Guest Had Airbnb Delete Negative Review

[Stephanie636]

I had a difficult guest who broke the house rules, showed up with more guests than she paid for, and left a mess. I left a review accordingly, specifically stating that I did NOT recommend her to future hosts. She called Airbnb claiming my honest, objective review was “unwanted contact” so they removed it citing harassment (?!). I’m utterly stunned. So much for integrity, Airbnb! If hosts can’t forewarn other hosts about bad guests, what’s the point of reviews?! Feeling abused and unspportd as a host, I’m compelled to delete my listing altogether. This is shameful.

[Linda108]

Rebecca, I AM worth my salt as well as being a self-respecting owner and do not agree with your premise that all hosts should leave this platform.  My personal experience in the last 3 years has been positive with great guests, support from Air BNB and rewarding additional income.

Like you, I am a frequent contributor to this forum and have seen some valid negative experiences with both Air BNB and the hosting business.  Some of these experiences are related to host lack of understanding of  the business and/or platform and some are just plain awful.

I think my positive experience with both Air BNB and this shared home experience is due to luck and location, my willingness to engage and learn about both the business and the platform and my realistic expectations of what Air BNB provides. 

I do not think it is accurate to paint all hosts that choose to stay with Air BNB as not self respecting or worth their salt.  While you might be reflecting the many negative postings on this forum, there are many, many hosts that do not participate here that are happy with their being an Air BNB hosts.

[Syl11]

@Linda108  Rebecca never said all hosts....., besides most express frustration and trying to get some improvements across the board, its only fair if we & you speak out otherwise they won't know. As if people will leave the platform, there are millions of listings, the company is worth billions....Aloha!

[Rebecca181]

I've had a great run with Airbnb. But blatant injustices bother me. I myself have been treated very well. But many hosts here have not, and we all know it. I don't have it in me to turn a blind eye, minimize, diminish, ignore, and dismiss, while whistling all the way to the bank, congratulating myself that I am 'above it all'. When we stop caring about each other, including here in this supposed community, then there really is not much of anything left.

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Linda0 Rebecca is right! I believe if we do not stand together Airbnb will always do whatever they want with us.Just look at the new guest review procedure.Were you aware of this?If Timothy from PA did not post this many of us would probably never know how we are being reviewed.This community is the best way to unite us all so lets not argue with each other opinions and let try to think together instead.

[Syl11]

@Oomesh-Kumarsingh0  This is one incredible post that have garnered so much host support that its amazing! it shows an incredible host community and Stephanie writes with so much humility that explains the dysfunctions which will and should lead to improvements. 

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Syl11 It is indeed an icredible post.I wonder why all the mods are silent? I believe they should support important posts like this one.

[Syl11]

@Oomesh-Kumarsingh0  There was a previous article in a news story about airbnb leaning more support towards the hosts, also the journlist pointed out the negativity of guests anger towards hosts cancelling their plans/trips, somehow when these posts screams out airbnb do not support hosts, its a balancing act!

With the mods.......yep they want people to know they also support the guests!

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Syl11 Fake news networks have become so popular these days that reading or viewing automatically believe in their crap.It is a shame to see journalists who have probably never tried Airbnb either as a host or as a guest talking about angry guests! All these posts surely helps balance the situation.

Even if they support the guests i would really like to see at least a reaction from them! 

[David122]

I agree totally,

you are sharp and on the ball.

keep it up.

i am here in Santa fe

[John1574]

@Rebecca181@Chris469  @Jeet0 @Kenneth  @Stephanie636

I hate to see another one bite the dust.   Another good host leave the platform.

Perhaps that is the only way for AirBnB to right their ship, with the caveat, that they want to right the ship.  Hit them in the pocketbook and publicize it all over the web and media.

Rebecca may be right that they want out of the "home sharing"  business.  I don't know why that may be, but if so, it must be related to the bottom line.

I think it's clear that the competition does a better job at "entire place' listings than AirBnB, so why would AairBnB abandon their unique niche in the home sharing market?

These are as much rhetorical questions as anything else as I have no insight into why they are so bad and getting worse at supporting hosts.

The situation really calls for hosts to tighten up their listing and management of their bookings so they can completely eschew AirBnB customer support.

This means the old days are gone, the AirBnB community ethos is a thing of the past.  I'm sorry I never got to experience that ethos.

It is clear to me as a newcomer that rigorously screenig guests is the best and maybe only way to ensure success.  I have a "whole place" listing and I would not do a "home sharing" one at this time.

All the problems described , except for a few IT glitches, seem to be the result of bad guests either abusing hosts or mis-using the system.

I'm all for a black-list of scammers and bad guests, as bad as that sounds to me as an American, a student of history and familiar with the most notorious blacklist in our history that resulted from the communist witch-hunts during the McCarthy eara.

I'm also supportive of forming off site host organizations or associations.

I'd also support our own hosts website/blog to voice our concerns.

AirBnB just doesn't get it:  but why?

[Stephanie636]

@Stephen, @John1574 - As we hosts continue discussing Airbnb's "behind the curtain" moves with our violating guests, their undeniable guest bias is coming to light. As for WHY Airbnb is so concerned with 'Perception Management' amongst guests, I think it's simple economics...

Airbnb values guests over hosts because of the power of the consumer. In that world, the priority is customer retention. To be clear, hosts are NOT the Airbnb customer; guests are. This means that guests hold the power stick, because they own the influential power of choice. Hosts are simply conduits that funnel the customer's dollar over to Airbnb; and for that service, we get to keep a portion. But hosts are 'selling' a single, finite, inerchangeable product. We list, and hope they'll come. Other than photos, amenities, and reviews - we have little true influence in driving that consumer towards the brand. The market leader in this space will always be dictated by viewership and site participation. If guests don't like a host, or if Airbnb favors a host in a dispute, that powerful consumer may choose another vacation rental platform altogether - once, or permanently. Worse yet, they may tell their friends about their negative experience and also drive away that potential customer. The linchpin of success for the company is to have a recurring revenue stream, borne out of repeat customers purchasing stays at multiple properties over their travel-consuming lifetime. The ultimate fear of Airbnb is that a *guest* feel wronged or slighted by a dispute decision, and - in an indsutry where marketshare is everything - lose that guest to a competing platform indefinitely. 

This model isn't unique to Airbnb; it's the age-old "customer is always right" theory ascribed to many businesses. Arguments that Aribnb wouldn't have a company without hosts are offset by the fact that there are far more hosts than guests right now (4 million listings vs. 2 million guests staying on any given night, per Airbnb statistics). While there's a glut of hosts, and not enough precious guest customers to match them, hosts are expendable and easily-replaced. Unless and until this ratio reverses, hosts will never have the upper-hand. And as long as the product (host's listings) are commoditized in this way, guests and their ability to select them will always reign supreme. Think about a grocery store selling multiple types of cereal. There are hundreds of types, distributed by numerous brands. If a customer complains about your cereal not being to their liking, the store will most likely refund them; there are enough other stores out there that also sell cereal to risk losing this paying customer over something so holistically inconsequential. The store will likely charge you back for the return, and may even stop carrying your cereal; and who cares if you drop from their sku lineup - there are still hundrds of other cereals for customers to choose from, and those aren't the noisy ones getting returned.

My point here is that to continue playing the Airbnb game, expect a clear bias towards guests. It will only infuriate them by trying to assert host "rights" or "fairness" claims. By getting into contentious situations with their customer base, you're threatening to erode their revenue stream  - and that's something the leadership, investors, and (ultimately) shareholders will never support.

[Linda_Jerry0]

@Stephanie636 In the world of business, it's a pretty basic 'pay for service' model; albeit a unique and profitable one. (Uber followed it) But unless the company addresses some problematic business practices pronto, and attends to it's hosts growing concerns, the company will become defunct rather swiftly. 

[John1574]

@Stephanie636

 You make a very compelling argument, Stephanie.   Very compelling. 

 Let me also add that age old canard for Airbnb 's sake that  it is a numbers game. 

 Numbers run out, that is why nobody, not even airbnb, can beat a numbers game.  

 The vampire in the closet is state regulation: look at what is happening in New York City, what devastation Airbnb is wreaking on the hotel industry. 

 Oh, so sorry for them, they can't rent a dung hole for $200 anymore.  Lol

 IPO, they are treading water trying to get to the IPO. 

[Fred13]

@Stephanie636 Exceptional post, showing exceptional understanding of economics.  Would like to add, consumers also have the 'power of bad publicity' on their side which they can exercise at any time by 'using' the media to take up their 'victimous' cause and 'cost' Airbnb millions in advertising in a jiffy.  It is an 'implied' hostage situation that many cunning consumers (aka guests) know how to play that game very well.

[Linda_Jerry0]

@John1574

I totally agree. We are newbies to Airbnb & I have to say these forums have been a huge help to us, so thanks, everyone. You're right - 'whole home' is obviously the way Airbnb is leaning. Just take a glance at their home page (sorry for the pun) on the website... homeshomeshomes, nothing but homes.

We are very lucky to be able to offer our 'whole cottage' on the lake shore to our guests & we're able to stay in a private cabin on-site or go back home to the city. This is as close to a 'home sharing' set up as I want. But I have a friend who's been using Airbnb that way with much success.

We've worked very hard to carefully renovate our property (it's 100+ years old) so we 

1. opted out of instant booking. (But boy, Airbnb really wants us to opt IN! No thanks.) 

2. have a strict cancellation policy (serious guests only please)

3. only take bookings of 7 days or more (weekend party-ers need not apply)

4. SCREEN SCREEN SCREEN (when in doubt... decline)

We're trying to offset the operating costs for the property, not use it as a revenue stream (...YET).

But I sympathize with hosts who rely on this as income and feel like they're held hostage by Airbnb practices /policies /lack of support /patchy enforcement, etc.