I feel exactly the same. I won’t do it. I asked a couple of times early on because I needed reviews (not for a 5 star but just a review in general), but haven’t asked after the first few. No problem if you do, i just can’t.
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No I wouldn’t as it looks too forced. But if I get the impression that a guest is very happy with their stay I encourage them to give a review knowing it will be an all five star one. Anyway I have an average rating of 4.7 which is good enough and I had five very vindictive reviews from guests with whom I had serious conflicts, that’s over the five years I am working with Airbnb.
Hello everyone, Dennis Here,
I think @Adnie is spot on with her approach. The reason why is that she’s priming her guests to think of 5 stars when it comes to writing their reviews.
Priming refers to activating particular representations or associations in memory just before carrying out an action or task. For example, a person who sees the word “yellow” will be slightly faster to recognise the word “banana.”
How I apply this: I automate parts of my guest communications (check in, check up, check out) and in my saved templates prepare each guest to associate their stay to a 5 star review. I’ve so far been hosting for close to three years and have seen great success with this strategy, and it only takes inserting the subtle phrase “5 star”.
Examples:
“Please let me know how I can ensure you have a 5 star experience”
“Hope you’ve enjoyed a 5 star stay”
A fan of practical psychology myself, I actually just started building an Airbnb host community focused around Practical Psychology Hacks For 5 Star Airbnb Reviews.
I’ve increasingly found that the language you use in your guest communications affect the emotions, meanings, and expectations guest build before, during, and after their stay. This is especially true for hosts that scale operations and hold business friendly remote check in policies.
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I think it never hurts to ask, we obviously all want as many positive reviews as possible. i think it would really depend on your wording also to not sound too desperate lol I’ve also stayed in Airbnbs and have been asked in the past and it totally didn’t bother me. I personally don’t do it with my rentals but i dont see anything wrong with it.
I get your idea but I honestly think if someone pressured me for five stars BEFORE my stay even started I would find that annoying. I might even be inclined to leave less because of the pressure.
As a host, I don’t want to prompt them into asking what I can do to make their stay better… I already go out of my way!!!
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I don’t like that. I get the idea, but as a guest, I’d feel like I owed my host something from the time I got there rather than just enjoying my stay.
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I write a note to our guests and put it on the bed with a cookie.
I:
- Welcome them to our area
- Thank them for choosing us
- Add something personal about why they are here
- “We strive to provide a five star home stay experience. Please let us know if there is anything else we can do to deliver this to you.”
- Enjoy the carriage house!
- Sign
It sounds like a lot, but I can write it very quickly during turnover. The note generates a lot of “awwwww” responses as we are going through the tour–they often turn their heads sideways to try to read it. Also, about half the time, they actually take it, which I find really sweet. I’m sure they toss it in the first dumpster they come across down the street. 
Oh, and I never mention a review other than this.
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This is very smart. Nicely done
I make it a point to bake muffins or scones for their first morning and leave it outside their door in a nice paper bag. Your note sounds like a GRAND idea to include in the surprise morning treat. Thank you for your tip! What a great idea!
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with asking for a review. I don’t specifically ask for a review, but I send a nice message to my guests after they checkout as a friendly good bye. This usually does the trick for me, but you could certainly ask for them to review you as well.
Here’s pretty much what I send my guests
Agree/ The ONLY time to ask is after they leave and if you are positive they loved it. And even then it can backfire on you. That’s because a lot of guests just show a happy face but actually hide their disappointment about something.
Just like when you ask your kid how was school, they always answer FINE. 
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I have quite a few returning guests who book directly.
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What you imagine to be subtle “priming” sounds quite clearly like persistent requests for a 5 star review. As a frequent guest myself, I really dislike when hosts engage this pressure approach and I’ve found it’s only listings with some clear issues that seem to do this.
I’ve been pressured for a good review when it clearly isn’t deserved – clogged drains, water pooling around my ankles in the shower, dog hair on my clothes ( I don’t own a pet), etc. I’ve never left a poor review for a host although I don’t write reviews at all for spaces that are below average. But don’t ask me for a 5 star review when you don’t deserve it – focus on resolving issues with your space and doing some decent maintenance.
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I hate being pressured for a certain number of stars. Only time this happened was in Turkye and it felt scummy. He was pushing for a ten [booking.com], I was planning to give a 9, but as he held me hostage [yea, I am too polite], that number began to slip. I heard how he was paying university fees, I would be his first American review, etc. etc. etc. I haven’t been that uncomfortable since. I actually mentioned the pressure in my review. Horrid way to end a delightful stay.
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The psychology behind priming is backed by science and works- I’ve seen it myself. I use this for my current listings. Both my properties have an average price of £240 and £330 a night respectively, they’re beautiful homes but, I used to suffer from 4/5 ratings in some areas (especially on value). This guest comm strategy combined with a few other changes has helped me turn this around.
In the end, you are absolutely correct @chicagohost, you cannot pressure guests into leaving you a 5 star review.
i have only 15 reviews and would like to have a lot more on my showing on my listing. There is a lot of competition in my area for Airbnb room stays so more reviews will help me stand out from the crowd.
I have just become a superhost and I had one guest tell me that was the reason she chose my house. She had a lot of properties to chose from and the superhost status tipped it for her.
With that in mind I have started to contact guests who have not left me a review a few days before the time is up. I am not 100% comfortable with it but I need the reviews.
After reading this thread I will look into the check out message as well. I am not sure if I have one.
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After check out, I always write my guests and tell them I will leave THEM a 5 star review, hopefully encouraging them to leave a 5 star review in return
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I don’t address it directly, but in my welcome guide I ask my guests to tell me if there is anything that might cause them to leave me less than a 5 star review so that I can address it if possible.
This is a slippery slope, take care how you ask for this:
https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/548/what-is-airbnb-s-extortion-policy
Resurrecting this thread because Ive changed my mind (apparently I think changing my mind is important to all!!!). It’s ok - I know it isn’t.
When this thread started I watched from the bleachers to understand what others thought. At first I thought I didn’t want to ask for 5-stars and felt uncomfortable with those that do; NOT any longer.
I just had a high maintenance PIA guest leave a 3-star review. To keep my superhost standing I need several 5-stars to bring up my average. November-April I receive very few reviews so one bad one lowers the average significantly. I like my superhost status and want to keep it.
After check-out, I now send the following message:
“Thank you for your stay. When you have time, please leave a review and help the next guest by letting them know what you enjoyed.
If there is something I can do better, please let me know in the -private- review feedback. Again you will be helping the next guest (and me too!)
I hope you had a 5-star stay and will consider leaving a positive review.”
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