First 3 star rating across the board! WTH!?!?!

First 3 star rating across the board! WTH!?!?!

I recently received a review from a young Italian couple who were traveling to Yosemite and stayed with me for 1 night. Yes we had a slight language barrier, but I felt we made the best of it. They cooked dinner, did some laundry and were overall very pleasant until I read their review.... All they wrote was "Good" AND gave me a 3 star rating for every category. I know this sounds weird, but I feel like I failed LOL. I know you can't please everyone, but really? 3 stars across the board....I need a minute with this one. I wish our guests' understood the importance of their rating/review.

34 Replies 34

@Milada-and-Jiří0 it takes a few days to make oneself comfortable.. I also noticed that one night guests tend to give me worse rating than longer stay. I put it on getting used to the accomodation.

Roz4
Level 10
Auckland, New Zealand

Agh have I really feel for you. I am on a 5 star roll...but I know the day is coming and I am dreading it. I think the thing is though that unless you've hosted (and most guests haven't), you don't really get it. I had an experience as a guest that left me feeling a bit miffed, as I got a borderline review from a host (thankfully on my husbands Airbnb account 😜). We moved out of our house and were in limbo for a week before moving internationally. I had a 6 yr old, 2 yr old and new born baby and my husband was away. Quite frankly it was a harrowing time and situation and we were on a 8am flight when we left, so up before dawn. I certainly did not tidy before we left. I was soooo livid when my husband told me what she said about us. Because I felt like she should have been more compassionate. The host knew our situation when she accepted our booking. But now I'm a host I sort of get her perspective a bit more.

Lilian20
Level 10
Argelès-sur-Mer, France

@Frank-and-Jesse0 Sometimes " good " is the best that you can get

@Lilian20, I've been a host for 3+ years and I have a 5 star rating, I believe I'm better than "good" just goes to show that you can't please everyone.

@Frank-and-Jesse0 I also believe you are much better than "good" and that this story goes to show that you can't please everyone.

 

When I type " What The Heck " with multiple question marks " !?!?! " that's usually because i get burnt out

I sometimes think that guests compare the star rating to the star rating for hotels? Despite paying sometimes a quarter of the nightly rate of a hotel. Very frustrating. Specially when they don't bring up any issues during their stay! 

Gary-And-Rose0
Level 7
Chemainus, Canada

I explain when guests arrive if you are happy with your stay please give us a great review and 5 stars if you are happy with everything. We will leave you a great review as well when house rules are followed and the place left beat and tidy. 

 

If any issues arise please contact us and we will do everything we can to resolve it for you. 

We depend on your reviews as do you as a guest. 

 

Good communication is key

I now place a laminated 8.5x11 explanation of how important ratings are and a break down of what each start represent and place this on the nightstand. 

Hi Frank-and-JesseO  

Can you post a picture of your explanation?  Sounds great! 

 

Theresa125
Level 2
Cicero, NY

Superhosts,
When you get these occasional bad ratings, do you reply to the review?  If so, do you have a standard "go to" reply for out of the ordinary reviews?  

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Theresa125 

 

I would say definitely NO if the guest just left low ratings but didn't say anything negative in their review, e.g. in the OP's case, where they just wrote "good". Potential future guests cannot see the star ratings an individual guest gave you, only the average star ratings for the listing and also for the host. They cannot see any private feedback the guest left either. So, you are doing yourself no favours as it will just look weird and aggressive.

 

If you feel the need to respond to the guest about their ratings, don't do it publicly on your listing! Send them a private message and they may respond, they may not, but they are unlikely to even see the response to their review, which appears on your profile, not theirs. 

 

Remember that the audience for the review responses are potential future guests, so use your responses as another marketing tool. 

 

If there is something negative/inaccurate actually in the review text itself, which is what I'm guessing you mean by 'out of the ordinary reviews', by all means respond, but keep it brief, professional and don't get emotional. I don't have a standard response because each case is different. If there is something inaccurate/false, then call it out. If the guest failed to read/understand the listing, then call it out. If there was an issue that you resolved quickly, you can mention that. If there was a genuine reason for complaint, even if it was for a small thing, then apologise and mention what you have done/are doing to improve. The important thing is to always come across as reasonable and rational, even if the guest is not.

 

Also, if you only respond to problematic reviews, those will stick out like a sore thumb. Remember, that review will get pushed down as time passes and you get better ones. I make a point of responding to almost every review, even if it's just to say "Thank you for being a great guest," or "It was lovely meeting you." That way you are not drawing attention to only the more negative reviews.

Kirsten266
Level 10
Heemskerk, Netherlands

I've noticed the 4-star reviews came from new members. 

That's why I now send a short message after they leave: 

Hi *, thank you for your visit. It was a pleasure to host you!
Since it was your first Airbnb booking, we hope you Screenshot_20220515-144529_Samsung Internet.jpgreally enjoyed your stay at an Airbnb.

Airbnb's "rating" is sometimes a bit confusing for some guests. We will therefore send you an image with a short explanation of the score. We wish you a nice day and a safe trip back home.

Best regards 

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Kirsten266 

 

I like your explanation of the star ratings. However, Airbnb will send warnings even if you get a 3 star rating. I know this because last year I received a 3* for the first time in years (no complaints from the guest, who said she enjoyed her stay) and immediately received a warning. 

 

In addition, Airbnb's minimum standard supposedly requires a 4.7* average or above. I mentioned this to a current guest (who has been using Airbnb for years) and she was astonished. She said that she thought 4* was really good and imagined that very few people would leave a 5*.

Kirsten266
Level 10
Heemskerk, Netherlands

That's exactly the reason why I send the new visitors this explanation before they get the ABB request to leave a review 

Natasha-and-John0
Level 10
Cornville, AZ

this happened to me recently with a German couple. they said i was uncommunicative , which is odd because i left a festival to help them use a washing machine and saved their laptop from the sprinkler system. i owner if we need to put in an extra note for foreign guests.