Guests who never leave Reviews - Suggestions for dealing with them

[Stephanie365]

As AirBNB hosts, we rely on reviews and in fact, AirBNB rewards or penalizes us based on our reviews.

I have encountered 2 guests who apparently never review their hosts. They receive reviews from their hosts but don't reciprocate.  For those of us with lower volume spaces, we really need every review to maintain our status not to mention the requirement that a certain percentage of guests who stay must leave a review.

So, while AirBNB is very strict on hosting requirements, is there a way that AirBNB can program in a warning to guests who use AirBNB but who don't leave reviews?  I know on occasion people won't leave a review here or there.  I'm not talking about these guests.  I'm talking about the ones where you see they have 3 reviews from hosts and you back track to see what they've left as guests and they haven't left a single review for anyone.  

I would like to see ABB implement something to this effect:

>"Marvin" stays at an ABB for the first time and doesn't leave a review.

     No action.

>"Marvin" stays at an ABB for the second time and 10 days after the experience has ended, Marvin still has not left a review.
     They should receive a notification to the effect of, "We have noticed that you haven't left reviews for your hosts. Our platform relies on reviews from hosts and guests to be successful. To avoid a flag on your account, please take a few moments and review your host."  Marvin ignores warning.

>"Marvin" stays at an ABB for the third time and 10 days after the experience, Marvin still has not left a review.
     Marvin should receive a notification that to the effect of, "Please take a moment to review your host.  You have 4 days left. As you have used the ABB platform 3 times and have not left a review, we will flag your account to inform hosts that you do not leave reviews if you don't complete one for your latest experience. By flagging your account, you will not be eligible to Instant Book any property and hosts will have the option of declining to host you penalty free."

In the future, when "Marvin" attemtps to book an experience, he will have to wait for approval from the host.  When his request comes through, the host should see a notification to the effect of, "This guest prefers not to leave reviews. Do you still want to host?"  The host should be able to check yes or no. If the host checks "No", the booking is cancelled penalty-free. 

If the host isn't so concerned about reviews as revenue and wishes to host anyways, the can click "Yes" and the booking would proceed as normal based on the host's requirements.

This way "Marvin" is not banned from using AirBNB, but hosts would have a penalty free option of not accepting Marvin as a guest. If the guest doesn't care that they can't IB or that they may have a harder time finding a host to take them, so be it. But the host should at least have a penalty free option of not accepting this guest. And the guest will have some motivation to leave a review.

[J-Renato0]

I think it is not a good idea to "force" guests to leave reviews.

It is up to the guests to leave or not a review and I think guests should not be penalized for not having left a review.

As a guest, I would not like to be forced to write a review.

In the same way that, I as a host would not like to be penalized if I do not write a review on some guest profile. 

If someone wants to remain silent, it is one's right, wheather we like it or not.

[Helga0]

I don’t stress about reviews, but 80% leave them. They also leave notes when they leave before I wake up, even writing them on paper tissues, if they are too groggy to see the notebook at 6 am. 

I guess the reason is, that they felt they got something special. Not special in the sense of luxury or things that money could by in a more expensive place, but a special emotion. 

Take the time to talk with a guest, give them recommendations for their interests or describe a museum where you have been and which artwork pleased you there, a favourite restaurant with the food you often  have there, a park with a nice spot, a shop, whatever. 

Surprise is great too, in a world where everyone believes he can know everything easily, surprises are cherished. Like finding a garden in a big town. I laughed with today’s guest, when we shared two raspberries, served on a tiny platr, harvested on November 1st in Paris. You could buy a package of them in the next shop, but this one raspberry each was special, worth the effort to review. Or rather, the idea that we shared something funny will compell most guests to share this emotion.

Stories are best: at arrival or if you share a breakfast or evening drink or tea, tell something about your area, that they will not find in a travel guide. It need not be important, but if it’s funny, it’s a bonus. 

If you share positive emotions, people will like to share them with the world. And these true ringing, interesting warm reviews are the best marketing you can get. Much better than a perfunctory line wrenched out of an unwilling guest by a menace with a Flag. What’s next? A blame? A hosting rules enforcer with a cane? Help! Where is the next hotel booking site?....

Consider: some people are afraid to write, because they think they cannot write well or not in English. If you have such a guest, if it’s a foreigner, you can appeal to write a review in their language, if they liked the place, “as your compatriots will get this review first on their browser and who better than you, to describe it in a way it’s easy to imagine for a person from your culture? I will get more guests from your country if you do that for me!” A guest was all astonished about that: “You want yo have more guests from my country?” I was astonished too “guests like you? Of course I do.” It made clear, that guests are often a bit fearful too, what they will get. Reassure them and you get an elogy. Which you may read with online translation 😉

if you feel they may be shy of writing at all, tell them the stars are enough and half a line. Even one word counts.

[J-Renato0]

You make me laugh .... @Helga0 and I see you are back again! 🙂 I miss your french sense of humour! 🙂

>>>"an unwilling guest by a menace with a Flag. What’s next? A blame? A hosting rules enforcer with a cane? Help! Where is the next hotel booking site?"....

[Andreas-and-Anna0]

I would not Decline a guest if they did not review host. And I hope no other Host does that. Seriously, we are in it make money- not gather reviews. Focus

[Mark116]

I've stopped actively trying to get all guests to leave a review, after having been burned several times by making the request of people who said they loved everything only to get *4 overall and *4 value,  by now I am pretty good at determining which guests will forget the review, if they forget, I forget, because even if they were 'good' guests why should they get glowing reviews when they don't bother to review hosts, so in effect, all your effort to host them is moot.  Yes, you get the money, but you get no review benefit and even a negative if your reviews fall below 50%, so I only now mention reviews if I am very sure people REALLY loved it, or if they have a history of doing the review from previous stays.

[Moira52]

Reviews are a huge problem for me on Airbnb and I do feel guests needs to be more encouraged to do reviews by AIRBNB.

All my guests who do leave them for me on Airbnb and other booking groups gives me full scores 95% of the time. When they leave they cannot thank me enough for the stay But not all follow up by doing the review afterward online. There must be a way for Airbnb to please assist hosts with this!!!!

[Helga0]

I don’t believe more nagging at the end would be a good idea. 

How about a welcome message, when they set up the account, thanks for joining our great community... a successful trip has the following steps : find your lodging and profit from the reviews of other’s experience / contact your host,  book and pay / confirmation and mutual information  / share the host’s place / review to share your experience with other members. 

It could be a helpful recapitulation of everything essential, that they could have read but did not. I had to reassure 2 guests within the last ten days, that they already paid, so such a red line in form of a bullet list would be helpful anyway. It could make the reviews seem like a Necessary last step to complete the trip. 

And the list could pop up before the first three bookings, if there was a pause of 3 months since creating the account or six month since the last booking. 

[Grace344]

I had two bad experiences that I was penalized. First, the guest booked thdvolacecas one person came as two and stayed without paying the extra guest fee, violated house rules, even though they were told. I showed them the entry. They came drunk after midnight to my side of the private and my room. I asked him about correcting the reservation and requested the extra person fee. Next day he yelled at ME. He said he cancel the reservation even though Airbnb said they can't get my money not only Airbnb refunded the full amount even the stay as one person. They spoiled the room. They were able to leave a review. Then Aurbnb punishes me for a list rating. Even though I deleted the listing the review us there 

[Jill160]

Wow, @Grace344, I am so sorry to hear that this happened to you.  

I think that sometimes the system is too computer automated.  Keep trying to reach a "real person" at Airbnb to resolve this for you.  Many of us in the community feel for you.

Though I have not experienced a situation as bad as you describe I do empathize with you based on how I felt when I received a poor review:  on communication because the guest did not get a good cell phone signal on their off brand tract phone, And one person in their party had a bad back and could only be comfortable in one of me chairs, AND down graded me on cleanliness because they saw a spider when they stepped OUTDOORS on the deck! You gotta laugh and know that most of our guests are the best people in the world.

[Jill160]

*my chairs, silly auto correct.

[Salem2]

Hosts have more to lose, if Airbnb put more pressure on guests they will just go elsewhere, or make a new profile.

Be happy with the reviews you get, personally I don’t enjoy rating people and and I have heard that some guests prefer to leave no review before writing a bad one.

[Salem2]

I think we take the ratings way to seriously, I try to look the other way, there are so many flaws in the rating system... I definately don't think it is an accurate reflection of our efforts and skills as hosts.