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We are all expecting that a Plus appellation will generate more revenue.
Superhost was supposed to do that, too.
Well, most of my guests have no idea what a SH is. They only know I have good reviews.I’m a McDonalds-level provider; slapping a Cordon Bleu appellation on me won’t change that. And at my level, I’m not prepared to shell out $149USD over 5 listings to prove that.
SHOW ME THE MONEY -the incremental gain I stand to win vs. costs - and I will think it over.
One malicious review won’t hurt you. I got a malicious review recently and low ratings in some categories, but it barely registered because it was my 250th review. I’m still above 4.7. Now i’m up to 260 reviews (as soon as I review the guest who left a couple of days ago) and I’m happy to say the malicious review has fallen off the first page. I’ve been invited to join plus, and I was also sent the beta test questionnaire, but there were a few things that didn’t sit well with me, chiefly the requirement to provide a TV. Also, there was something about having pictures on the wall. I’m an admirer of Marie Kondo, so I aim for a clean, simple look. I don’t want anyone telling me my guest house has to look like a hotel, unless by that they mean a Japanese inn (Just kidding but not by very much).
This is very interesting info., especially the liability overage, which is on the minds of all hosts since we assume such a heavy risk and Air does not screen guests with even the minimal ID requirements of any other lodging.
You could always get the guest their own Netflix account which is decidedly cheaper than the cable or dish. Travelers like my son in their 20s would not consider cable a deal breaker like it would have been a decade ago.
I note the thing about “pictures on the wall”. This is just what I meant when I posted on this thread many moons ago, about AirBnB and its “design experts” wanting to control how our homes look. It’s totally unacceptable.
The assessment of accommodation has been going on for 50yrs or more, Airbnb is only adopting an old system.
AirBnB Plus is the next step in making hosts into professional accommodation providers, I’ll bet 50cents that in a few years everyone has to be assessed. The system is already setup in a lot of countries and airbnb only needs to partner with them. assessment-services
I’ve recently suspended (not canceled) my DirectTV service. I connected a $10 antenna for local programing and a Roku. The Roku was $30 but I could have gotten a free one if I signed up for and prepaid 2 months of SlingTV. SlingTV has three levels of service and a set of channels for as low as $20 a month and no contract. With the Roku the guest can log onto their own accounts for Netflix or whatever, I’m not going to provide that. This is all in the US.
Alternatively a 42" smart TV some with Roku installed can be had for $300. So the cost is very low to comply with this requirement.
I’ve had 10 guests since I cut the cord and so far no issues. I do have mostly one nighters so that might make a difference.
This article just out asks the same question I asked 3 weeks ago on here;
“Does Airbnb have the bandwidth to inspect and vet all of those 20,000 homes and, even if it does, how does it make sure the quality of those homes is as good as when they were inspected?” https://skift.com/2018/04/02/airbnb-plus-risky-bet-to-push-homesharing-to-a-new-level/
We’re going through the Plus process right now for a listing in Seattle. If we could differentiate ourselves and rise to the top of search results, it would really help us. As I’ve mentioned in other threads, there are thousands (6,575 to be exact) active listings here and sometimes we don’t even show up!
We went through the self-assessment back in Feb and received feedback approximately 6 weeks later. They sent us one of our listing photos indicating that we needed to add personal touches like a plant, art, etc. We did this, snapped an updated photo and just sent it off. I have to say, it did make this area more inviting.
Ha ha. It’s just a checklist where you confirm you have the things they’re looking for like 2 sets of plush matching towels, various types of cookware, a printed home manual, etc.
Seems to me like they’re really just trying to rebrand the Superhost program but make it even more elite so they can charge more. Agreed with some of the comments that guests can be even more picky now with this program as It’s even more of a “hotel” offering. Airbnb is also now going to offer hotels on their platform - not sure if you guys saw this?