Airbnb Mystery Shopper Perhaps?

I had an enquiry this morning about a booking over this weekend. In the message she stated “we” will be arriving etc etc, where’s the nearest train station etc? When I looked at the booking enquiry, it was for one person only. When I then looked at her profile, she states she works for Airbnb and she has 66 five star reviews from other hosts!!! I responded with the obvious questions answered (all in the listing…) and asked how many people were in her group. I didn’t get a response for several hours, which came with a load more queries. Given some people have difficulty understanding our guest suite listing, I meticulously and painstakingly described what was available for three girls, with the option of our second listing if they wanted a room each.

Five hours later and no response, with the opportunity of reading (most) of her reviews. Given their glowing similarity, we reckon this is a mystery shopper exercise, particularly given the SH assessment period at the mo. Has anyone else had this experience?

If she was a “mystery” shopper, her profile would not indicate that she works for AirBNB. Not much mystery there.

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I agree that you’re overthinking it. Given that she apparently can’t read the listing I wouldn’t be looking forward to hosting her if it’s a legitimate inquiry.

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Oh dear… himself accepted it about an hour ago; the £SD was too tempting in a fallow period. Ho hum.

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Sometimes the guest forgets to add the companion, but I always assume there are two coming unless they state otherwise.

I wonder if she was stating tongue in cheek that she worked for ABB. Hard to believe she would and then be clueless about not reading the listing and asking the 20 questions.

Do keep us updated on what happens!

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I agree with @konacoconutz it’s highly unlikely anyone working for Airbnb would be that clueless.

Why not ask her what she does for them?

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Thanks Kona, and Helsi. Will keep you posted and will ask when they are here. Despite her brill reviews, particularly around communication, she is total rubbish!!! Just hope she is as nice as they also say.

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might be about to get her first crap review to offset the brill ones a bit. :rofl:

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Are the reviews all for her as a guest? Could working at Air mean she’s a host? When I book as a guest it shows I have 162 reviews so it adds in all my reviews as a host.

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That has so being going through my mind, :rofl::rofl::sweat_smile:But I do have a sense of either intense entitlement, an IQ below 95 or being tested/challenged. Too much of the red stuff to detail now, but quite fun setting my own challenges, yet giving perfect options. I can be such a cow when needed, and oh, so politely!

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I hadn’t considered that. Thank you for the food for thought Nancy.

We have hosted people that worked for Air BNB, they obviously get a nice travel credit to use. They were fine, most are younger 20 somethings, so expect a little more messy flat to return to.

Thanks, that’s really useful to know. Fortunately we run as a small B&B and live here too. Whilst we’re flexible, the boundaries are clear. They can only make a mess of their bedrooms and bathroom, TG.

You can tell on the profile page which review is which - for guest or host.

Yikes! Three quite young ladies, two French, one French Canadian, all working for Airbnb. As Helsi suggested, I asked, with banter attached, the one who booked if she worked for Air; “We all do”. “Ok, so what do you do for them?”: “Marketing”. “Marketing what, because it’s not me; I market myself”. I received a variety of responses, each trying to correct the other. 1) We market the platform 2) From the one who booked; we have a budget to travel around and evaluate listings. 2) Non, non, we have discounts on staying at nice places.

They’ve gone out TG. Update tomorrow!

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Eek, that would be nerve wracking hosting Air employees.

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It is a bit, but I’ve scared the shite off the one who booked. Before I asked about her profile/ air employment role, she was asking loads of questions about what I did in London as a profession, so I explained psych nurse et al, same skill set useful for doing this.

Must go to bed for the morning assessment! xx

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When I’ve been looking as a guest I’ve seen some listings that are “recommended” (think that’s the term) which it says have been inspected by Airbnb. Perhaps that’s what these women are doing? Better be on your best hostly behaviour, Joan!

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Ah; arggggh! That would seem to fit the bill. Best hostly behaviour to the fore then. But they are really clueless; they arrived having walked from the White Cliffs after darkness fell, well wrapped up but all wearing black, down narrow, dark country lanes with no pathways. We have high vis jackets and torches but if folk do this before arrival… … It may seem quietly safe, but on a Saturday night when the farmers are out for the evening; non, non, non. The Coastguards put out a warning to stay away from the cliffs in y’day’s storm too, but I guess they missed this.

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I needed to have a stern, matronly discussion this morning, after two of them used the shower room of our other listing, as well as the Jack&Jill bathroom they already had; the only one they had been shown. What’s galling is that one or other must have had a good snoop around whilst we went out for a couple of hours last night, in order to have found it. I had made quite clear in messages, with the lead guest,that we had another listing, which if they wanted a room each, they should book this as well. During this morning’s discussion, the two French girls were so apologetic, including clarifying that the statement last night, that they were here to evaluate us, was a joke that should not have been made; not that I gave a toss by now. The lead guest/booker was quite the opposite; my first experience of an entitled, high maintenance millenial, with no qualms about lying, sorry, trying to lie;-

Guest: “I never tell anyone that I work for Airbnb”;
Me: "It’s on your profile"
G: "well I don’t know how"
M: “you wrote your profile”

Silence. Lots. Then;-

G: "I didn’t hear you say we couldn’t use that shower"
M: "I told you in a message. You have it in writing that it is a separate listing but as you didn’t book it, you
were not show it."
G: “I needed a pee”…

At which point the other two successfully intervened to stop her digging a deeper hole.

Followed by a gentle, matronly lecture about how G needs to take responsibility for being a responsible guest going forward, ensure her group is aware of House Rules and that she reads listings and messages with information in full. And not be so demanding; I’m not a Tourist Info Office. Okay, I made that last bit up but really, really wanted to say it!

I’d welcome thoughts on how to review please. I think, and hope, she’ll take all I said on board, and I don’t want her to lose her job. On the other hand, I feel other hosts should be aware. Given her startlingly good reviews, perhaps I should say she is better suited to a whole listing, rather than a B&B in someone’s home??

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