SMS Text Messages

[Paul23]

I have been trying to get a definitive answer from AirBnB as to the real reason for the withdrawal of SMS messaging.

Even the customer support have no idea and are left in the dark.

It is about time one of their Senior Managers or in fact the top bod came out with honesty.

If we are told the truth that it is a cost cutting exercise then at least we know.

How long do we have to keep putting up with this charade?????

[Elaine70]

I am missing out on potential bookings, and therefore airbnb are losing revenue, by no longer receiving text messages when a booking request comes in. Can we have this reinstated?

[Laura451]

I'm with you.. I do not have a smartphone because my home has almost no cell phone signal. I have an old flip-phone that I can receive and send text messages, but the signal is not strong enough for talking.  So my guests can text me but I cannot respond unless I drag out my laptop. What a nightmare ! I believe the real problem with this company is that the CEO as well as all the employees are all under 30. The first time I contacted them by phone, the gal that answered could not BELIEVE that I did not have a smartphone. I am a "baby boomer" as are over 1/2 of my guests. MANY seniors do not have smartphones, and many, including myself, cannot get a picture on their profile without grabbing a 20 year old with a smartphone. It has absolutely effected my business and I may have to switch to Homeaway or VRBO.

[Sarah977]

@Laura451   I don't use a smart phone either- I have an old school dumb phone, but fortunately I do get a strong cell signal.

I agree with you- the people who make these decisions and provide support appear to mostly all be young, have grown up with all this tech stuff and simply can't wrap their minds around the fact that not everyone has access to the same technology they do, whether it's because we choose not to use a smart phone, or our area doesn't get a good (or any) cell signal, or because maybe that technology simply doesn't work where we live. For instance, I don't have telephone lines out to where I live- my internet connection is through tethering to a smart phone (which I only use for that purpose), it is metered and expensive. Therefore I am not going to watch the latest Brian Chesky Q and A, using up $20 of my data allowance. 

And when I first started listing, I contacted support to find out if there was a way to attach a handdrawn map to an airbnb message to my guests. The support person kept insisting that my guests could find my place with GPS. He just couldn't wrap his head around the concept that I live down a dirt road in the countryside, with other dirt roads leading off of it, with many house numbers not posted and those that are in no discernible order, therefore very confusing with a map being essential. And my guests do not necessarily have their phones set up to use here, nor are they going to find that they have a wifi signal when trying to find my house.

All my guests have confirmed that they would never have found my place without my map, which I send to them via email. Yet support insisted they didn't need it. Just plain dumb.