If you want your Airbnb vacation rental to be a success, reviews are essential. But how should an Airbnb host go about getting more reviews? Fortunately, we’ve got the answer!
In this post, we share several tips you can use to get good Airbnb reviews, some of which may be new to you. There’s a lot to cover so let’s begin!
Key Takeaways
To get good reviews on Airbnb, you must encourage reviews, ensure your listing is accurate, charge less when starting, focus on the guest experience, prioritize communication, review your guests, be prepared for the unexpected, pay attention to the details, keep your Airbnb property in good condition, and achieve Superhost status.
Tips for Getting More Airbnb Reviews
Encourage Reviews
How are you ever going to get reviews if you don’t ask for them? That said, the key is in asking for a review at the right time.
Most hosts ask guests to leave a review shortly after checkout, and this can be approached in several ways.
- You can reach out to guests via phone. This way is more personal and therefore likely to yield a review.
- You can send a generic follow-up email that politely asks them to leave a review.
In either case, before you ask for a review, say something like:
“I appreciate your business and hope you stay with me again. Also, if it’s not too much trouble, I’d appreciate a review. Your feedback is valued and will help me provide an even better guest experience in the future.”
You shouldn’t explicitly ask for a 5-star rating, but more on this later. Any kind of feedback is important.
In short, getting honest feedback is beneficial for two reasons:
- The more reviews your listing has, the higher it’ll rank in search results.
- You’ll have an idea of what you’re doing right and what needs improvement.
Ensure Your Listing Is Accurate
It’s critical to ensure your listing is both accurate and detailed. Why? If you lay out everything guests should expect when staying at your property, they can’t turn around later, after the stay has concluded, and say they were misled or promises weren’t fulfilled.
Therefore, you must provide guests with accurate information regarding the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, amenities available, policies, etc.
Also, your listing should have several pictures of the interior and exterior. You wouldn’t believe how many negative reviews on Airbnb are the result of a listing having misleading pictures.
If you’re worried that your listing isn’t as detailed as it could be, consider hiring a property management company to improve your listing. These companies know how to craft accurate and detailed short-term rental listings.
Charge Less
Charging less is one of the time-tested ways to get good reviews, but you have to be careful, as this method could backfire if you’re inexperienced.
Usually, when a host on Airbnb is new, they’ll charge less to get more bookings (and reviews). After all, you’ve got to start somewhere, right?
The problem is scammers and difficult Airbnb guests are always on the lookout for discounted rates, and these individuals should be avoided at all costs. Why? Because they know you want to get great reviews and may threaten to leave a bad review if you don’t meet their absurd requests.
Moreover, charging less for your rental may be viewed as a red flag by Airbnb users who’ve been on the platform for some time. They’ll think: “If this listing is far cheaper than comparable, nearby properties, something’s got to be wrong.”
A good rule of thumb is to charge less until you get a few reviews. After a handful of good Airbnb guest reviews have been acquired, charge a competitive price so potential guests don’t view your listing with suspicion.
Ensure a First-Rate Guest Experience
When it comes to getting numerous good reviews on Airbnb, nothing is more important than ensuring a fabulous guest experience. If guests feel that you’re willing to go above and beyond to ensure they have a pleasant stay, it’s unlikely they’ll give you anything less than four stars.
How do you ensure a successful Airbnb stay? Make sure the property is spotless and sanitary when guests arrive. Also, they should be greeted with a small gift; any gift will make a positive impression. Finally, you must be responsive before, during, and after the stay.
Just know that once you start delivering first-rate experiences, and previous reviews say as much, your future guests will expect nothing less.
If you consistently make your guests feel like their business is valued, the number of positive reviews on your listing should go up accordingly.
Prioritize Guest Communication
As we noted above, you must communicate with your guests before, during, and after the stay. Most importantly, you have to always be polite and accommodating. Answer whatever questions they have and address any concerns or issues promptly.
And, of course, if an emergency springs up, you’ll need to respond immediately so a solution can be reached as soon as possible.
Again, your goal is to make them feel valued. Even if their Airbnb experience has a bump in the road or two, if you demonstrated a willingness to make it better, it’s unlikely they’ll leave you a bad review.
Review Your Guests
Leaving reviews for your guests is a good move. You see, the Airbnb review system isn’t one-sided, meaning host reviews are just as important as guest reviews. Like hosts, guests want good reviews, otherwise they may have a hard time securing stays.
Plus, when your guest is notified that you’ve just reviewed them, they’ll probably review you as well.
Finally, if a guest leaves you a bad review, don’t feel like you have to retaliate with a bad review of your own. If you politely but honestly review them, it’ll show that you handle critiques well and value fairness.
Be Prepared for the Unexpected
As we all know, life is full of uncertainty. When you’re managing an Airbnb, you must keep this reality front of mind. Sure, you want things to be perfect, but sometimes achieving perfection, despite your best efforts, is impossible.
The important thing is that you have plans in place to deal with unforeseen events.
For example, if a pipe bursts during a guest’s stay, there should be easy-to-find instructions regarding how to shut off the water. Also, you should have a relationship with a dependable plumber who will come to the rescue at a moment’s notice.
Focus on the Details
Remember the little things often go a long way. For example, give your guests a small gift card when they arrive. You can even recommend they use the balance to pay for a meal at a popular local restaurant. This attention to detail will impact them positively and encourage them to leave a good review.
Achieve Superhost Status on Airbnb
Airbnb defines a Superhost as a host who “goes above and beyond to provide excellent hospitality.” These hosts get a special badge that appears on their profile and listings.
Superhost status isn’t something you can apply for, rather you have to earn it by meeting Airbnb’s criteria. Among other things, you have to get numerous positive reviews, be responsive when communicating with guests and potential guests, and avoid cancelations.
Once you get Superhost status, you must maintain it. Airbnb will check four times throughout the year to make sure their Superhosts are still worthy of the designation and its benefits.
What benefits do you get as a Superhost? Better visibility, higher earnings, and access to exclusive rewards.
But just because you’re a Superhost doesn’t mean your guests are obligated to review you. However, if you’ve achieved this status, it’s because you’ve done well on the platform, meaning your guests are likely to review you. After all, they were satisfied with your property and hospitality.
Why Are Airbnb Reviews Important?
To determine which listings show up when a person conducts a search, the Airbnb algorithm considers a variety of factors, including the overall quality of the listing, its popularity, the price, and its location.
Reviews and ratings fall under the quality category and are considered alongside listing characteristics, customer service and cancellation information, and a handful of other factors.
If the listing is of high quality, and a great review isn’t hard to locate, it should rank higher in the search results.
The quality of a guest’s review is important as well, meaning detailed reviews are better for listings than simple, brief ones that say something like: “Had a great stay and the place was tidy at check-in.”
How Are Airbnb Reviews Calculated?
As we pointed out earlier, the Airbnb platform allows both hosts and guests to leave reviews. Regarding guests, they have 14 days—from the time they check out—to leave a review. Moreover, they’ll be prompted to do so by Airbnb, via email, soon after their stay has ended.
A guest’s review is broken down into eight categories, but the seventh is unquestionably the most important. The categories are:
- Value: Was the stay worth what you paid?
- Cleanliness of the Property: Were Airbnb’s cleanliness standards met?
- Accuracy of Property Description: Was the information accurate? How about the photos?
- Check-In & Check-Out: Were these processes simple or complex?
- Guest Communication: Did the host communicate promptly and professionally?
- Amenities: Was everything included in the listing available and good working order?
- Location information: Were you informed about transportation, local attractions, safety protocols, etc.?
- Overall Experience: All things can considered, how was the experience?
Even if a guest leaves 5-star reviews for categories 1-7, if they give the overall experience four stars, that’s what the review system will register.
Are Many Reviews Better Than a Handful of 5-Star Reviews?
If your listing has just a handful of reviews, and they’re all five stars, that’s great! Unfortunately, the number of reviews is just as, if not more, important than the actual ratings.
Of course, your goal should be to get more 5-star reviews, but don’t think your Airbnb business is headed for a disaster if you get a bad review.
At the end of the day, online reviews are supposed to be helpful to hosts and guests alike, so be grateful when a guest takes the time to leave feedback—even if it isn’t a rave review! After all, their comments may help you improve your Airbnb
Can You Request 5-star Reviews on Airbnb?
It goes without saying, but a positive review is much better than a bad review. Still, you should never explicitly ask for a five-star review. Specifically, there are two reasons why this practice should be avoided.
For one, if you offer incentives for a five-star review, your guest may take advantage of this and request more than you’re willing to offer. Even worse, they may threaten to leave a negative review if you don’t meet their demands.
Second, if word gets out that you have a habit of requesting five stars, the rest of the Airbnb community may view this as a red flag, assuming that you can’t get five stars without asking for them directly.
Finally, explicitly offering incentives for a five-star review is against Airbnb’s terms of service. So ask yourself: is a five-star review worth the risk of getting kicked off the platform and losing a potentially lucrative source of passive income?
Final Thoughts
You want your Airbnb listing to be one of the first people see when searching for available rentals in your area, right? Then your property needs reviews.
To get reviews, you should encourage guests to leave them, maintain an accurate listing, charge less in the beginning, focus on the guest experience, understand the importance of good communication, review your guests, never be caught off guard, pay attention to the details, keep your Airbnb in good condition, and become an Airbnb Superhost.
