If you’re an Airbnb host, you are likely very familiar and concerned with the Airbnb reviews your guests leave you.
But have you thought about leaving Airbnb guest reviews? If you’ve ever wondered, “How do I review an Airbnb guest?” read this article! We are going to talk about the Airbnb reviews system, the best way to structure a review, and 8 Airbnb tips for writing reviews.
Reviews: Managing an Airbnb Rental Property
Owning an Airbnb means worrying about getting Airbnb bookings and keeping your cash flow high. For this reason, you’ve probably done everything in your power to get glowing Airbnb reviews to keep your Airbnb occupancy rate up.
The better you accommodate your guests, the more likely they are to leave you positive Airbnb reviews. This brings you closer to Superhost status and helps you get more Airbnb bookings, ultimately making you more money!
However, you might not realize that writing Airbnb guest reviews can also help you inch closer to becoming a Superhost. How? By responding quickly to Airbnb’s prompt to leave Airbnb guest reviews, you are speeding up your response time. Since response time plays a role in your Superhost status, this is an easy way to move up the ranks. It is a factor you have complete control over.
Airbnb Review System
Before you dive into writing Airbnb guest reviews, you should understand how the Airbnb review system works.
Airbnb wants both the guests and hosts on the platform to leave reviews because it creates a better user experience for everyone on Airbnb. Leaving Airbnb reviews of guests will help other hosts, just as guests help each other by reviewing their Airbnb hosts.
Airbnb will send you a reminder to leave a review as soon as your guest checks out.
Here’s what you need to know about how the system works:
- You have 14 days to write Airbnb guest reviews after your guest leaves
- Your review will not go live until the 14-day window is up, or the guest also leaves a review.
- Once you write a review, you have 48 hours to edit it, unless it publishes before this time frame expires (by either the guest writing a review or the 14-day window ending)
- Once Airbnb guest reviews are visible to the public, they cannot be edited.
Because of the way the review system works, guests and hosts cannot see one another’s reviews until they’ve submitted their own (or, the window has passed to leave a review). This means that hosts and guests are not influenced by one another, keeping the platform honest.
Why Is It Important to Leave Airbnb Guest Reviews?
Aside from getting yourself closer to Superhost status, leaving Airbnb guest reviews is good for a number of reasons.
Why you should leave Airbnb reviews of guests:
- It keeps guests accountable, knowing that if they are disrespectful, hosts have the power to speak up about it.
- It is helpful for other hosts to know if a guest has been destructive or unpleasant in the past.
- It can help you get more Airbnb reviews.
Owning an Airbnb rental property means opening up your vacation home to strangers on a regular basis. This includes putting a tremendous amount of trust in people you don’t know to care for your Airbnb rental property. When hosts leave Airbnb guest reviews, it helps other hosts to protect their Airbnb investment. And when you leave a review for a guest, they will likely be more encouraged to review you in return.
How Do I Review an Airbnb Guest?
Leaving Airbnb reviews of guests can be as simple as following a formula. Managing an Airbnb is a lot of work, so using a template for your Airbnb guest reviews can be helpful when it comes to saving time.
If you hit each point below, you should be able to leave informative Airbnb guest reviews for other hosts.
What to include in your review:
- How the guest communicated with you
- If they followed the rules of your home
- The condition they left your home in
- Whether or not you would recommend them to other hosts
Airbnb Tips for Writing Guest Reviews
Owning an Airbnb investment property means you will have to write your fair share of bad Airbnb guest reviews as well as positive Airbnb reviews. We’ve put together some best practices for handling both situations and making the best of it.
Tips for Writing Positive Airbnb Guest Reviews
When it comes to writing positive Airbnb guest reviews as a host, you are in luck. It should be easy to come up with great things to say about your guest.
#1- Be personable
Mention the guest’s name at the beginning of your review. You can also give a little information on the guest’s personality. Were they really friendly?
#2- Point out the positives
Include details that make your guest stand out from the rest. Did they write you a thank you note or clean up extra well?
#3- Show appreciation
Express appreciation if you had an exceptional guest. You would be surprised, but taking note of the little things and showing your guest gratitude for staying with you can go a long way. The next time they are in the area, your kind review might encourage them to book with you again.
Tips for Writing Negative Airbnb Guest Reviews
#4- Don’t be rash
If you have a truly bad experience with a guest, don’t leave a review right away. Yes, it won’t help your response time. But speaking impulsively is dangerous. Remember- this is your real estate business, and you must always be professional.
#5- Be honest
While it may be tempting to lie and say something nice so you don’t offend anyone, understand this is only hurting the Airbnb community. If a guest didn’t respect you or your rental property, you won’t want them coming back anyway.
#6- Be fair
Try to be understanding of your guests. If something was out of place, is it possible they simply weren’t aware of it? If guests have kids or pets, this can be a likely scenario. You want to always give them the benefit of the doubt.
#7- Be specific
If you are making a complaint against a guest, be specific about it. This will help other hosts know if the issues would apply to them. For instance, maybe you have strict rules about the number of guests that are allowed to stay, and your guest threw a big party. But this might not be a problem for hosts who have a home in a remote location, because they won’t be worried about noise complaints.
#8- Stick to the facts
Try not to make any assumptions about what your guests did or what they were like. Only report what you actually saw and experienced.
As a real estate investor, hopefully, you only have amazing Airbnb guest experiences. But, if you have to write bad Airbnb guest reviews, remember to be professional, and give yourself time to think it over before typing. Be honest, descriptive, and fair in your reviews. This will only help your business as well as other Airbnb hosts.
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