Status elevation beyond Superhost

Steve-and-Kasia0
Level 2
Torquay, United Kingdom

Status elevation beyond Superhost

Status elevation beyond Superhost.

 

We are a superhosts and obtain this status on a regular basis with a 97% ~ 5 star rating, with only a 4 star occasionally via the location rating, which we tend to think is a trifle unfair as we are based where we are, explain exactly where we are to guests and therefore can do nothing about this, so feel this should not reflect on our overall performance. Albeit we are in a beautiful location with beautiful views, but up a hill and not directly on the seafront itself.

 

However we would invite you to look at our reviews which are always 'out of this world' !!!

 

My Wife and I go far more than the extra mile for our guests and this is therefore reflected in the reviews.

 

I personally had occasion to use a Superhost airbnb for an overnight stay and it was awful. The toilet was dirty, the carpets were filthy, the room smelt, the bed linen was suspect and the heavily stained cups looked as thaough they had never been washed !!! 

 

The comment from the host was "As long as I get over 80% it doesn't matter".

 

Now tell me honestly, why should we share the same status as this particular host ?

 

We would suggest that hosts such as ourselves who clearly demonstrate superior service in all respects and reflect the values that airbnb wish to promote (as can be clearly seen by our totally unbiased guest reviews) should be provided with a higher status than merely Superhost, which could be achieved by airbnb monitoring the reviews.

 

This is not trying to polish our halos,  just an observation that we are lumped into the same category as an inferior host,  which somewhat defeats the status of Superhost. 

 

Steve & Kasia

22 Replies 22
Ana1136
Level 10
Ohrid, Macedonia (FYROM)

@Steve-and-Kasia0 actually the location rating doesn't affect the assessment for Superhost status. If the host you stayed at runs his business like that it is only a matter of time before he loses his status. And I believe this status is for personal satisfaction only, many hosts here have reported that they haven't seen increase in bookings since obtaining the status, I can tell you that I haven't experienced it either. Maybe Airbnb will look into the idea of an extra category but in my opinion "Superhost" would loose its purpose then and everyone would aim to be a part of the newer cathegory. That said, it is quite hard to obtain and mantain it so your hard work is paying off and your glowing reviews are your reward. 

Hi 

We realise the location does not reflect to Supehost status, but we believe that it does reflect in your overall percentage.

 

Also as we said this is not to polish our halos and we are sure that increase of business comes from the glowing reviews that we receive and our excellent work & customer service.

 

Whether Superhost status affects the booking levels, we are not aware.

 

The main purpose of the initial post was simply to encourage airbnb to find a way to distance ourselves (and others of course) from superhosts that are barely scraping into the required qualification criteria and in that way just maybe give credit where it is due which would possibly increase bookings.

 

 

 

Sorry I don't agree with you @Steve-and-Kasia0 . There is a criteria for SH and you either meet it or not. And we all know there are some spiteful guests out there who deliberately mark down hosts who enforce house rules, ask for additional money for guests not notified on a booking. Why should they be penalised?

 

If we want the superhost status to be meaningful  @Steve-and-Kasia0  the best thing is for guests like yourselves to leave honest reviews and ratings.

 

I am sure for example that you marked this host down for example for cleanliness? and left an honest review and ratings so that future guests were warned?

Fair enough.

 

We meet the criteria regularly each and every quarter and luckily we have not had any spiteful guests, or those who are not honest with their booking, nor have we had any problems.

 

I am not a troublemaker but left an honest review and even contacted airbnb directly regarding the situation.

 

I also understand the superhost eligbility criteria has changed, but used this situation purely to illustrate the point.

 

To be honest @Steve-and-Kasia0 I would say the majority of SH like ourselves who share our homes,  don't have major problems with guests, but it is definitely more difficult for those with whole listings who monitor their guests virtually.

 

If you stick around on these forums you will see there are hosts unfortunately who get burnt by problem guests who exceed their guest numbers, party, damage property and upset neighbours.

 

It would be great if now you have found the forum,  if you can join in and contribute advice and support to your fellow hosts - I am sure with your experience you have lots of great insights to share.

Hi

 

Thanks for the positive and informative reply.

 

Not quite sure yet how I may be able to contribute or help, but no doubt I will learn.

 

As a 'newbie' I noticed that you sported a level 10. So what does that mean and how does one rise through the ranks as it were ?

Hehehehehehehehehe

 

And without researching and trawling the airbnb site, basically how do I see questions and topics being posted by others ?

 

 

 

 

@Steve-and-Kasia0 the ranks go up as you post more but the number means nothing 🙂 And you can see the topics on community.withairbnb.com 

Thanks for the reply

Emilia42
Level 10
Orono, ME

@Steve-and-Kasia0 

"As long as I get over 80% it doesn't matter." This is old information. Hosts now have to have over a 4.8 overall rating to maintain Superhost. That changed about a year ago, so this host is still getting plenty of 5 star reviews. Contrary to the complaints you will read here on this forum, I think that Airbnb is over saturated with 5 star reviews and guests are more likely to give them than not. The result is way to many 5 star listings that clearly are not 5 star which you just experienced.

I do realise this is old information, I was simply using it to illustrate the point. To be honest I have not looked at the status of this host since I had the experience, so am unaware of the current status and whether it is superhost or not, relative to the provision of 5 stars. I also tend to agree with you as regards the casual giving of 5 star reviews.

Rachel0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Steve-and-Kasia0 For a brief period a few weeks ago, Airbnb showed the length of time a person had been a SH on the listing - ie, "Rachel is a Super Host since 2015".  I rather liked this, but someone somewhere in the hierarchy presumably decided that this was discriminatory or elitist and removed it. 

However as @Helen3 so rightly pointed out, the majority of hosts such as ourselves who host in our own homes don't have the same problems as people who host remotely and are therefore more likely to retain our SH status for a longer period of time.  We have to remember though that Airbnb are losing interest in hosts like us (upon whom their success was built) in favour of the Plus scheme and boutique hotels, so I don't think that we can expect any special recognition!  

I have to say that I agree with you totally and have noticed a distinct change in the period of time that I have been hosting.

 

@Rachel0 

"Rachel is a Super Host since 2015". I rather liked this, but someone somewhere in the hierarchy presumably decided that this was discriminatory or elitist and removed it.

 

How ironic that Airbnb introduced "Superhost" which enabled guests to discriminate against hosts yet hosts are not allowed discrimination.

@Ian-And-Anne-Marie0 speaking of ironic... hosts can't see the pictures of future guests in order not to discriminate but guests can see the photos of hosts before booking and are free to discriminate 🙂