Snowballing Your Airbnb Unit for More 5-Star Reviews!

One difference between short-term rentals from long-term ones is a fast turnover rate. Obviously, people move in and out much faster with vacation rentals in platforms like Airbnb than your standard rental with contracts for six months to over a year (or even more)!

With the right pricing and more people booking your unit, you’d expect to get a lot more than long-term rentals in a shorter span of time. However, while the first condition (hitting the right price) can be done with relative ease, the second one is a bit more challenging to nail on the head. So how do you get people clicking on your Airbnb listing?

It’s important to keep in mind that you always want to be on the first page of people’s search results. But, as the saying goes, beggars can’t be choosers. You shouldn’t expect to be on the top of the list at the start of your Airbnb crusade – you have to build the road to get there. Snowball yourself from your first guest to the next. As you roll down the hill for a while, you’ll notice yourself grow bigger and bigger, dominating the competition!

[Note: We do have Airbnb in mind when we’ve written the article, but the same tips can be applied on any other platform. Boosting your reviews is also essential to compete in places like Booking.com or Vrbo!]

The Snow to Form the Ball

The ultimate goal for you as an Airbnb host is to get that Superhost badge. And you become one by acting like one. We’ve talked more about getting the Superhost badge in a previous article, but just to run it down quickly, here are the criteria according to Airbnb:

• An average star rating of 4.8 or higher for the past 365 days.
• At least 10 or more stays in the past year or 100 nights over at least 3 completed stays.
• Less than 1% rejection rate.
• A 90% response rate.

The first bullet – a high review average, is crucial since it’s something you’d have to build over a one-year period. Positive reviews also correlate to more bookings because guests read them and care about them. The algorithm also likes better reviews better than those with none!

Of course, you still have to manage your response and rejection rates, but we’re going to talk more about snowballing positive reviews for now. That’s why you clicked the article, right?

Building a Foundation of Reviews (The Good Stuff Starts Here!)

It’s time to collect those reviews! Below is a list of the things you could do to get more reviews in general:

Leave a Guest Review. Assuming they were great guests, why not let Airbnb know? It helps them get the bookings they want too! Even if they won’t see your awesome review after 14 days, the platform does let them know that you’ve left a review. Seeing this notification may encourage them to leave a review as well. It’s give and take!

Tell Them Directly. Assuming that you did a great job as a host, you can ask your guests to leave a review on the check-out message. Of course, don’t just ask for a review outright. Thank them first! And on the topic of check-out messages, why not treat them well on the check-in messages? Tell them you want them to have a five-star experience! (Don’t take it too far, though. Airbnb won’t like it if you pay for positive reviews or offer discounts for them. Play the game fairly!)

Be an Awesome Host! This goes without saying, but we should say it regardless! Give your guests an experience they’ll never forget. Or if that seems too cheesy, aim to make them want to book with you a second time!

How do you keep them as good reviews?

Be accurate with the listing description. We know that part of the “experience” you’re selling is the description of the listing, but that doesn’t mean you have to lie to do it. Guests hate being misled and if you don’t meet what you’ve led them to expect, it will reflect on the reviews. They might not necessarily be 1-star reviews but even 4-star reviews could harm your progress towards that 4.8 average that Superhosts need.

Setting up Expectations. In line with keeping things accurate, even if you’re honest with your description, certain things will still come to the surface. For example, if your unit does have an internet connection but a terrible one at that, you might want to mention it! Of course, some people won’t care for it, but for the ones who do (like those who would book for business purposes) it mean the world to them.

Check Up with Your Guests. In the middle of their stay, try to see if your guests need anything. Simple, but effective! If the bedroom’s lightbulb begins to flicker in the middle of your guests’ stay, they might not tell you and just leave you a mediocre review. If you do reach out in the middle of the booking, they could let you handle it, possibly turning the experience into a better one!

Deal with Bad Reviews

Yes. You should respond to all your reviews! Thank the ones who are happy to have booked with you, but also address the issues posed by those who have something else to say. These reviews are bound to come up anyway, so it’s better to be prepared to do when they appear. What should you do? Here are a few quick customer service tips we could share:

Address the review as soon as possible. Apologize and try to address any issues they’ve brought up. Even if a guests’ negative review can’t be taken out, other guests thinking of booking with you may decide based on how you’ve handled the situation. The sooner you defend yourself, the more guests can see what you’ve done rather than thinking you’re no good.

Overreact with your resolution. We’re sure you’ve seen and heard people who’d complain about the smallest of inconveniences or even if there’s nothing to complain about. It does get your blood boiling sometimes, right? But what can you do? They’re ever-present in any industry!

The appropriate way to respond is to match their level of intensity. The microscopic stain on the wall warrants retraining (or a replacement!) of the cleaners. The misaligned carpet on the living area was a grave oversight. You agree that the speck of dust left on the kitchen counter is unacceptable. Note that these are blatant overstatements to emphasize the point (and not an encouragement to be sarcastic).

There are times that you do need to protect yourself if you haven’t done anything wrong, though. Don’t worry, you’d be surprised to know many other people understand if you’re dealing with an unreasonable customer.

Free Stuff!

On a lighthearted note, who doesn’t want free stuff? You see all the people lining up for free samples at the grocery, right? Your guests are going to love you too if you let them get things for free. And it doesn’t even have to be expensive. Small things like free coffee, tea, candy, or fruits will somehow make your guests feel at home!

A happy guest correlates to a great host! And you know what great hosts get? Good reviews. If you want to learn more, make sure to check our other articles on becoming a Superhost and getting good with Airbnb!

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