Why Write Airbnb Reviews for Guests?
Writing reviews for guests is a vital ingredient in generating more profitability. Discover several great reasons why writing reviews about your guests is beneficial.
Encourage Positive Reviews
By taking the initiative to write a review for your guests, they are reminded by Airbnb to write a review in return. Especially in cases of positive guest experiences, writing a favorable review will cause guests to appreciate the gesture and be more encouraged to leave a high star rating for you.
Help Other Hosts
Writing guest reviews is very beneficial to the entire Airbnb host community. It helps you and future hosts to make wise decisions in accepting guests to their homes. For example, if a previous host wrote a negative Airbnb review about a guest, you may choose not to accept the guest’s booking to avoid potential trouble too.
“It’s no exaggeration to say that reviews are the glue that keeps the sharing economy together, instilling a potentially chaotic or unpredictable process with a sense of humanity and order.”
– Seth Porges, Airbnb Host and former Forbes Contributor
Care about your guest experience? Make sure your Airbnb is professionally cleaned.
Impress Existing and Potential Guests
Spending time and effort to leave personalized reviews for each guest will impress not only your existing guests but prospective ones as well. This shows that you are a thoughtful and reliable host.
This will also communicate to your potential guests that you are committed to maintaining effective communication even after check-out.
What Does Airbnb Ask You to Review?
After a guest checks out, Airbnb will prompt you to leave a review by asking you to evaluate the following:
- Experience with the guest(s)
- How clean and tidy they left your property
- How clear your communications were with them
- Whether or not they followed your house rules and regulations
- If you would be happy to host them again and/or would recommend them to other hosts
How to Write a Helpful Review for a Vacation Rental Guest
Now that you understand the importance of reviewing guests, learn our tips for writing comprehensive yet efficient reviews on Airbnb.
1. Be Patient
It is crucial to not rush into writing your review — check your property first to make sure that everything is in good order. An efficient way to do this is to ask your cleaner to report any damages they find during the cleaning process.
For instance, using Turno, a cleaner can utilize the Report and Share feature to notify the host of a broken TV with descriptions and photos. This way, you can write constructive feedback that may help the guest to be more diligent during future stays and inform other hosts of the experience you had.
2. Be Honest
If a guest disrespected your property and house rules, be honest and fair as you would not want them to come back to your property anyway. As the saying goes, “honesty is the best policy.”
Provide examples and evidence and ensure that your review is based solely on the events you have witnessed and experienced with your guests. After all, you want other hosts and guests to trust you so that you maintain a good reputation while being supportive and helpful.
3. Be Specific
In your reviews, be specific and factual. If you were pleased with your guests, for example, state how great or respectful they were by obeying your house rules and keeping your short-term rental as clean as possible. This way, you can communicate your standards to prospective guests about keeping the property in order.
On the other hand, you may have a negative encounter with a guest. Say, for example, you received noise complaints from your vacation rental neighbors and had to clean up trash left all over the house. You can share this specific information in your feedback so that other hosts are advised to avoid problematic visitors.
4. Be Helpful to Other Hosts
Most hosts always look through Airbnb guest reviews upon confirming a reservation to learn more about the guest — especially about their behavior and etiquette.
After being specific about an incident you had with a guest, decide whether you would want to recommend the guests to other hosts. Determine if there is anything about the guest you think other hosts should be aware of. For example, if a guest left empty bottles indicating that they had a party at your property, you’ll want to warn other hosts.
5. Be Efficient
Creating reviews for each guest can be time-consuming. Putting together templates for your Airbnb guest reviews, however, will enable you to save time and submit great reviews much faster.
Templates will come in handy when you’re on the go and your daily tasks start to pile up. They’re also crucial for when you’re receiving a high volume of bookings, especially if you have multiple listings.
Airbnb Guest Review Templates
Here are some templates you can use when writing Airbnb reviews for guests. Ideally, you should customize and adjust them as you see fit to make them more authentic and personalized.
Template 1
It was a pleasure to host [guest name]! They kept consistent communication and treated the home with respect. I would be more than happy to accommodate them again!
Template 2
[Guest name] kept my rental property clean and organized. Even my cleaner complimented how well-kept the house was when they arrived to complete the turnover. I highly recommend [guest name] to any host!
Template 3
I loved hosting [guest name]. They were kind, friendly, and extremely respectful. They were quiet the entire weekend — making my hosting experience a lot easier. I look forward to having them again when they’re back in town!
Frequently Asked Questions About Airbnb Reviews for Guests
Does Airbnb send hosts reminder emails to review their guests?
Yes, as long as the host signs up for reminders. When they do, Airbnb sends a few email reminders by default:
- One on the guest’s check-out day
- One if the guest submits a review first
- A final one shortly before the review period expires
How can I write a review if I manage the property long-distance?
Managing a property long-distance should not stop you from writing an authentic guest review. For positive guest stays, you can use automation tools to easily submit templated reviews without any extra work on your part.
Keep in mind that your guest review does not necessarily have to be a lengthy one. You can write a brief note, as simple as “thank you for being an awesome guest.”
Can I edit or delete a guest review I wrote?
You can edit a review that you have written within the 14 day review period, or up until the guest submits their review within those days. However, you can’t delete a guest review once it’s published unless it violates Airbnb’s review policy.
How long after I leave a review will it be published?
Your review is published once both parties submit theirs, or when the 14 day review window has ended — whichever comes first. At that time, reviews are automatically published, and no changes can be made. Be sure to be as impartial as possible to avoid any worries.
