How to respond to the inquiry

[Guozhen0]

Hello all, 

One gust sent a booking inquiry to me, after a small conversation, the guest said she wanted to see the house in person and make sure that the house fits her needs, can just leave this inquiry open untill she come to see the house? Or I needed to pre approve or decline this inquiry within 24 hours?

Anyone can give me a suggestion about it?

Thanks in advance

Gina

[Marie8425]

@Guozhen0 

Personally why is the guest so close that she can stop by?  Also, what does she need to see that is not visible in your pictures?  I do not allow any visits prior to a stay.  To me that looks like a potential problem guest.

[Guozhen0]

thanks Marie for your advice, my listing shows everything clearly, she said she normally does this way when she books a place, that’s why I am confused, who will check the place when they book at the Airbnb? I am worried this is a scam, so I try to ask for advice from expertise like you.

I know how to reply her now.

Thanks a lot Marie!

Gina

[Guy991]

Hello Gina @Guozhen0 ,

In response to your question, for an inquiry, you don’t need to press pre-approve, and definitely don’t press the cancel button. What you should do is provide a text reply to maintain a good response rate and leave the inquiry open. 

One reason this person might want to see the property first could be to meet you in person and try to close a deal off Airbnb.

[Guozhen0]

Hi Guy @Guy991,

Thank you very much for your advice, I learned something new from you today! 

Thanks

Gina

[Shelley159]

@Guozhen0 

I suggest you take the advice of @Guy991 regarding the inquiry, and in your response paste the Airbnb policy regarding viewing 

https://www.airbnb.co.za/help/article/47#:~:text=If%20someone%20asks%20to%20view,the%20space%20ahead...

As @Marie8425 has said, all you can do to try to prevent this type of request, is to check that you provide enough photos and information in your listing.

[Guy991]

Hello @Shelley159 ,

Can you teach me how you highlighted text before sending the link to Airbnb Help?

Very impressive!

Thanks.

[Shelley159]

Hi @Guy991 

It wasn't me being clever - I searched for the article on Google and Google highlighted the text. I thought it looked good and just used copied and pasted the link 🙂

[Guozhen0]

Hi Shelley159, 

Yes, I will take the advice from Guy991. I didn't know if I could leave the inquiry open before. Thank you for the link; it is very helpful to me. Thank you, everyone, for all your help.

Gina

[Prew0]

Hi Gina

I have had this happen when an enquiry came in from someone wanting to book for family members coming to a wedding. I only found this out after a couple of messages so it’s worth staying positive and assume the best in people whilst being on your guard for potential problems! 
I did indeed allow the enquirer to pop round to view because they were concerned about how accessible it would be for their mobility challenges (not easy to assess on a computer screen). They then booked.

[Guozhen0]

Hi Prew0,

Thank you for reaching out to me, I am worried about the scams because I am new in this field.

But I have gained some confidence now because of you all, such a nice and supportive group.

Thank you everyone!

Gina

[Joelle43]

Hello @Guozhen0 

It seems that this type of enquiry is an obligatory right of passage but you did very well by coming onto the forum😊  Happened to me too when I was a newbie and the chances that this guest wants to go off platform are very high.  Some platforms offer guests the chance to see a video of the listing but not Airbnb.

I made a guide on this very subject or to be more precise, the difference between an enquiry and a request and what to do in both cases if you want to have a read below:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Community-Guides/GUIDE-Handling-Enquiries-and-Bookings/td-p/1895...

All the best

Joëlle

[Guozhen0]

Thanks, Joelle43, your information is so helpful to me, I read all the links you attached with the message, very useful.

Thanks a lot!

Gina