Laura’s Letter: What I learned staying with private-room hosts

[Laura_C]

May 20, 2019

Hi everyone,

Congratulations to all of you who achieved or maintained your Superhost status in the April assessment! The longer I’ve worked at Airbnb, the more I realize what an incredible accomplishment being a Superhost is. Thanks to all of you for providing wonderful experiences for guests around the world, and for setting the standard for hospitality for Airbnb.

As many of you know, my role at Airbnb is to look after the team that builds products, community, and resources for home hosts like you. When I joined Airbnb last July, one of my top priorities was to quickly immerse myself in the world of hosts and hosting—in particular, to learn more from some of our amazing hosts (and Superhosts!), gather some great tips from them, and bring those back to our host community (and our teams here at Airbnb). There’s nothing quite like firsthand experience, so as part of my journey, I decided to stay in a private room once a week. I have three small children at home, so it was a pretty big commitment, but it ended up being such a delightful experience in some fun and unexpected ways. I’m excited to tell you about what I’ve learned over the past few months.

Getting to meet Superhosts like you was one of the highlights of my recent adventures staying in private rooms. There are more than 161,000 Superhosts who share private rooms on Airbnb— that’s 29% of all Superhosts. And private-room listings are popular with guests, too. In 2018, tens of millions of bookings were in private rooms, which was a significant share of all bookings on Airbnb. Private-room hosts and listings are a really important part of our community.

I had 3 goals for my private-room stays

1. Experience variety (staying at listings with different price points, and different types of hosts: new, Plus, Superhosts, etc.)
2. Have personal interactions (I reached out to hosts ahead of time and invited them to chat with me more about their experiences, and share thoughts on how we can help them more)
3. Gather learnings (What was my experience as a guest? How can we support hosts more? What is the host doing brilliantly that other hosts can learn from?)

So, what did I learn? Well, the first big takeaway was that we need to do more to help you better set guest expectations (which can help with better reviews). This is something that’s really important for all hosts but absolutely crucial for private-room hosts, many of whom share a bathroom or kitchen with their guests. On our end, I think that starts with categorization. How can we better differentiate different types of listings on Airbnb (need a room in a castle, anyone?), especially as we begin to welcome more bed-and-breakfasts and boutique hotels alongside homes and rooms? How can we help you make it clear to guests that there are cats in the listing? (I am much more of a dog person than a cat person, but I have to admit that I made friends with many cats during my stays!)

Next, I learned many things about what can make a stay great from a guest’s perspective. I appreciated a lot of different things—clarity on where I could go and what I could use (shampoo? fridge space? through that random unmarked door?) was a big deal. Having some information from the host on who else was going to be in the house was also hugely reassuring. Knowing the hours of the other people in the household was also great so that I could be a respectful guest (I get up early, and always wanted to be thoughtful of not waking up everyone else in the house!).

In fact, many of you have already shared some wonderful tips for hosting a private-room listing here in the Community Center. (This thread really impressed me, and I enjoyed the comments on this article, too). I’d love to continue to hear from you on this subject, and I’d love to learn more about what we can do to help you as private-room hosts succeed. Please tell me your suggestions in the comments, below.

And finally, and perhaps most importantly, I was reminded again of what an incredible community of hosts we have. I met one host who started hosting so that she could have more flexibility to support her children with special needs, and another who took a big pay cut to follow their heart and work in the non-profit sector … hosting helped them have the financial flexibility they needed to make that move. I met one host who has developed extraordinary relationships with her guests (many of whom come back often to visit) and another who started hosting so that she could afford to keep her family’s home while her children went to college. I love that Airbnb is helping people around the world build wonderful connections and support their goals and passions in life.

Congratulations again to those of you who are Superhosts, whether you’re sharing the spare wing of a castle, an entire home, or an extra bedroom in your apartment. I hope to meet you on my next outing. Until then…

… Happy hosting!
Laura

[Yvette28]

Thank you Laura for the support.  I think setting expectations correctly is critical. We find most guests to be very reasonable since they knew up front what to expect. When we exceed expectations, they are even happier. Being a host has brought us a lot of happiness and even strengethed our relationship as a couple focusing on our individual strengths and shared vision, who knew? We had no idea that would come out of this.  It has also allowed us to slowly make much needed improvements to our home.  We heart Airbnb! 

[Laura_C]

Hello @Yvette28 ,

Thank your for your lovely reply. It is clear you put a lot of effort and love into being a host. It's amazing to hear that your relationship has strengthened as a result of hosting – this is really humbling to hear.

I would love to hear more about your renovation projects. I wish you many more year of great hosting experiences and thank you for being such a great part of our community.

~Laura

[Denise424]

Hi Laura,

Thanks for the work you’re doing on our behalf. My name is Denise and I live in Innisfil, Ontario, Canada. I have 4 rooms listed on Airbnb. I go above and beyond to help my guests gave a pleasant stay anywhere from a comfortable bed, superbly clean environment, and lots of information on expectations. I provide paper towels in kitchen and bathroom, hand soap, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and a whole lot more. My price has never gone over $30 yet some has said it is not worth the amount. I have people cooking foods that leave the house smelling fir days and so when I ask that the they not do that they get offended and gives me lower ratings. Rating system need to change. The system should give the rating based on those categories you must rate. Like clealiness, communication etc and based on those responses the system should give the rating. In spite of all I enjoy hosting. I've met a lot of wonderful people and as a single mom it has helped me financially,

Best Regards,

Denise

[Cyndi17]

HI Laura, thanks for an interesting read and great comments as well. I have two guest rooms available in my home which can accommodate four people. These guests share a bathroom so I don't rent them independently, but often host a parent and grown child, two friends etc. When two guests each want their own bedroom, I charge an extra amount for the second room, but the Airbnb platform does not allow that option. I state it in my listing description, but have to each time send a special offer for the guest to accept. I would appreciate it if you'd add that option. Cyndi, Ithaca, NY

[Jane627]

Hi @Cyndi17 

You could create a listing for each room and give the rooms a seperate name, then explain in each listing exactly what each room offers. I have a full basement in a new home with 2 bedrooms, for which I have 3 listings, 1 is for the whole apartment, then 2 other listings list  the whole apartment  as a shared space with keyed door locks for each bedroom. I try to derscribe everything perfectly so guests know what to expect. I think a perfect describtion is essential.

[Rosalind17]

It is so good to read abput  the many reasons an individual decides to host..For myself I love to know that others can benefit from being in what I know to be a unique and relaxing haven  on the rock on the beach in Tenby .To watch  the dawn break over the sea from the window and sleep to the sound of the waves.is something else.Without my wonderful guests who rent my 2 bedroomed apartment I would struggle to keep it.Sharing is so important to me.

[Ken-and-Carol0]

We've just attended our second wedding of regular guests! We have lots of regulars and plenty of social media friends from guests having stayed just once.

[Lisa-And-Ray1]

Hi Sheryl,

I use a duvet cover and I wash that with the sheets and other blankets. Since we live off solar power , we don’t own a dryer.  I found having 2 sets of everything necessary. For me, I find this to be the most bothersome issue with renting our space. I’ve toyed with the idea of setting up the extra “ linen “ charge and reducing our price because of it. 

My husband does not like this idea . If someone rented the space without the linens, it wouldn’t look nearly as attractive and he is worried this will turn people away.

[Jane627]

@Lisa-And-Ray1, If doing the laundry is the thing you hate, why not find a linen service to pick up and deliver your linens. set your price accordingly and make sure you specify in your listing that linens are all prfessionally done. Your husband is probaly correct, and there are allways people who would be attracted to thethought of professionally washed linens.

[Lisa-And-Ray1]

That’s a thought that might work for some people. I’m not sure it would help us. We live out in the middle of nowhere and I would need to take them to the service and that would probably be more time consuming than the laundry itself. I appreciate the sentiment though. Thank you.

[Tunde1]

Hi Laura,

Your article is such an inspiring one. This is my second year of being a superhost in a roll and it has been so amazing.Meeting people from different  parts of the world has been so interesting. Especially when one is able to provide some kind of cushion to someone coming into a new city. Guest staying where they can cook, wash their clothes and get a first firt hand infomation about the community is the reason why Airbnb is making a great diffence in tourism and community development.In the last year or so, I have a  helped couple of guests relocate to Houston Texas, helped them find jobs which is more  of a great accomplishment to me personally.However, If you ever plan to visit Houston in the nearer future, I will be more than glad to meet you. I know that the potentials in Airbnb are limitless if effectively and efficiently explored.

God bless your efforts

[Andrea453]

Thank you Laura. Nice article!

[Maria1934]

Hi laura

thank you for taking the time to experience  some of the hosts homes. It means a lot to us.

I host because I need the income. I’m 64, divorced and this is the only way I have to keep my house, travel a little and keep up a super active life.

since I stayed with Airbnb, 2 years ago, I met so many fantastic and interesting people. I try to make everybody feel welcome, at home and comfortable. Most of my guests come for just one night. It works great for me and I find it very easy.

i hope you could come to Canada soon so I could meet you.

thanks again

maria

[Jane522]

I host a room and private bath in my home. I am having a problem communicating with upcoming guests on how and when they are arriving so I can personally greet them or even have things ready. It seems to me that once they book they don’t seem to check their messages on Airbnb! Also would like ways to better market my location and what is available before they arrive. Thank you. Jane

[Julie452]

Thank you for your article. It is a great experience when a SH travels to other Airbnb spaces. 

I do have one suggestion regarding the definition of the space. Currently you can only choose between private room and entire house. My space is the entire lower level of my house with a separate entrance. There is no real shared space, except if they would like to do laundry. But they have their own kitchen, bathroom, bedrooms, and living spaces. 

I wish there was a separate category for this space! It's difficult to explain this to prospective guests. Any suggestions?