Why Bad Reviews are a Good Thing in Short Term Rental

[Luke Carl]

Yeah, I said it. And yes it's because I just got one. 

     First of all -I want to make it perfectly clear that I am not encouraging you to allow bad reviews. Anything short of a glowing 5-star review that quite frankly looks like you paid for it, should ruin your day. Maybe even two or three days. This is an indication that you are good at your job. Because after all, you are running a business here.

      Second -Allowing them to leave this bad review, in my opinion, is exactly what you're doing. It is very rare that I didn't say to myself "Yeah I could have done this or that to make that guest stay better" But sometimes, you just have to throw your hands in the air and say "Screw it. This person will never be happy in life and I'm not their therapist -there's nothing I can do to help them." As uncle Paul Sandhu says... You must be a mind reader in this business! 

     And furthermore, if you're providing a great product that is super clean and has decent sheets, plates, large televisions that work, flushing toilets, etc.... If you're confident in your property -at a certain point you just have to let miserable people be miserable. 

So... To get to my argument... here's why BAD reviews can make you look GOOD! 

It makes you look real

     If you've got 249 5 star reviews it looks like you're faking it. An occasional 4 star or even a 1 star can make you look REAL! 

People that leave bad reviews are not smart

     Successful people have better things to do. Bad grammar and horrible English in a review (and nearly all bad reviews have this) are laughable. Future guests will instantly take your side when they see a "they're" spelled "there" or a lower case "i" (and while I'm at it, don't hold my typos against me, I'm sure there are a couple)

TLDR 

     The "Let me speak to your manager" types always leave a LONG ridiculous review. This review is therapeutic for this type of person. It gives off an "I can't control my husband or my kids and they don't like me but I can control your property for this moment in my life" vibe that future guests can see right through. 

Guests that read every review are the type that leaves a bad review

     Like it or not the only person that will ever read this view (assuming they're far and few between) are people that are also likely to leave a bad review. The average guest is never going to see this review so feel free to get over it. 

You Get To Respond!

     I'm giving away one of my tricks here. I've been a super host on Airbnb for years. 2000+ 5 star reviews across 3 platforms. I have the longest self-managed log cabin in the smoky mountains and I'm about to give you one of my biggest tricks. RESPOND TO ALL REVIEWS. Not just the bad ones. 

    I have my assistant do this for me daily. Just a simple "Thanks for your stay" goes a long way for future guests.  BUT when it comes to responding to the bad reviews... This is where you get to shine.  Spend an hour or two cultivating this response to really nail the bad guest. Don't respond right away when you're dealing with the initial upset. Don't wait too long or you'll forget because you're too busy analyzing the next property. 

I'm sure there are other excellent reasons and this is a forum so I'd love to hear yours -but I've got to get out the door for my morning run. After I respond to this 2 star real with terrible grammar.  

Happy Renting!