
19 Sep Airbnb Reviews: How to Best Handle Negative Guest Reviews
Airbnb blesses me 95% of the time with polite and sensible guests. The rare occurrences do happen once in a while. When it does happen, how do you handle it? In this post, let me show you from my experience what to do and not to do.
Table of Contents
Airbnb Reviews: What Not To Do
In my tenure as an Airbnb Host, I have received 50 reviews up-to-date. Here is the breakdown: 40 reviews are 5-star, 8 reviews are 4-stars, and 2 reviews are 3-stars. Luckily, I have never gotten a score below 3-stars.
Your reviews are the 3rd most important factor that a guest will consider before booking. So, how you handle your negative reviews will give off a certain impression. In this case, how do you turn something bad into something good? Let’s explore this further.
Tip #1- Do Not Be Offensive
An offensive host leaves a bad first impression. Put yourself in the guest’s shoe. You come across a review where a previous guest left. You then see the host goes on attacking the previous guest. How does that make you feel as a potential guest? You’re probably wondering if you would get the same harsh treatment…
The screenshot below is the perfect example of what I mean.
Just to quickly summarize it: Stephan was the guest and Clara was the host. Wow, that was very intense. Clearly, the host went on an offensive to attack the guest. A big no-no, regardless.
Tip #2- Do Not Be Defensive
It is similarly important that we do not go on the defensive. When you defend yourself against a negative review, it only validates the truth of the review. What if the review was a lie? Perhaps what is more important is that you do not want to leave a bad first impression. Leave your emotions out of the review. Remember this is a business and should be treated like a business.
Airbnb Reviews: What To Do
This is my routine for analyzing a less than a 5-star review. You are welcome to borrow it, or better yet, modify it and make it your own!
Tip #3 – Reflection
I hit the pause button anytime I receive a 4-star review or less and take some time to reflect on them to see if there are any hidden truths behind it. I for one, value negative reviews. It is only through a bad review, can you start your progress to become a better host.
Tip #4 – Be Positive
There is no point in adding more negativity to an already negative review. Besides, negativity layers a bad first impression. You want your potential guests to know that you are a positive host and positive hosts generally get more bookings.
Tip #5 – Own It
From this review, I learned a couple of new things. First, the numbering was confusing to her, so I should have provided an exact location for the unit. Second, I should leave my street light on for guests that arrive late. My business motto; own it and move on.
Tip #6 – Spin the Negative Airbnb Review
If you had noticed about my example above, I thanked her for her compliments, but more noticeably, I acknowledged the areas that I could improve on, specifically by providing more exact details regarding the location of the apartment.
Last Words
It is easy to take a negative review to heart and feel down. I take each negative review as a chance to learn and be a better host.
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