Explain reviews to me

So I see that a guest gave me a review, but it won’t let me see the review unless I write one for the guest. Well what if I write something nice and she doesn’t? How/ when do I get to comment/ defend myself if they ever write something bad? Won’t I look like an idiot if I give them a good review and they only give me average or bad?
Uuugggghhh this just drives me a little crazy not being able to see it before I write something!! Have you all figured out a way around this?

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Reviews are blind for a good reason, Cyndy. They aren’t meant to be based upon what the other person wrote. The review you write should be an honest account of your experience hosting a guest, then you will never have any reason to regret what you submitted.

If hosts and guests could see each others’ reviews before submitting theirs, that would lead to a whole lot of dishonest reviews or junior high school-type “if you’re mean to me, I’ll be mean to you” attitude.

If a guest leaves a review that you feel requires a response, you will have the opportunity to do so after both reviews are published. But it’s a good idea to post a draft response here first, to get feedback on, as many hosts end up making matters worse with the response they leave.

Relax. Don’t fret about reviews that you haven’t seen yet. Just because a door handle came loose doesn’t mean that will result in a bad review.

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So if I don’t give them a review their review never gets published?

Ik, I’m just nervous!!!

Just write an honest review. Once you have written your review you’ll be able to read the review written by your guest. If you’re not happy with it, you can respond to it.

No, if you don’t write a review within 14 days after they check out, their review of you will get published and you will no longer have any opportunity to review them, but you can respond to their review of you.

All reviews are published. If both parties leave a review, they are both published as soon as both are submitted. If only one does, it is published after the 14 day review window.

Try to stop being nervous. It’s just a review, it’s not something earth shattering. Remember that you are reviewing guests for the benefit of other hosts. Be brief and speak to the things other hosts would want to know about guests. Things you would want to know to help you decide whether to accept a booking or not.

Post your draft review here before submitting it if you like. As a new host, review feedback could be constructive.

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Lots of good info and advice here. When drafting a review I suggest that you stick to facts and don’t note assumptions or feelings.

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Uuugggghhh she dinged me pretty good :slightly_frowning_face: do I respond?
So my place is called ‘mountain experience’ yet she was negative about the uneven ground :roll_eyes: I listed accurately what was in the ‘kitchenette’
I lost my 5​:star:‘S :frowning::frowning:

Always respond to unfavorable reviews. you can also contact airbnb if the guest complains about something that you included in your property description or house rules. (although good luck getting a review removed)

When responding to a review, point out factual issues. Do not under any circumstances be unprofessional or rude, because it will scare away other guests if they see you are emotional. i always apologize even if i shouldn’t have to, as it demonstrates to other guests that you are kind and endearing. The goal is to show other guests that you’re a reasonable person, not to win an argument.

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I don’t agree about apologizing for things that are not the host’s fault. That’s different from saying you are sorry the guest wasn’t pleased with their stay.

A review like this one would get a response from me along the lines of, “It’s unfortunate that XX seems not to have thoroughly read the listing description and amenities list, as the things she has complained about are clearly mentioned- i.e. only a kitchenette and no stove. Hopefully she will inform herself more thoroughly before booking in the future in order to avoid disappointment.”

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thats what i meant, i apologize for their experience, not admitting fault.

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That’s not apologizing, though. That’s showing some empathy.

Be a great host and don’t ever give guests the opportunity to write anything bad!

If there are problems during the stay, fix them and apologise. Be a super-friendly- host and give your guests a wonderful time. You’ll get great reviews.

Any suggestions on how to write my rebuttal?

What do you think about this?

Thank you for your feedback, however, my listing clearly states that a full size kitchen is not provided at this location. The title of my listing is “mountain experience“ which does entail some grass to walk through. A screw came out of the door handle and has been securely fixed.

I feel like it needs something else, but what?

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Cyndy, hosting isn’t a power struggle or some weird competition.

Reviews are reviews, and that’s that. Many experienced hosts, me included, see responding to reviews as being very unprofessional. (Not to mention time-consuming).

In that review, is it true that you have no stove? Is it true that the only sink available is in the bathroom?

If so, then the guest is simply writing about their own experience so no ‘rebuttal’ is required.

It’s much better to relax and stop worrying about reviews. :slight_smile:

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Truly. I’d just see that as being defensive and argumentative. Basically what you’re saying is ‘the guest should have read the bloody listing’ which is of no help to anyone.

Often, replies to reviews say a lot about the host and often that’s not a good thing so be careful.

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Hmmm the feedback above says I should respond to every negative review

well, to be fair, if a guest is going to whinge about the size of the kitchen… they clearly didn’t read. Although we don’t in this case if the listing is accurate as we haven’t the listing of the OP.

you mean response. firstly get yourself in that mindset. the only people who read your response will be future guests. so be sure to sound professional and kind.

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I concur with @jaquo. Rebuttals to reviews are not needed. I have never seen even one single time a response to a review that didn’t make the host look worse than the review did.

@DenverJoe may say that you should respond but he may be guilty of responding to a review and making himself look worse than the review did, so…

Just resist. Don’t bring attention to that review. Don’t make it worse than it has to be. That review will soon blend in unless you respond to it.

For reference, when I read reviews I scroll through them until I find one that the host responded to because I know that that is the one I need to read.

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