How do you ensure guests feel welcome and promote inclusivity?

Stephanie
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

How do you ensure guests feel welcome and promote inclusivity?

Superhost, JulietteSuperhost, Juliette

Hello everyone,

 
We know many hosts go to incredible lengths to ensure you foster inclusivity in your home and that every guest feels accepted and welcome. Often this starts from the moment your guest reads your listing description, right through to when they checkout. Juliette, a Superhost in Kenya, has shared some of her own tips and experiences in this recent Resource Center article.*
 
What do you do to ensure people from across the world feel welcome and promote inclusivity? Perhaps you make sure you communicate with your guests regularly before and during their stay or spend a lot of time on your listing description to ensure that your guests know clearly what to expect when they arrive.
 
Looking forward to hearing your personal tips and experiences. 
 
Thanks,
 
Stephanie
 
 
*Link added March 8th

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55 Replies 55
Michelle1851
Level 10
Littleton, CO

I can’t answer exactly and I’m somewhat new, but I created my listing to feel as if you’re walking into your grandparents home, instantly welcome.  At least that’s what I was trying for.  It must be working most people say it feels like coming home.  It’s cozy and it starts with a welcome note. 

Helen3
Level 10
Bristol, United Kingdom

Congratulations.

 

Another way you can be welcoming is to upload a clear photos of yourself (as Airbnb asks hosts to do) as this instils trust in potential guests @Michelle1851.

M199
Level 10
South Bruce Peninsula, Canada

@Stephanie 

 

What I do is respond to confirmed bookings and inquiries within a 1/2 hour maximum.  I send a welcome and thank you message, mostly pre-written and then modified to the guests booking comments.  For example, a booking yesterday stated that one of their interests was on their bucket list.  I referred them to my guidebook, first section "Bucket List - as suggested by previous guests".  A previous male gendered reservation 

M199
Level 10
South Bruce Peninsula, Canada

🙄  sorry hit send by mistake

 

To clarify my last unfinished sentence.  The two gentlemen booked for one of their 40th birthday.  They were thrilled to receive a "homemade" birthday cake.  Not only that, my spouse made them very happy by supplying advice regarding heating solutions for their home sunroom.

John5097
Level 10
Charleston, SC

@Stephanie I think the most important is consistency. Have the same policy for everyone. Treat everyone the same. If host are checking in on them too much, "just making sure everything ok", Some guest like that and some don't. Above all guest want the listing to be accurate,  and picked it for the same reason everyone else did. I want single women to feel very safe and also let them decide how much interaction they prefer, so my listing is popular with them as well, as they want a safe place but also their own independence, and also tend to be ideal guest. I have a diverse range of guest, but if ABB wants to improve diverstity this would mean they would also be first time guest, so ABB should focus more on educating first time guest to make sure and read the listing and house rules, to check with host if they have any questions at all, that its not a hotel, that things like towels, sheets, should all be kept clean, that you shouldn't open widows and crank up the heat, and that check in and check out may not be flexible, as host have to clean between guest.      

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

I have never had a conversation in my entire life with anyone, be they friends, acquaintances, family, guests, or fellow hosts, where the word "inclusivity" was ever uttered.

 

Sometimes it seems like Airbnb likes to try to create issues where none exist.

 

 

I agree, I find this question bizarre. I don’t have a special section of my binder for making marginalized guests feel welcome, I treat everyone the same. I’m unaware of my guests’ struggles, unless they need a lightbulb replaced. But the question of how to make guests feel welcome is entirely different, and doesn’t differ between races or demographics. This is a strange one. 

The Johnsons

While treating everyone the same is a lovely ideal, sometimes we do need to go a step further. We need to understand that minorities are likely wary from life-experience that there is an increased chance of not being treated equally. This is somewhat equivalent to women having greater safety concerns than men do, and when we write things in our listings that infer our home is a safe place, we are consciously or unconsciously targeting those concerns. Thanks to @Adele46, I will be adding a picture of my 'Black Lives Matter' sign to my listing. It may also serve to keep away the rabid supporters of a certain ex-president... who are currently burning masks in my home state of Idaho. Thanks Adele!

 

 

@Kris3047  This is exactly why I added the signs to my listing.  Only I know and can tell prospective guests that they will be safe at my rural location because only I know that my neighbors will welcome them as I will welcome them.  It doesn't hurt me to add a sign to my listing to reassure a wary traveler.

 

And ugh, I'm sorry about the mask-burning.  😞

Fred13
Level 10
Placencia, Belize

  Definition of inclusivity: the practice or policy of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized, such as those having physical or mental disabilities or belonging to other minority groups.

 

   None of my guests are that insecure about themselves that I have to roleplay to make sure they feel 'welcomed'. Of course they are welcomed, they are paying me well to stay in my place and in turn I do my very best that they have a great stay. It is the smart business thing to do, that simple. 

   It does look like I missed the Airbnb 'Inclusivity' memo. When was it originally send out? 😉

Cathie19
Level 10
Darwin, Australia

On the funny side @Stephanie, I may have forgotten what an international guest might look like..... lol...

 

But truthfully, like @Sarah977 , @Fred13 , @John5097  & @M199 , I don’t try to aim for inclusiveness of any type. It’s not how I act, think, nor how I might brainstorm....

I aim to treat all my guests as I would want to be treated, if the shoe was on the other foot.

I take the conversations we have prior to arrival, or when on site , and try to tailor to their personal needs where I can, without going crazy.  It’s in the food and drinks left, the very clean environment, the personal touches for them that should let them know I hear and see them. 

Michelle53
Level 10
Chicago, IL

@Stephanie  I feel the words "and promote inclusivity" in the OP question are redundant.  A host's job is to make guests feel welcome. That's the whole of it.    I present the exact same experience to everyone that stays with me. The amenities are designed to make guests as comfortable as possible. Communication is designed to make sure they know I am there to help. 

 

If a guest steps off their UFO, parked outside my residence, and using one of the free passes I provide for all guests who motor in,  and assuming compliance with local traffic laws,  they have access to the same Earth experience as any Earth guest, assuming they are not going to smoke any substance, consume alcoholic beverages on the premises,  stick their appendages into the unprotected outlets, and are able to navigate several concrete steps.   Earth-based payment method required. 

Mike-And-Jane0
Level 10
England, United Kingdom

@Stephanie we do absolutely nothing to promote inclusivity. Equally we do nothing to discriminate or stop inclusivity. All guests are treated exactly the same - If they want to interact then we interact, if they want to be left alone then we leave them alone.

Merrydith0
Host Advisory Board Alumni
Lenah Valley, Australia

When we first started hosting on Airbnb, it was at the suggestion of someone we had hosted for free. We had always opened our home to friends and strangers from around the world, and were very much of the ‘pay it forward’ mindset, so we just treated our paying guests the same,  as friends. We try to ensure every person we host feels like they are in their home away from home. We provide a welcome pack of food items including pastries fresh from the bakery. We include supplies of toiletries in case they left something behind and we give them direct access to us during their stay, if they want it.