effort and publicly-recognized rewards, that is already the Superhost status. Bad pictures will make the rest.

And, congratulations Larissa for your wonderful listing.

[David3063]

I have had exactly the same experience. My first property which is a garden apartment near the beach was greatly benefited by going on the Plus program, but unfortunately my seconde property which is an Ocean View apartment suffers the same fate as yours. They overexposed the photos so much that a guest looking to book cannot even tell it is Ocean View. It actually looks foggy outside although the photos were taken an a perfectly clear day. The Plus program people who wrote the description must have only seen these photos because nowhere in the description did it list the Ocean View. I called in and got luck from a support member not associated with the Plus program who was able to update the title to include "Ocean View" but other than this I'm worried that my listing has been severely negatively effected by this program. Prior to Plus this listing was booked consistently 95% or more of the month, now I am seeing bookings reduced. 

I wish AirB&B would put more resources into their Plus program because the consistent reply I hear when I contact customer support is that "the Plus team is extremely busy and understaffed and replies can take up to 3 weeks".

[Samantha10]

Hi All, My AirBnB Plus photos taken of our home in Cape Town are really not very good at all. Our unique selling point is our mountain view, and none of the pics show any mountain view. The is one exterior pic that is vaguely suitable, but it needs to be cropped because the foreground is a pile of leaves on the other side of the road. Has anyone on AirBnB Plus actually been able to crop or add pics? I've only recieved feedback saying I can de-register from AirBnB Plus if I want to, but all I want to do is add some suitable exterior pics. Any advice would be hugely appreciated. Kind regards 

[Thalía3]

Same here! We tried to pay for a reshoot since not only the photos were poorly taken, but also we made some important changes to the house and wanted the photos to show them. Airbnb support has only given excuses saying that for them they are ok and that they don't have the capacity to do another appointment. Hope they can see in the future that is not only their opinion that matters.