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Post by High Priestess on Oct 17, 2015 19:06:55 GMT
I am cross posting this, I will be posting it both here and on the new AIrbnb groups when those roll out in November:
What are your strategies for pleasing guests?
As we all know, it can sometimes be difficult , even with very accurate listing descriptions, to get guests to have realistic expectations of what we are offering. It has become a bit of an anecdote bouncing around the host community, that many guests are wanting a "Ritz-Carlton experience at Motel 6 prices". So, what have you found that helps ensure that guests are pleased with what they find when they stay with you?
One good tip which I think I first heard from Julie & Eric , was "underpromise and overdeliver." This has served me well. What are your suggestions?
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Post by catchafire on Oct 18, 2015 1:00:15 GMT
Hmmm...I get a feeling many of the "host community" is "US based hosts" community and many of the issues that I read about here are related to your particular market.
For example, virtually all our guests we have staying with us are international tourists, usually staying with us for 2/3 nights. We advertise ourselves as being the "Number 1 in the region, come and see why!" so to a certain extent we are setting ourselves up to give people the opportunity to knock us. Yet we have a 4.8 star average rating and have only ever had two guests who seemed to have other expectations of our listings. Everyone else (164+ reviews) has been extremely positive, polite and gracious.
We have set the studio up to cater for the tech savvy traveller, good WiFi is a must, Apple TV with a Netflix account and a decent flatscreen.
But the one thing we get the most comments about is the bed and how comfortable it is, it should be, it was the most expensive bed we could afford!
So a good night's sleep and WiFi will make most people happy bunnies!
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Post by High Priestess on Oct 18, 2015 4:36:51 GMT
I so agree, catchafire, about the importance of good wifi.
Let me now tell my "good wifi" story -- (this will be posted on the new Airbnb community groups when they roll out in November)
So, like many, I know my way around using a computer, but I know very little about internet service providers, modems, routers, and wifi. Renters and guests had been happy and had no problems with my wifi for many years. But then, inexplicably, earlier this year, all of a sudden I began getting complaints about the wifi service, after I upgraded my modem to a new Xfinity modem. Guests started to say that wifi was "slow" or "negligible" or "not useful." I was concerned. I knew that wifi was important to guests. Another host I knew, had once said, that good wifi is actually more important to guests than having a bed to sleep in. Well that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but the point was made clear.
So I called Xfinity. Not once but three times. They tested my system remotely, found all in good order. Then, when I insisted I was still getting complaints, they said, oh, maybe your modem is bad, get a new one (even though it was less than a year old). So I spent 1.5 hrs going to get a new one and set it up. Still had the same problems, the same complaints from guests. So then I called Xfinity and asked for them to send a technician to my house. THe technician came, and didn't look around at all, but just stood by my modem, said it had 4 green lights, so it must be okay, there was nothing he could do to help. I said but I am getting complaints, it is slow, it is negligible, this isnt' acceptable. He said sorry, can't help you, nothing to be done. He said even the NY Stock exchange computer system has problems. Well this was just no good. Finally, I got a name of a computer tech guy in my area, and called him over. It cost a pretty penny, but he told me that it is useless to call Xfinity or your ISP about these kinds of things, you need a computer tech guy. He installed 3 "Access Points" --easy to do, just order on Amazon and then just plug them in to the modem -- and these broadcast the wifi in my house in a much more powerful way. Why couldn't Xfinity tell me that!!?? Does it have to be some great secret, how to get decent wifi?
ANyway, that is my tip/trick on how to please guests. Have good wifi, and if needed, get a computer tech guy or gal to help you obtain that.
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Post by fleur on Oct 18, 2015 11:54:16 GMT
I had so many wifi issues! I bought two boosters and they still wouldn't reach the flat properly, would make it just inside the door. I finally had the permanent point where the cable comes into the house moved to the middle of the house by a antenna guy. The booster works better but still wouldn't go too much into our flat. I gave my second booster another shot and actually put it in the unit and omg it worked! You can now get wifi in the whole flat. That said Australia has crappy internet speeds. But the one downfall is I don't interact with guests as much anymore as they needed to sit in our patio to use the wifi, now they don't have to.
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Post by janet on Oct 18, 2015 17:57:48 GMT
Deborah,
Would you mind sharing the product you purchased on Amazon that gave you the "access points"?
thanks,
Janet
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Post by High Priestess on Oct 18, 2015 18:06:04 GMT
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