Online support needs technical update

I have just tried to send a message to Airbnb explaining an issue we have and asking for their support. After typing my message and trying to send, I received a message to say that I had exceeded the 1,000 character limit. Why is it not obvious BEFORE I type or even AS I type that this limit exists??!! To have to whittle down a message to 1,000 characters after writing the message is a complete waste of time - it actually took me ages and meant that I had to leave out some important information. I mentioned this in my subsequent chat and the only response was ā€˜I regret the inconvenienceā€™ . Such an outdated system! Step up Airbnb!

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Huh. Thanks for the heads up.

Sending your message as TWO under 1,000 character messages, without editing, should solve your problem.

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You should be able to explain the crux of your issue in 1000 characters, and then ATTACH your documentation or full argument as PDFs.

I can tell you donā€™t Tweet. Twitter users just break long texts into small blocks to post.

My point is that I was not warned it had to be 1,000 characters. The first I knew was when I tried to send. There was no facility to attach.

Great idea - thank you - but what an old fashioned system that you have to resort to this!!! A poor reflection on Airbnbā€™s IT systems.

Actually you can make attachments in the support message facility:

reply

Not 100% sure of exactly what file formats are accepted, but I suspect for documents itā€™ll be the usual suspects, .pdf, .doc, .docx and .txt etc.

Only time Iā€™ve used it I sent a .png file, with no issues.

The simple way round the character limitations is to hit send after each paragraph or soā€¦

JF

Thanks John for this. I revisited but didnā€™t see these options - I was using the Help Centre - ā€˜Chat with Usā€™ option, which seemed like the only way to present an issue. Maybe there is a better pathway - it really isnā€™t clear. Or maybe its because I am using the Australian website which might be different (?) ā€¦

Thatā€™s what the screenshot is from. No idea of any differences, from a geographical perspective.

JF

@Sentosa The simpler and more concisely you present an issue to Airbnb, the more likelihood that you will receive an on-point, prompt response and hopefully a solution.

Iā€™m convinced that users who are able to explain their issue succinctly, without going into too much extraneous detail, get better service.

That means using about 5 words max to start, to categorize the issue, i.e. ā€œTechnical issue with calendarā€ as opposed to ā€œI am experiencing an ongoing issue with my calendar blocking dates.ā€. 4 words as opposed to 11.

Then if possible, state the issue in bullet point form in chronological order, not in long sentences.

Many of the CS reps are not particularly fluent in English, they are outsourced and get paid according to how quickly they can deal with cases, so make it as simple an explanation as possible.

This is great advice, Muddy ! :slight_smile: Think these directions should be included on the same page (as well as the 1,000 character limit) just to make life easier for everyone concerned. Maybe you should work for the Airbnb team!! :slight_smile:

Yeah, Iā€™d whip 'em into shape right quick :laughing:

Iā€™ve read so many posts from hosts over the years, not so much here, but on the Airbnb CC, where a host takes half a page, going on and on about their issue in long, paragraghless sentences, full of extraneous details, saying they arenā€™t getting any help from CS, and I think, well, if this is the way you are presenting your issue to CS, no wonder theyā€™ve put your case on the back burner.

I have been lucky not to have any major issues, but when I do have an issue, I present it like I described above. I also always thank them for their time, have said I know they donā€™t have an easy job, even if they are being obtuse, and sometimes close with a line like ā€œI hope you have a good rest of your day.ā€ Silly platitudes, but those CS reps are fielding calls and messages from frustrated and angry hosts and guests all day or night and I find that if I acknowledge their humanity, they respond less like robots.

If they are being dense, sending useless links to Help articles and not understanding the issue, Iā€™ve written things like ā€œHi XX, I really appreciate you trying to solve this, but you seem to be having a hard time understanding what I need here. It might be best if instead of both of us wasting our time, you could perhaps pass this on to your supervisor, who might know the solution. Thanks a lot.ā€

@muddy youā€™re assuming that he gets a response, which is not always going to happen these days.

This is also true. Because I have been closed to bookings since March 2020, I havenā€™t had occasion to deal with the new, unimproved, customer disservice.

I did have occasion to call in October, about new tax compliance requirements for Mexican hosts. I have a phone number for Airbnb Canada, which I have never seen listed anywhere and canā€™remember where I got it, but I phoned, had the call answered with no wait time, and more or less got the info I needed.

The rep said she was in Manitoba, when I asked. I was quite surprised- I had fully expected the call to be shunted to a call center in the Phillipines.

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how do you make a new post on this forum?

You have to participate for a day or so first. This is to prevent spammers from joining and then posting to their links or blogs. It also encourages people to search for recent answers so we donā€™t get the same thing posted over and over in a short period of time. If you let me know the nature of your question I could adjust your settings so you can make a new post or direct you to where you could find an answer.

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