This may be obvious but it's been the single best thing that improved my hosting skills

I think a lot of the issues people are asking about can be solved by one thing that I don’t see a lot of hosts doing, but that when I did, it improved my hosting skills and it allowed me to use what I believe is the #1 skill that hosts need empathy

Here’s the plan ( small investment required but hey it pays out)

Pick a city near to here you live ( it can be far but something close brings down travel costs)

Take your significant other/ friend/ or your someone from the family and book an Airbnb there ( their point of view will also help once you get back home), the key here is to chose something that is almost identical to your listing! in terms of look, price and amenities.

I say that a place you’ve never been to is better as you’re going in blind, you won’t know anything about parking, airports, restaurants or the subways.

Go stay there for 2-3 nights.

That’s all, go have a small gateway and just sit and observe, Everything from communication, explanation from the hosts in terms of logistics, cleanliness, furniture, hospitality, how social the hosts are. Just absorb it all, as much as you can, the reason I say 2-3 nights is because a lot of hosts will start off strong but let their quality go down as a day or 2 go by.

Yes you may end up with a great host and that would be awesome as you can learn a ton, or with a crappy one where hey you can also learn a lot ( what not to do) to account for this variable I will say do these small gateways often and in different countries & cultures if possible.

I myself have done 7 countries in Europe with an average of 2 cities per country, Canada and the Us both east and west as well as mexico, Caribbean, south america (where I’m originally from) and have plans for south east Asia & Australia this year.

Back to the topic at hand, once you get back home.

Congratulations you’ve completed a trip just like dozens of guests do when they come to your home! Take away the things you loved and the parts where you saw potential for improvement ( the person that came with you is a great way to get a second opinion on pretty much the same experience you had).

Apply that to your listing and you’ll see how being in your guest’s shoes will allow you to connect with them and their needs, even when they themselves may not know what these needs are.

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Well.

I’d rather just go travelling :smiley:

Some interesting ideas but generally what I found works far more effectively was sleeping in my guest room as if I was the guest. That way I noticed that light seeped through the curtains in an annoying way, that you could hear a lot from the kitchen and that I needed to put a small heater in the room. No amount of travelling elsewhere would have helped me notice that…

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That was the general idea, just that it’s of benefit to stay at an airbnb when you do. I had multiple clients asking me how they can get more bookings, but when income came in and they had some money to spend the would stay at a resort all expenses paid…not saying there’s something wrong with that, just a missed opportunity.

And yes! doing a proper walk through of your own listing is a Must! often and consistently, up here in Montreal specially I always advice hosts to know what the space is like to stay in during every season! Better to notice this yourself than to have a guest msg you at 1 am because they’re freezing, it’s -40* outside and nothing is open until the morning.

Personally I’ve been using Airbnb as a guest since 2012, including 6 months travelling recently all on Airbnb. But yes some hosts have never tried it from a guest’s perspective, though I’m not convinced they need to. Sleeping in their own rental should be enough.

Definitely. Staying somewhere else is immaterial simply because different people have different expectations. In our rental, for example, I sometimes have guests who see me as a good friend and want to talk to me all the time (which is not something I’d want as a guest). Others want to have interaction only at check in and check out. Some I never meet at all because that’s how the guests prefer it to be. So what’s the answer? There isn’t one - apart from respecting your guests’ wishes.

Some guests like to have a kitchen that is stocked with basics - I prefer completely empty kitchen cupboards. I research areas before I go there - so do some guests and others want a full concierge treatment with recommendations for everything they do. There’s no right and wrong - just your own hosting style.

Of all the places I’ve stayed, I’ve only used one idea and that was to put scented sachets into the drawers in the bedroom. Not exactly essential but I thought was a nice touch. Some guests might hate that though.

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Being an AirBNB host has put me off being an AirBNB guest. I have stayed in AirBNBs, and my husband is a fan, but I realize how inconsistent it is. I would begrudge paying for a comparable property to mine, and get a mediocre experience.

That being said, I am staying in an AirBNB in Hawaii next week.

I think the best tool is experiencing what your guest would experience, and thinking, “How would I improve this experience” - like @Zandra said.

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Definitely. You can’t judge your own place unless you experience it. What other hosts do is immaterial. We are all different.

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I agree, I may have missed a beat in how I expressed the main point of my original post.

Yes experience will teach you everything you need about your listing, and hosts while I don’t fully agree it being immaterial.

My main goal was to point out the importance of empathy for the guests! not the place itself, but how you feel, how you expect to be treated and how you as a guests see things from a different perspective than as a host.

Good or bad, I found that I learned about what I expected, about what the basic things I looked for, from being guided with proper directions, to how people responded to my questions, to how I found the cleanliness of the place. it’s not so much learn from other hosts, but treat others as you expect to be treated, empathy as I highlighted on my original post.

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My one stay at an Airnb didn’t teach me anything about hosting. Did teach me to be more careful in future bookings, and the importance of copying listing info so that when hosts make changes in what they offer, I have evidence.
Empathy is the wrong word IMO, I’d suggest preparation or anticipation. Being ready to meet guests needs.

I strongly suspect that all highly-rated hosts do have a higher-than-usual empathy threshold. Do I have empirical evidence? Nope. Intuition only.

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Based on my experience I would agree! I also will say that when a host becomes more empathetic their reviews go up & they don’t get as bothered by the little things.

@Louise that’s what I’d like to prevent from guests, that defensive approach. Now you’re right! Airbnb due to its low barrier of entry can be on average mediocre, even the fact of joining this forum means most hosts here are above in terms of wanting to become a better hosts, in order to make the most income and have better experiences.

I just see a lot of posts with hosts expressing dissatisfaction with things that as host can be seen as annoying, but they can be understandable as a guest.

Hence my original post encouraging hosts to see things as a guest.

I think you have to be careful with this assumption. Many of the hosts stating dissatisfaction with guests here are venting, and then, some really mean it. If you have the time to read their reviews, their guests love staying with them. This forum can be the steam valve that allows hosts to continue doing a great job.

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This is a valid point, I may have jumped to conclusions where what is said here, is not reflective of the host’s attitude towards their guests.

@Ash953 the inconsistency has been a surprise for me. A host with decent reviews doesn’t always guarantee a comfortable stay.

I’ve found reviews tend to copy each other - if someone is effusive then the next tends to be kinda like Dominos. And at some point accuracy in reviews gets lost …

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There are so many different hosts with different hosting styles. Also there are some hosts who see themselves more as landlords (the ones who rarely meet their guests) and others who love providing hospitality and service personally.

Some hosts have high expectations regarding their guests, others are just grateful that their place is left in reasonable shape. Some hosts have no-one to vent to so post here, others moan at their partner or the cat.

Some hosts are here on a daily basis, others post once or twice (usually new people who want advice about a particular problem). There are a lot of very experienced hosts here whose goal in being here is to help. Experienced hosts’ viewpoints are unlikely to gel with those of brand new hosts.

It would be an error to think that this forum bears any resemblance to the ‘average host’s’ opinion or feelings.

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@Uphost.ca, I get your initial suggestion and think it’s a good one. There are many many hosts who have never stayed in another Airbnb and think that their way of doing things is the only right way (hence they can make the absolute worst guests, but that’s another topic!). Of all the places I’ve stayed, only one of them provided decent up-to-date directions. That taught me a lot. It’s no fun arriving in a strange place, not speaking the language, tired after travels and not being able to find your accommodation.

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We were AirBnB guests long before becoming hosts. When we set up our room (one room in a shared house) we incorporated many things we had experienced as a guest to increase the comfort level. For example - I have completely emptied the dresser and closet of all our stuff. When I have stayed in places that were overcrowded with the hosts out of season clothes/Christmas storage etc. I felt like an intruder. I also make sure there are paper cups in the bathroom - makes brushing teeth and taking meds so much easier. Our guest guide includes items I wouldn’t have thought of had I not seen it in another hosts book.

We also spent the night in our guest room with a radio blasting in another area of the house to determine what noise level would make it to the room.

I’ve also learned a lot from reading posts throughout this forum - thank you to all the hosts who share!

Both visiting others and staying in your own listing seem like good ways to build empathy. We are now hosting our 13th guest and are glad we started this journey - no “stories” yet!!! Well…maybe the guy who said his job was working on becoming an online publisher and he was writing Internet Romance Porn…but he only stayed one day and we never would have guessed that was his profession!

I totally agree! I wish every host had shopped for and stayed in airbnbs.

That would make my mom walk straight out: Perfume gives her headaches. Just to add to your point that different things work for different guests :wink:.

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I’ve had a repeat guest than specifically asked about fragrances and said she needed no fragrances. When I prepped the room I didn’t even clean with any scented products. I used hot water and the Shark steam mop on the shower floor. I do laundry with unscented detergent, no dryer sheet. The soaps have scent so I told her she’d have to bring her own soap.

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