All this talk about waffles reminded me how we MISSED seeing the home where Lincoln died (part of Ford Theatre National Historic site, Washington DC ) because we were so interested in seeing what the LINCOLN WAFFLE SHOP was about, and to find out if Lincoln actually dined there, perhaps on waffles, in the past. The Lincoln Waffle house was right next door to the boarding house where he died, and we MISSED IT, and also the Waffle Shop was closed, even though there was a crowd in front of it. ! 
Not going back to DC anytime soon either. Especially now!
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Faheem, you take EVERYTHING so literally! Sometimes I wonder if you are kidding!
Some guests simply donāt want to leave reviews and thatās that. I have never mentioned anything to guests about them leaving a review because it seems too desperate and crawly. Just let it happen naturally. I would hate to stay somewhere where the host mentioned reviews.
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Do agree @jaquo. Iāve never asked for a review and never explained how it supposedly works. Too awkward.
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I never mention the review and I certainly donāt try to guide the guest on how to write the review. The only exception is that I ask guests to not mention special favors (giving them a ride, early check in, etc.) in the review as I donāt want other guests to think itās an amenity.
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Hmm. I guess Iām desperate and crawly, then. I normally mention it to departing guests, unless Iām not planning on leaving them a review, and also mention meaningly that anything less than 5 stars is considered bad. Iāve been meaning to mention this in handout materials, but havenāt got around to it. And saying it verbally might be more effective, because, as we know, Guests Donāt Read.
Yes, it does seem rather sad, but otherwise people tend not to bother to leave reviews at all. And, as everyone here is presumably aware, you need a 50% review rate, or else you canāt keep SH status. Among other things.
Iām sure it doesnāt come across that way to your guests though. 
Heh. More likely bored, distracted and half-asleep.
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Okay, Iām back inā¦
Someone asked for our listing link, to help out and advise: http://abnb.me/EVmg/OFDVtljflA
Please feel free to give us suggestions for future. Thank you. I did some minor edits on it today.
Oh and Iām not planning on saying anything else to this guest about the reviews. Iām truly disappointed in this 1st experience, as we never had intended to rent out an apartment in our house, but I want to straighten this out, prevent future guestās of his type, and move forward. I donāt give up easily.
I think I said pretty much everything else that I had written to comment was copied and pasted into comment from my husband (He has a nasty cold, so I set up his profile after we discussed this at length).
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I think that is what he said. Iām not planning on saying anything else to him about the reviews. I donāt really think he under stands the point of the site, and was desperate looking for a cheap place to stay. Since he has to move around a lot, I think his company would give him motel money, and pocket the rest, if left over.
I posted the link to the listing in a comment further down, posted by me, a few minutes ago. (I wasnāt able to comment at all today, because of being a new user and had used up max comments for the day, as a new user.)
I was requesting to change MY screen name, because I decided the former was not a good screen name. (If you read the long comment from my husband it included a lengthy quote from me and an explanation at the top.)
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I onlt skimmed your listing Anne, but I can see two problems. The first is that it is too cheap! I know that Airbnb recommends that new hosts have low prices but bear in mind that people think āyou get what you pay forā and a really cheap listing makes them think āwhatās wrong with it?ā
The area looks wonderful and you let your guests access almost your entire place so please charge a more realistic figure.
The other immediate problem is that you say that you say that you will pick up or drop off guests at the bus station. This is lovely of you but a) it only adds to your expenses and b) it might invalidate your car insurance as it can be construed as using your car for commercial purposes. If you got into a wreck with a guest on board, and they decided to sue, you could be in deep trouble so Iād delete that.
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I agree on what J just said and would also add. Try to improve the quality of the photos in terms of resolution. The first one looks like a fuzzy green blur on my desktop computer.
Also I would remove the bit about āWe are new hosts so the prices are low.ā That screams at potential guests to āTAKE ADVANTAGE OF US!ā
Also, It may be unrealistic to expect many bookings this time of year, but come summerā¦ watch out!
Youāll get plenty of reviews. Donāt worry about them!
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Wow, thanks for catching me on that. I removed that part and changed āGetting Aroundā to say:
"_(bus line) Coach will take you to (city) and more.
______(bus line)___will take you around (town) and (town).
We are 8 miles from closest bus stop, so drive, bike, taxi, run, skip, or whatever works for you. For insurance reasons, we can not pick you up or drop-off. Thanks for understanding."
I also changed the āsocializationā section, mentioned that we have bar, not open, but if you ask nicely, Steve MIGHT make you 1 drink.
So, what kind of rate would you suggest?
This is a tiny town- P.O., a church, a public school, gas station / country store, and a huge fancy old boarding school, lots of cows, goats, etc, but too far away to smell the animal poop from here, haha. Greenhouse farm of elderly couple across the road.
We are within an hour (or less) of pretty much any skiing places in either (state) or (state). ā¦but we donāt have central A/C and just use big fans in summer. How would those factors effect seasonal pricing?
I have the smart pricing on, with next week in 27-32 (try to get another guest for min of 1 to max of 5 days), and the following week at 40s (it was on 20 the day I set it up and about a day later when this guest found it. Air says I joined last spring, but certainly no listing at all until this month.) We really live in the middle of nowhere so I donāt know how high we can realistically go?!
Right now the smart fees is turned on, instant book is turned off, min 27 (was 20), max 85, base 37, cleaning +15, weekends 40, additional guest after 2 for +10.
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Will change those! ā¦ just a minuteā¦
Iām not sure how much I can improve the photos. Obviously some were taken in warmer months. Most were cell phone pictures. 
We do have a camera that might take some better shots, but itās a pretty simple point and shoot.
Iāve tried to set up the calender realistically. I will note we donāt have central A/C because itās only needed for like 6 to 8 weeks. We just use big fans, not sure if that would effect summer pricing, but there do seem to be some bats (Iāve never seen them) in the area- for extermination of mosquitos. 
Um personally? I would remove any mention of why you canāt pick up. Itās up to them to arrange their transportation. Remind yourself you are renting a room, not providing transportation, laundry, snow shoveling service and waffles. 
unless you want to do extra work but I wouldnāt, not at that low price.
I would turn off smart pricing. If I used smart pricing Iād have gone broke by now. It has no idea of your market or season. Also itās an Airbnb invention and itās well known that they make much more on a high volume of low end bookings than the opposite. So itās in their best interest that you give away your room at a low price. I would pay no attention to smart pricing and disable it.
Calculate all that it takes you to manage. I mean the time involved. How much are you willing to do for that money and what is your time worth?
You can get between 40 and 50 for a room like yours, no matter where you are or what the season.
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Iād keep the bar stuff off the listing, there are huge risks if a guest has a drink at your place, then goes out, gets drunk and has an accident, even if you only gave one drink, youād still be liable. Donāt mention not being able to pick up.
Focus on giving people a nice, comfy place to stay. Promote the location, nature, quiet. I see there is a University nearby, folks may want to stay when they bring their kids or for an interview.
The bedroom pics are the most important and should be your first shot. Put matching covers of a good solid colour on the beds, two pillows on each bed. I realise money may be tight, but maybe you can find a set of headboards second hand. A bedside lamp is important. You donāt need the pic of the toilet as your bathtub pic is brilliant. How about a pic of the outside of your house? Pics of the school, church and country store. Sell the atmosphere. Iād set your price at $40, donāt know re cleaning fee. Do you offer guests use of the kitchen? if yes, then say so, leave out rules til that part of the listing.
Good luck and do understand that these suggestions are meant in a kind way.
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It sounds wonderful! Have you done an accurate assessment of how much your hosting actually costs you? I realise that much of it is projected costs at this time. But I doubt that at your current price you are making any money at all. Your time, the cleaning materials, the laundry, the drain on your utilities, the extra insurance, Airbnb fees, taxes, breakfast foods, wear & tear ā¦ it all adds up.
Others might disagree but Iād put your regular rate at $40 or more. It sleeps three people (or so it says in your listing) so thatās $13 per person per night. SO VERY cheap! Remember too that you are offering your guests personal service, unlike hotels or hostels - be proud of what you offer and be paid what you deserve
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Yes!!! Ditto! Donāt mention alcohol. Some people might be offended. And you could get dinged if somehow someone didnāt get one when they were expecting it. Louise is right. You just need to sell the inside of the house and especially the bedroom. Quilts and such are available cheap at Ross, Marshalls or even Walmart. I got this awesome quilt at Walmart. Cheap You would never ever know!
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Plainfield is a lovely town, but there are very few reasons to stay there for more than one night. It isnāt quite close enough to King Arthur or Dartmouth to travel there daily. [But do note the Dartmouth graduation dates and reunion dates and triple your rates for that week!]
I think you risk making people think that they can get around the area without a car. I suggest that you actually state that a car is a necessity. If you can appeal to folks that are traveling to or from Canada, mention how far you are from I91.
Lebanon has lots of businesses, so you might want to connect with some of them that might have suppliers, sales-people, etc coming to the area. I actually went to Lebanon to look at cabinets for our kitchen. I live close enough to do the round trip. But, for example, my father had three clients in Lebanon. If you can find someone like him, but younger, who travels to the area once a month for a three or four day stay, you could have a nice group of regulars.
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I state that car rental is mandatory. We are not convenient to the bus.
Honestly their transportation issues are not your responsibility. Just state something simple like OUr home is not near public transportation. Guests must have a car to stay with us.
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