"Instant Booking" states that canceling is an option... but then sends me warnings?!!??

[Grace232]

AB (AirBnb) pushes "Instant Booking" to optimize it's revnue stream - and to belay trepidation that blind booking may become an open portal for mayham, they offer up that cancelation is allowed through "Instant Booking".  I am lulled into this appeasement...

Three cancelations later, due to 1) flooding 2) non-transparent background information 3) registered sex offeneder - AB is sending me reminders that one more cancellation might take my listing off - T.H.I.S. after I called them two days before to complain that a registered sex offender slipped through their filter and that for the flooding, that is a "Force Major" so technically I have one cancellation.  The CS was rude and I asked for the mananager and he agreed that he will dial all 3 cancellations off...  Then a warning email this morning...

It's raising my IRE that AB messed-up in letting a registered sex offender in and then is issuing me warnings on cancellations...  I will switch to "Pre-Approval" which I know will decrease my booking - BUT like other hosts I will also now gleefully entertain other hosting platform.  

I too want to optimize my reveue stream like AB and since I do a better job of screening sex offenders, I now view both their negligence and form email warning as liabilities in the form of "time and energy opportunity cost".  This 10-year old California technology platform, as other technology platforms in its class grew like a California wildfire.  But the company culture and corporate responsiblity, reflectetd by its CS is still in the "start-up" space.  Thanks to others I will now explore platforms that might offer a a more "win-win" scenario for both ABand the platform users.

Sorry about the rant, I've been hosting for years and am tired of its algorithimic, one-size-fits-all and must wait 20 min on phone resolution process.

In closing here's a little something ...  "In March 2017, Airbnb raised US$1 billion in funding, bringing total funding raised to more than US$3 billion and valuing the company at US$31 billion.[140]"  

In surveying 300 countries GDP by the WorldBank, that $31 billion valuation is greater than 200 of those countries.  Here I am making a bed, washing towels, vacumming, dusting, wipping down sink and shower...  to break-even on my rent, while being spanked for turning away a registered sex offender.  

[Peri-And-Winn0]

I can not agree more .... they say they take 3% ... maybe the first time ...

my last booking was a $48 booking? Should have been $60 ....they paid out $34 .....that is close to 30% not 3%

ripoff. ....i pay the cleaner $20 to clean ...leaves me with $14 breaking my back and bankbalance and investment to pay a third party?

bookabach here i come.

[Zappa0]

Sounds like a.law suit to.me...

Airbnb dropped the ball on this one time for me (I dont know what the.person did) but airbnb canceled the reservation because she failed security tests. She showed up anyway under her boyfriend or maybe it was her husband's account (he re booked a couple days later) I didnt let her in. 

You can really bring anyone and wed never know...

[Kelly149]

You are exactly right that the marketing BS around unlimited cancellations for being "uncomfortable" with an IB reservation is a total fabrication. The truth is that ABB CS may cancel as many IB reservations as they would like. YOU may cancel up to 3 IB reservations in 12 months without explaining yourself. That's it.

So, if you ever want to cancel, and each of those you've cited make perfect sense for being cancelled, then it is best to call CS (annoying as that may be) and have them do the cancellation for you.

[Grace232]

Thanks for that, that should have been stated upfront rather than all the cloak and dagger BS...  All the unspoken panelties and ramifications have resulted in them blocking my calender for a week.  I called CS a week before the blocked week began and they couldnt do anything and that their legal needs to handel it.  Called again this past Monday and they could do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING... 

Today is the last of the blocked day and I've incurred an opportunity cost of $300 or so, dollars that are important.  I ABB to break even on the 2nd bedroom/study while beau's deployed, it's not for profit... 

I will call ABB CS going forth, but I'm diversifying my marketing platform going forth as well, lol...

[Fred13]

   When you reached 3, their robot computer will generate one of its auto 'darling' messages, regardless of what else is really going on.

   While on the subject, Airbnb does play a lot of word games; that whole 'uncomfortable' criteria is based on quick sand, what was wrong with just plain proper Englsh - 'If the host elects not to host the applicant'?

   While at the wishing well, I would like to exercise the imagined right not to get 'offended' by their obnoxious computer!

[Donald28]

You cant cancel in the first 48 hours but the guest can. 

[Alice-and-Jeff0]

@Donald28  - this is not true.  You can cancel at any time. The difference is if you are penalized or not.  

[Jerry128]

I got threatened too. I'm a superhost because I do a fabulous job, NOT because I value being named some way by AB.

I declined three recently (one wanted to bring a pet, one wanted to bring 7 of his biker buddies and had no reviews at all, and one wouldn't respond to my emails about her group), and I was told they may remove my listing.

I have 32  --  5 star reviews and RESENT being treated this way.

Looks like other platforms are where I'm going and soon

[Grace232]

Yeah, it's really our only option, if ABB continues to drop the ball on things.  As I've said to their rap, I'd love to keep giving you dollars for all my bookings, but you guys need to make it easy and safe for me to do so.  

I did learn that it's never good to single source your supplier, customer or anything that invovles revenue generation.  So I will now put that into practice.  You don't want all of my money, no problem, I can give some of it to someone else.  No hard feelings ABB...

I've learned my leason, and now I'm going to apply it. 

[Donald28]

Other platforms just don't get the bookings that airbnb does. I've tried (am trying) them all in the last year. VRBO got a couple inquiries but no bookings, allstay, hipcamp and I even got a NO TAHNK YOU from glamping hub. According to them our tiny house made from a shipping container and private 45 game arcade wth all games on freeplay isn't "unique enough" for their hand picked bunch of tents, treehouses, yurts, castles and other places. LOL!

The ONLY place I get bookings is here. 

Airbnb is kind of like ebay in that there are many other auction sites a person can sell on but if you want the most exposure and the highest chance of a sale, you have to use ebay. 

[Grace232]

I luv your spot!!  One day the child in me and my doxie will come and visit!!  You might have already thought of this..  What if you focused more on the "upcycled shipping container" experience?

Just reading the word "shipping container" made me do a little jiggle in my ergonomic chair :)...

But back to things...  The market is fluctuation and things change all the time.  I registered with V**O the same day ABB sent me their nastygram and I got a booking yesterday on the V'ster.  Eh... of course my base price was $2 lower than ABB because I tweak ABB's prices often to market but forgot to with the V'ster...  maybe it was the $6 saved over 3 evenings that gave them the warm and fuzzies? 

I mean I think its worth the time to set-up on other sites and you can link some of the calenders so they sync up.  The only way to keep things more to our favor is to take action and competition however small is healthy.  It might not be a game changer but it is "writing on the wall".

[Grace232]

Oh, what I meant was changin the focus from "small house" to "upcycled shipping containter", keep the arcade of course!! 

[Liz294]

We just had an instant book who were teenagers and had 12 friends crash and trash our condo.. smoking burns bleached and stained toe

[Liz294]

Stained towels, whole place smells like smoke! Why isn’t Aorbnb requiring at least 2 positive reviews? Our security deposit won’t cover the total damage it will be interesting to hear how Arbnb