Have had a perfect 5* rating until now, got a 4*, will I ever get back to being a 5* star?

Have had a perfect 5* rating until now, got a 4*, will I ever get back to being a 5* star?

I´ve hosted all perfect 5 stars (about 12), until now, a super good review (go figure) gave me a 4*. Now i´m 4.9*

Will it ever be possible to go back to 5*?

 

Is 99.9% 5*- 0.1% 4 stars still count as 4*?

Will I be inperfect forever? haha...

How does this work?

93 Replies 93
Diane338
Level 6
Gundary, Australia

I have just had a review left by a couple that stayed overnight at my home.  Although I reached out to her on several occassions I received no reply.  My guest has left a slanderous review of my home because she couldn't work out the heating, which is a simple push button operation.  My guest complained that there was no electric blankets on the bed.   Nowhere in my listing states that there is electric blankets but she assumed that there should be! All the beds had doonas and blankets.  The guest complained that she had to take extra blankets off spare beds.  Not sure what I did wrong but her overall experience was a 2.  I am shattered because this outburst came without any contact with me what so ever.  This now appears on my review.  I am not comfortable with electric blankets because of the safety issues involved when they are left on.  What could I have done better other than put electric blankets on the bed?

 

 

@Diane338 Something similar happened to us. We had a guest that was also a host (actually a superhost with 300+reviews mostly 5*). They came late night (we offered late check-in) and left early morning. They said everything was good. They wrote an ok written review but gave 2* overall, 3* on check-in (we let them check-in at 3am!) and 1-3* ratings on the rest. Why? IDK. 

 

I'm not sure if ABB would delete these kind of reviews (we never tried). I think the best you can do is write a nice positive public response (show your future guests you care and you use the feedback as a way to improve) and keep collecting 5* reviews.

 

Hi Bruna I had two guest who were both hosts themselves. I have very flexible cancellation. The host booked my place for one week so no one else could book and in the last minute she cancelled it . My sister said she did it so I don’t get peo in those days .  Another host did same thing she said will book for 5 days and asked me lots of questions about my place but then she never booked or even bothered to answer me back . 
There r very mean peo in this world 

Wow.  It's so crappy that came from a fellow host.  A 2* overall?!?  Ugh.  You've got the right attitude about it though and the reply back can be a game-changer for future guests.   

Ned-And-Laura0
Level 10
Simi Valley, CA

This just happend to me as well.  I had 15 perfect 5* reviews and then one person, who gave me 5*'s in every category and said positive things in the written comments, but gave me 4* in overall.  It seems the hair dryer didn't work (not something I test every time between guests) and the lamp by the bed had a burned out bulb.  I was so happy about my perfect 5* rating but I knew sooner or later I'd get a 4*.  Stinks they never round up.  4.999* on average is still a 4.9 and will NEVER be a 5* again.  

@Ned-And-Laura0

Yeah, you just have to take it on the chin I am afraid. There does seem to be a lot of injustice in the review system, and the injustice is all weighted the hosts way.

I understand that with that review of yours Laura, the guest did find 'something' to complain about, but in this review they gave me excellent comments, absolutely no hint that anything could be improved on either in conversation or in messages or in any other way!

Still only managed to wangle a 4 out of them though.......

 

Star rating 5.png

I think in @Bruna-and-Siana0s case, they have good grounds to have the review dealt with, particularly if the guest was a superhost because, a superhost would understand exactly what a rating like that would do. I feel sure CS would take action in that situation.

 

But, the problem with reviews like this is, Airbnb sees them as good reviews if you ever complained about it. If the star rating was an overall 2 or maybe a 3 they would conceed that the rating did not match the review and do something about it, maybe contact the guest for a clarification. But all they will say of a 4 when everything else is perfect....'that basically agrees with the guests comments, that was their perception, nothing wrong with that review'!

 

But that bloody 4 stays with me forever more, a blot on my stats when even the guest agreed I did everything right. I normally 'gush' a bit in my review responses but in this one I was quite cool.

I know it sounds silly but, I felt I deserved better!

 

Cheers.....Rob 

 

 

Omgee Rob, I have the exact same thing today, great guests and my first overall 4 star....waaah

(; _ ;).  

I also am frustrated after 5 years on airbnb. that many years of consistent 5 stars , then lately guests are just getting meaner. Nothing has changed in my property condition, quality or service but the people are just meaner. like the 1 star because she did not notice is is pet friendly and her husband is ultra allergic. The place was clean, but it says pet friendly all over. When I protested to ABNB that my listing clearly  states pet  and this guest walks in, sees a dog painting and some dog decorations, checks the listing , then leaves for a hotel on the highway. Never called me. I would have tried to place her in another owner's lake condo and just transferred the funds between us owners, but she did not give me a chance.  I got another bad one, 2 stars because the kitchen is small. Duh... its a condo with 3 br on the lake, boat tie ups and large dining and living room facing thee water... for a bit more than one hotel room on the highway. I think they should allow one outlier every 10 or 10 reviews to drop out of the mix. 

Ned-And-Laura0
Level 10
Simi Valley, CA

In the end, does it matter?  I mean will future customers care that I have a 4.9 instead of a 5?  Will somebody out there decide not to book my place because one random person gave me a 4 out of 5 stars?  Doubful.

@Ned-And-Laura0

No, it doesn't matter, it is the written reviews that prospective guests are interested in.

 

If I can just make one comment. It is not wise to bring private feedback out into the public arena in a review response!

That guest gave you a beautiful review, said he would have given you more than 5 stars, all great, and in your review response you bring up what must have been a comment he made to you that he found it difficult to get hot water in the shower. As a reader we look at that and go ...What th!!

Laura, private feedback is where the guest feels you did a great job and wants to reward you but feels there is something he would like to mention to you but does not want to make an issue of it......just a private suggestion.

Leave private feedback private.

The only time I made mention of something in private feedback was when a guest marked me down because I didn't have a sign out the front of the property and I simply thanked him for his comments and mentioned why my local council will not allow that.

I like the fact that you leave a public review response, but don't bring problems out into the publics gaze!

 

Cheers.....Rob

@Rob0 yes that was a mistake on my part.  Realized that I was responding publicly to a private note after I clicked post.  But that not the one I was talking about.  Scroll down to the lady who left me 4 stars.

@Ned-And-Laura0

Yeah Satia, if they would give you some indication that something could be improved on while they are there fine....but nothing, all great, but not great enough for a 5.

 

I think my honeymoon period is over, this week has been a bad one! Had one guest who was messy did a bit of damage, but I only had myself to blame there, he was a result of a 'Booker' account so never had any communication until he arrived. I would have vetted him out in the normal scheme of things.

But I have just started another thread on my latest. I just knew it was going to happen, it was just a matter of time. Anyone who thinks they are going avoid that 'fruit cake' in their hosting career is deluding themselves!

 

Cheers.....Rob

I just had a guest who left my a lovely public review leave me a low star rating for cleanliness because ants popped up from nowhere. They didn't tell me during the stay, even though they were in touch with me for other matters and only raised it when I asked them if they had seen an item from our house that the cleaner noticed was missing. How do you approach those guests who do that? I'm new to this and don't have many reviews. I have had 4 stars for location even though I make it pretty clear where we are located in the description (ie by the gully) and the map doesn't mislead at all where we are located. 

As a general rule: Avoid at all costs saying anything to a guest that they could possibly take as an accusation or criticism (for example, don't ask, "x is missing, do you know anything about that?") until AFTER the review process is complete. You never know who out there has a fragile ego or a persecution complex and folks will leave you a negative review if they think that you think they did anything questionable whatsoever. Unless you are willing to accept a significant increase in 4* and lower ratings you must handle guests like delicate little snowflakes. 

 

Guests often leave 5-stars to be kind and they are willing to overlook minor things that any host could probably do better. However, if they feel like you are nit-picking them, suddenly all the little stuff they barely noticed before will become major problems and they will happily give you a bad rating in retaliation for you questioning anything at all about their amazingness as a guest. 

Ned and Laura you have a point there ... perfect 5 is difficult to obtain but after 4.5 in my opinion as a guest is excellent .