All Forum Posts by: Brooke Roundy

Just received my review “Awesome guest! Would love to have [insert name] stay in the future!”. The automating of reviews I understand. We should be able to templatize routine reviews, although it certainly doesn’t provide any detail about why I was a good guest. But this has me wondering what would get me a 4 star review and what template would apply. It worries me because there is almost always nuance. For example I had my slow teenage kids with me and I hadn’t replaced the keycard by checkout time (6 minutes past), although we were out of the property and had locked the door by that time. With IoT monitoring everything I could have theoretically been charged a late check out fee. As far as I know I wasn’t. Again how we balance automation and the use of AI for ops streamlining with human-centered property management is key. I like your idea of instantly pinging a human and holding on a AI response when keywords “stars” or “review” are written. I would add there has to be some level of human monitoring going on. It can’t be 100% autopilot. 

Quote from @Bruce Woodruff:

Good points @Jonathan Greene ! 

I would only add these two: 

FIRST - people constantly ask which algorithm to use to get their prices set. Whereas I (and others) continually urge them to stop being lazy and do their own research....go on VRBO and ABNB and look at the competition. 1) What are they charging? 2) How booked out are they? 3) What amenities are they offering? 4) What do their places look like, how do they feature their professional pictures?

SECOND - In the same vein, newbies ask which programs they can use to manage their listing. My take is that a Host should be personally involved as much as possible. I personally don't like getting a lot of automated messages when I rent a STR, I'd rather have some more personal contact.....(maybe that's just me?)

I was just a guest at an Airbnb that was not 5-star, so I provided very detailed feedback privately and a heads up that I would not be giving 5 stars. I got a response that was clearly AI, didn’t even realize I had already checked out. As a guest, this is such a turn off. I get it. In my day job I’m an ops professional who manages a tech stack and efficiency is important. But it’s not everything - this software is optimizing for the host’s success and not balancing that enough with the guest experience. I will not be rebooking. 

I did comp him, he wrote the review anyway

Quote from @Jonathan Greene:

Quote from @Collin Hays:

I think you missed on the "year to recover from a 1-star review."  Those reviews are just part of it, no matter how much we try. Furthermore, 1-star reviews serve to demonstrate legitimacy of the ranking system. I would be leery of an product or service being promoted that has zero negative reviews.

A 1-star review is often not realistic and will tank the algorithm in your first year for sure because it's not balanced out yet. I completely agree that no one should have all 5-star reviews because it looks fake, but a 1-star is also hyperbolic and crushing to your business when you are new. Much different than a 4-star that is realistic.

This happened to me and it hurt my rating for a long time. We are above 4.8 now, but it’s been a climb. This person was one of our first guests and a scammer who found one small thing and complained about it to Airbnb demanding a refund. I agree with everything said in this post, it is a hospitality business and superlative customer service is a must.

Hi Brendan, I also run an Airbnb in Cleveland. This is my second slow season and I've also taken most of your measures, although I've always allowed 1 night weekend stays to maximize bookings (I have a 1/1 walkable in Ohio City). I've listed on FF and had a request for long term stay cutting into summer season and I comped it based on last summers revenue and declined. Running an MTR is easier but I want STR revenue during the summer. I'm hopeful I'll get good leads in the coming month, and I actively reach out to unmatched leads that may work, and I intend to try creative marketing and see what happens. I've used PriceLabs from the beginning and I love it. Make sure to adjust your base price periodically. For more MTR tips take a look at 30-Day Stay by Zeona McIntyre and Sarah Weaver, very insightful. I'm also happy to connect as a fellow Cleveland Airbnb host. Good luck!

Hi David, thanks for your comment. I also find it interesting how to navigate recent legalization and tenancy. I am super supportive of legal marijuana use, just not when it negatively impacts my other tenants and business. This is on me for not having the appropriate lease language in place, so I have to figure out how to fix it. It’s a good learning experience for me, and I’ve really appreciated everyone’s input including yours. I myself was a renter not too long ago for my primary residence and I often resented that my landlord could control my actions through their legally binding rules. But that’s the way it goes. 

Kindly ask the tenant to not smoke inside is my approach which I outlined above. I’m doing Airbnb to increase my income on the property, and yes it’s worth it. That could change, but as of now, it’s a good strategy for my property. From your question I get the sense that you aren’t a fan of Airbnb. If that’s the case, why not?

It’s funny that everyone here assumes the tenant in question is a man. In fact it’s a sweet young lady. Other than the smoking, she’s actually really nice. I’m hopeful she will make a change once we address it with her, and if not I will take action as suggested in previous comments. Thanks everyone for you input, so helpful!

All great suggestions and replies, I appreciate everyone’s input. I have some changes to make. Always learning!

Thank you for the suggestion. I just asked my property manager to ask them to smoke outside.