How do you handle Guest Reviews?

[John915]

Hi all!

I know there has been discussion around this but I can't seem to find the relevant conversations so I'll start one anew. 

How do you as hosts handle reviews?

As a host, I have nothing interesting about a guest to say unless they were exceptionally bad or exceptionally great so my standard review is something like "Great guest, welcome back anytime and recommend you host". Historically I've left that review only if a guest leaves one so I can read his/her review but the guest's review will be posted regardless. 

So to hosts, what's your policy? Do you just not leave reviews for guests? Going forward, I am not going to bother unless someone steals a microwave or is otherwise horrible. Unfortunately I think that's a diservice to other potential hosts but I just don't see any benefit to leaving a review for a guest, even if they have left one for their stay.

Curious as to how other hosts handle this. 

[Fred13]

I am not a fan of long detailed reviews either, my responses however get more creative, if I leave one. Your "Great guest, welcome back anytime", should suffice to let others know the guest is cool, if they were.

[Matthew285]

@John915, there is nothing wrong with leaving a brief review if all you have to say is that they are welcome back.

Even that brief review is useful to future hosts, though, so please keep writing them.

BTW, I usually add notes about how clean they left the property and whether they followed the house rules. That, I feel, is also useful to future hosts, and certainly something I evaluate every time someone checks out.

[Peter682]

I like to give a final thank you to my guests. Guests are the most important part of Airbnb. I never rave on. Your standard review fits the bill unless something special stands out. If there was something wrong that others should be aware of then tactfully say so. But we need to remember that people from different cultures do things differently and we need to be understanding.

I think that private feedback is often better for making suggestions like "maybe next time you could do a better job of getting your rubbish in the bin".

Not sure that there is a tactful way of saying that the guest accidently departed with the microwave.

[Marzena4]

It seems to me that the way of reviewing guests undergoes some transformations. Exceptional guests deserve special reviews, just like good hosts will feel disappointed if they have not received due praise. But if you don't feel like producing a long review, stick to a few words. Forced, artificial evaluations sometimes sound dishonest.

[Huma0]

@John915  I know time is precious, but if a guest leaves you a review, it would be courteous to always leave one for them. As hosts, we are often judged on our reviews, but that can be the case for guests too. I always check a guest's reviews before I accept a booking.

If you can't think of anything different to say, then I think it is fine to say they are welcome back and that you'd recommend them to other hosts. It is still more helpful to the guest and to other hosts than no review at all.

[Elizabeth429]

Hello @John915,

This is a very interesting topic for me.

I always leave a review for my guests. Some of them are easier to write than others because some guests are really special while others are a pain. When I am not sure what to say, I actually take my time to think about it. I try to be honest in my description about my experience or perception of them. And if something must be said to the guest, I use the private chat to let them know how they can become even better guests to other hosts. Some people tend to forget they are staying at someone else´s home and not a hotel. Sometimes I wonder what their homes are like as a reflexion of how they did or behaved at mine.

[Clare0]

@John915. I accept many guests that don't have any reviews.  Just as reviews are important for hosts on their listing, guests also want to receive reviews too so they have an easier time booking.  For some hosts, a guest who joined a couple of years ago but doesn't have a review, is a red flag when it needn't be because the host just didn't feel like leaving a review.  

Always leave a review in my opinion. Good, bad or indifferent. 

[Paul154]

Good question.

I too am usually generous with guests.

After all, they pay me, so I do feel grateful.

Unless they are truly terrible, I leave them good review

However, I realize that the review system could be more powerful, if we have a Super Guest Category.

I really do wish I could set apart those guests who are extremely clean, extremely polite, don't ask for extra services and those who leave a cash tip.

This is the guest to whom I would offer a discount for their business.

[Huma0]

@Paul154

People leave you cash tips? Or was that a joke?

This week alone I have received a bottle of wine, box of chocolates and been cooked a delicious lunch (all different guests) and it’s not even Christmas yet, but I have never, ever been given a cash tip!

[Lesley197]

I’ve never had a cash tip but I’ve had people leave a slow cooker, electric frypan, fishing rods, beach toys, set of pantry cannisters

[Helga0 · Accepted solution]

I leave a review nearly every time and I get many one nighters. The only exception are very cold people, that do nothing wrong, but are very standoffish, but not enough to make me furious, about 1%. 

I check former reviews and the profile: people with many reviews  get a short one. People with an empty profile get a good description for the sake of future hosts. People who tell me about future travel plans, may get a review in that language if I speak it and they have already local ones. Repeat guests may get reviews in different languages, to vary it a bit. 

 For an empty profile, I may write that X was a young/middle aged/ elder man/women, if they were charming / nice / interesting/ or don’t mention it, if they communicated their plans, sometimes that they were well organised, experienced travellers, if they left the place in good order. As I often rent a shared room, I add things about the sharing part (interesting conversation / quiet / self sufficient, if any of those apply. )

I don’t mention house rules, it reminds me too much of boarding school. Anyway, if they don’t intend to keep them, I will make them 😉 

for a full unit rental, if they breach an important rule like No Smoking, I write it. 

If I’m furious, I may take a week to calm down, but most of the time, I write it on departure day, to avoid confounding guests. Most people write reviews for me, probably because they get the notification. 

Another point, why writing personal reviews is a good idea: some people return and I have no memory oc their stay at all till I read my own review 😉

[Clare0]

@Helga0 You are wise woman!  I do the same thing, but I would add for new hosts: 

1. Don't be too hasty to leave a review.  Oftentimes a host will write a great review only to find out later when cleaning (or the house cleaner is cleaning) that the guest left a mess, didn't obey House Rules, etc.  I always wait until I have completely prepared the space for the next guest before I leave a review.

2. When in doubt about what kind of review I'll write, I always ask myself if I would want the guest to come back again.  If yes, then the review is positive.  If no, the review is lukewarm to negative, depending on the situation. 

3. If I am really angry and ready to rip them a new one, I write it on paper first and wait a few days.  Hey, we have 14 days to cool off, as Helga says, and that's a good thing.  Wait a few days and go back to see what you wrote down on paper and see if that's what you really want the world to see. 

4. Long, multiple paragraph reviews are not necessary and most of the time counter- productive.  These say more about the host than the guest.  You should be able to say what you need to say in just a few sentences.  Same goes for responses to reviews!

My 2 cents!

[Sarah977]

I think I've only ever not reviewed 1 guest. Mostly because I was busy and distracted, and we did have one issue during her stay, that was dealt with amenably at the time with no hard feelings, so I wasn't sure whether to mention in a review or not (I hadn't discovered this forum yet, so couldn't ask other hosts for advice). She never left me a review, either.

But I feel like taking the few minutes to leave a review is part of my job as a host, just like cleaning the room and leaving them clean towels and toilet paper. If I want to be able to read reviews of potential guests before accepting a booking,  I have to be a responsible participant in that. And I want my guests to have reviews, they need them just like we do.

I don't find it that difficult to come up with something to say about a guest even when they weren't exceptionally bad or exceptionally good. Some were very timely and complete in response to messages and made their check-in time clear, some left their room so lovely I barely had any cleaning to do, some are very open and personable, some were generous with their thanks and appreciation. 

And I've taken to looking through their past reviews to see what other hosts mentioned, and fill in the gaps. If all their previous hosts praised them for being clean and tidy, but no one mentioned what a good communicator they were, if I found them to be so, I'll mention that. Hosts can already see that they don't leave a mess behind them, I don't need to say it again.

[Wedad1]

I feel strongly about leaving a review for my guests just as I want them to leave me a review. I am a believer in being gracious and in the magic of feedback as a constructive continuous process improvement. Our guests are who give us our business. Hence, the transaction is mutually exclusive. I have had excellent raving reviews, and several repeat guests, except for one entitled couple who didn’t follow the rules and were hostile when we explained the rules. Yes, I wrote them  a negative review, keeping in mind being fair on what they did right. Every guest is special in my encounter with him/her/them. And I always feel a sense of gratification meeting my guests and learning from them. I have had excellent rapport, and some turned into friendships.