Hosts, Can you read between the lines in this review?

[Suzanne302]

I had a guest that was not terrible or bad, (she was very friendly!) but one of those who essentially depletes your resources and is annoying. I plan to give 3 stars in cleanliness and rules, and 5 stars in communication. I will probably hit "yes" to recommend to other hosts, although I'm still debating. And debating what to say for private feedback.

The review will read:

"Guest and her daughter stayed two nights. As first time Airbnb users they did their best to navigate the shared space."

As a host, can you read between the lines on that? Here's what actually happened:

-She ignored my check-in instructions

-She lounged on the couch for about an hour one night talking loudly on the phone

-Her dog peed on my rug (she did come out with the rug immediately to let me know)

-Her dog was *not* friendly and barked a lot (my rules specify well behaved, friendly dogs)

-She left pen marks which stained my bedspread in several spots (still working on getting those out, hopefully with another wash they will)

-Her and her daugher used 5 towels and 4 washcloths for a two night stay

-The bathroom counter was filthy with big globs of gel and toothpaste in several spots

-They said they might see a movie so I offered two free movie passes and said if they didn't use them to simply leave in the room. They  did NOT see a movie, but took the passes

So all in all, not horrible guests and no major infractions, but I did not particulary enjoy having them in my home. Am I doing right by other hosts with the review??

[Rachel177]

@Suzanne302 reading your draft review I would think that your guests were lovely, followed the house rules and left everything clean and tidy. Reading what they actually did, there is no way in hell I would want to host them and would be pretty cranky at a review that gave them the thumbs up and gave no warning of the issues. And as an IB host who requires recommendations from other hosts they would be able to book my place without any communication with me.

I would be a bit more honest in your review. You need to let other hosts that guests left you with more cleaning that usual & weren't great with communication/following instructions. And would you happily host them again, or be happy to recommend them to friends or family that may be hosts (even if you don't have anyone in your immediate circle who hosts I use this as a benchmark for recommending guests.) If not, give them the thumbs down. They can still use airbnb, but can't instant book. And in-home/personal hosts will appreciate your honesty.

[Suzanne302]

@Rachel177 

Thanks for your insight. From experience, I know these are some things that wouldn't necessarily upset other hosts, as we all have different tolerance levels when it comes to guests!

It's been discussed here previously and i I saw a review like that along with 3 stars, I would be hesitant to host, but wouldn't be scared of having them in my home, either.

I also know some hosts don't pick up on those cues! So thanks, again, for sharing your thoughts!

[Rachel177]

@Suzanne302 to be honest, I'd probably be okay hosting your guest with a less than positive review, but she would need to request to book with me so I could read her the riot act (so to speak) when I accepted her booking request.

One of the things that annoys me is that guests continue to behave poorly because they don't receive honest reviews or feedback from hosts, so they think that the way they are behaving is perfectly acceptable. So the more honest we are in reviews, the better for everyone!

[Suzanne302]

@Rachel177 

You are so right! I'm always advocating for hosts to leave honest reviews and here I am torn because this woman basically thanked me profusely for hosting her and talked about how lovely I was, and how lovely my home was.

As Rob says below, I've got to realize "nice" guests don't necessarily make "good" guests!

[Rachel177]

@Suzanne302 @Robin4 is right, nice guests are not necessarily good guests.

As an example I hosted a "nice" young lady last year. She was able to instant book with me, although the first (of the two) reviews on her profile mentioned that she left the apartment in a messy state. And sure enough when she stayed with me she was very messy and also ignored my house rules. I reviewed her honestly and gave her a thumbs down.

She mentioned to me that she had already  booked another apartment after her stay in Melbourne with me so out of curiosity I checked her profile a couple of weeks later. And guess what (drumroll please), her review stated that she was messy and an inconsiderate guest. So because her first host hadn't given her the thumbs down, she was able to instant book her stays until she's now ended up with 3 out of her 4 reviews saying the same thing, and at least one thumbs down from a host.

[Ana1136]

@Suzanne302 to be honest none of these things would annoy me except the dog pee which is why I don't allow pets no matter how well behaved they are, you can never know how will they react in a new environment. But I see this as a learning lesson, be clear about the check in and if they come sooner or later then agreed they can stay outside until you are ready for check in, if she is very loud you can always let her know, maybe she didn't realize, the stains are something you will have to get used to, use cheaper materials, leave as many towels as you thing they might use, don't give them access to all your towels, of course that something will get dirty, that is why you have a cleaning fee or it is in your price, maybe they took the passes in ordes to see a movie but they couldn't and forgot they had them. Give your honest review always but don't forget to learn from each experience, you can't expect all guests to be perfect.

[Suzanne302]

@Ana1136 

I know some hosts are more tolerant of "annoying" things than others which is why I was torn on a "bad" review or simply a vague one. 75% of my guests bring pets, and they've been fantastic, so this is an anomaly, and a consequence/risk I'm happy to accept as part of allowing pets.

While I appreciate your response, I'm not seeking advice on how to run my Airbnb (I know how many towels I want to leave out, what my cleaning fee covers, and I'm good on laundering/bedspreads/materials/etc).

I was just curious how other hosts would interpret a vague review.

[Ana1136]

@Suzanne302 don't take my advice as a way to run an Airbnb 🙂 I am just saying that every guest is a learning experience and I was giving examples of new ways you can learn from this one, it is up to you if you are ready to accept a different perspective or not. In the end this is a public forum and everyone will give their oppinion no matter if you like it or not. I said if I were you I would give an honest review and make some changes myself because you can be sure there will be other guests who take advantage of your check in policy, who will use all available towels, who will be loud...it is up to you to take care of those thing during their stay since not all of them will be just for two days and you can tolerate that much. But eater way, good luck hosting! 🙂 

[Robin4]

@Suzanne302 

Suzanne, what actually did you like about this guest, her daughter and their.....'bladder with four legs'??

You obviously felt uncomfortable with them from the moment they arrived as they ignored your check-in instructions. 

You would not have brought this here to the CC if you felt the positives outweighed the negatives and you could leave them a reasonable review. You are stuck, and needing guideance, and I think Suzanne, that answers your question.

"Sometimes nice people don't nesseccarily make good guests! As nice as she was I felt compromised and abused to the point where I would decline the opportunity to host her again. I wish her well and my heart says recommend her to other hosts.......but my head says I can't"!

Give her three stars and a thumbs down. 

I understand you don't want to kill her Airbnb chances Suzanne, but, she will recover from that and it may just make her realise that she needs to be a bit more considerate to be a good guest!

Cheers......Rob

[Suzanne302]

@Robin4 

Ah, you are so spot on!! It's like you could read exactly what was inside my head! LOL!

I know I tend to be more forgiving when the guest is nice and need to work on separating that from their other behavior.

I just needed to hear it from someone else. "It's okay....do it!"

[Robin4]

@Suzanne302 

We do it for each other, you have helped me with your great (sometimes critical) comments Suzanne! I utterly respect your opinions and......if I can get just one back....That's great!

I have had a lifetime of studying words and putting meanings to them. The most important thing here is Suzanne, to protect your wonderful review status. Writing a review like that will make you be seen as a great conciliatory host. Some people would tear up reading something like that and form an instant empathy with you. 

The other thing is, you have not accused the guest of being anything other than a pain in the arse.....so a review like that will stick around, the guest will not be able to have it removed!

All the best!

Cheers.....Rob

[Ann72]

@Suzanne302 You are so patient and such a good host!  I just wanted to add - I'm sure you're not planning to use the word "abused," but I woulnd't use it on its own.  "Abused her privileges in the shared space" or "abused my hospitality" if at all.

[Robin4]

@Ann72 

Sage as always, you are right Ann, I should have put 'Used' not abused but I think @Suzanne302  has the intent of what I was saying!

Cheers.....Rob

[Ann72]

@Robin4