Latest / Host Planet: Airbnb, Holiday Let, and Vacation Rental Insights / These 5 Host Tricks Turn Good Reviews Into Perfect Ones

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These 5 Host Tricks Turn Good Reviews Into Perfect Ones · Host Planet: Airbnb, Holiday Let, and Vacation Rental Insights

• 0:00
  Hello and welcome to House Planet Bite Size, the podcast
• 0:03
  brought to you by House Planet and Housefully.
• 0:05
  My name is James Varley, the founder of House Planet, and our
• 0:08
  goal is to share everything you need to know about buying and
• 0:11
  managing short term rentals. Today's guest is Caitlin Almeida
• 0:15
  from host with Kate and she'll be sharing 5 tips to help you
• 0:18
  secure five star reviews on Airbnb.
• 0:21
  Look out for tip one. It is packed with brilliant
• 0:24
  ideas to wow your guests. OK, real talk now for all you
• 0:28
  hosts out there. You know that moment when you
• 0:31
  guest messages you again with hey, what's the Wi-Fi code?
• 0:35
  Or you're staring at 5 different calendars wondering if you've
• 0:38
  accidentally double booked the cottage.
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  Yes, we've all been there. That's why here at Houseplanner
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  really slick digital guidebooks that stop all the repeat
• 1:02
  questions. Honestly, it just makes your
• 1:04
  life easier and keeps your guests happier, helping you
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  achieve those all important five star reviews.
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  works. Less stress, more bookings
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  sorted with hostfully. Caitlin, thank you for joining
• 1:53
  us on host Planet Bite Size. You've got 5 tips to share on
• 1:57
  how to secure those all important five star reviews on
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  Airbnb. So take it away with tip #1.
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  Awesome, so tip #1 would be add cherry on top items.
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  I call these my Co T items. These are this is how you truly
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  stand out. I've I always leave like a
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  personalized note for the guests, allergy friendly local
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  snacks and coffee beans and dog treats if they're bringing a
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  dog. Other easy cherry on top items
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  are like fresh flowers and a vase on the dining room table or
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  a small gift card to the Coffee Cafe across the street.
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  Even something as simple as a video attached to your check in
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  message that introduces yourself and welcomes them to the space.
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  What's interesting is that so many of my five star reviews
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  specifically mention these little touches.
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  And even if guests don't remember those little details,
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  you know they will remember how welcomed and cared for they
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  felt. And so that is my first tip.
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  I love those. I love those.
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  Yeah. The, the COT, the cherry, cherry
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  cherry on the top of the cake items.
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  Yeah. I, I think sometimes hosts, they
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  don't know exactly what to leave.
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  And I remember in our case, when we started hosting, and often at
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  the start, we'd leave a bottle of wine or maybe a few beers.
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  And then we found that not everybody wants a bottle of wine
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  and sometimes it gets drunk and all that kind of thing.
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  So. But, yeah, I think working out
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  exactly what to leave and just, you know, doing stuff that's
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  thoughtful, they can really move the needle, can't, you know, it
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  makes makes guests think, oh, they've really thought about
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  this. Yeah, absolutely.
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  And I noticed the same thing. Like I was also leaving out wine
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  at one point. And I also noticed like, you
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  know, some sometimes people don't want to drink and they're
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  like specifically staying away from that.
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  So I've tried to find local snack companies that specialize
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  in having products that are very allergy friendly also.
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  So like vegan and gluten free and no nuts and all the things.
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  I actually searched on chat to BT specifically for this and I
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  found the company that I now work with.
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  They're called Absurd Snacks. They're in Richmond, VA where I
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  am, but they're incredible. And now I work with them and
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  they give me like awesome discounts on bulk, like little
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  snacks that I can just leave leave out for each new guest
• 4:27
  that's coming in. Your short term rental business
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• 5:40
  available now from our website. Head to Houseplanner dot Club
• 5:45
  for further details. And I love the leaving a video
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  idea as well because this really personalizes the experience.
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  And again, the guest is thinking, oh, they're really
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  taking care of me here. Yeah, so many people mention
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  that specifically and like, bonus points if you want to
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  create a personalized video for every guest that comes in, but I
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  just have a general one that's automatically sent out with my
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  welcome message. And like, not only is it helpful
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  'cause I also, I introduced myself and I showed them how to,
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  you know, find their driveway and everything, but it also
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  helps me come across as who I am, like an actual human being
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  and not just an alien on the other side of the screen, you
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  know, a robot. So I think like, that is an
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  extra touch that people are like, oh, you know, she's a cool
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  person. I want to take care of her
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  space. Like just seeing my face makes a
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  big difference it seems. Yeah, humanizing the experience,
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  Yeah. And making people realize it's
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  not a not a faceless company that's leading this property
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  management business. Is, is actually a person who
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  cares about the space. Yeah.
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  Brilliant. OK then, Caitlin, so tip #2.
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  Tip #2 would be intentional with your design, so thoughtful
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  design goes a really long way and you don't need a huge budget
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  for this, just, you know, intention.
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  So make sure that the exterior and entryways are well lit for
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  example. Or choose durable, easy to clean
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  materials that hold up well for short term stays.
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  Decide on a color palette or a theme that helps your space feel
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  cohesive. For decor, think second hand
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  finds like local art or unique pieces instead of generic decor
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  from big box stores. Guests really want to feel like
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  they're staying somewhere special and not cookie cutter.
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  So you know, memorable stays create or sorry, memorable
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  spaces create memorable stays. Yeah, great point.
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  And I think as well kind of advertise and promote your local
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  area, be part of your region and your community.
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  That's one thing that we've been speaking about.
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  Our rentals are in Yorkshire and the North of England and we've
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  been thinking about how we can make it seem, you know, kind of
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  seamlessly be part of the local community, whether that's
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  something that you leave or the pictures on the wall or whatever
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  it is. You know, you want people to
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  feel as if they're, they're part of the experience.
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  You know where you are in, in your local.
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  All right then, Caitlin tip #3 Yep.
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  All right, tip #3 don't rely on your cleaners for everything.
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  I see this all the time and you know, the cleaners job is to
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  clean. It's not quality control.
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  So try to have a second set of eyes on the property between
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  stays, whether it's you or a Co host or a trusted neighbor who
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  can pop in. And I'm, I'm talking about
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  things like, you know, checking the battery.
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  Is it replaced? Placing the light bulbs and
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  setting the thermostat, making sure the TV is set to the home
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  screen, or turning on the twinkle lights or the porch
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  light? If you know that the guests are
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  arriving late, it's often these small details that can separate
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  a four-star stay versus A5 star stay.
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  I think that's a really good point.
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  And we had Sarah Caracay and on from thanks for visiting and she
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  said one of the things which had made her reviews go up and up
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  was making sure that the cleaner is not the last person to see
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  the property. Always having that final
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  inspection because, you know, it's look little tiny things
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  like you say, they just get missed now and again.
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  And it is those annoying things like, oh, the, you know, the
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  batteries have gone in the remote where the guests are.
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  I'm a bit annoyed. I've just, I've just kind of
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  like flopped out on the, the bed and I want to put the TV on.
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  Oh, the batteries have gone or the lamp doesn't work or, or
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  something like that. So, yeah, having that extra
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  layer of of checking can be, can be really, really important.
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  OK then, Caitlin, so tip #4. Yeah, OK, so these last two tips
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  really apply to any business, but they're incredibly
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  important. They really shouldn't come as a
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  surprise, but my, my number, I guess 4 tip is to see challenges
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  as opportunities to go above and beyond.
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  So this mindset shift is huge. Instead of seeing guests
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  requests or issues as annoyances, see them as a chance
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  to really create a standout moment.
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  So for example, on a super hot day, you know, last summer, we
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  brought over extra fans and popsicles for our guests and it,
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  you know, they weren't complaining about it, but it was
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  an opportunity for us to turn a potential discomfort into a
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  really memorable experience. And they wrote about that in the
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  review. So even if you don't live close
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  by, you can still show up in these moments.
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  Services like Walmart plus or shipped.
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  I don't know what you guys have in the UK but like a quick.
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  Amazon. Yeah.
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  Like something where if they need something, you can get it
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  to them really quick. They, you know, make delivering
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  essentials quickly, easily. Those challenges are often where
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  some of the best reviews are actually born.
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  Yeah, I love the, I love the the popsicles idea that, you know,
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  really hot day, especially if it's a family travelling with
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  kids sending around some some some ice cream or some ice
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  lollies as we might call them over in the UK.
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  Yeah, I think that's that's a really lovely touch.
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  All right then, Caitlin, so tip #5.
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  OK, so tip #5 communication is everything, as with anything
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  that you do, right? So you know, your space doesn't
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  have to be perfect. No one's expecting to stay at
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  the Ritz unless that's what you're specifically marketing in
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  your listing. But just be upfront about things
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  like street noise or pets on the property or, you know, any
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  shared spaces. When guests know what to expect,
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  they're far more forgiving and they're so much more
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  appreciative. So transparency builds trust.
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  Trust and Trust leads to five star reviews.
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  Absolutely. And in in terms of communication
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  as well, where do you stand on sending automated messages?
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  I'm particularly thinking after the stay here where you might be
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  wanting to prompt the guest to to leave your a review and in
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  relation to kind of like, it sounds a bit bad.
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  We're kind of like coaching people into making sure that
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  they leave you a 5 star review or a good review or that they
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  understand the review system. You know what would your advice
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  be there? You know, different hosts have
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  different advice here. What's interesting is I've
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  actually never once asked for a five star review and I have over
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  2500 five star reviews. I feel like if you just focus on
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  giving the guest a fabulous experience, those reviews will
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  naturally come. And you know, even though I
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  don't specifically ask, please leave a five star review,
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  something I will say sometimes is, you know, thanks for being a
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  fabulous guest and leaving the space so clean.
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  I will definitely be leaving you a 5 star review.
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  And it kind of like puts it in their head, you know, Maybe I
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  should leave her a five star review, too.
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  Yeah, it's like a little nudge, isn't it?
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  It's like a little a little nudge. 5 star, five star.
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  Brilliant. 5 fantastic tips there, Caitlin.
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  I'm sure people in the audience will find them really useful.
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  Just tell us about your platform host with Kate, where people can
• 13:16
  find you and how you help people.
• 13:18
  Sure. Yeah.
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  So host with Kate, it's my business.
• 13:21
  I am a furnished rental host advisor, so I help new hosts get
• 13:26
  their spaces ready and on board, specifically to the Airbnb
• 13:30
  platform. I'm an Airbnb super host
• 13:32
  ambassador. You can learn all about myself
• 13:35
  and my business and my services at Host with kate.com and on
• 13:40
  social media at Host with Kate. Fantastic.
• 13:44
  And we will put all those details in the show notes.
• 13:46
  Caitlin. It's been a real pleasure.
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  Thank you for joining us on host Planet Bite Size.
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  Thanks so much for having me. Great to chat to Caitlin Almeida
• 13:53
  there from host with Kate Remember personalization can be
• 13:57
  key when aiming for that all important five star review.
• 14:01
  All right that's it for today's episode.
• 14:02
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  That's it for today's episode. Until next time, happy hosting.